How to Have a More Sustainable Wedding Day

Wedding trends continue to report a growth in couples eco-conscious desirability and over 50% of couples we spoke to at the end of 2021 are considering a mindful wedding, concentrating on reducing waste and focusing on sustainability.

Mindful & Eco-Friendly Weddings

To help understand how you can host your wedding responsibly, we chat to eco-specialist wedding planners Willow and Rust alongside a collection of inspirational mindful wedding suppliers.

Dream weddings that are kind on the environment

“Eco-friendly does not have to mean compromise, you can bring your vision to life making as little impact on the environment as possible. Here’s Samantha’s (from Willow and Rust Weddings) five tips on how to create a more sustainable wedding…

1. Choose your venue carefully

Certain types of wedding venues lend themselves really well to the cause, whilst others do not. For example, an outdoor wedding in Tipis or an old barn are already on their way to being more eco-friendly compared to jetting off to a venue with all of your guests.

However, there are options in between and a lot of venues are working hard now to market themselves as more sustainable. Make sure you ask venues about their sustainable credentials when you visit, ask things like- where do you source your energy and how do you dispose of waste, they may not seem like things you want to be thinking about when looking around beautiful spaces for your wedding, but these things are important.

Exciting eco-conscious wedding venues

Say ‘I Do’ surrounded by a canopy of 100 redwood trees on a wildlife estate with a strong eco philosophy. Experience the ultimate enchanted forest wedding at Two Woods Estate amongst 42 acres of captivating Sussex countryside.

70 acres of private wildflower meadows and ancient woodlands, Wellington Wood is the ideal place for free spirits, striving for a beautiful eco-friendly wedding day.

A private un-spoilt woodland venue, The Wilderness is ideal for your free spirited, creative wedding day featuring incredible views over the water meadows and beyond.

Situated in the breathtaking Atlas Mountains, Kasbah Bab Ourika is one of the most eco-friendly buildings in Morocco offering a spectacular location for your dream wedding.

The epitome of sustainable luxury, The Courti Estate is an idyllic eco-friendly, organic venue, a tranquil haven perfect for intimate and large exclusive wedding celebrations.

Discover | Eco-friendly & Sustainable Wedding Venues

2. Eco-Suppliers are key

You can’t do it alone, if you’re wanting a more eco-friendly wedding you have to choose eco-conscious suppliers. Make sure you understand their eco-credentials and ask questions upon initial contact. When it comes to stationers you can ask if they use recycled papers and vegan friendly inks and for florists you need to establish if they source from local growers, whilst eliminating harmful foams.

There are more and more environmentally conscious suppliers and small businesses popping up, it’s just about finding the right ones for you.

Eco-friendly wedding stationery

Taking care of the environment is tremendously important to the running of wedding stationers Paperchain and graphic designer Justine tells us just how they achieve this…

“All of our wedding stationery has been printed onto environmentally friendly paper stock and we let your guests know by adding- Printed with love onto environmentally sustainable, carbon neutral, bamboo paper.

The paper stock that we use is either Carbon Neutral and FSC Certified or 100% recycled card. All our digital printing consumables are backed by great recycling schemes and everything that I do at Paperchain is considered in an environmental capacity. I’m thrilled that most of my bride and grooms choose Paperchain because of this and are choosing to have an environmentally friendly wedding day.”

Ethical jewellery

There are dedicated jewellers that pride themselves as ethical dealers, citing ‘traceability’ as one of their unique selling points making them ideal for eco wedding rings. With recycled and Fairtrade gold growing in popularity you can make an ethical choice and still achieve the ring style you desire.

With that being said, there’s always the smart choice of opting for a vintage or antique diamond, or re-purposing a family ring- just find a local manufacturing jeweller to work their magic!

Eco Wedding Confetti

Biodegradable confetti is not only an excellent choice for a mindful wedding but it may turn out to be the only choice due to particular wedding venue restrictions. Natural flower petals make incredible confetti and come in an assortment of colours to match your individual wedding palette.

3. The dress

Consider buying a pre-loved wedding dress or even hiring one. More and more brides are discovering that the dress of their dreams can be affordable this way and it’s the perfect solution for eco-conscious brides.

There are websites dedicated to wedding dress rental and they stock some of the best designer gowns there are, dresses that many brides could never even begin to look at buying. There are also a growing number of preloved wedding boutiques popping up and this is a great sustainable option.

A wedding dress is worn once and then quite often packed away for years. Passing your gown on for another bride to wear on her special day is not only a lovely thing to do but it is also a lot kinder on the environment.

Stylish & sustainable wedding dresses

Located in Cambridgeshire Ivy and Gold Bridal, is an exciting bridal boutique proudly taking on an eco-ethos. Focusing on stylish, sustainable and affordable wedding dresses and separates, their gorgeous items are either ex-samples from designers or pre-loved bridal wear.

Not only can you unearth dresses at a fraction of the RRP but the Ivy and Gold Bridal store supports bridal designers selling and re-purposing their ex-samples off-the-rack, allowing you to reduce industry waste.

4. Don’t buy new

You can hire most things now from prop hire companies. Alternatively if you want to source items yourself, choose second hand stores, car boot sales, vintage shops or online marketplaces.

The list is endless and not only are you helping the planet you’re also saving yourselves money instead of buying everything new. Re-purpose items you find, maybe you find an old table that could be perfect for your cake, give it a little TLC and choose a coat of paint that will fit with your concept.

You can create an amazing vintage look by collecting vintage and second-hand items and if they don’t quite match then that’s ok, it just adds to the overall chic look and feel.

You could also borrow items from friends and family, maybe your aunt or uncle have a beautiful pergola in their garden that would look amazing as your ceremony arch? That way it’s both free and sustainable.

5. Banish the plastic

Reducing possible waste before the event and not using single use plastics are two big ways you can make a difference. The main items that gets thrown away after a wedding are; plastic glasses, beer and wine bottles, napkins, food, wedding cake, and unwanted favours. By concentrating on these items, you can make a big difference to the footprint of your day.

Hiring a bar that uses real glasses automatically reduces your plastic waste. The same applies to your caterers, if you are hiring food trucks look for ones that offer bamboo options for tableware and cutlery instead of plastic, as these are friendlier on the environment.

Also make sure that your venue has a good recycling policy, so you know that all of your bottles and other recyclable waste is going to be dealt with responsibly.

Plan your mindful wedding

From eco invites to ethical jewellery and pre-loved bridal gowns, making your wedding more sustainable can be achieved by the smallest of details. Naturally as with planning any style or theme of wedding, the starting point has to be finding the most suitable venue and luckily the UK and abroad has an exciting collection of eco-friendly, sustainable options to discover.

Search | Eco-Friendly Wedding Venues