In honor of Earth Day this month, I thought I would discuss the topic of Earth-friendly events, which weddings tend not to be. Since we try to live an eco-conscious life all other days of the year, Z and I decided we should also do our best to plan a green occasion and pay homage to the outdoor spaces we enjoy spending our time. At first this started with wanting to have a completely recycled wedding, where everything, including attire and decorations, was re-used from a friend or purchased at antique and second hand stores. While we are excellent bargain shoppers, after a few weeks of looking into how we might feasibly make this happen, we decided that we needed to take a different route. Note: I still think this would be a truly amazing wedding planning adventure if you live in the same place you are having your wedding and can collect items from friends and family, and if you have a lot of time.
In lieu of our recycled wedding idea, we are doing as many things as we can to plan an Earth-friendly weekend. As the planning process continues, I will let you know if we add anything else or decide to do away with some of these ideas, as well as which ones were easier to manage (this is a learning process after all). Our wedding is nowhere near as “green” as it could be (we sent out paper invitations, registered at Bed, Bath and Beyond, and picked a destination location for most of our guests), so I hope it doesn’t come across as preachy, but here are 10+ of our best ideas so far:
* Organic, local food: We eat mostly organic food at home, so it seems fitting that we want to serve something delicious and in line with our food beliefs on the most important day of our lives thus far. Needless to say, this was high on the list, but when I started looking into it, I began to realize it’s also impossibly expensive. While there are many amazing local farms in the Austin area, I had to let go of the local aspect and just went with organic. Fortunately, the Whole Foods flagship store is located in Austin and there are two options for organic catering. The first is to go through the Whole Foods Culinary Center which is a bit more expensive, but much more gourmet. We were looking for a buffet-style family dinner option, so we are going with the second choice – the standard Whole Foods Catering. This is a bit more affordable, entirely customizable with appetizers, entrees and sides, and organic!
* Organic, local flowers: This one was an easy choice for us, since the fabulous Arnosky’s Farm is just down the street from our venue. Even if you don’t have a flower farm where you’re getting married, you can still ask for organic, local and in-season flowers from your florist.
* Reusable Cups: I got it in my head early on that I wanted to use my favorite Klean Kanteen Stainless Steel Pint Glasses as party favors and as the main cups throughout the weekend. It’s too perfect since we’re getting married at a summer camp. Plus, they really are the best, and you can get the colorful handles engraved with whatever you want (a great place to put our initials and date). If this proves to be too expensive, another option is DIY Mason Jars with straws which are also completely adorable.
* Recycle: This is a no-brainer, but I’ve been to very few weddings where anything gets recycled. There tends to be so much waste and it would be pretty simple to make the recycling bins look pretty and match all the other adorable signage we are planning to create.
* Compost: For some, this might be taking it too far, but I truly believe keeping food scraps out of the trash is important when it can feed pigs, goats, chickens and plants. Z fully embraced the idea and called a few local farms to see if they would take our compost. And I’m very excited that we’ll be taking all of our compostables to Montesino Ranch in Wimberley after our wedding. Note: There are definitely rules about what can and can’t be composted and they vary from farm to farm, so double check the farm’s guidelines and make it clear to your guests.
* Water Stations: Plastic water bottles are a huge pet peeve, so I’m hoping to do away with them completely. I believe (and let me know if you think I’m crazy) that if everyone has access to a cup, or a mason jar, or one of the above mentioned pint glasses, and we have plenty of delicious, ice cold water stations around (maybe even with lemons and mint or basil), then no one will be dehydrated and we will significantly limit our waste. At least that’s the plan…
* Register for Local and Eco-conscious Products: Or at least some local and eco-conscious items. This has been more of a challenge than I thought it would be. I discovered an amazing registry site, myregistry.com, which lets you pick items from any website anywhere and add them to your registry. Amazing, right? I am especially excited because I get to register for a set of my favorite knives from New West Knife Works here in Jackson, Wyoming as well as a beautiful handmade cutting board from Etsy. You could add local pottery, art, axes (like this one), or items that are made in the USA. Don’t get me wrong, we also registered at Bed, Bath, and Beyond, and just the act of registering for all of this s.t.u.f.f. isn’t exactly living by the standards I’m preaching, but it’s a step in the right direction. If you need some additional direction, GreenBrideGuide.com offers lots of tips.
* Antique or Conflict Free Diamonds: While I know many brides don’t have a choice about what ring they receive (it is a gift after all), you do have a choice about what your wedding band looks like. There are so many amazing options for conflict free diamonds or eco friendly jewelry, so if this is important to you, definitely look into it. I was fortunate to receive a family heirloom engagement ring, and we will most likely either purchase antique wedding bands or something simple without diamonds, but this is definitely a top priority.
Bonus points if you…
* Use Carbon Offsets / Plan an Eco Friendly Honeymoon: This is still on the table, but we haven’t moved forward with doing anything about it. You could either ask for carbon offsets for your honeymoon or just buy them if our budget allows. Another option, would be to visit an eco-friendly resort!
* Send out Digital Save the Dates and Invitations: Initially, Z wrote a save the date song and we decided we would send that out to our friends and family to let them know about our wedding (who knows? Maybe we still will). I love paper, and I especially love wedding paper products, so this wasn’t something we ended up doing. However, for both budget-conscious and eco-conscious couples, this is a great alternative and there are so many amazing ways you can do it and make it personal. Other ideas if you are attached to sending paper versions of everything, is to send save the date postcards, use recycled paper, and have all of your RSVPs be online.
* Have a Local Wedding: We’re not doing this, but it’s a great way to keep the fuel emissions to a minimum.
Are you doing anything to make your wedding more eco-friendly? Have you found that it costs more? Am I completely crazy for making this a priority when there are so many other details to worry about?
Collage: 9” Chef Knife – New West Knife Works // Recycle Printables – HeartsandLaserBeams // Recycle License Plate – Etsy // Live Love Compost – Cafe Press // Disposable Silverware – Etsy // Men’s Wedding Band – Joseph Jewelry // Antique Engagement Ring – Etsy // Pint Glasses – Klean Kanteen // Water Dispenser – ThroughCloudedGlass // Chickens – Photo Courtesy of Department of Agriculture // Food photos – Whole Foods.
Photo 1: Red Wall Cavern, Colorado River through the Grand Canyon. Photo by Tessa Sibbet.
Photo 2: Clavey Camp, Tuolumne River, California. Photo by Tessa Sibbet.