Guest post written by Colton Davis

Planning a wedding during the last year or so has been incredibly stressful for couples. The pandemic threw up many hurdles and many people have changed plans numerous times, with over 70% planning to rearrange at the end of 2020. Amongst all of this potential stress, it’s easy to lose sight of some other important wedding planning essentials. And recently, one of the key things to consider is the impact of your wedding.

We hear more and more about how important it is to reduce our impact on the world around us. Weddings might not feel like the obvious place to start, but events do generate waste and have an environmental footprint. For eco-conscious couples, planning a sustainable wedding may be a top priority.

If we haven’t met yet, hi! I’m Lindsey Nickel and I’m a local Napa wedding planner and the owner of Lovely Day Events. My team and I have planned more than 140 destination weddings, so I can tell you firsthand that wine country weddings are something special. My clients want the ceremony to be outside, the food to be outstanding, and the dance parties to be epic. If this sounds like you, you’re in the right place.

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Create your own decorations

The amount of stuff you can buy for your wedding is incredible. Even just considering decorations, the choices are endless – place settings, table plans, bunting, and more. A lot of this stuff is only used once. Single-use materials are the epitome of today’s throwaway culture. So what about making your own with recycled materials? Bunting from old clothes, place names on carved wood, homegrown plants as table centerpieces. Let your creativity go wild.

If you’re not feeling that creative, consider hiring decorations rather than buying everything new. A lot of venues have reusable decorations or are a great backdrop themselves – for example, barns or manor houses.

Think about the flowers you’re using

According to this sustainable wedding guide, exotic flowers are one of the worst offenders at weddings when it comes to having a negative impact on the environment. This is largely down to choosing flowers out of season from far away, so you can immediately reduce this by working with a local florist and asking them where they source their flowers. You can discuss with them what’ll be in season when your wedding is due to be held and plan accordingly.

Pre-order your food

Think carefully about how many meals (and courses) you’re providing your guests. Food waste is a surprisingly large impact from weddings, with 10% being thrown away. Always get your guests to pre-order what they want during the day and ask your venue what they tend to do with unused food. You could consider donating unused, unopened items.

Oh, and be careful with your wedding cake. Will you really eat a three-tiered cake? A lot of wedding cakes are thrown away simply because they’re just too big. If you still want the impact of a large cake, many cake makers use false tiers to cut down on waste (and costs).

Considering scrapping the gift list

Historically couples were given many useful household items at their wedding as it would be the start of them living together. Nowadays, many people live together for years before a wedding. They have a lot of stuff already.

So think about what you really need or want from your guests. You could consider scrapping the idea of gifts altogether or if you have particularly persistent (and generous) guests, ask for experiences or potential contributions to your honeymoon. Only create a list of items if there’s actually things you need.

Any efforts you make to reduce waste at your wedding should be applauded. With the right help and support, you can plan a sustainable wedding that only leaves behind happy memories.