Make sure they are things guests will use. Remember, Marie Kondo is the trend, people do not want extra trinkets or clutter in their home.
Plants are always a great option! They are easy to obtain and guests can do what they want with them.
Having something edible is also a great option. Whether it’s cookies, or popcorn. Anything guests can take home and munch on. You can even kill two birds with one stone by having a dessert bar with baggies for guests to be able to take home doubling as their favor.
Make it an experience by having a build your own bouquet bar, where a guest can pick their own stems and create their own little bouquet to take home and put in a vase
planning a green wedding
We know weddings not only cost you a lot of paper, but produce a lot of paper waste as well. As with any event, some waste is inevitable, but the good news is there are ways you can help minimize it! If you are wanting to reduce your carbon footprint and gain some karma points from Mother Nature, we have listed some of the most efficient ways to do so. Some of these ideas might feel obvious or small in their impact, but when you combine many small decisions, they add up to bigger results!
WHAT IS A GREEN WEDDING? A green wedding or an eco-friendly wedding is any wedding where the couple plans to decrease the environmental impact of their wedding on the planet. Couples integrating eco-friendly alternatives for their special day like the ones listed here.
Planning an eco-friendly wedding doesn’t have to be hard! It also doesn’t mean sacrificing or skipping on design elements you love. Vendors are starting to take notice of our impact on the earth, and looking for ways to protect its resources. By talking with your vendors about their practices, figuring out ways to donate or use biodegradable goods, and going local, you truly can make an impact!
tips on planning a green wedding
Start at the beginning with invitations.
There are multiple ways to have your wedding invitations, and really all your paper goods be environmentally conscious. A good starting point is to buy from an eco conscious company. There are many out there, but one big name is Paper Culture. Paper Culture not only prints on 100% post-consumer-recycled paper, but for every order they plant a tree!
Buying local is another great way to reduce your carbon footprint while also putting money back into your community. There are many print shops who will work with you one on one to create the exact design and paper needs.
Did you know they also make plantable paper? Botanical Paperworks creates plantable paper that is biodegradable, eco-paper, made with post-consumer materials embedded with seeds. How cool would it be to say your invitations can also plant flowers! Or, you can always opt out of paper all together and use Evites. Not only is it eco friendly, it also cuts down on cost! When collecting emails just be sure to inform guests as to why you are asking for their emails, you don't want your invites to get stuck in the junk folder.
Pro Tip: Websites like the Knot and Wedding Wire make it easy for guests to RSVP right from your wedding website, just have the link on your Evite.
invitations & paper
Use The Good China
First, avoid using paper or plastic when possible. Did you know it can take up to 450 years for one plastic cup to break down in a landfill, and while paper goods are better than plastic, once food has contaminated a paper plate or cup it is no longer recyclable; food grease and crumbs cannot be separated from the paper in the recycling process. And, although paper takes less time to decompose, it can still take 5 years to decompose in a landfill. It's crazy!
Rent! Renting not only cuts down on waste, but cuts down on your clean up and storage as well. Most rental companies will pick up and drop off to your venue, cutting down the amount of work you have to do yourself. Most rental companies like our locals, Grand Event Rentals or Cort, have showrooms where you can see and feel their products first hand, creating your full tablescape so that you can get a clear picture of what your wedding day will look like beforehand.
If you don’t want to rent, and need to have disposable dishware - buy compostable plates and utensils made of bamboo. Bamboo is free of toxic chemicals, lightweight, has antiseptic features, and eco friendly!
dinnerware
When searching for decor, keep in mind single-use anything is not good for the environment.
Again, rent! If not, be ready to scrub all the red wine spills and candle wax off the linens. There are so many rental companies out there with beautiful pieces to choose from. We have a list of companies in our area we love to work with, such as Grand Event Rentals and Cort, shown here, all of which will pick up and deliver for you! Unless you have found a way to incorporate all of the decor you buy for your wedding into your home after, it’s better to rent than buy and dump. Bonus, you don’t have to figure out where to store it!
Another alternative is to borrow from others who have recently got married. Many people buy decor for their wedding without a thought on what to do with it after, you can ask to buy it or borrow and resell it for them after.
Use what you have around your house. Is there a favorite mirror or candlestick set you have in your home? Use it for your wedding! When we put together a styled shoot or wedding show we first look around our homes to see what pieces we can use before hitting the thrift shops. Bonus, when you put it back in your house after the wedding, it will be a little reminder of that day.
Don’t use things like balloons, sparkles, confetti, or bubbles. Some of the tiny pieces are not only a one time use but impossible to clean up at times. If you want something thrown, choose biodegradable confetti or birdseed. You can even make your own biodegradable confetti but whole punching fun shapes into leaves! If you don’t want to spend time whole-punching, there are companies such as Ecofetti who make eco-friendly confetti.
make it pretty
wedding favors
Bon appétit
If you don't want to take your leftovers home, donate to your local shelter or Senior Center. Make sure to call ahead of time to ensure they take unpackaged foods. Ask your caterer, they might have a local shelter they work with often bringing leftovers too.
Use a caterer who supports local businesses and farmers. Keeping services local supports the community you live in allowing it to thrive and less outsourcing for products. You are more likely to find organic options this way as well, less chemicals going out.
For beer, opt for using kegs instead of bottles or cans. If you have 100 guests, and every guest has 3 or 4 beers, that is 300 to 400 bottles or cans you eliminate being sent to landfills.
food
Florals are one of those that inevitably one time use, but that doesn’t mean there aren't ways to make them a little more sustainable.
Once your wedding is over, you can sometimes donate your centerpieces and things to old folks homes or hospitals. Just be sure to ask beforehand. Instead of throwing them into the trash you can compost most of your flowers and foliage! This can be a little more time consuming and require you to find a way to get them home, or to a composting facility. But well worth it!
Instead of doing one time use floral arrangements you can opt for potted plants instead. You can either send them home with guests or create a garden of your own at home.
A great way to not only be sustainable, but cut down on budget as well is to Use florists who mostly buy locally sourced stems. This also helps your community flourish! This could mean sacrificing certain florals, because they might not be in season during your wedding.
