Party Favors and Decorations
What Should I Do With It?
Party favors and festive decorations, widely used for birthdays, holidays, and social gatherings, require careful sorting before disposal. Clean, plain paper and cardboard items are highly recyclable, provided they do not have plastic, metallic, or fabric attachments. However, you should never place tissue paper, or items decorated with glitter, foil, plastic charms, and ribbons, into your curbside recycling bin because these materials weaken and contaminate the paper recycling stream. To reduce environmental impact, consider saving and reusing intact decorations for future celebrations, making decorations from scratch using household scraps, or transitioning to biodegradable alternatives.
Before throwing this away, see if it can be fixed up, given to a friend, or donated to a local thrift shop. Keeping items in use is the best way to stop waste before it starts!
The recycling guidelines shown here are for general reference and educational purposes. Every city and town has different rules, sorting equipment, and recycling programs.
Please check your local town website or ask your local garbage collection program to make sure you are following your neighborhood's rules.