If there’s one thing a sunny winter’s day calls for, it’s gathering friends and family, laying out a cosy rug under the swaying fronds of a grand old tree, and soaking up some cooler-weather rays. Just insert some cheese, wine and great conversation.
But as we become more conscious of our carbon footprint and how everything we do impacts this beautiful planet we call home, we start to notice some of the more disposable elements of the sunny winter picnic. Plastic wrap. Throwaway cutlery and plates. Straws. All picnic mandatories in the past, yet less appealing as we realise their one-way ticket to landfill.
As we almost wrap up Plastic Free July a global initiative asking us all to be more mindful about limiting - or, ideally, entirely eradicating - our single-use plastics, we’ve created the perfect plastic-free picnic for you.
RUG: Waverley Mills Recycled Wool Picnic Blanket
Waverley Mills is Australia’s oldest working textile mill, and in more recent years they’ve started producing recycled wool blankets, throws and picnic rugs using wool waste, off-cuts and older blankets that are shredded, then reworked, creating new pieces you’ll cherish forever.
CUTLERY: Seed & Sprout Bamboo Utensil Set
A Byron-based brand creating sustainable reusable products across everything from kitchenware to cleaning products, Seed & Sprout also ship plastic-free - an added contribution to your Plastic Free July! This cutlery set has everything you could ever need at a picnic, including chopsticks and a bamboo straw.
COMPOSTABLE PLATES: Biome Palm Leaf Plates
If your picnic calls for disposable plating, you can still avoid unrecyclable or plastic options. These palm leaf plates from Biome are produced with no chemicals or synthetics, and you can actually turn them into mulch by placing them upside down on garden beds when you’re done with them.
REUSABLE WRAP: Ever Eco Silicone Food Covers
Stretchy, air-tight and washable, these silicone food wraps can be washed and reused again and again, making them a far better, environmentally-friendly alternative to single-use cling wrap.
CLOTH NAPKINS: Bed Threads 100% Flax Linen Scalloped Napkins
Bed Threads make some of the best linen bedding in Australia, and in more recent years have ventured into everything from loungewear to tablewares, like these new scalloped napkins which will turn any humble picnic into something a little more stylish. Best of all, you can wash and reuse them over and again.
Words by Melissa Mason.
Melissa is a freelance writer and podcast host. You can find her on Twitter and Instagram.