Halloween: Five ways to be spooky and sustainable

It's the spooky time of the year again.

With all the creepy costumes, treats and ghoulishly good decorations - Halloween can lead to a lot of waste.

Here are some top tips on how you can be sustainable - but stay spooky - this year.

1) Costumes - reuse and recycle

You might be planning on dressing up in a scary costume or some funky fancy dress for Halloween this year.

However, did you know that the clothing and costumes can generate thousands of tonnes of plastic waste?

Before you think about getting a new costume, if you're just going to wear it for one day, why not have a look at the outfit you have from last year, if it still fits you.

There's also always the option of asking your friend to do a costume swap too if yours is too small!

And if you want to get crafty, give making a costume a go. Old sheets can make great capes or ghost outfits and an old shirt stained with ketchup or jam can transform you into a scary zombie!

2) Homemade decorations

So you've made your own spooky costume, now it's time to decorate.

Shop-bought decorations can often be made up of single use plastics which, when thrown away, can be damaging to the environment.

Why not make a spiderweb out of paper? Or some lollipop sticks and string? Or use card, glue and cotton wool to make a ghost? Boo!

3) Go pumpkin picking

Visiting a pumpkin patch near where you live can be both and eco-friendly and a fun day out.

Picking pumpkins grown from a farm or a field with your family, rather than buying one from a supermarket, often means that the pumpkins haven't had to travel that far to get to you.

4) Make the most of your pumpkins

Pumpkins are great as a Halloween lantern to attract trick or treaters, but after Halloween a carved pumpkin can be used to make lots of tasty treats - if it's in an okay condition.

Pumpkin pie, pumpkin soup, and even pumpkin curry can be made with the flesh from leftover Halloween pumpkins.

Why not grab an adult and get cooking some delicious pumpkin treats?

5) Bags and buckets

Instead of picking up a plastic bucket to take trick or treating, why not use a reusable bag?

Using decorated old pillow cases can help cut down on plastic - and can be another fun Halloween craft.

Rather than buying sweets which are wrapped in plastic packaging to give out to trick or treaters, baking your own Halloween cookies and cakes with a parent or guardian can be just as tasty.

Happy Halloween! Do you have any eco-friendly Halloween plans? Drop them in the comments below.