Has your child ever come home from a birthday party with a bag of candy and throwaway plastic toys? Is there really anyone who can say “No!” to that? I’ve even seen myself give out party gifts that make me groan and feel more determined than ever to improve the loot bag with each passing year. Every time I throw a children’s party, I manage to get a little closer to the ideal of a low-impact loot bag.
First Rule of the Eco-friendly Loot Bag
It you are actually going to include a bag, make it a reusable bag—and not just any reusable bag. Make it a bag a child will want to reuse. Try a purse or a snack bag.
Small but Lasting
Rather than a throwaway party favor that lasts no longer than the ride home, make your child’s party loot a lasting toy or treasure.
My children recently purged their rooms of fast-food toys, Christmas stocking stuffers, Scholastic sale items, and other little pieces of pointless plastic. (I know. Horror.) Their rejected pile of tiny toys was surprisingly huge. None of these items entered the long-term play stream. I’m glad to see them go, but what a waste. Don’t contribute to this!
Loot bags can get expensive. It’s much better to give one great gift than to pile up many little things that will never be touched or considered again except when they are finally thrown out. Most of the loot bag gifts at bynature.ca Celebrations department are under $10.
Buy Sets
If you want to include a variety in each bag while keeping the cost low, buy sets of crayons or pencils or clay then break up the set with one item per bag.
Follow the Party Theme
The gift will be more memorable if it is tied to the theme of the party. If your daughter has a fairy party, a fairy wand will remind guests of playing with their friends. If your son has an art party, taking home the art supplies will give guests many more hours of fun remembering their party projects.
Activity As Gift
Sometimes, the activities can create the gifts. With a Wooden Truck Kit or Wooden Bug Kit, the toy a guest makes is the gift to take home. You could do the same with an All Natural Lip Balm Making Kit.
What do you do for birthday party loot bags?
I’m so excited for a month of eco-parties. We will cover this theme from many angles this month. If you have questions about eco-parties or stories of what you have done to lower the impact of your child’s parties, please share.
Last year my daughter wanted to give flowers. So we bought some ceramic flower pots at the Dollar Store (very cute, painted ones!) and I bought some potting soil and found trays of pansies on clearance. So we potted up some flowers and most of the kids thought it was great. This year we might even do small containers with seeds.
Another thing I’ve seen done is to give out passes for the local pool, along with inserting a schedule for community programs.
BC, I love the idea of giving a swim pass and schedule.
As my daughter’s birthday is in July and we celebrated it at the lake I gave all the kids a sand pail and shovel!!