Planning an Eco-Friendly Wedding

I was so excited to see in this morning's issue of the Charlotte Observer an article featuring an SJB Weddings & Events wedding from this past Saturday. The article highlighted two of my favorite food vendors Tastemakers of Charlotte and Cloud 9 Confections and their use of local and organic foods to prepare what was a delectable menu for this Lake Norman wedding.

These days everyone is attempting to find ways to reduce their carbon footprint and a wedding should not be any different. There are so many ways that you can add a "green" flair to your event. None of which should effect how stylish and unique your event ends up. Remember, every little thing helps, when looking at the effect of our environment. Here are some things you can do to help reduce your events carbon footprint:

• This is an obvious one, but by reducing the amount of paper used for your event you will save so many trees. Do you really need wedding programs?
• Take a note from my bride and groom and look for caterers and cake designers that utilize local farmers and growers. It makes an amazing statement when you can say that 90% of your menu was from local farmers. Check your local farmers market for foods in your area.
  
• Skip on disposable anything. You want to use items that can be reused and recycled. So, go ahead and rent those linens, glasses, plates, tables and chairs or better yet use what you have already. You will find that a lot of linen companies are using a special process to clean their linens that do not negatively effect the environment.
• Use local flowers. Believe or not there are local flower growers in your area. Unfortunately, it may be tough to find them, but they are out there. You may have to be flexible with your selections, but it is possible to have a beautiful bouquet with local flowers. We also used stems off a cypress tree out of the brides own yard to help add some color to the tables.
  
• Believe it or not, but having your ceremony and reception in one location is an excellent way to reduce gas emissions. At least for a few hours you would have helped to reduce a few cars on the road.
  

You do not have to look at being eco-friendly as an elaborate project, but try to look at little ways you can help the environment without sacraficing the beautiful style of your event. You can do it. Trust me.

Here are a few amateur snapshots from this weekends event. I can't wait to get the professional pics!