New Real Green Wedding: Camp Chic!

Rachel and Will were married on June 15, 2009 in South Casco, ME.

The Decision to Go Green

Rachel and Will, who met in college eight years ago, were committed to minimizing the footprint of their wedding while still sharing a wonderful celebration with friends and family. The bride explained that wedding planning is "essentially a series of product choices," and she and her fiance wanted to ensure that their choices made the least impact, from the rings to the food served.

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Green Wedding Decor Idea: Apples

The stunning brights of summer have now adopted warmer and more golden hues, providing a natural color palette for an elegant fall wedding. In addition to the complex array of tones that autumn provides, it also gives us a versatile accent piece for décor: the apple, signature fruit of the fall. With many lovely, eco-chic options, now is the time to take advantage of fall's favorite harvest...

Read the rest of the story from the Green Wedding Decor blog here.

The Citizen: Planting Seeds

As is often the case with things that grow, Sheila Sheffield's eco-friendly party favor business started with one seedling. Just months after guests left their August 1992 wedding with blue spruce seedlings in their pockets, Sheila Sheffield was in business, selling seedlings, seed packets and bulbs to brides interested in a different kind of party favor. Tree Beginnings, an online, mail-order business based in Locke, is one example of how the trend of environmental consciousness has infiltrated the wedding scene. This movement takes the traditional requirements of a wedding - “something old, new, borrowed and blue” - and adds “something green.”

“The green movement is growing exponentially and the green wedding movement is growing accordingly,” said Kate Harrison, author of “The Green Bride Guide: How to Create an Eco-Friendly Wedding on a Budget.”

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DIY Wedding Flowers - Sometimes Better in Theory than in Practice

Choosing local, season, flowers is a great way to save money while decreasing the environmental impact of a green wedding. However, arranging them can be a challenge! This week's Ask Kate features a florist from Bucks County, PA who is concerned about meeting the expectations of DIY brides. Click here to read the story.

Green Wedding Tip: Revamp The Gown

One of the tips in The Green Bride Guide for brides who want to keep their gowns is to have them altered to create a new look that can be wore again and again. This week's Project Runway has some great examples! Click here to see pictures of ways to alter your wedding gown into something fabulous.

Real Green Wedding: Vegan Vogue

Kim DeFeo and Brian Cook were married on June 6, 2009 on Neverland Farms in Cleveland, GA.

About the Couple

Some couples start out red-hot before deciding on an eco-friendly wedding, but Kim and Brian’s love has always been a beautiful shade of green. These nature enthusiasts met online and dated for more than five years before tying the knot. When they met, Kim was working as the co-director of the Sierra Club’s Environmental Justice Program, while Brian was busy doing environmental work for the Center for Disease Control. The two shared a passion for politics, environmental issues, and animal welfare, which obviously left them without any shortage of conversation. According to the bride, their first date lasted "a whopping eight hours! We have been joined at the hip ever since,” says Kim.

Currently, Brian runs the environmental compliance and sustainability programs for the southeast region of the National Park Service, and Kim works on environmental health issues for the Center for Disease Control. “We both have a Masters of Public Health in environmental health. We are two peas in a pod!” Kim says.

The Decision to Go Green

“Being environmentally conscious is the essence of who we are,” the bride tells us. “We wanted to have an outdoor wedding where we could express our values in a beautiful and understated way while giving our guests a feast to remember!”

To read the rest of this real green wedding story click here.