How To Have an Eco-Friendly Wedding (and a budget friendly one too)

Do you ever think about how much waste you create?

I’ve been doing some spring cleaning recently and I’ve been thinking a lot about waste. Because I have so much stuff. We collectively have SO much stuff.

We live in a consumer world and we just consume and consume. When something new and exciting comes out, we just want the new thing. And things in general just don’t last as long. So, we buy new things. But then we discard all the old things and that creates a lot of waste.

We dump the things we don’t like anymore, the things we don’t use anymore, the broken things. And it all just ends up somewhere else. Where we don’t have to see or think about it.

And it’s not just the personal stuff, but weddings too. There can be a lot of waste with weddings.

It might be hard for you to imagine as you’re planning your wedding. But, since I’m one of the people cleaning up at the end of the night, trust me. There is so much “stuff” that just gets dumped at the end of the day. Like favors, decor and flowers.

(Photo credit: Strotz Photography)

So, how can we reduce waste? How can you have an environmentally friendly wedding?

Now there are a bunch of ways you can have an eco-friendly wedding. But, one of the biggest ways (and my favorite) is by embracing the idea of reusing.

Reusing items for your eco-friendly wedding is great because it can take two different forms (which sometimes cross over):

1. Borrowing or using something that already exists.

You aren’t buying something new. So this means what you’re using has already had a life and you’re giving it even more life.

For example, you can use a friend’s wedding dress or borrow votives from your mom. You can rent plants instead of having cut flowers or wear shoes you already own.

(Photo credit: Arrowood Photography)

2. Using something that can live on after the wedding.

This means it’s not an item that was just purchased for the wedding, but has a purpose. And it can continue to be used after the wedding.

For example, instead of having a throwaway gift box, you choose something that you’ll use in your home. You can let your bridesmaids choose their own dress so they’ll wear it after the wedding.

(Photo credit: Andria Lo Weddings)

I love the idea of reusing items for a wedding. Not only do the items have meaning, but they can literally live on. Like how your marriage will live on, I love that your wedding items can live on too.

And guess what? It’s also budget friendly too! Reusing also means you’re spending less on stuff. And who doesn’t have a budget they’re working with?

And on top of all that, it reduces waste! You’re not buying and discarding. You’re not creating a ton of wedding waste. Instead you’re reusing and being environmentally friendly.

Because people always say that your wedding is just one day. And it’s true…it’s one day.

And while that one day should be special and meaningful and memorable, it doesn’t have to be a wasteful day. You can still have an amazing and beautiful wedding and not throw out half the things when it’s done.

Being eco-friendly isn’t about being granola (although it’s perfectly ok if you are). It’s just about reducing our impact on the world. And while a wedding is just a small part of your life, I think every bit we do can help keep this world, our home beautiful.