Naturally understated, these rings are a work of art!

They also offer other jewelry that’s perfect for Mother of the Bride and Bridesmaids’

Check them out on the web – Turtle Love Co

Happy dreaming!

Flowers are so amazingly beautiful – and they scream “wedding”!  Flowers add such a romantic touch – and I can’t imagine a wedding without them.  There are ways to have the beautiful blooms that you dream about – and still be environmentally responsible.  Here are just a few suggestions…

• Choose local and support your local growers!  There is no reason to ship your flowers from Holland or some other far away land.  You may have to make some different choices, but there are some awesome flowers that are grown locally.
• Choose a grower that’s certified by Veriflora.  Flowers with the Veriflora label are certified to be sustainably grown  by encouraging farming practices that build soil, conserve water and support healthy ecosystems.  Veriflora also certifies a healthy and equitable workplace that benefits farmers, workers, families and communities.
• Choose a good silk florist.  Great silk florists can make their flowers look real.  They have the ability to dye and arrange.  When the wedding is over, they come back, take their flowers, re-dye and reuse.  Nice, eh?  If you use a good florist, most likely there will not be any cost savings – but you will be saving the environment.
• Choose to add.  If your wedding is at the right time, use herbs and vegetables in combination with cut flowers.  This way, your guests can bring them home, put them in their window/plant them in their garden – and have fresh vegetables in the fall or fresh herbs throughout the rest of the year!
• Choose to add positively to someone else’s life.  Bring your flowers to a hospital or nursing home – and brighten someone’s day.  Maybe there is a patient that’s not visited a lot.  You could also call a charity to pick up the flowers.  Just make sure you’ve pre-arranged your donation before showing up!

Just a few ways for your wedding flowers to be a win-win for everybody!

Happy planning!

• Organic hemp and silk fabrics
• Vegetable died silks
• Use of remnant fabrics
• Organic design elements
• Fair trade labor
• Crafted in North America

Check out these sustainable beauties…

Adele Wechsler

There are so many options out there!

Happy planning!

Blush Bridal Boutique, just 30 minutes outside of DC, carries Justin Alexander.  There are more choices out there ladies.  If you don’t want to go in, call and see.  You can have elegant Silk, bamboo, hemp and more.  Justin goes up to size 20 and can be custom ordered in larger sizes.

You don’t have to be thin in order to sport natural and sustainable fabrics.

Happy planning!

Have you ever wondered what 100% recycled means?  Dealing with clients and their stationary needs – I have.  I wanted to provide a great resource of terms for you – but many seem ambiguous – and frankly, confusing.  In my search I ran into an article that address many of the misconceptions – that I had at least.  It was eye opening!

I thought this article would be great tool for you as well – so you understand what you are getting.  I think it’s important to know so that you can make the right decisions for you and your Eco-friendly wedding.

Knowledge is power!

Take a look

How Well Do you Know Recycled Paper?

It addresses recycled paper misconceptions, gives useful terms and talks a bit about tree-free alternatives.

Happy stationary choosing!

There are all kinds of dresses on both Etsy and Ebay.  They have eco-friendly, vintage, gently used, new, and custom.  Reuse is a good word to have in your vocabulary when you want to make aspects of your wedding eco friendly.  It saves materials, processing, and labor – if you can find something in your size that you absolutely love – why not go for it?

Check out – just a FEW nice gowns that I found on the first two pages!

Happy Internet searching- and saving!

WeddingWire is working towards a better tomorrow and has partnered with The Carbon Fund!

Travel by car or air emits a large amount of CO2 into the Atmosphere, and for most weddings is the biggest contributor to your wedding’s  carbon footprint.  If you use wedding wire, the carbon calculator can be incorporated directly onto your weddingwire wedding website.  It’s so easy.  You can then use the carbon calculator to determine how much CO2 your wedding will emit into the air, and give your guests the opportunity to contribute to your Zero Carbon Wedding.

Cool, eh?

For those of you who do not have a weddingwire website, don’t despair.   Go to The Carbon Fund, scroll down, and offset your wedding yourself.  It’s so easy.

Happy offseting!

I would say that I’m a relatively sentimental person.  I have my Mom’s Tussie Mussie she carried at my wedding.  My wedding gown is still in a box – in the basement – collecting dust.  However, despite being in a deep dark place – having not seen the light of day in 8 years – I still cannot bring myself to give it away.  Okay, I’m not saying that wedding gown donation is for everyone – but for some, it may be an option.

It’s the gown you wore on one of the most important days of your life.  By donating it, you are giving another Bride an opportunity to have their dream gown – on the most important day of their life.  By not leaving it in your basement, under your bed, or in your garage, you will be helping a multitude of people.  First, you are helping yourself, you are helping another Bride, and most importantly, you will be helping to improve the life of someone else.

Check this out.

Brides Against Breast Cancer

Check out the website for more information about the gown donation program.  The website tells you exactly how to donate one of your most treasured possessions.  Make sure to check the website prior to donating.  Right now, they are not accepting vintage gowns due to an overstock, but that will change.  Brides Against Breast Cancer accepts donations from individuals, manufactures, and dress shops.  Proceeds from each sale goes to granting wishes to families dealing with terminal breast cancer – where there are no cures – only dreams realized.

Happy planning!

]]> http://eleganteventdesign.com/eco-friendly-monday-wedding-gown-donation/feed 1 http://eleganteventdesign.com/eco-friendly-monday-jessica-iverson http://eleganteventdesign.com/eco-friendly-monday-jessica-iverson#comments Mon, 14 Jun 2010 11:01:26 +0000 Lisa R. Nelson http://eleganteventdesign.com/?p=1731 Eco-Couture Dresses made from Silk or Hemp Silk.

Amazingly beautiful!

Gorgeous!

Now, a few dresses for those who are expecting “Life’s Greatest Gift” on their wedding day – by Jessica Iverson

Jessica Iverson

Lovely!

Happy planning!

You can have beautiful flowers – that are also Eco Friendly!  Here’s how!

• As you interview florists – ask them if they work with local growers – or be willing to work with local growers.   Also ask if they work with growers who are certified with Veriflora.  Shipping flowers from Holland, or from other exotic places, creates a huge environmental impact.
• Consider silk.  I wouldn’t recommend that you do the silk flowers yourself.  Go to a professional florist who is an expert in working with and dying silk flowers.  This way, at the end of the night, he/she can take the arrangements back and use them again at another wedding.
• Use arrangements that can be later planted in a garden or grown in a planter.  Depending upon the time of year, you, your family or your guests can take home arrangements and plant them in their garden.  Herbs or vegetables might be a nice choice.
• Take your flowers to a hospital or rest home and let the residents enjoy them!

There are a lot of ways that you can still have gorgeous and professional flowers – and still be environmentally responsible.  There is a lot of room for creativity – so have fun!

Happy planning!

The lovely image is by Thomas Graves.