50+ Eco-Friendly Easter Basket Ideas For Kids
Looking for eco-friendly Easter basket ideas for kids that won’t add more plastic to the landfill? We’ve got 50+ waste free gifts that are perfect for Easter. This is an Easter basket you can feel good about giving to your children.
This is a long post, so click on our table of contents to go directly to the section that interests you.
- Find An Eco-Friendly Basket
- Some Ideas For Eco-Friendly Grass
- Options For Fillable Eggs
- Eco-Friendly Easter Candy
- Homemade Easter Basket Fillers
- Eco-Friendly Easter Basket Toys
I know the feeling. You’re trying to cut down on plastic, but you really want to create a fabulous Easter basket for your kids.
You look at what’s available in the stores but can’t quite bring yourself to buy more cheap plastic novelty toys and Easter candy with a ton of packaging.
Wouldn’t it be great to create an awesome eco-friendly Easter basket with NO waste!?
I know the stores are filled Easter stuff that is anything but waste free. So, you may wonder if it is possible to find sustainable gifts that you kids will love?
You bet it is! I did it for years and I have some excellent tips to help you do just that. It’s going to take some creativity.
It may mean changing the way you find the stuff to fill it, but your kids are worth it. and you can feel good about ditching the waste. Are you ready to begin?
Find An Eco-Friendly Basket
First of we are going to need a basket. What do you have in your house that you could use?
Eco tip: It doesn’t need to be an actual basket
- A toy pail
- Used gift basket
- Toy container
- A small book bag
Can you up-cycle something to make a basket? I love this list of up-cycled DIY Easter basket ideas at Rhythms of Play
Thrift stores are a good source of baskets. Brighten them up with soap and water and add some paint if needed.
If you need to buy something, try to find a basket/bag that can be reused year after year. Here are some options.
Some Ideas For Eco-Friendly Grass
Easter grass is not necessary, but I’ll admit it looks great lining the basket. Here are some waste free options.
- Paper grass that can be re-used and recycled. The colors are gorgeous!
- Grow some wheat grass
- Use a play silk. They come in all colors and can be used as a toy once Easter is finished.
The other thing that is fun to do is to grow your own grass. It is great project to do with kids. You can find instructions here.
Eco tip: Do you have a shredder? Why not shred up some Easter flyers?
Options For Fillable Eggs
This is where it gets tricky. By all means reuse refillable plastic eggs that you have at home. If you are looking for something new try decorated tin eggs or wooden ones. All of these can be used year after year.
The hollow wooden eggs are more expensive, but they are beautifully made and will last for ages. They can be decorated.
Looking for some fun things to put in your eggs? We’ve got loads of ideas for fillers that are not junk.
EGG DECORATING
My boys always love decorating eggs and some of those eggs ended up in their Easter baskets.
We tended to use natural dyes whenever possible. This video shows you how to make beautiful eggs using onion skins. (You can also try red cabbage leaves. It turns the eggs blue.)
If you are looking for something mess free, try our tissue paper dyed eggs.
Eco-Friendly Easter Candy
The bulk food store is your best bet. Candy can be presented in small cloth bags, in wooden eggs, or fill up small mason jars.
I love this Mason Jar Easter Basket from Hello little Home.
Save foil wrap to use for crafts. Here’s some fun ideas.
Skip The Easter Eggs
I discovered very early on that my boys didn’t care what form their chocolate came in. They didn’t get upset at the lack of eggs and were just as happy with their favorite chocolate bar.
Most Easter eggs come with loads of packaging and very little chocolate. The everyday chocolate bars taste just as good, have far less waste, and are about a third of the price.
You could also try your hand at making sweet treats. Hello Rice Krispie, Jello and Nutella Cream Eggs!
Non-Candy Eco-Friendly Easter Basket Ideas
It is nice to put some non-candy gifts into our basket. How can we do this in a sustainable way? Here are some perfect candy free Easter basket ideas. First let’s shop the house
- Has your child been given a gift for Christmas they didn’t get around to using? Can it be put in the basket?
- Do your older kids have gently used Easter gifts they don’t use? Ask for permission to use them for a younger sibling.
- Gather random art and craft supplies and use them to make mini art kits.
Homemade Easter Basket Fillers
You can also make some small gifts if you have time. I love these pocket felt rabbits. You could also mix up a batch of
Eco tip: All of these home made gifts can be stored in mason jars if you want to go truly waste free.
Make coupons (free printables)
Another easy waste-free idea is to make coupons that offer special privileges or fun experiences.
Kids will love getting a coupon for a day without any chores, a movie night, or one that entitles them to a fun outing. Need ideas? Check out our post of experience gift ideas.
Eco-Friendly Easter Basket Toys
Opt for a few high-quality toys and books instead of multiple small toys to reduce waste and keep your home clutter-free.
Soft Toys
My boys could never get enough small soft toys. I have mixed feelings. On the one hand they are very cute, but they aren’t always environmentally friendly.
If you have Easter plush toys from previous years, why not re-use them? If you want something new, here are my picks.
Art and Crafts
Anything that encourages creativity is always welcome and provides the perfect indoor activity for rainy spring days. Here are my picks.
I’m also intrigued by these earth paints made from natural ingredients. You have to mix them up, but they would keep in small mason jars.
Nature Lovers
If you have a nature lover, why not include a nature-themed gift in their basket. This could include a magnifying glass or binoculars, a nature journal with colored pencils for sketching treasures, or a new field guide.
Our printable nature journal contains 27 pages of fun activities to help children document their observations through art and words. Print the pages you want to create a unique journal for your child.
Budding Gardeners
One of the themes of Easter is new life and renewal, Gather a cute kid’s garden tool set and pair it with some fun seeds and a nature activity book.
For seeds I would recommend the little summer fun garden. It contains 6 packages of heirloom seeds, starter soil, wooden plant ID stakes, growing instructions, growing journal, pencil and an egg carton planter!
There is also this beautiful collection of seeds that attract butterflies
Don’t forget
Then there is my personal favorite- pencils you can plant! I kid you not!
Books
Books will always be on my list. Though I really cut down on the number of toys, books were something we never skimped on. I wanted my boys to have access to plenty of good books.
Eco tip: If you want to give the gift of books in a waste free manner, why not gift a library card and a book bag.
Some Eco-Friendly Guidelines
Let’s set out some simple guidelines to help you keep waste to a minimum this Easter. I’m sure these are things you already do, but it is worth reminding ourselves before we buy anything.
Our goal is to reduce waste, and do something more sustainable, right?
We will do this by
- Reusing what we can (this means “shopping our house” or finding things second hand.)
- Recycle or up-cycle wherever possible.
- When we buy something, choose eco-friendly products with as little waste as possible.
