With ethical, eco, sustainability and local becoming more and more prominent in our day to day lives, it is no surprise that there are now so many sustainable ideas and alternatives for your wedding day!
While it can be an expensive venture to try and make every part of the wedding day organic and ethical, it doesn’t have to be. You can certainly opt to add a few elements throughout the day without breaking the budget!
We have gathered together a few suggestions to help make your dream green wedding a reality.
The wedding venue
At Huntsham Court we are all about being the best and most flexible Devon party/wedding or civil partnership venue in the South West, but it is also important to us that we achieve this in a responsible way in terms of sustainability, environmental responsibility and the promotion of localism.
For example, all our water comes from our private well pumping water from the water table right under the house. We then purify and filter it so that every tap in the house pours top quality mineral water with no chemical additions- whether it’s for your bath or drinking water.
Head to https://www.huntshamcourt.co.uk/sustainability-responsibility/ to find out more.
Source locally
When looking for a caterer, why not look to use someone local? Using a caterer from the area means the food needs less time in the fridge and less packaging to stay fresh. Plus, since the food is coming from a shorter distance, less fuel is needed to transport it! You can ask that your caterer also uses as much seasonal, locally grown and organic food as possible to help support the local environment.
This doesn’t just apply to the wedding food itself, you can consider asking your wedding cake maker if they can use all local and organic ingredients!
Huntsham Court works closely with Peter Mundy Catering who source as much local ingredients as possible, plus they are located only 2 miles away from Huntsham Court!
Take a look for yourself www.petermundycatering.co.uk
Favours with a difference
Instead of plastic wrapped tokens, why not give your guests something useful and environmentally-friendly instead. Wildflower seed favours are the perfect take-home gift, not only benefiting your wedding guests’ gardens but providing a much-needed source of food for bees. The packs can be personalised with your names and wedding date plus Friends of the Earth receives a donation from each pack.
For a totally different approach, why not consider a charity donation. Display a sign letting guests know you’ve made a donation to a meaningful cause in lieu of favours.
The rings
Have you considered if your engagement ring or wedding rings are ethical? This is now a hot topic within jewellery and fashion brands, many of which are doing their best to offer alternatives to diamonds or using conflict free diamonds. Plus, did you know that there is even an option for Fairtrade gold and silver now?
For advice on buying conflict-free diamonds, see The Kimberley Process FAQs .
Or you could look to a local talent; Julia Thompson works with conflict free Sri Lankan Sapphires as an alternative to diamonds, plus she makes all her jewellery using Fairtrade gold and silver. Julia even recycles heirloom gold to make your wedding rings, something old to something new!
Find out more at www.juliathompson.co.uk
Biodegradable confetti
Did you know that confetti can contain plastic? At Huntsham court we only allow biodegradable confetti so there is minimal impact on the surrounding countryside. Dried petals, herbs or even good old-fashioned rice makes for the prefect solution. Or, how about asking guests to throw birdseed instead of confetti, the local wildlife will love you for it!
Wedding invitations and photos
When searching for wedding invite companies, see if they offer a recycled paper option. Or, don’t use paper invites at all! There are so many online invitation companies now where you can send e-invites instead, plus you can update important information about timings, etc.
For the photos themselves, if you know you just won’t look at hundreds of wedding pics after the big day, don’t print them all. Get your photographer to keep them in digital format and only print the ones you want to love and cherish on the mantlepiece.
Why not ask these photographers for more details and ideas:
Featured photo by Donna Davie