Choosing eco-friendly wedding stationary doesn’t have to be a daunting task. In fact, when armed with the right information, it’s actually quite simple. Just keep these four “P’s” in mind: Paper, Printing, Place, and Practices. 

We’ll start with the first “P”: Paper: As opposed to just “100% recycled,” seek out invitations printed on 100% post consumer recycled paper. This paper is created from consumer products, usually retrieved from curbside recycling, and ensures there are no new trees used in making the paper. There are also other eco-friendly options, such as FSC certified paper, which guarantees the fibers in the paper come from responsibly maintained forests, and tree free papers, such as bamboo and hemp. 

Printing: There are four common types of printing for wedding invitations: offset printing, letterpress printing, thermography (raised printing), and digital and inkjet printing. Without getting into a long diatribe about each, each one has their pros and cons. Talk to your invitation provider or browse through their website about what environmentally friendly methods they implement first. You may have a local print shop who offers to print your invites for a great price, but perhaps they don’t recycle scraps (you’d be surprised how many don’t). While Crane & Co. uses offset and thermographic printing, but they work hard to minimize their carbon footprint by investing in pollution prevention strategies and tree free paper.

Place: This refers to the location of your invitation provider. The less traveling you have to do, the better. And the less traveling your invitations have to do to get to you, the better. This minimizes pollution resulting from transportation. Seek out online invitation providers that purchase carbon offsets for shipping or explore local invitation artists or designers. This is something we at EarthlyAffair.com do for every single shipment. 

Practice: Last, but not least, this “P” refers to practices. What eco-friendly business practices, if any, has your invitation provider implemented? Most online providers will put something on their website, but for others you might have to do a little more digging. Some of the things you might look for are in-office recycling, keeping documents in electronic format to save paper, and installing energy efficient equipment and light bulbs.

Eco-bella is a lifestyle boutique located in the heart of Atlanta’s trendy Virginia-Highlands neighborhood. The owners are committed to our social and environmental responsibility.  They carefully research all vendors and all of product aspects before carrying any product. Their doors and hearts are open for the novice and beyond.  

Green Registry

For the green bride, Eco-bella is terrific registry source for a range of natural home products including towels, linens, and bedding. The Akhara and Savari towel lines are the perfect solution for any wedding registry- green or traditional.  These lines come in a range of beautiful colors and all sizes. They are also wonderfully soft, the color holds true after years, and they are extremely durable.  

Eco-bella creates a fun, effortless registry process for any couple by providing you with a personal touch and professional expertise in a low pressure environment.  

Looking and feeling great on your wedding day

There is no more critical day in any woman’s life that her makeup look perfect than on her wedding day. Eco-bella carries a full line of Dr. Hauschka’s organic beauty and skin care- a luxurious line on par with any department store brand. What is super cool is that this line carries none of the horrible toxins of most mainstream lines.  

Also, consider the aromatherapy bath kit and daily facial starter kit for hostess gifts for your loved ones throwing your showers and parties.  Trust me; they will light up when they receive such a treat! 

Finding the perfect gift for the special people in your life

Wedding planning is hectic enough and the bride still has to keep up with everything from your friends’ weddings and baby showers to your mom’s 60^th birthday. Somehow it seems more important to do something special for these people because of all that they are doing to make your wedding special.   

Eco-bella is a wonderful resource for any occasion and any person. When registering for yourself, look out for the perfect baby blanket or onesie for the next baby shower or pick up a comfy spa robe for your mom.  

Living by Example

Not only did Eco-bella undergo a green renovation but the store has also been certified to be Carbon Neutral. Under the leadership of Eco-bella owner Antje Kingma, the Virginia Highland’s business district and Eco Bella became the first carbon neutral zone in the US. According to Antje, “Verus Carbon Neutral allowed us to do to neutralize the environmental damage created by our daily necessities. The Verus Carbon Neutral Partnership is a credible, transparent and professional carbon footprint auditor. Each business at the Corner opened their books to a carbon emissions audit. Upon completion of each company audit, Verus Carbon Neutral purchased carbon offsets from the highly respected Chicago Climate Exchange. For The Corner-Virginia Highland Businesses, the offsets were bought to promote reforestation and wind energy.” 

Contact information: Eco-bella, 1046 N. Highland Avenue, Atlanta, GA 30306, 404-815-4280, www.eco-bella.com

Visit the Eco-bella Online store

For more about the Virginia Highland’s Carbon Neutral Zone Click Here

Enjoy!

Books

Eco-Chic Weddings: Simple Tips to Plan an Earth-Friendly, Socially Responsible, Affordable Green Wedding by Emily Elizabeth Anderson

The Everything Green Wedding Book: Plan an elegant, affordable, earth-friendly wedding (Everything Series) by Wenona Napolitano

The Green Bride Guide: How to Create an Earth-Friendly Wedding on Any Budget by Kate L. Harrison

Green Wedding: Planning Your Eco-Friendly Celebration by Mireya Navarro

How to Get Married in Green by Suzan St.Maur

Green Weddings That Don’t Cost the Earth by Carol Reed-Jones

The Green Wedding Guide: Creating a Celebration That’s Elegant and Ethical by Valerie Edmunds

Anti-Bride Guide: Tying the Knot Outside of the Box by Carolyn Gerin and Stephanie Rosenbaum

Organic Weddings: Balancing Ecology, Style and Tradition by Michelle Kozin
 

Websites & Blogs

Eco Chic Weddings by Emily Anderson, the ultimate blog about eco-chic weddings

Everything Green Weddings by Wenona Napolitano

It’s a Nice Day for a Green Wedding, A blog with suggestions about greening weddings and other events you are planning.

Great Green Wedding

Green Elegance Weddings

Green Bride Guide

Articles & TV shows

Altar-native Energy: How to green your wedding, Grist Magazine

Green Weddings, The Knot.com

CAUSE FOR CELEBRATION by Sheryl Eisenberg, NRDC

Planning a Green Wedding, Coop America

It’s not easy going green, Rich Bride, Poor Bride, WE TV

How to Go Green: Weddings, Treehugger.com

Say ‘I do’ Green Wedding, Today Show

Have a Green Wedding, Time Magazine

Have other sources that you have found?  Have a recommendation based on your experience?  Let us know!  Add a comment below to help other folks Go Green In Style…

Renewable Energy Credits and Carbon Offsets 

Reducing the Footprint of Your Wedding

The events surrounding a wedding, just like much of our everyday lives require the use of a significant amount of energy.  Whether used by guests travelling by plane and by car, or the electricity used by the wedding, rehearsal dinner, and hotel facilities, energy is used in every aspect of a wedding.  The gasoline for cars and planes and the electricity generated and sent through the grid is primarily (over 90%) from greenhouse gas emitting fossil fuels.  Transportation and electricity production are MAJOR contributors to global climate change.

Since most of us aren’t able to get to every wedding by walking or riding our bike, and not every facility has solar panels on the roof to produce 100% of the electricity or a wind turbine out in the back, we have to find other ways to make energy consumption as part of a wedding more sustainable. 

The primary tools we have to do enable individuals to support renewable energy projects and carbon reduction are known as Renewable Energy Credits (RECs) and Carbon Offsets or Voluntary Emissions Reductions (VERs).  Now it just so happens that as Director of Resource Development at Renewable Choice Energy, a leading marketer of RECs and carbon offsets in the US, I lead our efforts to support these types of projects (so that’s why Mandy asked me write this!).

For more information about RECs and carbon offsets, how they work, and what the difference is between them, please visit http://www.renewablechoice.com/residential-why-it-works.html – our marketing people have put together a great series of diagrams and explanations that help make this all much clearer than I could type here.

Carbon offsets have their origin in the Kyoto Protocol signed in 1997 as the international community’s effort to stem anthropogenic (human produced) greenhouse gasses.  The voluntary market standards and projects have their basis in the Kyoto Protocol. A carbon offset is measured in units of one metric ton of carbon dioxide equivalent (there are six greenhouse gasses – it’s a lot easier to convert them all to their global warming potential based on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s conversions).

The Renewable Energy Credit market is a U.S. based market that has developed into an important element of driving financial and other support for renewable energy development in the United States.  One REC equals One Megawatt hour or one thousand kilowatt hours. 

Lets take the example of Mandy’s wedding.  For our purposes lets assume:

• That there are 300 people coming
• All 300 people are driving an average of 170 miles (distance from Atlanta to Macon). 
• Of those 300 people, 100 of them are flying an average of 2,430 miles roundtrip (that’s my flight from Denver to Atlanta). 

The impacts of that travel would be approximately:

• 51,000 miles driven emitting approximately 50,000 pounds of carbon dioxide
• 243,000 air miles flown emitting approximately 94,800 pounds of carbon dioxide

That’s a total of 144,800 pounds of carbon dioxide or 65.7 metric tons of CO2.  That’s a lot of CO2 emissions for a single weekend! 

On the electricity side, you have the electricity used in the hotels people stay in, at the facilities for the dinners and other events.  There are a lot of different factors that go into how much electricity those buildings use like how old the building is, how efficient their HVAC and other systems are, whether they have compact fluorescent light bulbs or incandescent, how much they have the air conditioning turned up, etc. 

A 100,000 square foot hotel in Macon, GA would:

• Consume approximately 1,770,000 killowatt hours per year, causing approximately 1,094 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions. 
• A three day weekend at the hotel (assuming all events occurred there), would use approximately:
  • 14,548 killowat hours and emit approximately 9 metric tons of carbon dioxide. 
• Purchasing 14,548 killowatt hours of Renewable Energy Credits from a wind, biomass, small hydro or other renewable facility (like the products we sell) would ensure that a commensurate amount of renewable energy went onto the grid to offset the power consumed that weekend. 

Energy consumption is not typically something that we think about in our daily lives.  We flip the switch and the lights come on, we fill up the tank or get on the plane and it goes.  There are significant impacts to our energy consumption in the United States – we emit 25% of the world’s greenhouse gases yet account for only about 5% of the world’s population.  Tackling our energy consumption by improving efficiency, reducing consumption, and aggressively developing renewable energy is one of the greatest challenges and opportunities in front of us today.  Supporting a more sustainable, low carbon energy infrastructure is a contribution every individual can make, and what better time to start that than with a wedding?!?!

Brides are looking for dresses that are not only green, but are elegant, beautiful and flattering.  The eco-friendly dress is not just for the hippy bride, but is becoming more mainstream, and therefore, there is an increasing demand for designs with more mainstream appeal.

By wearing an eco-friendly gown, a bride is able to not only look stunning on her wedding day, but make a difference.  Her dress is a statement in support of environmentally friendly and socially responsible causes.  In addition, natural fabrics are so gorgeous and have such a luxurious feel to them.  After working with the eco-friendly fabrics, polyester dresses just don’t have the same appeal to me anymore. 

Some of my dresses may be made with detachable bottom skirts, so they may be worn again or in their shorter form at the reception. This enhances the “greenness” of the dress. 

I have always been environmentally conscious and try to be eco-friendly in both my personal and business life.  When I decided to start my business, I looked around to see what eco-friendly dresses were available.  I was surprised to find so few options available and knew that I would make beautiful gowns that are better for the environment. 

My collection, Natural Bridals, is designed to be everything that a bride dreams of in a wedding dress: elegant, beautiful, well-made, luxurious. And it also happens to be eco-friendly!  I believe sustainable fabrics are not limiting, but have endless potential for creating fabulous designs. 

When choosing an eco-chic wedding dress, a bride should find out what makes the dress eco-friendly.  She should find out if the designer uses sustainable fabrics and if the dress was made in a socially responsible manner.  Another thing that some designers do is to donate or give back to the environment or to communities in need.   

I recommend that a bride finds a style that flatters her figure and one in which she will feel beautiful just like with regular gowns.  A bride can be beautiful and still make an eco-chic statement! 

Morgan Boszilkov, Designer, Natural Bridals 

About the author: Morgan Boszilkov is a premier international eco couture wedding gown designer based in Atlanta’s leading sustainable neighborhood Glenwood Park.  The Natural Bridals line has been sold globally and Ms. Boszcilkov has been featured on TLC’s “Who are you wearing”. Ms. Boszilkov is designing the attire for the wedding party of GoGreenInStyle’s editor Mandy Schmitt.

1. Use locally ingredients- Go to local farmers markets and try the 100-mile diet concept. Studies show that most food in America travels more than 1,500 miles from the farm to table.  Eating locally cuts down on petroleum demand, supports our local agriculture economy, and provides consumers with a higher quality product. Plus, you can experiment with foods in season to create exciting new menus. Georgia Organics offers a rich set of resources.
2. Make smart seafood choices - Use the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch Guide. Buying the right seafood is a complex web of decisions. The Seafood Watch guide does all the work for the consumer. This pocket-sized guide decodes which seafood are the right choice based on health issues and environmental impacts. Download one from their website or pick one up at the Georgia Aquarium.
3. Reconnect with American heritage - Buy heritage poultry, beef, and pork. Industrial agriculture relies on a small number of breeds of livestock, threatening the nation’s food security.  Heritage livestock promotes genetic diversity and has a unique and special flavor to spice up your next family meal.  Free range and organic meat is also a great alternative.  Whole Foods, Atlanta’s Star Provisions, and farmers markets are great places for these finds. Visit Heritage Foods USA for more information about heritage meats.
4. Piece de resistance- Finish with a rainforest-certified and fair trade chocolate dessert. Rainforest certified and fair trade chocolate is a rich, decadent dark chocolate. It is produced with methods that protect the rainforest and the farmers. K Chocolat in Atlanta’s Inman Park will provide your perfect finishing touch www.kchocolat.com.
5. Spice up your outfit- Buy vintage and environmentally sound clothes and lingerie. Buying vintage is recycling, period. Environmentally-sound clothes and lingerie use recycled fabrics, organic cotton, bamboo, and over-run fabrics.  Atlanta has great vintage stores and a number of boutiques that carry eco-couture, including Evolve Boutique in Emory Village and Eco-Bella in Virginia Highlands. Also check out [online retailers]
6. Uncork your passion- Choose biodynamic or organic wine.  Biodynamic and organic wines are grown and produced without the use of synthetic chemicals and with care and preservation of the surrounding land and watershed.  Looks for these wines at Sherlock’s Wine Merchant, Whole Foods, or your local wine shop. Brands to look out for include Yorkville Cellars, Fetzer’s Bonterra line, Benzinger, Frog’s Leap, Opus One, and Domaine Begude.  For more information about biodynamics check out the Biodynamic Farming and Gardening Association.
7. Set the mood- Select domestically grown flowers or consider clipping some greenery from right in your back yard.  Magnolia and American holly offer lovely, vibrant color and elegance in the Valentine season. Opt for soy or beeswax candles over the traditional synthetic variety.  Synthetic means petroleum based! 

Portions reprinted from previous publication in Atlanta Intown by Polly Sattler and Mandy Schmitt.

1. Choose a florist that has experience in or can guarantee environmentally sound wedding flower.  Emily Anderson, Eco chic Wedding author, recommends floral designer Livia Cetti, owner of The Green Vase.
2. Choose flowers that are cultivated in a sustainable method. Think organic vegetables and fair trade coffee. Fair Flowers Fair Plants (FFP) is a new initiative to stimulate the production and sales of flowers and plants cultivated in a sustainable manner.  FFP offers a search feature so that you can find FFP certified growers and retailers in your area.
3. Choose flowers that are fair trade certified.  Fair Trade Certified Flowers label “on your bouquet means that flower workers, most of whom are women, can put food on their tables, send their children to school, invest in community development, and use sustainable farming methods” according to TransFair USA. Click here for of list of certified vendors.
4. Use local flowers. You may have to sacrifice local for regionally and domestically grown. Avoiding flowers are flown in from another part of the US or another continent will help you lower your carbon footprint.
5. Choose flowers that are native and in season in your area. You will have a better chance that you’ll be able to find them from a local or regional grower.  Most states have native plant societies that can be great sources of information. Here are a few Georgia Native Plant Society, California Native Plant Society, Native Plant Society of New Jersey, Native Plant Society of Texas, Native Plant Society of Washington
6. Use flowers and greenery from your back yard.  Some florists will also allow you to supply your own flowers for them to use in your arrangements.  For example, hydrangeas are popular wedding flowers that bloom readily in the late spring and early summer.
7. Avoid the use of invasive species.  Invasive species are devastating our local streams and rivers. Most of these invasives have been introduced for landscaping and aesthetic purposes.  By avoiding using them in your wedding you are avoiding being part of the problem.  Visit the National Invasive Species Information Center for more information.
8. Use potted plants for table arrangements.  These can be great gifts for special people in the wedding. Be sure to go for native plants and avoid invasive species.
9. Use edible arrangements and fruit. My Eco Chic Weddings offers a fun and attractive faux rose table centerpiece made of cupcakes! Do It Yourself Weddings and Earthly Affairs.com show you how to elegantly use fruit as centerpieces. Edible Arrangements also offer a delicious alternative to the traditional.
10. Use the same flowers at your rehearsal dinner and reception. Reduce, reuse, recycle. J
11. Structure your floral decorations so that guest can take them home after the wedding events.
12. Compost the floral arrangements that are not used after the wedding events.

Recommended articles and links:

How to have Eco Friendly Wedding Flowers, EHow.com

Listing of sustainable florists in the UK

Fair Trade Certified Flowers

Fair Flowers Fair Plants

Edible Arrangements

Enter Allison Lucas.

Allison had been a legend in our household for years. She is the one person who my mother has been able to count on and consistently turn to for a product that met her high standards.

As we pulled into the church parking lot my mother gave me the order, “You have to explain to Allison what you mean by ‘green’.” “Sure, fine. I’ll do that. It will all be fine.” I was trying to console myself as I spoke these words.  Simultaneously, my mind raced with questions about her. “Was she classic old guard Macon?  Did she think this green stuff was silly? Was she going to laugh at my wants and desires?”

The church parking lot was empty except for two cars- a Honda Accord and a massive Toyota Land Cruiser.  “Please let her’s be the Honda Accord.” I wished to myself.  No dice.  My worries raced faster.  I smiled, took a deep breath and said, “Hi Allison, I have heard a ton about you and my mom raves about your work.”

Fast forward past small talk.  She was lovely and I was beginning to see why mom was such a fan.  My mother sternly looked at me and then looked at Allison. Another deep breath.

“The environment is very important to Sean and me.  We are working to green every element of our wedding including the flowers.  We’d like to talk to you today about how we can do that.” I said.

By now you would have thought I would have remembered the theme we’d been seeing. People are open to going green and are looking for opportunities. Allison was no different!

She lit up with ideas about local growers and vendors. She and my mom began speaking another language- the language of flowers. (A good florist is a walking catalog of flowers and greenery.) I gave her a picture of a bouquet from one of the many magazines my mother showed me the night before and gave her a Georgia Organics local source guide.  We were off to the races.

In the midst of the conversation I realized any tension that remained between my mother and I had long melted away.  I knew we’d found another green solution.  I was also reminded that we all need others to help us on our journey to go green, especially if you are an expert in a field.  Change is hardest when you have a methodology that works well.  It’s a little easier when you have a friend or partner whose walking down the path with you.

Check out our Tips for Environmentally Sound Wedding Flowers for specific steps you can take.

Last night was definitely an experience.  (I have a feeling that I am going to describe a lot of this wedding preparation as “an experience”).  I arrived at Mandy’s house to find a 3-person film crew, a dress designer, the mother of the bride, and 6 bridesmaids, along with several other “groupies”.  I was immediately pointed in the direction of the wine, so I guess someone tipped off the film crew in terms of my lack of desire to be filmed while trying on dresses.  As things got started, it was evident that there was no way for this not to be a night to remember.  All of the girls went upstairs to try on dresses while the film crew set up downstairs.  We then descended the stairs while the cameraman zoomed in on our midsections (a girl’s most flattering angle, I am sure) and our legs (mind you, we are all barefoot and in cocktail dresses that don’t necessarily fit…again, very flattering).  There were about 4 “rounds” of dresses when you take into account all of the different dresses and then some girls trying on the same dress another girl had already tried.  While we stood in a line, side by side (sort of like awaiting a firing squad), the others in the room would look us up and down and critique the dress, the fit, etc.  I just concentrated on the fact that, somehow, the humiliation was making our world a better place.

Eventually, we all agreed on certain dress features and colors that we liked and the designer took tons of notes.  Mandy was interviewed on camera for the TV show (while I made sure I had to be in the bathroom each time the “record” light came on).  Overall, the night was fun and definitely helped us understand the details that have to be taken into account when visualizing and designing the perfect eco-dress.  I am excited to see what the designer comes up with!  Oh, and I learned that not only does the camera add 10 pounds, but it also removes all hint of tan from my skin, always catches my worst angle, and makes me as nervous as a prison escapee.

Picture courtesy of Andrew Turner

[start dream music]

In all the years of dreaming about my wedding, I never thought once about the flowers. I assumed that would be the simplest part to the whole affair. When asked, I’ve told my friends, “Oh, my mother will handle it.” That came as no surprise to anyone.  She has a terrific reputation for elegant, ornate, breathtaking work.

[record screech]

That dream ended tonight. Reality set it.

“What do you want your flowers to look like?” said my mother. 

“I don’t know,” I replied. Her eyebrow raised and she sat there patiently but not pleased. This was not the first time we’d had this conversation but I’d always just ignored it for some other more pressing wedding detail. 

Then it struck me, I was dealing with a professional and I was not being a cooperative client.

“I just want them to be ‘green’.” I spurted out.

“Ok, that’s fine. But that may not be realistic.” She continued in her patient, stern tone. 

Frustrated I said, “It must be Mother. We have greened every other aspect to this wedding. We must find a solution for this as well. I will not waste fossil fuels for flowers. There has got to be a way we conquer this one.”

The conversation continued in this fashion. She produced magazine upon magazine in order to elicit what look, feel, style, texture, color palette I wanted. That brought progress. Two bouquets fit the image in my mind’s eye.  I wanted bold colors and textures that pulled together to create a clean, high style look.

I took a chance and asked, “Why don’t we just have dad go out and collect the stuff from the forest the week of the wedding?”

“There will be many important details that week. We cannot be running around in the woods looking for flowers that may or may not be in bloom the week of your wedding.  You do have 10 bridesmaids. And, we have a business to run Mandy,” she responded in a clearly displeased fashion.

I knew that was another strike out.

“Where exactly are we going to get these flowers from?” she inquired. “The flowers you like are not grown here. Tulips do not grow in the South. They grow in New England and Europe and are flown in.”

I relented a bit and admitted that I didn’t have the answer. “Ok. I will be fine if they come from the southeast.  I have heard from my friends in the local food space that there are greenhouses in Georgia that specifically grow flowers. Why don’t we call them and see what they will have in May?  Then we can let that drive what we use.” That has been my strategy in other parts of the wedding. I have traded off abundance in the name of quality and availability and its works great. Why not now?

Truce was reached.  I pledged to produce a list of Georgia growers tomorrow.  Then we must find growers that provide her with the level of confidence in choice and quantity she needs. If not, that’s another conversation for another day that I hope we don’t have to have.

I walked away having realized that flower arrangements for big events are like electricity- taken for granted until you flip the switch and it’s not there. And like the electric company, florists need reliable resources to produce their product. Green resources are not yet ubiquitous for producing electricity or grand flower arrangements.