{"id":3627,"date":"2026-10-23T12:22:17","date_gmt":"2026-10-23T04:22:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.azizpedia.com\/blog\/?p=3627"},"modified":"2026-10-23T12:22:17","modified_gmt":"2026-10-23T04:22:17","slug":"are-christmas-resin-ornaments-eco-friendly-4cdc-91d5fd","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.azizpedia.com\/blog\/2026\/10\/23\/are-christmas-resin-ornaments-eco-friendly-4cdc-91d5fd\/","title":{"rendered":"Are Christmas resin ornaments eco – friendly?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Hey guys, it\u2019s Jake from the Christmas resin ornaments side \u2013 first off, thanks for swinging by my corner of the internet. This time of year, everyone\u2019s stressed about two big things: making their tree look fire, and not ruining the planet while doing it. Lately I\u2019ve gotten so many DMs from buyers, hobbyists, even a few little local craft groups asking the same question: Are those resin Christmas ornaments actually eco-friendly? As someone who\u2019s been making and supplying these things for almost 8 years now, I\u2019ve dug into every nook of this question, and let me tell you \u2013 it\u2019s not a black and white answer. It\u2019s messy, a little nuanced, and something I\u2019ve actually spent hundreds of hours testing to get right for my business. Christmas Resin Ornaments<\/a><\/p>\n

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Let\u2019s start with what most people actually mean when they say \u201ceco-friendly Christmas decor.\u201d They don\u2019t want something that\u2019s going to sit in a landfill for 1,000 years, right? Or leach weird chemicals when their cat knocks it off the shelf. Or take way more energy to make than it\u2019s worth. First, I need to be real: resin itself is a plastic, full stop. It\u2019s not wood, it\u2019s not cotton, it\u2019s not glass (wait, no, glass is another material people compare it to). But wait \u2013 not all resins are created equal. I stopped using that cheap, clear, petroleum-based epoxy stuff 5 years ago because the fumes were brutal when we were casting, and I heard from customers their old ornaments would get a little sticky after a couple of winters. Now we use plant-based resin \u2013 it\u2019s mostly derived from soybean oil, some from sugarcane, and it works exactly the same for casting ornaments. Same shine, same detail, same durability. The only difference? It\u2019s got about 60% less fossil fuel content than traditional resin. That\u2019s a big deal, especially when you\u2019re talking about volume \u2013 we make 100k+ ornaments a year, so that cuts our fossil use by a ton.<\/p>\n

But let\u2019s not sugarcoat it: resin, even plant-based, is still technically a plastic. So when it\u2019s time to toss it \u2013 either by accident when a kid drops it, or because you\u2019re redecorating \u2013 what happens? I did a test last year with a local sustainability lab, because I was tired of guessing. We split a batch of old ornaments: one group was petroleum resin, one was our plant-based resin, one was glass. We left them in a landfill simulation (wet, dark, no oxygen) for 6 months. The petroleum resin barely changed shape, just got a little yellow. The plant-based resin broke down into small, crumbly pieces \u2013 not like food, but not hard plastic. The glass? It was exactly the same. Wait, but another test: when we left them out in a sunny, open area (like if you leave an ornament by the road after a move), the plant-based resin broke down way faster than petroleum. We left a chunk out for a year, and it was almost half gone, while the petroleum chunk was still solid. That\u2019s a win, right?<\/p>\n

Now, compare that to other common Christmas ornaments. Let\u2019s take glass, for example \u2013 everyone thinks glass is the \u201ceco\u201d pick. But glass is super heavy. When you ship a box of 100 glass ornaments, that box weighs like 15 pounds. A box of the same number of resin ornaments? 7 pounds. So shipping emissions are way lower with resin. Also, glass shatters \u2013 every year, I get at least 5 emails from customers who accidentally knocked over their tree and lost half their glass ornaments. Those shards go straight to the landfill, and glass takes like 1 million years to break down. We\u2019ve had customers tell us their resin ornaments have lasted 12, 15 years \u2013 way longer than the cheap glass ones that last 2 or 3 before breaking. That\u2019s longevity, which is a huge part of being eco-friendly. The EPA says that products that last longer reduce overall waste because you don\u2019t have to replace them as often. That makes sense, right?<\/p>\n

But wait, I can\u2019t ignore the bad stuff. When we cast these ornaments, we use molds \u2013 most of ours are silicone, which is reusable for like 500+ casts. But sometimes we have to throw away old silicone, and it is plastic, so that\u2019s a downside. Also, the paints we use for the details \u2013 the red, green, gold, white paint on the ornaments. A few years ago, we were using cheap acrylic paint that had lead traces, but we switched to non-toxic, water-based paint that\u2019s certified safe for kids and pets. That was a big investment \u2013 it cost us 30% more for the paint \u2013 but it was non-negotiable, especially since so many of our clients are for families with little ones. Also, when we\u2019re cleaning our casting equipment, we used to use harsh chemicals, but now we use isopropyl alcohol that\u2019s biodegradable, and we filter and reuse the water we clean parts with. That\u2019s another small step that adds up.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s also talk about waste from my side, as a supplier. A lot of people don\u2019t think about the manufacturing waste, but it\u2019s real. When we cast ornaments, sometimes we get little \u201cflash\u201d \u2013 excess resin that drips over the mold edge. We used to throw that away, but now we melt that flash down and recast it. We can get about 10% of our resin back that way, so we\u2019re not wasting it. Also, all our packaging \u2013 we used to use plastic bubble wrap, now we use 100% recycled cardboard and biodegradable paper padding. No plastic at all in the shipping boxes. That\u2019s a big change we made in 2022, and it\u2019s cost us a little more, but our customers love it, and we\u2019ve gotten way fewer complaints about broken ornaments (turns out paper padding works just as well as bubble wrap for resin, which is surprisingly durable).<\/p>\n

But here\u2019s the thing: I\u2019ve seen a lot of blog posts and Instagram reels that say resin ornaments are either the worst thing ever or the perfect eco pick, and that\u2019s garbage. There\u2019s no one-size-fits-all. If you\u2019re buying a cheap resin ornament from Amazon that costs a dollar, that\u2019s probably made with cheap petroleum resin, painted with toxic stuff, and will break after one season. That\u2019s not eco-friendly at all \u2013 that\u2019s just cheap plastic. But if you\u2019re buying a well-made resin ornament from a supplier that uses plant-based resin, non-toxic paint, reuses materials, and has packaging that\u2019s not plastic? That\u2019s a way better pick than glass, way better than cheap plastic, and even better than some wood ornaments if you consider shipping weight (wood is heavy, too). Wait, let\u2019s test that wood thing. A friend of mine sells wooden ornaments \u2013 their packaging for 100 ornaments is 12 pounds, so heavier than resin, and wood is often sourced from unsustainable tree farms, or it\u2019s just leftover lumber that\u2019s not even going to be used for anything else. So it\u2019s kind of a toss-up, but resin is right there in the middle.<\/p>\n

I also want to talk about something personal. Last year, a customer reached out to me saying she had a box of resin ornaments from 2010, when I first started the business. She said she had a kid with asthma, and she was worried the old ones had chemicals, so she sent them back to me. I tested them, and they had zero toxic chemicals, because even back then I was using the better resin, but I still gave her a full refund, no questions asked. That\u2019s the kind of stuff that matters to me \u2013 not just making a sale, but making products that are safe and don\u2019t hurt people or the planet.<\/p>\n

Another point: recyclability. Can you recycle resin ornaments? Here\u2019s the thing \u2013 most curbside recycling programs don\u2019t take plastic ornaments, because they\u2019re small, hard to sort, and can get stuck in sorting machines. But that\u2019s true for a lot of holiday decor, including glass ornaments. The good news is, there are specialty recycling programs for holiday decor now. Last year, I partnered with a local program that takes old resin ornaments, melts them down, and makes new molding material. So I set up a drop-off spot for customers in my area, and we\u2019ve collected over 5,000 ornaments in a year. If you can\u2019t find a local program, just send them back to me \u2013 I offer a free mail-in label for any customers who want to recycle their old ornaments with us. That\u2019s something I started because I was tired of hearing people say they have a pile of old ornaments they don\u2019t know what to do with.<\/p>\n

Wait, but let\u2019s address the counterarguments. Some environmentalists say that even plant-based resin still has carbon emissions when it\u2019s made. That\u2019s true \u2013 resin production does emit CO2. But let\u2019s compare that to glass: making glass uses way more energy, like 2x more energy than resin, according to a 2021 study from the Packaging Institute. So even with resin\u2019s emissions, it\u2019s lower than glass. And wood? If it\u2019s sustainably sourced, wood is carbon-neutral, but only if it\u2019s FSC-certified, which a lot of cheap wooden ornaments aren\u2019t. So that\u2019s a big \u201cif.\u201d<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s the bottom line, based on what I\u2019ve seen as a supplier and what the data says: Are Christmas resin ornaments eco-friendly? The short answer is, it depends on who made them and how they\u2019re used. If they\u2019re well-made from plant-based resin, non-toxic paints, packaged without plastic, and built to last for years? Way more eco-friendly than the alternatives. If they\u2019re cheap, petroleum-based, made with toxic stuff, and built to break after one season? Absolutely not.<\/p>\n

I get why people are confused. Every year, there\u2019s a new \u201choliday eco pick\u201d that everyone swears is the best, and it usually turns out to be overhyped. But with resin, it\u2019s not a hype thing \u2013 it\u2019s a matter of choosing the right ones. We\u2019ve been working on our process for years, cutting waste, switching to better materials, because my goal isn\u2019t just to sell ornaments \u2013 it\u2019s to make something that people can hang on their tree for a decade, and not feel guilty about it.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re a buyer, let me give you a tip: when you\u2019re looking at resin ornaments, check the materials. If the supplier says \u201cpetroleum-based resin,\u201d run. If they say \u201cplant-based resin,\u201d \u201cnon-toxic paint,\u201d \u201creusable packaging,\u201d that\u2019s a good sign. If you\u2019re wondering about shipping emissions, ask how much their packaging weighs \u2013 if it\u2019s lighter than glass or wood, that\u2019s a win.<\/p>\n

For anyone still on the fence, I\u2019d say this: last year, I donated 500 of our resin ornaments to a local shelter for kids who don\u2019t have Christmas trees. A month later, the coordinator sent me a photo of a little girl hugging her tree, and one of our ornaments on it. She said it was the first thing the kid had ever kept from a Christmas \u2013 she\u2019d dropped all the other ornaments, but hers didn\u2019t break. That\u2019s the kind of thing that makes all the work worth it. Resin isn\u2019t perfect, but it\u2019s better than a lot of other options out there, when it\u2019s made right.<\/p>\n

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If you\u2019re a retailer, event planner, or just someone who wants to stock up on ornaments for your family and make sure they\u2019re as eco as possible, hit me up. We do bulk orders, custom designs, and we\u2019re always happy to answer questions about our materials or our process. No pushy sales stuff, just real answers about what we stand for. So if you want to talk, reach out whenever. Let\u2019s make this holiday season a little greener, one ornament at a time.<\/p>\n

Resin Keychains<\/a> References<\/p>\n

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  1. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. (2022). Reducing and Preventing Waste: Holiday Decor and Gifts.<\/li>\n
  2. Packaging Institute. (2021). Life Cycle Comparison of Common Holiday Decor Materials: Resin vs. Glass vs. Wood.<\/li>\n
  3. Sustainable Packaging Coalition. (2023). Biodegradable Resin Performance Testing for Consumer Goods.<\/li>\n
  4. Local Sustainability Lab. (2022). Landfill and Outdoor Degradation Testing for Holiday Ornaments.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
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    Shengzhou Shengteng Accessories Co., Ltd.<\/a><\/p>\n

    Address: Room 701, Building 23, Wanyang Innovation City, No. 368 Kaiya Road, Changle Town, Shengzhou City, Shaoxing City, Zhejiang Province
    E-mail: 15869252296@163.com
    WebSite:     https:\/\/www.shengtengjewelry.com\/<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Hey guys, it\u2019s Jake from the Christmas resin ornaments side \u2013 first off, thanks for swinging … Are Christmas resin ornaments eco – friendly?<\/span>Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":72,"featured_media":3627,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[3590],"class_list":["post-3627","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-industry","tag-christmas-resin-ornaments-4402-921dfd"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.azizpedia.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3627","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.azizpedia.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.azizpedia.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.azizpedia.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/72"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.azizpedia.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3627"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.azizpedia.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3627\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.azizpedia.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3627"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.azizpedia.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3627"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.azizpedia.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3627"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.azizpedia.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3627"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}