Do you hate food waste? Plastic packaging? Petrol emissions? If so then it may not come as a huge surprise to you that weddings aren’t generally the eco-friendliest of events…
That said, there are ways that you can take responsibility for this planet that brought you and your soulmate together and make the day as nature-friendly as possible.
Do you want a green wedding?
“Green?”, you say! Yes, but not literally…
We, as a population, are moving towards a more sympathetic way of living due to a better understanding of the pollution that is fast endangering Earth. You only need to click on your Facebook app to see how communities are trying to reduce their carbon footprint or go to the grocery store to find schemes in place to cut down on single-use plastics.
We bet that you take pride in carrying your 10p Bag for Life with you when you run to the shops for your essentials so why wouldn’t you want to extend this sensitivity when planning your wedding?
Check out some of our ideas and suggestions for making your wedding day as sustainable as the love you share for each other.
Stay local
If a smaller wedding simply isn’t an option for you, then an alternative to being unfriendly to the environment would be to pick a venue that is closest to you and majority of the people you plan to invite.
For instance, if you and most of your family and friends live in Essex, then choosing a venue on your doorstep like Parklands as opposed to somewhere the other side of the country or even across an another continent, shows that you are considerate of air pollution and your contribution to it.
Opt for a sustainable building
Furthermore, getting married in an existing structure like a Manor House, church or other building (this can include temporary structures that remain in place for the duration of the summer months) is far more responsible when it comes to ecology than if you were to have a space built specifically for the occasion.
This means that venues offering land only on which you erect a marquee and portaloos are out of the question if you truly want to remain eco-friendly.
Do It Yourself!
Last but not least, there are many other ways you can show your love for nature when planning a wedding.
Instead of wedding favours, why not make gifts from scratch or explain to guests that you have donated the money you would have spent to a worthwhile cause (this will have even more impact if it is to raise awareness of environmental matters)?
Also, rather than printing individual place cards for each of your loved ones, you might like to cut down on printing costs by having cards dedicated to couples or, even better, an entire table. If you are at dab hand at calligraphy then you could give the cards a go yourself by hand!
Finally, research some companies that produce biodegradable confetti made from flower petals – you’ll still be able to capture those lovely traditional shots but your smiles can be even bigger in the knowledge that you are doing no harm to the environment.