Selecting a wedding dress is likely one of the most important decisions a bride will make during the course of planning. The dress needs to fit to a “t,”, it needs to communicate the bride’s personality and the emotions she might be feeling as she walks the aisle. The dress simply needs to be… perfect.
To stay green with your choices, opt for a handmade gown by an eco-friendly designer or scour the area’s consignment shops for a recycled gown. And don’t forget to look for a green dry cleaner!
Local Option: If you’d like your dress to be a custom-designed, one-of-a-kind, remember that keeping the work as local as possible means less pollution in shipping, overseas or otherwise. Besides, working directly with a designer means you can meet the person, get to know one another and perhaps have a truly unique story that matches the uniqueness of your dress.
When looking for an eco-friendly designer, ask what types of fabrics they use and look for answers to include organic cotton, silks, hemp, bamboo or even recycled fabrics. Some to try in the south East include Threadhead Creations (Tennessee), Morgan Boszilkov (Atlanta), and Deborah Lindquist (Florida).
Recycled Option: Vintage has a charming quality that is unmistakable and simply sings of classic beauty. Find a gently-used gown and restore or redesign it, give it new life and make it distinctively you. A good one to try in Central Florida is Classic Consignment (Winter Park, Casselberry, Altamonte Spring).
With all the effort, weeks of searching, numerous fittings and extra special care given to this one article of clothing, it’s no surprise that a bride wants to take special care of her dress following the big day. In comes the dry cleaner.
Look for a cleaner that uses an alternative to Perchloroethylene (PERC), a cleaning agent that works great for the purpose of dry cleaning but ,if not handled properly, PERC can cause harm to wildlife, our environment and humans. On the most minimal of levels, PERC is reported to cause dizziness and headaches. On a worse level, PERC is reported to be linked to infertility, damage to the central nervous system and is a carcinogen.
Dry Cleaning: Some dry cleaners in the area that use alternatives (such as GreenEarth Cleaning) include Martinizing Dry Cleaning (Orlando and Altamonte Springs), Executive Cleaners (Lakeland) and GreenEarth Natural Cleaners (Oveido).
30 January 2010
27 January 2010
Green and useful wedding favors your guests will actually like
One thing to keep in mind with any favor you present to wedding guests… make it something they can use. There’s nothing worse than a futile trinket that guests feel compelled to keep for no other reason than to place on the mantle when the wedding couple visits their home (and to otherwise collect dust). Here are a couple of easy ways to keep green with your wedding favors.
Lucky Bamboo – Many people don’t know that tradition states one should never buy bamboo for themselves but should instead be given bamboo. By giving bamboo to wedding guests, the couple expresses gratitude and sends a wish for luck. Find small, simple square pots in the colors of your wedding (try Old Time Pottery near the Florida Mall on Sand Lake Road) and fill each with one 6-8 inch stalk of bamboo (depending on the number you need, try the gardening section of Lowe’s or Home Depot or check out some of the area’s Farmer’s Markets including Celebration or Lake Eola.) Complete the look with small rocks in place of soil. Nothing beats a simple, beautiful gift. Lucky bamboo is ideal for any season of the year and keeps you thinking green by eliminating waste from your wedding.
Sweets – You can never go wrong with yummy sweets! A cupcake beautifully decorated in the colors of your wedding (presented in an eco-friendly box or wrapping) is a perfect gift that definitely falls under the category of useful. Sweet! By Good Golly Miss Holly (in Waterford Lakes Town Center on Alafaya Trail) makes fresh cupcakes using quality organic products while delivering a green promise consisting of plastic-looking containers made of corn, serving products made from sugar cane fibers and biodegradable vegetable starch. The choices of unique colors and flavors on their everyday menu, not to mention what they’ll create custom for your wedding, will leave your mouth watering (and the mouths of your guests). Go for a super-cool display stacked high on a table in your ballroom or place a cupcake at each guest’s place setting with a note saying it was sweet of them to come.
In staying green with wedding favors, there are countless possibilities. Countless striking, fun, unique and (most importantly) useful possibilities that leave guests smiling when they discover the thoughtful gift meant as a memento of the beautiful day they shared with you at your wedding! Have fun with it!
Did you know Doris is the Orlando Green Weddings and Events Examiner? Check out her articles here: http://www.examiner.com/x-35614-Orlando-Green-Weddings-and-Events-Examiner~y2010m1d27-Green-and-useful-wedding-favors-your-guests-will-actually-like#
Lucky Bamboo – Many people don’t know that tradition states one should never buy bamboo for themselves but should instead be given bamboo. By giving bamboo to wedding guests, the couple expresses gratitude and sends a wish for luck. Find small, simple square pots in the colors of your wedding (try Old Time Pottery near the Florida Mall on Sand Lake Road) and fill each with one 6-8 inch stalk of bamboo (depending on the number you need, try the gardening section of Lowe’s or Home Depot or check out some of the area’s Farmer’s Markets including Celebration or Lake Eola.) Complete the look with small rocks in place of soil. Nothing beats a simple, beautiful gift. Lucky bamboo is ideal for any season of the year and keeps you thinking green by eliminating waste from your wedding.
Sweets – You can never go wrong with yummy sweets! A cupcake beautifully decorated in the colors of your wedding (presented in an eco-friendly box or wrapping) is a perfect gift that definitely falls under the category of useful. Sweet! By Good Golly Miss Holly (in Waterford Lakes Town Center on Alafaya Trail) makes fresh cupcakes using quality organic products while delivering a green promise consisting of plastic-looking containers made of corn, serving products made from sugar cane fibers and biodegradable vegetable starch. The choices of unique colors and flavors on their everyday menu, not to mention what they’ll create custom for your wedding, will leave your mouth watering (and the mouths of your guests). Go for a super-cool display stacked high on a table in your ballroom or place a cupcake at each guest’s place setting with a note saying it was sweet of them to come.
In staying green with wedding favors, there are countless possibilities. Countless striking, fun, unique and (most importantly) useful possibilities that leave guests smiling when they discover the thoughtful gift meant as a memento of the beautiful day they shared with you at your wedding! Have fun with it!
Did you know Doris is the Orlando Green Weddings and Events Examiner? Check out her articles here: http://www.examiner.com/x-35614-Orlando-Green-Weddings-and-Events-Examiner~y2010m1d27-Green-and-useful-wedding-favors-your-guests-will-actually-like#
10 January 2010
Going green with wedding invitations
Electronic invitations sent via email are a great green idea for next month's dinner party, but what about your June wedding? There is a certain amount of formality with weddings that most of us would rather not overlook... and rightly so. A wedding day is a special day with special food and special dresses. But still, you can't seem to get past how many trees are being chopped in the name of your special invitations? Don't worry. Here are a few ideas for maintaining a formal (special) feel for your wedding invitations, sans Evite.
Go bamboo. According to LewisBamboo.com, some strands of bamboo grow up to 100 feet in 60 days! So, don't feel bad about traditional paper invitations when you choose paper made from bamboo. A quick internet search reveals tons of printing companies offering bamboo invitations in hundreds of lovely designs.
Go practical. Why not send an invitation that your recipient can use rather than throw away? Try candy-coated almonds in your wedding colors presented beautifully in a bamboo box. A nice, silver picture frame can double as an invitation and a favor. Have a basket (hold the plastic wrap, please) filled with locally grown treats delivered with a special message inside. A small, green plant (potted, not cut) blooming with a save-the-date note might become a permanent fixture on someone's mantle (minimal paper, lots of special).
Go website. No, not an email, but an entire website dedicated to your wedding. This is a popular trend that makes sense in today's world. After setting up your website with your colors, style and event info, add thoughtful touches for out-of-town guests including tips for area hotels, restaurants, things to do and a map to the venue. Guests can access your website any time from their smart phones for reminders and registry updates!
These are just a few ways to keep invitations special while being considerate of our planet!
Go bamboo. According to LewisBamboo.com, some strands of bamboo grow up to 100 feet in 60 days! So, don't feel bad about traditional paper invitations when you choose paper made from bamboo. A quick internet search reveals tons of printing companies offering bamboo invitations in hundreds of lovely designs.
Go practical. Why not send an invitation that your recipient can use rather than throw away? Try candy-coated almonds in your wedding colors presented beautifully in a bamboo box. A nice, silver picture frame can double as an invitation and a favor. Have a basket (hold the plastic wrap, please) filled with locally grown treats delivered with a special message inside. A small, green plant (potted, not cut) blooming with a save-the-date note might become a permanent fixture on someone's mantle (minimal paper, lots of special).
Go website. No, not an email, but an entire website dedicated to your wedding. This is a popular trend that makes sense in today's world. After setting up your website with your colors, style and event info, add thoughtful touches for out-of-town guests including tips for area hotels, restaurants, things to do and a map to the venue. Guests can access your website any time from their smart phones for reminders and registry updates!
These are just a few ways to keep invitations special while being considerate of our planet!
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