Big Day Event Productions

This is an article I wrote about planning a green wedding in Austin.  There are so many great vendors in our area that provide sustainable products and services.  At the end of the article I list all of the resources we used for Casey and Chris’ wedding this past weekend.  (Pictures coming soon!)

You may not know it but the wedding industry has a huge impact on the environment.  As you plan the wedding of your dreams, consider how the decisions you make will impact your “footprint” on the environment.  By choosing sustainable products and locally produced goods, you can reduce your individual “footprint”.

There are many great local and web resources you can use to create an eco-friendly wedding.   In Austin we very conscious of our environment.  With the help of Keep Austin Beautiful, Austinites continually strive to clean, beautify and help protect the environment.  It is no surprise that there are several local business offering resources to help plan your eco-friendly wedding.

When choosing the perfect gown for your wedding day, there are several options and unexpected alternatives available.  Consider purchasing a simple gown made of pure silk.  Silk is a renewable resource and is biodegradable.  Serendipity Bridal carries several high-end designers now producing sustainable materials.  Other options could be to wear your mother’s wedding dress, borrow or share one with a friend, sister or relative getting married.  Look for the perfect dress that is not only a reflection of your style but your values.

Invitations help set the mood for your event.  It can also be one of the most complicated elements of the wedding alone not to mention all of the chemicals it takes to create them.  They are often highly personalized and it takes much time and effort in creating the masterpiece that is said to be your wedding invitation.  The popular trend of the multiple card pocket fold invitation is great at communicating information pertaining to your wedding.  However, often times, these invitations contain at most 10 different paper elements.  Requesting recycled or recyclable papers and simplifying the invitation design will help reduce waste in the environment.  Pink Tulip Invitations is a local vendor offering invitation designs provided by national retailers.  Several offering designs using only recycled paper.

Choosing a location is key to planning any perfect event.  In Austin, Barr Mansion is a unique location with the vow to produce the most environmentally friendly event possible.  Located in North-East Austin, Barr Mansion offers a natural garden setting, southern style Victorian home and an ecologically advanced and energy-efficient ballroom.  Barr Mansion also offers conscious menu selections.  They are the first in the nation to be certified as a special events facility serving all organic cuisine.   With emphasis on supporting local farmers and distributors, Barr Mansion works diligently to find all of their organic resources including flowers.  With an onsite floral designer, outdoor ceremony location and spacious ballroom facility, Barr Mansion makes it easy to host your ceremony and reception at the same location.  In doing so you are not only making your life less complicated but you are also reducing the amount of transportation pollution associated with your wedding.

Flowers have a significant environmental impact.  Many flower farms use toxic chemicals poisoning groundwater and soil.  These chemicals can become a part of the food chain when birds eat the sprayed plants and then migrate.  Choosing organic alternatives, from local or national farmers, can reduce the impact on the environment.  To feature organic blooms you will need to choose whatever flowers are in season during the time you decide to get married.  You may also want to consider an alternative to fresh flowers such as dried flowers, moss, branches or soy candles.  Some places, like Barr Mansion, require soy candles because they do not produce soot, they are petroleum free and are healthy to breathe.

Wedding favors are a great “thank you” to your guests for attending your wedding.  Most guests end up tossing the favor or storing it in a junk drawer to be tossed at a later time.  Why not give away favors that give back to the environment?  It could be a donation in their honor, a potted plant, floral centerpiece from your event or a tree sapling.  Tree saplings are a huge favorite for green weddings and they are very accessible on many websites.  Trees help fight global warming, conserve energy, prevent soil erosion and clean the air.  Wildflower seeds are a great local alternative resource.  They can be purchased at The Wildflower Center here in Austin.  You can display them in small organza pouches or recycled paper bags for your guests to take home and enjoy.  Wedding favors are a huge trend but are not expected.  Give your guests a great time and very likely, they won’t even notice the absence of a favor.  They might even “thank you” for it!

On your wedding day, you and your groom may not arrive to your wedding site together and at the end of the night, you will need to find a way to get from one place the next.  You can help make a difference on the environment by choosing a transportation provider using less energy and producing fewer fuel emissions than traditional gas-only vehicles.  You could car pool in a friend’s hybrid vehicle, take a pedicab or hire a chauffeur such as Clean Air Limo.  Clean Air Limo is a local company that combines ecological responsibility with elegant service tailored to your needs.  Their entire fleet is composed of luxury vehicles that use up to 60% less fuel than conventional Lincoln Town Cars.

When planning your green wedding, choose vendors that care.  Make sure they are open to creating a socially conscious wedding.  By purchasing locally, you not only save on transportation, but you support local small businesses and your local economy.  From the dress to the location to the menu , there are numerous ways to make your wedding beautiful and still reflect your individual “footprint” on the environment.

Resources:

• Giftbags: 100% biodegradable re-usable bags from http://www.papermart.com
• Favors: Wildflower seeds from http://www.americanmeadows.com and we are using extra ornaments from my cousin’s wedding
• Invitations:  printed on recycled paper from Pink Tulip Invitations in Austin, TX
• Place Cards:  We reused the note section from the reply cards, cut off the unused section that would have be thrown away anyway and then picked out a stamp to create a border.  It worked great!  That’s reusing and recycling!
• Ceremony and reception site: Barr Mansion is USDA certified organic
• We are used soy candles, originally because we had to with Barr Mansion but because soy is better for the environment. It produces less soot.  http://www.terryridgefarms.com
• The program were printed on recycled paper from the Paper Place
• The Limo was a bio-deasel Mercedes from http://www.cleanairlimo.com
• The dress was made from 100% silk and purchased at Serendipity Bridal in Austin, TX