Has the current state of the environment encouraged you to be more conscious of preserving natural resources? Maybe you’re merely looking for ways to plan the perfect wedding on a budget? If you answered yes to either of these questions, an eco-friendly wedding solves your problems. As more people become interested in green solutions, the wedding industry has developed new products and services to accommodate their target audience’s desires.
From digital platforms for paperless planning to green alternatives for wedding and reception decor, couples now have access to more eco-friendly solutions for their weddings. Adding to the environmentally-friendly benefits, by opting for a more sustainable wedding, grooms and brides-to-be have saved a great deal of money.
Outdoor Weddings
One of the first ways to reduce your carbon footprint on your wedding day is to have an outdoor wedding. By hosting the event outdoors, you reduce energy consumption. For instance, an outdoor wedding will not require as much lighting, heating, or cooling.
Nature provides everything you need. A ceremony and reception held during the day can take advantage of the sunlight and warmer temperatures. At night, opting for solar-powered, LED, and string lights are more efficient than the traditional lighting used in wedding venues. Outdoor weddings also require less decor as nature serves as a beautiful backdrop.
Wedding Websites
From wedding checklists and invitations to venue directions and thank you cards, the wedding planning process involves using a lot of paper. Wedding websites, however, are a growing trend amongst millennials and eco-friendly couples getting hitched. They reduce paper consumption by providing customers with a digital platform to complete several tasks.
These websites allow couples to create, send, and manage digital invitations, venue directions, contact information, RVSP cards, and menu options. Since the guests have access to the site, couples can also ease the stress of wedding planning by providing updates to loved ones in real-time.
Recyclable Options
Using recycled materials throughout your wedding and reception saves money and the planet. There are a lot of ways to incorporate this into your special day. One option would be to select recycled paper when designing your wedding invitations and programs. Another might be to use recyclable dinnerware. For the ceremony and reception decor, you could rent used decor items or repurpose items from the home to create unique pieces.
Potted Plants
Purchasing flowers for a wedding is not only expensive but not ideal for the environment. You can save money and the environment by opting for potted plants instead. There are plenty of beautiful potted plants and flowers in season that can be used throughout your wedding. They can be positioned at the end of church pews, placed creatively as focal points in the church or reception hall, and even used as centerpieces. Since they’re potted, they can be returned and placed in a garden to grow or give to another couple to reduce waste.
Green Wedding Fashion
Dressing the bridal party is not only expensive but wasteful. Chances are you’ll only get one wear out of it, making the resources and energy used to design elaborate gowns and tuxedos a waste. Fortunately, there are several solutions to this. Renting bridal party fashions, shopping secondhand, or opting for wedding fashions designed with environmentally-friendly materials would suffice.
Eco-Friendly Vendors
When selecting vendors to work with on your wedding, try to hire a company that offers eco-friendly solutions to customers and practices sustainability in their operations. One example might be a caterer who purchases all of their produce from local farmers, reduces waste in the kitchen, and provides biodegradable or reusable linens and dinnerware to clients.
Environmentally-conscious couples now have more options than ever when it comes to planning a wedding. By incorporating the eco-friendly wedding ideas listed above, they can do their part to reduce their carbon footprint, support their communities, and save a lot of money without sacrificing the ceremony and reception they desire.
