As we enter a new decade, it’s the perfect time to reflect on your goals for the coming year. For many, 2010 will represent the year of “green.” We love that! And we hope it will be reflected with an increase of eco-friendly weddings.
Here are three simple things you can do to green your wedding & green your life. By making just a few eco-friendly choices in 2010, you can truly make a difference.
For your green wedding. . .
- For wedding favors, look for handmade wedding favors made from sustainable or organic materials. Or, consider tree favors or seeded favors that can be planted in your honor.
- For wedding invitations, choose from tree free papers, letterpress, 100% PCW recycled paper, seeded invitations, and look for vegetable or soy-based inks.
- Look for local, eco-conscious caterers who offer organic menus, and use locally-grown foods from local farmers. Back to Earth Organic Catering is one of my favorites!
Photo Credit: Back to Earth Catering
For your green life . . .
- Kick the plastic water bottle habit (In 2008, we consumed 50 billion plastic water bottles). Buy an eco-friendly reusable bottle and simply refill it throughout the day.
- Use earth-friendly cleaning products. This is a habit I started earlier this year. I wasn’t sure what to expect at first, but I was pleasantly surprised that the cleaning quality was as good (if not better). Bonus: no “choking” on fumes.
- I’m sure you already recycle all paper, but be sure to recycle the cardboard / paperboard from packaging of cereal boxes, food packaging, etc. Many of these boxes are already 100% recycled, so please continue the earth-friendly cycle of recycling. They easily fold down flat so you can stack them in your recycling bin.
Photo by: Thiru Murugan
Great eco-idea: Instead of party streamers, create a New Year tradition of planting a tree in celebration of each new year. The nice folks at TreePeople.org provide a helpful Website on choosing the right tree for your area.
Happy New Year!
This is a special time for many couples, who are getting engaged this week. So exciting! My goal is to inspire you with easy ways to plan a more eco-friendly wedding.
Thinking about a holiday wedding for 2010? Candles seem to be a “must-have” for Christmas and winter weddings. After all, they create a beautifully romantic setting for any wedding. As you start looking for candles, think about choosing 100% beeswax wedding candles. While they come in the lovely natural beeswax color, many brides are surprised to learn they also come in rich, vibrant colors that would be perfect for a holiday theme.
How are these eco-friendly candles?
- Beeswax is a sweet, simple renewable fuel that burns long and bright. It is non-toxic and hypo allergenic.
- Use 100% cotton wicks . . . NO metal core or lead wicks
- Lead free & paraffin free
- Hand-made in Colorado, USA
Photo Credit: MarthaStewart.com
Merry Christmas and congratulations to you lucky brides-to-be who became engaged recently! The holidays are an extra-special time to get engaged and to get married. In celebration of the season, I thought I would share some inspiring ideas for Christmas weddings, should you start planning for 2010. With just a few adjustments, these fabulous ideas from Martha Stewart Weddings can be eco-friendly.
The blissful bride featured above is carrying a lovely blue-grey juniper bough. Just think of the elements you can bring in from nature to create an equally beautiful branch and wreath-inspired bouquet.
Photo Credit: MarthaStewart.com
I look at this pine cone-covered wedding cake and think . . . ahhhh . . . how amazingly beautiful for a Christmas or winter wedding. Real pine cones flecked with royal icing and glistening with sugar make for a naturally beautiful winter wedding cake. Ask for organic ingredients to be used!
Photo Credit: MarthaStewart.com
I’m a big fan of gingerbread cookies . . . and leave it Martha Stewart to capture their festive nature as a snowflake wedding favor. How adorable! Again, they are earth friendly to start with because they will not become waste after the wedding. Take it one step further, bake them with organic ingredients and package them with recycled materials like natural ribbon—even greener!
The holidays are upon us! And, over the next two weeks I will be bringing you eco-friendly ideas to green a holiday or Christmas wedding. One of my most favorite resources is Organic Bouquet.
Not only are their holiday flowers absolutely beautiful, they are organic and eco-friendly at every level. They partner with artisans and growers who adhere to rigorous U.S. and international standards of sustainability.
And, they obtain flowers from companies who provide safe working conditions and a livable wage. Here are just a few of Organic Bouquet’s sustainable practices:
- Organic Certified and Fair Trade Certified™
- Packaging made from recycled and recyclable materials, biodegradable wraps
- Using 100% recycled glass for best-selling vase
- Partner with Carbonfund.org to initiate a carbon offset program that mitigates greenhouse gases generated from shipping flowers and gifts.
With companies like Organic Bouquet, it’s easier to have a dream green holiday wedding!
Cover from Premiere Issue of Eco-Beautiful Weddings
Colorful and inspiring spreads overflowing with green wedding goodness. Amazing photography that leaps off the digital page. An absolute joy to read! When I first looked at the premiere issue of Eco-Beautiful Weddings, I thought, wow . . . this rivals any print version of a wedding magazine I’ve seen in some time. To me, the design is eco-fresh meets a modern twist of stylish simplicity.
Where to begin . . . Eco-Beautiful Weddings covers it all! Beauty and wellness, eco-couture bridal fashion, an entire section dedicated to real weddings, and even “Eco-Chic on the Cheap” brought to you by (none other than) the Green-Ass Bride (a.k.a. Broke-Ass Bride). And, look for eco-giveaways in the premiere issue!
We are delighted to have our Organic Chocolate Wedding Favors & Organic Soap Wedding Favors featured on page 20 under “Green Goodies.” Delightful indeed!
For more green wedding inspiration, the Eco-Beautiful Weddings blog is a perfect place to find your daily dose of eco-wedding ideas, news, and trends. We are proud to be part of the premiere issue of Eco-Beautiful Weddings, and I’m already looking forward to the next issue!
Looking for eco-friendly holiday gifts this season? Or, simply looking for wedding gift ideas? You’ll definitely want to check out this online shopping guide to eco-friendly style—Ecomodish! From organic and natural cosmetics to green fashion including clothes, handbags, footwear and accessories, you’ll find it all at Ecomodish. They even have a section dedicated to green wedding ideas. Thank you!
Decorating your new nest in eco-style? Eco design is blossoming on Ecomodish, which has earth friendly products that are created with recycled glass, sustainable and landfill bound materials and eco friendly fabrics such as organic cotton, hemp, linen, bamboo and wool.
According to Ecomodish, bamboo and organic clothing designs can now be found in many top designer collections, including wedding collections. The gaining popularity of green fashion has also helped divert tons of materials from landfills with the use of recycled fabric, plastic and rubber to make eco shoes, eco fleece and reusable bags. Well, ladies, it looks like we can go green for just about everything these days . . . in beautiful style!
I first brought you the news about the fabulous Clay Hill Farm Green Wedding Giveaway last month. Now, it’s less than one month until the entry deadline of January 1, 2010. Are you ready to get creative for your chance to win a green wedding prize package valued at $40,000?
Marriage is about commitment and compromise. Green is also about commitment and compromise. How does a commitment to the earth fit in with your new commitment as a couple? Clay Hill Farm asks contestants to tell their story in a play, a video, a painting, a poem, a song, an essay or whatever your creative juices cook up. Food for thought . . .
- Do you consider yourself green already?
- Do you consider green to be common sense practicality?
- How does a commitment to the earth fit in with your new commitment as a couple?
- Would you like to be green but feel overwhelmed and don’t know where to start?
Visit the official Clay Hill Farm Green Wedding Giveaway contest site for more tips and to enter. Pick your shade of green and shout it to the world!
P.S. Meet Jonathan Blakeslee & Joelle Guerard, 2009 winners. They share some advice below their photo.
“Winning was the most amazing experience of our lives. From the start when we first saw the website through the judging process where we met the other finalist to the final announcement and the wedding itself, everything was just perfectly planned and organized down to the last letter. Clay Hill Farm and all the sponsors made us feel like the most important people in the world. It was just a wonderful experience. The best advice we could give people when entering into this contest is just be honest and be yourself and you will shine.”
Every earth-loving budget bride rejoice! Here are green & sustainable wedding favors that won’t cost you too much green!
You’ll love the birdseed wedding favors in the shape of mini hearts.
Inspired by the beauty of nature, these adorable heart shaped birdseed wedding favors are eco friendly, and hand-made exclusively from organic ingredients. At less than $1.00 each, it’s a natural choice!
Earthbloom organic wedding favors (seeded) in organza bags
These handmade organic wedding favors in an organza bag are eco-adorable! Made from flower seeds and soil (what could be more earth friendly?), these adorable wedding favors grow flowers when planted.
Eco-lovely Plantable Favor Tags-FREE Customization
Made from 100% post-consumer waste and embedded with high-grade, pure North American wildflower seed, these tags will give your favors the perfect final touch. And, you can add your names and date for FREE!
Wait . . . there’s more!
Love in full bloom for less—plantable seeded wedding favors that grow
At only .99 cents, these adorable eco-favors are a green wedding favorite! Eco-nomical and eco-elegant—a delightfully unique wedding favor that grows wildflowers when your guests plant them. What a lovely way to symbolize your growing, blooming love!
Sweet Love Plantable Eco-friendly Favor (top photo collage-on bottom right)
Love is in the Air Plantable Eco-friendly Wedding Favor
Share & Blossom Plantable Green Wedding Favor
Plantable Heart Note
Leave your guests a loving and earth-friendly sentiment with plantable heart notes. Even more adorable at only .99 cents.
Want to get your guests talking at your eco friendly wedding, outdoor celebration or nature-themed event? These unique and natural rustic wooden conversation starters will be the talk of your reception!
Made from reclaimed/fallen cherry tree branches (no trees are harmed), these handmade charms have been sanded smooth and finished with a light coat of pure beeswax and carnauba wax blended with natural orange oil. A single hole has been drilled at the top and natural raffia completes the look.
More ideas for this Eco-friendly Wedding Favor!
-Write in your names & wedding date for an eco-adorable wedding favor
-Write in your guests names for a unique escort “card”
-Use as shown here . . . give one to each guest as they arrive, or sprinkle them around your table setting
-Go with the “green” theme and write fun facts about going green
-The possibilities are endless . . . but the idea will be remembered for years to come!
