20 Ways to Make Your Wedding More Sustainable
Sustainability is more than just a popular wedding trend. It is a way of life that can be practiced in everything you do. Large events, including weddings, can create excessive waste. Luckily, there are lots of small ways to reduce the ecological impact of your event. Choosing more eco-friendly practices at your wedding is a beautiful way to honor your union and our beautiful planet.
*Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, meaning I get a commission if you decide to make a purchase through my links, at no cost to you.*
Here are 20 ways to make your wedding more sustainable:
1 - Source local flowers for your floral arrangements
Shop local! Lessen your environmental impact by decreasing the efforts put into sourcing, transporting, and storing exotic flora and instead capitalize on what grows locally. For our Los Angeles area and Southern California couples, The Los Angeles Flower District has almost unlimited options when it comes to wedding day florals! If you are not local to Southern California, check out your own local flower market for options sourced nearby. Alternatively, for anyone interested in going the DIY route, Trader Joe’s is an affordable option for beautiful ceremony flowers consistently sourced responsibly. Do a Google search to find a wholesale flower market near you!
2 - Donate your leftover florals to a senior living home
No matter where your wedding day floral arrangements come from, you have the opportunity to donate those gorgeous pieces to enjoy a longer life! While there are many organizations that work to give wedding flowers a longer life than just one night’s celebration, this does require a little pre-planning. First, try to connect with a local organization that will collect your flowers and deliver them to a secondary location like a retirement home. If no organization is available in your area, you can also call a local senior living home and inquire if you may bring your wedding flowers there the day after the wedding. You may need to supply extra boxes for packing up for your flowers, and assign someone to transport them out of your wedding venue following the reception before dropping them off the next day! The beautiful floral arrangements from your wedding will brighten the seniors’ day and you can rest easy knowing the investment of funds and efforts outlasted your wedding reception! Here are some great picks for packing up and transporting flowers.
Pro-tip: not able to arrange this? Try donating any leftover florals to the staff at your venue - do not forget the staff in the kitchen and valet in the parking lot!
3 - Shop second hand and up-cycle your decorations by selling them to another couple after your wedding
It is no secret that weddings are gorgeous, high ticket events. This often means that couples invest in speciality decor pieces that may only be used once! While planning your own wedding, be sure to check second hand, resale platforms for items being sold. With a little diligence and patience, there is a good chance you will find exactly what you are looking for (and at a fraction of the cost!). Since items really are only used for a single night of celebration it is likely that most items will be in like-new condition. When your own wedding concludes, offer up those incredible wedding decor pieces you carefully curated to achieve your wedding vision so that the next person may give them a second life at their own wedding! Recycling these pieces is not only a great way to keep our waste sites from filling with perfectly great decor items, but also is an incredible opportunity to save on the wedding budget. Great places to sell barely-used wedding decor include Facebook Marketplace and Mercari.
Pro-tip: list your items for sale before your wedding, and arrange for the buyer to come pick the items up at the end of the reception!
4 - Consider potted plants for wedding centerpieces
Potted plants from your local garden center will last much longer than cut flowers and, after the conclusion of your wedding reception, make for great guest wedding favors to take home. Sustainable, eco-friendly wedding centerpieces are always a win! Another added bonus? These tend to be more cost effective than temporary wedding floral arrangements of comparable size.
5 - Skip paper wedding Save the Dates or Wedding Invitations and send e-vites
Going digital for wedding Save the Dates and/or wedding invitations is a great way to limit your weddings’ environmental footprint. Purchase a gorgeous wedding Save the Date and/or wedding invitation design online or design your own. When sending digitally, you can opt to use a third party wedding invitation platform or send a PDF of your design with a link to a wedding website, of your own design, where they can find way more information and details about your wedding (and updates, should they happen!). Sites like Zola, the knot, and withjoy offer free wedding websites where wedding guests can find all the wedding information, RSVP, and locate your wedding registry. You’ll be able to collect their RSVPS, communicate details, and keep track of your guest list all online!
6 - Buy used vases, candle votives, and other non-wedding-specific decor
Reduce, reuse, recycle! Similar to purchasing and selling wedding decor, this idea is a little more out of the box! Visit your local thrift stores and keep an eye out for decor pieces that are inline with your wedding vision, though they may not be specifically “wedding decor” items. For example, certain thrift stores often have dozens of beautiful glass vases, candle holders, signs, frames, etc. You might just be amazed at some of the treasures that can be found at your local thrift store! Click here to find a local Goodwill.
7 - Opt for compostable plates, napkins, and cups
Compostable wedding dinnerware will save plates, flatware, and napkins from a landfill following your wedding. Additionally, depending on how sustainable the production process of the compostable dinner sets you purchase, there can be the added benefit of conserving water that would be used to wash ceramic dishes. Even if you are not sold on skipping the fine china for the whole event, compostable plates and forks are perfect for cake and desserts!
8 - Skip water bottles for water dispensers or pitchers instead of individual plastic water bottles
Water dispensers and pitchers create less plastic waste, just be sure to avoid plastic cups if the intent is to maximize wedding sustainability! If you want to go disposable, choose paper. Glassware is generally the more sustainable choice as people drink throughout a wedding event and often reach for a new cup every time they want a new beverage.
9 - Consider renting silk florals for your decor
Something Borrowed Blooms is a go-to for renting beautiful wedding day silk florals. They offer easy returns as well.
10 - Shop for a pre-loved wedding dress
Sites like stillwhite and loved twice bridal have large selections of used wedding dresses. Don’t forget to search local thrift stores as well!
11 - Rent your attire (tuxes, etc)
Why buy a tux just for your wedding!? The Black Tux offers menswear rentals for the groom and all groomsmen.
12 - Encourage guests to embrace their own unique style, rather than buying something just for your wedding
When you specify the event’s dress code on your invite or wedding website, you can request that guests choose an outfit they already own!
13 - On your bridal registry, ask your guests to donate to environmental causes in honor of your wedding
Zola allows couples to add their favorite charities to their bridal registry. Guests can donate directly from the site.
14 - Offer plantable seeded paper wedding favors that your guests can grow into their own blooms
Seeded paper invites and cards can be planted after they are read, rather than placed in the trash. Here are some of our picks for seeded invites and envelopes. Let love bloom!
15 - Consider natural daylight for your ceremony if possible
For spring and summer brides, this can be as easy as picking a late morning or early afternoon ceremony start time.
Pro-tip: a sunny ceremony can mean a warm ceremony! Be sure to provide your guests with options for shade! hand fans and paper umbrellas can double as wedding favors.
16 - Use energy-efficient LED lighting throughout your venue
Many venues require you to provide your own/additional lighting. Affordable LED lighting can help set the right mood at your reception!
17 - Encourage guests to carpool or share rideshare services to and from to your wedding
This can be listed on your wedding website. Connect guests who live near each other or are staying at the same hotel so they can carpool!
18 - Offer shuttle services to reduce the number of individual vehicles needed
Our couples in the Los Angeles area love Riz Transportation and United Limo and Charter. A nationwide Uber-like service for finding shuttles for your event is the Swoop App. If you have a room block at a hotel, that can be the perfect pick up location for shuttles.
19 - Work with your caterer to ensure you order only the amount of food needed to avoid leftovers
Your guest list will come in handy for this! By knowing your exact guest count at least 2 weeks before your wedding, you caterer will be able to provide enough food for your guests without unnecessary surplus.
20 - Donate any extra food to a local shelter or food bank
Like donating your florals to a senior home, this also requires a little pre-planning. Call a local shelter or food bank and inquire if you may bring any leftover food there after your wedding. If this does not seem feasible, consider supplying your guests with compostable take-out boxes to allow them to bring any extra food home. Don’t forget to also offer any leftover food to staff!
By incorporating just a few of the simple practices above, you will create a beautiful and memorable wedding that celebrates your love and the environment. Here’s to happy planning!