Our guide to washing the dishes

We get it; doing the dishes at the end of the party is probably the last thing you can be bothered doing. This is probably how disposable single-use plastic plates became so popular in the first place. Back in the 1950's the advertisements for disposable partyware encouraged "throwaway living" and was directed towards housewives who were fed up with washing dishes.

But we now know that our aversion to washing dishes has contributed to an environmental disaster; single-use plastic takes energy and resources to make, only used for a moment, and then takes hundreds of years to break down.

For more info on why single-use plastic is bad, read this.

All we really need is to change our attitude and make doing the dishes an easier and more enjoyable experience.

Create a dirty dishes station

Firstly, let’s make it easier for ourselves. A great tip is to create a “dirty dishes station". This involves a food scraps bucket and a dirty dishes bucket. You might want to consider a third ‘general waste’ bucket if you think there will be waste such as paper napkins etc.

The Dirty Dishes Station encourages guests to put any leftover or uneaten food in a food scraps bucket, then place their dirty dishes into a second bucket of soapy water, which means the food won’t stick and dry to the plate making it easy to wash afterwards. Make sure both buckets are placed in a safe place if you have toddlers and babies at the party. It is safer to put his bucket in a high place. Ensure the buckets are labelled so it’s clear what your guests need to do.

Planet Party Kits offer a food scraps bucket service which feeds our pet chickens and worms. We also have large tubs you can borrow and fill up with soapy water.

At the end of the party dispose of the soapy water (on the lawn or in the bath is an easy option) then proceed to wash the dishes as per normal with warm soapy water.

Washing up

When it comes time to doing the dishes post-party find a friend or family member to join you. If someone says “Can I help with anything?” don’t be shy, say “Would you like to come chat with me while I do the dishes?”. You’ll have them happily drying dishes over a good chat. Make it even more fun by playing some music!

Check out our Planet Party Kits Spotify playlist perfect for washing the dishes.

Once all the dishes are dry and packed back into the box you should congratulate yourself on a job well done!

Do you have any more tips? Please let us know! We’d love to share them with everyone!