Dreaming of a sustainable wedding BUT not sure where to start?

If you're exploring an eco wedding, you're in the right place...Welcome!

Wanting a wedding that's in line with your values is a wonderful thing. Wedding planning can be overwhelming at the best of times – so let’s explore how a commitment to sustainability can help simplify your wedding plans, not stifle them.  

1.FIND YOUR TRIBE!

Choosing wedding suppliers whose values align with your own is probably the single biggest step you can take. But with thousands of suppliers out there, how do you find them?! Here are some great places to start:

The Sustainable Wedding Alliance is an awesome network of environmentally aware wedding businesses striving to make their businesses and the weddings they produce more sustainable. Dive on into their directory. 

The Natural Wedding Company has been championing eco-friendly weddings since 2007, and runs a directory designed to connect engaged couples with a range of artisan suppliers who genuinely care about their impact.

Eco-wedding festivals runs wedding fairs with a difference – bringing together ethical wedding businesses and eco-conscious couples. Check out their upcoming events here.  

I genuinely believe that there is no sustainability without true equality – so let me add Rebel Love Club’s LGBTQ+ wedding directory, to the list of places to start your supplier search.

Of course, there’s a lot of different types of suppliers. Just pick one to begin with! Your venue is likely one of the biggest in determining your impact, so why not start there? But if the thing you’re most excited about is flowers, or photos, or cake…go for it! Pretty much all the inclusive, eco-conscious wedding suppliers I know are genuinely delighted to recommend others. Before you know it, you’ll have your crew.  

2.Consider hiring, or buying Preloved

Wedding purchases can quickly add up in terms of their impact on the planet, as well as your wallet. Of course, there’s some precious things you’ll want to own on your wedding day, but for others - why not think about hiring? It can be a much more affordable way to create the vibe you want. 

One of my absolute favourites is Botanical Weddings – where you can hire living plant décor to bring venues to life with incredibly lush greenery. When it comes to styling, why not look at one of the amazing prop and accessory stylists out there. For example, Vintage Florrie specialises in vintage and preloved decor - over 90% of their props are preloved or bespoke repurposed (and feature in these photos). Or the brilliant 4YaParty – who transforms spaces into beautiful places, offering decorative alternatives to single use items (check out the glam black and white set-up below).  

You can even hire your wedding outfit! Or you could check out sites like Recycle My Wedding, which has some absolutely stunning preloved outfits for sale. 

3.Keep hold of what's most important to YOU

From your social media feed to your great aunt Maud, everyone’s got an opinion on what your wedding ‘should’ include. And I know it's easy to say this, but letting go of ‘shoulds’ is your ticket to freedom. (And yup, that includes anything I suggest here too!).

By agreeing on your key priorities with your partner, you know where to invest your time, money & energy - and where not to.

“You should have favours for everyone, your cousin Betsy did”, “you should make sure people have flip-flops on the for the dancefloor in case their feet get tired” (honestly they’re so rarely used, and they’re straight to landfill!), “you should recreate this Pinterest board”…..nope, nope and nope. Don’t get me wrong, if you want to get inspiration from Pinterest – brilliant, it’s fun! And if you have something meaningful in mind for favours, that’s wonderful. My point is, it’s so easy to get caught up in pressure of everyone else’s ‘shoulds’; agree with your partner what matters to you both, and hold on tight to that, so you can kindly but firmly protect your day.   

It’s a well worn phrase, but embrace progress rather than perfection. No single wedding or event is perfectly ‘sustainable’, so please don’t put pressure on yourself to achieve that goal. There are so many different considerations when planning a wedding, and this is a judgement-free zone. Find key suppliers who are sustainability allies, and we’ll walk the path with you.  The journey can be as fun as the destination….and the destination – a wedding that’s value-led and meaningful to you – is pretty darn awesome. 

The photos on this page are from two fabulous sustainability-focused wedding shoots that I was honoured to photograph. The list of brilliant suppliers for each are below, as they all come highly recommended!