Whether you are an eco warrior or not, having an eco wedding is a great way to show your commitment to the environment and get your married life off to a great start. A wedding is often a time when consumerism takes over and thoughts of the environment are forgotten. The carbon footprint of a wedding is often huge especially considering it is just one day. Having an Eco chic wedding is also a great way to show your family and friends great ways to live a greener life. Here are some of our ideas for a greener or eco wedding.
• Buy a second hand wedding dress. As wedding dresses only get worn for one day, it is likely to be in great condition and a fraction of the cost of a new dress. Once your special day is over you can recycle it by selling it or donating to charity.
• Serve organic and locally produced food at the reception. Although organic food is a bit more expensive than normal food, it will taste better and you can keep it affordable by keeping it simple.
• Encourage guests to buy recycled wedding presents. You can still make a list of what you need, they can then look on ebay, at charity shops or car boots for something you will love.
• Reduce the carbon footprint of your honeymoon by holidaying in the UK. Just because you are not flying miles away, it doesn’t mean that you can’t enjoy a luxurious and romantic break.
• Grow the flowers for the wedding in your garden. This will take a bit of forward planning but will be better for the environment than flowers that have travelled miles.
• For your hen night, why not do something green and fun like some a conservation weekend or for those less outdoorsy types a clothes swap?
• You could even have a second hand / vintage theme or dress code for guests at the wedding.
Eco friendly weddings has a great list of UK suppliers of almost everything that you could need for an eco wedding. Even if you do not manage to make the whole of your wedding eco friendly, every little helps. Keeping things simple is a really good start.
