Wedding Decor, Wedding Trends, Wedding Planning, Wedding Tips
6 Simple Steps to a Sustainable Wedding Day
Jan
The big day is your day and what better way to celebrate your love than by also celebrating your love for Mother Earth. As you make your wedding plans and slowly decide on the elements, keep in mind the carbon footprint you are leaving as you say your wedding vows and party the night away.
Here at Giftware Direct, we want you to have your dream wedding but also get to celebrate an eco-friendly wedding day that is green and sustainable. If you are curious as to how to turn your wedding day into a green wedding, here are a couple of simple steps you can take for a sustainable and unforgettable wedding day.
Get started with the rings.
From the engagement ring to the wedding bands, these three rings are iconic symbols of the wedding which the couple gets to wear and cherish not only for a day but for the rest of their lives together. Make sure to opt for conflict-free diamonds and for precious metals which are mined sustainably. Choose man-made diamonds for the engagement ring to make sure that the jewellery pieces you wear daily are ethically sourced.
An even better alternative is to go for family heirlooms and vintage pieces as these are unique, personal, and truly meaningful for the couple as well as their families.
Greener wedding stationery options are key.
As a way to get the wedding details out, the wedding stationery is usually the first-look guests get about the wedding day and the event theme. It all starts with the wedding supplier, as more and more environmental-conscious wedding stationery makers are shifting to eco-friendly invite solutions. Go for recycled paper when choosing materials for the invites and the envelope and soy-based ink can also help in making sure the invites are recyclable.
To make an even bigger impact, go paperless and shift all wedding announcements online. From save-the-date videos to interactive wedding invites, your guests can easily access all the information they would need for your big day more efficiently online with a wedding website or a Facebook event page.
The entourage can do their part, too.
For the bridesmaids and the groomsmen, choose sustainably sourced fabric and materials when having their suits and dresses made. If you aren’t planning on having a strict dress code for your big day, let the bridesmaids be flexible with what they can wear so they can pick dresses which they get to reuse even after the wedding day.
A more sustainable alternative is to have the entourage rent their dresses and suits, as there are many shops in Australia offering rental services for both the bridesmaids and the groomsmen’s apparel. Everyone gets to save their dollars and the couple still gets to celebrate their day in style, it is definitely a win-win!
No need to compromise on style when going green.
When it comes to wedding decorations, style doesn’t have to take a back seat especially during the most important day of your life. Thrift shops and secondhand bargains online can be a huge help when sourcing great stylish pieces that are highly sustainable. No need to build a new table or hire someone to create a new backdrop and add to all the wedding clutter after the event. Give beautiful pieces a new life and get to save a few bucks while having a grand celebration on your most awaited day.
Whip up a scrumptious and guilt-free feast.
When building your wedding menu early on, think about greener alternatives and lessening the food waste right after the party. Choose a caterer who supports local farmers and producers and ask about their sustainable options when it comes to serving and transporting the dishes. No to single-use utensils, plastic straws, and plastic bottles!
The tricky part is to make sure everyone is fed well yet no food goes to waste after the wedding day. If you are thinking of having a buffet, draft a plan along with your bridesmaids on packing and donating the leftover food to the local shelter or coordinate with a local food bank. If you are going for zero waste, take the extra step of asking everyone what they would want for their plated dinner so everybody gets to eat what they want for the evening.
Blooms can make a difference, twice.
Those beautiful wedding flowers add to the beauty of the wedding day so coordinate with a local florist who sources potted plants and locally grown flowers to get the freshest and the best of the season. Ask about their post-wedding services, if they can offer to pick up the arrangements after the wedding to be composted.
To find a new home for the blooms after the I do, get together with the bridal party and deliver the flowers to a nearby hospital or nursing home that can accept floral donations. Better yet, assemble a couple of sheets of old newspapers or kraft papers to form a wrapping station for the flowers to be taken home by your mums, aunts, grannies, or any other wedding guests willing to take home a piece of the wedding day with them.
