Eco Friendly Wedding Tips
With Earth Day 2017 upon us, it's important to remind ourselves of the responsibility we have as humans to take care of our precious planet. I bet, that like myself, you're doing everyday things to help reverse climate change and further damage to our earth but there is even more we can be doing. Lots of us are having beautiful outdoor weddings these days but how many of us are considering the environmental effects? We at R+T, encourage you all to consider this when planning your wedding and to help, we've put together a few ideas to consider. Check them out below...
Waste Not
The average wedding with a guest list of about 100-120 people, produces an average of 400-600 lbs of trash. According to US estimates, that's over 1 billion tons of trash per year and that's just in the US alone. So, even if our changes are subtle, and seemingly small, they will in-fact add up. Try using less paper for your save-the-dates, invites, and thank you cards. Sounds like a small change, but it'll save you money and it will help to reduce these insane numbers. If you don't want to go full "tech" on what would normally be paper products, you can try to cut down by using recycled paper. Or, add photos to them so your guests keep them as memory keepsakes rather than eventually just tossing in the trash bin.
Less Emissions
You can do this in a number of ways... Trying having a local wedding so that your guests and families aren't required to travel too far by plane or car. Even if you're not choosing a local wedding venue, you can still use local foods and in-season products like florals. Also, don't forget about sourcing local wine, beer or liquor to have for your bar. By doing this, overall emissions are lessened drastically due to less transportation demand. Better yet, have a local winery be your venue!
Look For Eco Friendly Venues
They're out there! Try finding an eco friendly wedding venue in your desired location. Venues that are eco friendly might be made from sustainable materials or have solar panels and source energy in green ways. Perhaps they even source local foods and vendors to assist in your planning needs. Below is the Wild Basin Lodge and Event Center located in Allenspark, CO. This venue is certified green and uses everything from reclaimed building materials to energy efficient appliances. You can read more about their sustainability efforts here.
Photo Via Wild Basin Lodge and Event Center
Find Sustainable Vendors
One thing that's really easy to do is to source vendors who care about the environment just as much as you do. Ask your photographers, florists, and caterers what they are doing to incorporate sustainable processes into their businesses. For example, as a wedding florist, we work to be as sustainable as possible by not using floral chemicals, flower foam and by donating our left over flowers to women's shelters and hospitals. We also encourage the use of potted plants to all of our couples. A caterer might explain that they use all in season foods or local farms to course their product. This is a great way to feel a bit better about your footprint and your vendor decisions.
Attire and Jewelry
When you're searching for the perfect dress, suit or accessories you can choose to consider their environmental effect. Try searching on Etsy or for local vendors in your area that promote sustainable processes. There are so many beautiful dress designers out there with an environmental conscious attached to their designs. Take designer Christy Dawn for example. Her designs are all made from deadstock fabric which essentially, is leftover fabrics from larger clothing distributers that would normally go to a landfill. Her commitment to environmental awareness is passionate and contagious. Making conscious decisions to wear sustainable attire is such a great way to consider the impact your wedding is having on the environment.
Photo Via Christy Dawn