The Ultimate Guide to Eco-friendly Easter Decorations

Easter grass never disappears. Two months after Easter, you're still finding thin, plastic shreds in carpets and cushions, even when you swear you've finally gotten the last of it.

The bigger problem is that it doesn't go away when you toss it in the trash. After the holiday, plastic Easter grass and Easter decorations are sent to the landfill, where they can take hundreds of years to decompose.

But it isn't hard to have an eco-friendly Easter when you choose fair trade, and it's easy to shop fair trade when you shop with SERRV. From handmade Easter decorations and basket fillers to delicious fair trade chocolate and more, you'll find what you need for your seasonal celebration while minimizing your impact on the planet.

Build a sustainable Easter basket

The importance of eco-friendly celebrations

In 2018, Americans generated 292 million tons of waste, the majority of which was sent to landfills. Traditional plastic Easter baskets, one-time use Easter grass, and plastic eggs all ultimately end up in the garbage, adding to that waste.

Artisan-made Easter decorations and gifts, however, are a way to eliminate plastic altogether. When you choose natural and upcycled materials, you're reducing your impact on the planet. Plus, when you choose eco-friendly handcrafts from SERRV, you're supporting fair trade.

Why SERRV is different

We work with thousands of skilled artisans and farmers around the world to bring sustainably-made items and sustainably-grown foods to the United States, and handmade Easter decorations are no exception. When artisans craft beautiful hand-painted Easter eggs, cheerful Easter baskets and other Easter accents, they earn a fair and vital income for their work, enabling them to support their families. Fair trade also supports community development projects, from literacy programs and education for girls to environmental protection initiatives.

We carry over 125 eco-friendly and ethically made Easter accents from a dozen different countries, including ornaments, basket fillers, textiles, and more, made from sustainable materials like natural grasses, handmade silk paper, and upcycled sari.

Our top eco-friendly Easter decorations

While we love all our Easter handcrafts, here are a few of our most popular Easter gifts and decorations.

Handmade Easter Eggs

Easter wouldn't be complete without Easter eggs, and our dozens of different options are our most popular handmade Easter decorations. Plus, they're great alternatives to traditional plastic eggs.

Quilled eggs: Artisans in Vietnam coil and glue small paper strips into colorful and festive patterns perfect for the Easter season. They gain access to skills trainings and a vital source of income for their crafts. Our top picks: Spring Radiance and Butterflies!

Kashmiri eggs: Our most popular Easter eggs are crafted from papier mache, then meticulously hand painted with colorful springtime designs by artisans in Kashmir. Through their crafts, they're able to preserve traditional painting techniques in a safe working environment. Our top picks: Himalayan Flower and Petite Floral!

Natural eggs: From hand-carved soapstone to dyed capiz shell and handwoven abaca fibers

Display them on a mantel, in a natural nest, or in an eco-friendly grass basket.

Handmade Easter critters

Whether you need to add something cute to a shelf or give an adorable Easter gift, fair trade Easter critters are a fun and whimsical way to support fair trade and celebrate sustainably.

Our knit and crocheted Easter critters are made entirely by hand using wool remnants or natural cotton threads. Our top picks: Beard & Braids Easter Gnomes and Crocheted Bunny Sisters!

Looking for rabbits? SERRV has something for everybunny! Each of our Easter rabbits is made from natural clay, hand-carved wood, hand-woven rattan, partially recycled metal and other sustainable materials, all crafted using traditional techniques.

We also carry ethically made Easter lambs and birdies featuring unique and eco-friendly materials like hand-harvested tagua nut, quilled paper, and felted wool.

Easter table decorations

Getting the table ready for Easter dinner is another important part of hosting this spring holiday, and one of our top eco-friendly Easter decorations is our hand-embroidered cotton table textile collection from India. Our Shalimar Table Textiles feature sustainable cotton with hand-embroidered wildflower details and are perfect for Easter or year-round use. Each one is crafted by skilled artisan women of many faiths in Ahmedabad, India, who gain access to vital income while promoting peace.

Divine Chocolate eggs

No Easter gift basket is complete without flavorful artisan chocolates, and Divine Chocolate eggs in three delicious flavors are an ethical and eco-friendly option for all ages. Our popular Speckled Milk Chocolate Eggs feature a pastel-colored crunchy candy shell covering rich milk chocolate, making them an indulgent treat for anyone (order extras for you!). The cocoa used to make these eggs is grown using sustainable farming techniques by a co-op of 100,000 cocoa farmers in 57 different communities in Ghana, who benefit from adult literacy and numeracy programs alongside women's education and empowerment initiatives while earning above market prices for their cocoa beans.

Easter garden decorations

When decorating for Easter, don't forget your garden! Adding a touch of spring to porches, flower beds, and yards is another way to bring cheerful color to your home--without extra planting. SERRV carries a variety of wall and lawn ornaments made from long-lasting materials that you can use again and again, including recycled oil drums, partially recycled iron and more.

DIY Eco-Friendly Easter Decoration Ideas

Handmade Easter decorations can add a touch of whimsy to your home. While many of the things you need to craft are available at your local hobby store, you can incorporate eco-friendly and fair trade into your DIY projects with SERRV.

Easter trees & ornaments

While not as popular as the Christmas tree, Easter trees are taking off as a charming and personalized ways to add a festive centerpiece to a table or mantel. Make your own from a fallen tree branch, or choose SERRV's crepe paper Blossom Easter Tree, then decorate with festive Easter ornaments. Get the kids involved and use recycled paper to make bunnies and chicks, paint wooden eggs, and more. For a more sophisticated piece, choose ornaments from SERRV. We have over a dozen different varieties all made with sustainable materials, including natural buri palm, hand-painted papier mache, and hand-quilled paper. Add a final touch with a springy garland; if you don't want to make your own, we carry several different festive styles!

Easter wreaths

Welcome guests into your home with Easter spirit. Choose a base, whether you use wood, wire, or floral foam, and accent with spring greenery, branches, and other natural materials. SERRV carries the perfect accessories for any Easter wreath, including handwoven abaca garlands and festive eggs and carrots. Not in the D-I-Y spirit? Our Abaca Easter Blooms Wreath is the perfect alternative and is crafted entirely by hand, bringing colorful spring whimsy to your space while providing a vital source of income for skilled artisans in the Philippines.

Reusing old Easter decorations

Stuck with dozens of plastic eggs? You don't have to throw them away--here are some eco-friendly craft ideas for leftover decorations.

With plastic Easter eggs, you can make:

• Wreaths
• Garlands
• Succulent planters
• Soap molds
• Bird feeders

With plastic Easter baskets, you can:

• Fill them with festive greenery and other accents to create a centerpiece
• Use them again to give a birthday, housewarming, or just-because gift

Celebrating Easter sustainably

There are more ways to have an eco-friendly Easter beyond giving sustainable gifts (though that's a great way to start!). You can bring sustainability to the kitchen, too. Use organically-farmed ingredients to make Easter dinner, and purchase local produce if it's available. Instead of using paper plates for Easter dinner, consider pulling out the fancy china, or use your regular washable dishes. Check out SERRV's collection of sustainable serveware here. Leftovers? Cover them with reusable bowl covers (like these Sari ones from SERRV!) or use eco-friendly beeswax wrap. You can also take scraps and add them to a compost bin--learn how to get started here.

Another way you can reduce waste this Easter is by reusing decorations from last year and skipping the plastic wrapping around Easter baskets.

Don't forget to think about other ways to minimize your impact on the planet during your Easter celebrations. Whether that's carpooling or biking to your Easter church services or purchasing eco-friendly gifts, your choices make a difference.

Make a difference when you shop with SERRV

When you choose sustainable Easter gifts and decorations from SERRV, you make a difference for more than just the planet. Each handcrafted item is ethically made by a skilled artisan or farmer, who is able to support their family through fair trade. By shopping fair trade, you also support green initiatives around the world. Our partners not only work to ensure that artisans and farmers gain access to basic healthcare and vital income, they also work to support communities around the world as they tackle climate change initiatives such as installing solar power, building wastewater treatment facilities, planting trees for reforestation projects, and more.

Purchasing fair trade from SERRV also makes a difference in peoples' lives--here are just a few of the stories our partners have of your impact:

• KTS in Nepal: "Our focus on primary education, orphanages, vocational skill training, and income-generating programs has enabled us to create pathways for individuals who would have otherwise faced limited prospects."
• Camari in Ecuador: "We have achieved keeping entire families in good living conditions."
• JusTea in Kenya: "Our work in Kenya over the past 10 years has created employment for over 200 families."
• Aspirations International in India: "[We're proud to] see our artisans opening up their [own] workshops and... now providing work opportunities to others in need."

When you shop fair trade, you make a positive impact on the lives of global artisans and farmers and their communities. They're able to make a living through their crafts and crops while also gaining access to valuable resources, safe working conditions, and more.

The Top 3 Ways to Have a Sustainable Easter Celebration

Now that you have inspiration for your eco-friendly Easter, where do you start? Here's what we recommend:

• Give sustainable Easter gifts from fair trade artisans and farmers
• Make Easter decorations from natural, recycled, and upcycled materials
• Minimize your impact and choose organic and sustainably grown ingredients for Easter dinner

When you choose eco-friendly and fair trade, you support small-scale artisans and farmers while minimizing your impact on the environment.

Get started on your eco-friendly Easter journey! Browse SERRV's collection of 125+ handmade Easter items from over 20 different countries around the world, and find the perfect addition to your home.