4 WAYS TO GO GREEN THIS MID-AUTUMN FESTIVAL

The 15th day of the eighth month of the Chinese lunar calendar is coming up very soon (8 September, in fact) and it's when families get together to give thanks, a bit like the American Thanksgiving! Here are four tips to make your celebrations a green one.

1. Forget the packaging!

Photo: Tiamyaium

Mooncakes are being sold in all sorts of fancy boxes be it cardboard, plastic or even metal. There are still bakery outlets that sell mooncakes individually, so select your favourite ones and do with out the box. Go home and wrap them up nicely in a nice piece of reusable fabric before presenting them as gifts. The Japanese Furoshiki method is a great place to start.

2. Make Your Own Mooncakes!

Domestic Goddess Wannabe / Via thedomesticgoddesswannabe.com

Yes, you can make your own mooncakes, but why not make the slightly healthier version - snowskin mooncakes. Diana of Domestic Goddess Wannabe shows you how to make them at home with ingredients you can find at the grocery store. Plus, she used low-sugar lotus paste.

Or if you don't like lotus paste at all, try out PeiPeiHaoHao's Soya Milk and Milo Agar Agar mooncake! I think the kids will love them - just like jelly!

3. Use Last Year's Lantern

Green Issues by Agy / Via greenissuessingapore.blogspot.sg

Don't waste! Use last year's lantern - no one will notice!

4. Be Considerate

If you are planning to celebrate and observe the festival in a public place, remember to clean up afterwards. It also means getting rid of any wax that may have resulted from using candles. We love our candles and lanterns so if you want to light some up consider using a foil tray to hold them - no more melted wax mess at the end of the celebrations.

Have a great time, everyone!

Agy is a fabric hacker/upcycler at Green Issues by Agy