5 Ways to Green Your Wedding
Summer is here, and that means the beginning of two seasons- barbecue and wedding season. Both my roommate and I spent a few hours this weekend booking flights for weddings all around the country, and it got me thinking about how much energy, both from planning and resources, goes into a wedding. So I went looking for ways to make a wedding more eco-friendly- so here are…
From candles to cake, there are many ways to make your wedding a little greener.
5 Ways to Green Your Wedding Day
1. Invitations
The invitation is your first impression to all of your guests, so if you’re going for a green wedding, why not ask them in an eco-friendly way. There are plenty of alternative paper options, from recycled content to hemp card, or forgo the physical cards completely and use e-invitiations. To find out more about your options for green wedding invitations, visit the Great Green Weddings website.
2. Wedding Favors
Wedding favors represent what your guests take home to remember the event by, so they are also a great way to plant a green message in memory of your day. Two popular ideas are to give out seedling trees as wedding favors, or even add seeds themselves to the name/place cards. Visit Favor Ideas to start your brainstorm.
3. Catering
This may be one of the most visible ways to make your wedding green- everyone talks about the food at a wedding. Making simple choices like using biodegradable utensils, cups and plates if you’re holding your reception outside, and carefully choosing organic and local food for the cuisine can go a long way when you’re feeding a hundred or more people. If you’re in the San Francisco Bay Area like me, start with Organic Catering.
4. Clothes
This one will take a little more work, planning and money, but dressing the wedding party in eco-friendly clothing is a great way to make a statement that sticks. The Organic Clothing blog has a great introduction to examples of high quality green fashion options for weddings.
5. Honeymoons
Once the wedding is over it’s time for the honeymoon. Whether in the U.S. or internationally, there is an ever-expanding eco-tourism industry that will get you somewhere away from the crowd and friendly to the Earth so you can celebrate the green way. Giam has a great list of destinations to get your green wheels turning.
If you’ve been to a green wedding or will be going this summer, please add your ideas or experiences in the comments.