How To Have An Environmentally Friendly Wedding
Spring is the most popular time of year to get married. Temperatures are rising, days are getting longer, flowers are blooming and the whole world looks like it is coming back to life with greenery everywhere. With our beautiful planet in mind and Earth Day just having passed, here are five tips for how you can make your wedding have less of an impact on the environment.
Send Recycled Invitations
Aside from being a hefty up-front cost, wedding invitations eat up a huge part of your big day’s carbon footprint. To reduce the amount of paper used before your big day, email your save the dates (which also saves you and your fiance some serious cash) and invite guests to your wedding on post-consumer recycled paper invitations.
Wear a Vintage Dress
As the saying goes, your wedding should have “something old, something new, something borrowed and something blue,” and if you wear a vintage wedding dress, you could be checking off two of those in one piece. Many brides choose to wear a dress worn by their mother, sister or other family member, but those dresses may not be your size, style, or in wearable condition any more. If you are searching for a vintage number to wear on your wedding day, check out a local or online vintage shop to view their selection of antique and vintage wedding dresses. See the whole wedding above over on A Practical Wedding.
Use Locally Sourced Food and Flowers
Two things that guests will always remember are the music and the food. Food, however, can create a lot of unwanted waste because of leftovers, preparations, menu switches and the environmental impact of transporting ingredients that are not native to your region. To give your guests an incredible meal while minimizing your reception’s carbon footprint, search for a farm-to-table catering service, as they often offer the freshest budget and eco-friendly, seasonal meals.
Likewise, using local and seasonal (or live potted) flowers will cut down on your wedding’s cost and effect on the local environment. To find out which flowers will be best for your wedding, check out this chart.
Rent Linens and China Instead of Buying
Many catering services and venues offer options for linen and china rentals if you and your fiance will not be providing your own for the reception. These are usually additional fees on top of your venue or catering bill, consider renting sustainable linens. Many rental companies will also ship directly to your venue so that you do not have to deliver them yourself, either.
Use your Registry for Good
While celebrities like Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are asking for charitable donations (((check out The Good Beginning))) in lieu of wedding gifts, many couples use their registries to furnish new homes, pay for their honeymoons or offset the cost of their wedding. Even if you are not a royal or a millionaire, your registry can still be used to create a positive impact! Instead of registering for imported crystal, register for recycled glassware . If you are registering for furniture or home decor, search for brands with environmental initiatives and ones that use recycled materials in their furniture, like these dining room tables made with recycled wood and metal.