Continuing our series on "Weddings with Heart", today I want to talk about how you can have a more eco-friendly wedding. You can go all out and make everything about your wedding better for the environment, or you can choose to be environmentally-conscious by making portions of your wedding eco-friendly.
Here are some suggestions to make your wedding more eco-friendly:
Invitations Print your invitations on recycled or recyclable paper - most paper and invitation stores offer options of recycled or recyclable paper. Just be sure to ask and someone will point you in the right direction. You can also check out the website OrganicWeddings.com for their tree-free and recycled invitations.
Favors Help your guests be more earth-aware by giving them a favor that is environmentally friendly. For example, flower seeds or seeds for a tree. You can even give them a tree for a favor! Check out The National Arbor Day Foundation's website for tree wedding favors. The trees are not inexpensive, but if you are having a small eco-friendly wedding, they may be a great way to go. You can even ask your friends and family to plant them as a symbol of the growth in your marriage relationship. As the tree grows, so does your love.
Wedding Gown Believe it or not, there is such a thing as an eco-friendly wedding gown. You can purchase natural fabric online at OrganicWeddings.com to be made into a wedding dress. Another idea is to re-use someone else's wedding dress - essentially recycling the dress. You can take an already worn dress to a seamstress for alterations so that it will fit you perfectly on your wedding day!
Flowers You can also be environmentally conscious by choosing flowers that have not been grown using heavy pesticides. The best way to accomplish this is to purchase your flowers from a local grower who you know does not use lots of pesticides, or to grow the flowers yourself that you carry on your wedding day. Another option is to not carry flowers at all. OrganicWeddings.com has some terrific suggestions.
And, there are many more ways in which you can make your wedding more environmentally-conscious. You can print a list of ways to help the environment on the back of the place cards or even donate a dollar to Greenpeace for every person who attends your wedding. Make a little note on recycled paper at each place setting to let them know and tell them how they can make a donation as well. Brainstorm your own ideas and see what you come up with.
Your wedding is sure to be remembered for all of the creative ways you helped the environment. And, your guests will probably learn a lot that they can apply to their everyday lives as well. So, have fun making your wedding eco-friendly and sharing your heart with those closest to you!
P.S. You can also purchase the book "Organic Weddings" online, which is full of even more tips and ideas on how to make your wedding environmentally friendly.
* Please note: Brilliant Wedding Pages and Brilliance Web Design, Inc. will not be held responsible for any experiences you may have with the services or products of companies listed above, online or other.
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