Eco Friendly Wedding Registry...waste not ..want not!

by Katy Green
shoptobegreen.com


At times I wonder if the plethora of "green" information available on the web and the hundreds of books on how to make your wedding eco-chic weddings or eco-friendly weddings is green overkill.

Earth Friendly Wedding Tips

Is a total green wedding too much of a challenge? Can you really make a difference?  Yes, but you don't need to make your wedding plans more complicated by going completely green. It may cost you more or not depending on your creativity and bargain hunting savvy. 


I have shared several ways to incorporate organic wedding items like a green wedding dress or vintage favors or eco-invites to make it easy.


One of the things that I want to highlight this time is the Green Gift Wedding Registry for all eco-conscious brides:


Eco-Friendly Wedding Registry Tips:

• Make two lists, the first list is stuff you really need and the second is stuff you want and be honest with each other. You may be surprised at the final result.
• Choose eco-friendly honeymoons or wedding venues. For more check out our favorite eco-wedding venues page.
• Start a fund for one of your favorite non profit organization like Nature Conservancy.com or Greenpeace.com.
• Add a Honeymoon Registry to the mix, instead of asking for a ton of products ask your guests to help fund your honeymoon. Try Sendusoff.com which promotes eco-friendly travel or Honeymoonwishes.com and Honeyfund.com.
• Encourage your guests to help with one of your green initiatives like recycling. Provide recycling tips for your guests via email in lieu of your wedding.
• Sign up for stores that offer you gifts for months instead of one time like eating at your favorite restaurant or shopping for food. Asking for gift cards is a great way to reduce waste. WholeFoods offers a $500 gift card. The Organic Wine Company offers 3 bottles of organic wine for 50.00 a month if you join their wine club (which is more than most) and you only have to commit for three months.
• Alternative Gifts are great for a wedding registry and these requests can be included on certain gift registries that allow you to post whatever you want like dog sitting for those romantic date nights or tickets to your favorite game. There are many ways to enjoy non-material gifts.

Green Wedding Reception - dailygreen.com

Don't have time to click on all the links, it is okay we listed all the sites (and a little more) below for your perusal and to bookmark.

Shoptobegreen.com Registry

• Eco-Friendly Wedding Gift products: www.shoptobegreen.com - yes we have a registry:) for more to check out our favorite Green gift sites.
• Honey Moon Gift Registry: sendusoff.com, honeymoonwishes.com
• Monthly Gifts for Wedding Registries: theorganicwinecompany.com, wholefoods.com, diamondorganics.com (they ship fruit and produce online from organic farmers worldwide and they encourage you not buy stuff you don't need)
• Alternative Gift Registries: Alternativegiftregistry.org or non eco-friendly but flexible Findagift.com

What is a Green Wedding?



Cotton Bride

 Does is mean that everyone is wearing green to the wedding?

No, is the motif Green?

No, guess again.

Did you know - each one of the 2.5 million weddings this year in the United States will produce an average of 62 tons of carbon dioxide and 400-600 lbs of garbage.

If you think of all the material goods that go into a wedding: flowers flown in from different countries (fuel costs, boxes, shipping), packets of rice in plastic slips, wedding favors made of plastic and other non organic materials, bleached wedding dresses, tons of tulle (synthetic fabrics are mixed in tulle aside from silk) and mountains of paper products, the list goes on forever. It's green road kill.

Everyone knows the average wedding in America costs $40,000 so I am sure you are wondering how can I have an eco-friendly wedding and not spend a zillion dollars?

Well, sometimes the best effort is in small steps so if you can't do an entire eco-friendly wedding try to make a couple changes.

The most important item in a wedding - the Wedding Dress - there are many sites that sell organic wedding dresses:

• Thread Connections - made to order dresses with price ranges from $500 - $2,700. If you live in Knoxville, TN make an appointment at their studio.
• Get Conscious Clothing - Hemp wedding dresses and bridal dresses, made to order, price range varies by store but they are offering 50% - 75% off. If you live in San Francisco you can visit one of their retail locations.
• The Natural Bride Collection - Morgan Boszilkov presents the Natural Bridal Collection, an eco-friendly alternative to a designer wedding gown made with traditional material. Not sure of her price range but her studio is located in Atlanta, GA.
• The Cotton Bride - designer collection of cotton wedding dresses in the most sophisticated styles - Made in the USA. Prices range from $1,000 to $5,000 and beyond. Most are in the $2,000 category (which is the average price for a wedding dress). This is my favorite because the designs are deliciously green and great for spring, summer or weddings in warmer climates. Location NYC.




Cotton Bride


• Blushless - high end couture and ready to wear ethically responsible bridal dresses. Located in Germany and UK. If you have the green to spend then at least you are doing your part to save the planet.

Encore Bridal offers Vintage Wedding Gowns as another alternative for those of you that don't want a custom made creation or love the vintage look.

Stay tuned for more on Green Weddings and Eco-Marital Bliss with Mary Green.

Kate Middleton is Going Green for her Wedding

Kate Middleton

The future princess of England is going green for her wedding according to Ecorazzi. It was announced the that their style coordinator chose "Stella McCartney — our personal favorite — to provide “some fabulous leather-free shoes and accessories.”

There are many ways to go green for your wedding day, stay tuned for most posts on Wedding Green.