Not just a trend anymore, the recent Forbes.com article on green weddings proves eco-nuptuals are here to stay. And, it’s not just couples that are making the shift to green weddings, the article points to a change in the midset of caterers as well as the onset of the ever popular eco-bridal registry.
“[Another trend is]… caterers’ use of local produce and a decrease in portion sizes–both in response to seeing so much food waste.”
Congratulations to green wedding planner Sarah Shewey ,of Pink Cloud Evens in LA, for a great interview. Green weddings are not just about the wedding, and Shewey knows how great it feels when lifestyles are changed as well.
“There’s an education process that affects the bride’s lifestyle after the wedding, which we get really excited about,” she says. “The wedding is a small reflection and projection of what our lifestyle is going to be, so being able to incorporate things like fashion and makeup and hair, something all of us girls do every day, is cool.”
It’s amazing to think that green weddings can have, and do have, a lasting effect on couples. One couple interviewed said “Before this, we didn’t do anything…it didn’t even cross our mind.” Now they are more concious and aware of their daily impacts. What a great feeling!!
“Yay” for fabulous green wedding planners, couples, and all the eco-vendors that help make this life ritual/passage possible AND responsible! Thanks to all!!
We love the gorgeous spring garden bouquet’s from San Francisco’s Flora Grubb. Their wild, natural beauty speaks to the soul!
Flora Grubb designers use local, in season, and foraged flowers. Their unique hand picked approach is such a fabulous look for any green event or home desktop (hint to the boyfriend!). Learn how to create your own on their blog-(floragrubb.com/cutting) be sure to scroll down! Enjoy!!
Union Street Winter Bridal Walk
Sunday, Feb 28 12:00p to 4:00p
at Union Street ~ Gough to Steiner, San Francisco, CA
Price: $45 for VIP brides, $20 for General Admission Brides
Phone: (415) 346-5712
Hosted by Union Street Wedding Ring, the Winter Bridal Walk is designed for brides-to-be to meet nearly two dozen of San Francisco’s most exclusive bridal shops for an elegant afternoon of walking and wedding inspiration on Union Street. Peruse couture gowns, stunning jewels, peony bouquets, perfectly letter-pressed stationery, handmade photo albums and more.
The Winter Bridal Walk is designed for brides-to-be to meet nearly two dozen of San Francisco’s most exclusive bridal shops for an elegant afternoon of walking and wedding inspiration on Union Street. Peruse couture gowns, stunning jewels, peony bouquets, perfectly letter-pressed stationery, handmade photo albums and more. All guests will enjoy delectable sweets, as well as amazing offers created just for the Bridal Walk brides.
Net proceeds from the event will support The Thrive House for Youth.
Round up your ladies for an afternoon designed to please the entire bridal posse! Not your average bridal fair, this eclectic gathering of event professionals includes many hidden gems on the SF wedding scene.
This is your show to be inspired! From thowing swanky soirees to planning an eco-friendly wedding, this pop-up wedding salon will showcase handcrafted and fresh approaches to design, gifts, dress and more.
Admission is FREE so bring the whole crew!
When? Sunday, March 7, 2010 * 1:00 - 4:00 PM
Where? BellaPelle Skin Studio * 9 Maiden Lane, San Francisco, Union Square
It’s time again…another holiday full of thoughtful cards, expensive flowers, and calorie-laden chocolates. Valentine’s Day alone, according to the U.S. Greeting Card Association, generates over one billion Valentine’s cards each year, while fifty-five million roses are traded globally. This is big business! So, as you prepare to acknowledge your sweetheart this February 14th, spoil yourselves, not the planet, with these environmentally-aware alternatives.
Heart Shaped Plantable Valentine’s Day Card @ Botanical Paperworks
Always fun, these hearts are made from 100% post consumer waste stock with emended wildflower seeds. Plant them and they will grow!
Silver Heart Pendant with Conflict Free Diamond @ Brilliant Earth
A true gift from the heart, this delicate recycled sterling silver pendant sparkles with a conflict free diamond. By the fine jewelers of Brilliant Earth, are committed to pure and socially responsible sourcing, and harvesting.
Organic, Vegan, Aphrodisiac Dinner @ Millennium Restaurant
This gourmet dining experience in San Francisco is prepared with vegetarian, healthy, and environmentally friendly foods. Enjoy a five course prix fixe menu laced with aphrodisiacs to ignite your evening of love.
Sustainable Sex @ Good Clean Love
Making love sustainable, Good Clean Love sells all natural and organic green products for your health and sexual enhancement. Try their love set– a collection of the best selling products, destined to make l make your Valentine’s night a celebration that will last throughout the year.
Eco-Elegant Valentine Flowers & Chocolates @ Organic Bouquet
Send your love to that special someone with sustainable flowers, wreaths and chocolates. Organic Bouquet, the original online organic flower store, offers products with the highest social and environmental standards and practices.
If you live in the Bay Area, you know you have limitless options for healthy, organic, local food and drink. So there’s no reason why your green wedding can’t have a super sustainable cake to represent your passion for the environment, and appreciation for the abundance we have available as California residents.
One of SF’s premier vegetarian restaurants, Millenium, offers made-to-order organic, vegan wedding cakes – and most of the ingredients are sourced locally. Miette Cakes, true to their farmer’s market beginnings, chooses organic, local, and sustainable ingredients for all their confections – they book up quickly for wedding cakes.
If you want your cake to reflect your ethical as well as environmental values, there are many in the Bay that will not let you down. Hannah’s Edible Arts commitment to support sustainable agriculture, fair trade, and humane treatment of animals shows in her fabulous artistic creations. True Confections Cakes in the East Bay takes great care in minimizing their environmental impact by delivering your cake using a ride-share service, reducing their energy use, and using biodegradable cleaning products. Clara Lindstrom, who has been baking gluten-free for 10 years, gets her ingredients from local farmers markets and works with a family owned dairy. Check out her wedding cake gallery at Simply the Best – the Devilish Ginger sounds decadent! We love that Edith Meyer chooses to use Green and Blacks Chocolate in her cakes, ensuring quality (it’s certified organic) and fair working conditions.
Origionally by Allen Norwood
From SouthPark Magazine
Every tiny stitch contributes to the perfect drape of a bespoke suit or couture gown.
At the new Ritz-Carlton hotel in uptown Charlotte, the smallest details add up to a similar sumptuous experience.
The Ritz-Carlton will seek LEED Gold designation for the building, a first for the company. LEED stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, as certified by the U.S. Green Building Council. The building will be graded on such things as water and energy efficiency, indoor air quality, materials and furnishings.
In keeping with the green theme, the hotel includes a bike valet, offering guests complimentary use of Trek bicycles. Riders get a cycling map of Charlotte, water bottle, lock and safety helmet. Women’s bikes are equipped with baskets for shopping.
Among the features that will help the hotel earn grades for its certification:
– Plantings on the roof reduce urban heat, cutting the need for air conditioning. Irrigation for hotel plants comes from captured rainwater.
– Employee uniforms include materials made from recycled plastic.
– To cut down on plastic bottles, the hotel is equipped with an in-house water filtration and container system. Ritz-Carlton says that could eliminate 73,000 plastic bottles a year.
– The hotel will buy 35 percent of its electricity from a green power supplier the first two years.
– The building uses 30 percent less energy than a conventional hotel. Efficient plumbing fixtures cut water usage by 35 percent, saving 700,000 gallons the first year.
– The two-level wellness center atop the hotel uses organic and vegan products.
– Guest transportation is provided by a hybrid vehicle - and parking is free for hybrid and electric vehicles.
– The banquet spaces feature stylish tables made of recycled aluminum, reducing the need for table linens. Furniture is covered in recycled leather. “People want to hold green meetings, green weddings,” Nowak says. “We can accommodate both.”
from Briliant Earth
Recently, Ian Smillie, one of the leading conflict diamond experts and key architect of the Kimberley Process diamond verification system, declared his resignation to the Kimberley Process members. Smillie declared the system ineffective, and stated in an eloquently written letter: “when regulators fail to regulate, the systems they were designed to protect collapse.”
Despite having all the tools in place, the certification scheme continues to fail to address “issues of noncompliance, smuggling, money laundering and human rights abuses” in controversial diamond fields. In the recent weeks following Smillie’s resignation, multiple other groups have publicly announced their lack of faith in the scheme’s ability to adequately police the diamond trade.
Despite the problems with the Kimberley Process, there are ethical diamond options for conscious consumers. Consumers should look for conflict-free and ethical origin diamonds that are independently tracked from the country and individual mine of origin to ensure high standards of social and environmental responsibility. Canadian diamonds remain a clear choice as are emerging programs for responsibly mined, cut, and polished stones from Namibia. These diamonds have been carefully traced to ensure environmentally responsible and fair labor practices throughout their chain of custody.
Brilliant Earth will continue to carry only ethically sourced diamonds that are mined under strict social and environmental standards.
We just finished a two day “Green Wedding” shoot with Bloomberg News. Look for it to be aired near the end of the year, and of course we will post the link on our site as well.
The story will feature the wedding of Vivek and Christine who were so wonderfully gracious to let the camera’s in on thier unique, organic and locally inspired green wedding. Their special day was filled will the couples passion for supporting organic and sustainable products and service. Unique table arrangements of fruit and vegetables were the centerpiece of this wedding. You’ll see designer and florist Desiree De Lara in action as she places these beauties on each table.
The second part of the shoot was a trip around San Francisco visiting some of my favorite vendors in the green-wedding space. Eco-bling was featured by Brilliant Earth (of course) in spectacular settings and loose diamonds. Co-founder Eric Grossberg was knowledgeable and forthcoming about the new and growing niche of conscious jewelry. You’ll learn a lot about what to look for when making this very important purchase!
I made sure we paid a visit to one of the most authentic and truly high-end sustainable caterers I know, LRE catering. Co-owner Kim Stevens shares with us that the companies sustainable choices are really “just part of their personal values” from the onset of business! LRE is committed to supporting local, organic, agriculture and slow food, and does so in the most pleasing ways– through exquisite tasting and presented meals.
My dear friend Nicole Sillapere, founder of the famous Sillapere eco-event design firm in San Francisco, not only shares why she’s committed to going green in her business and the events she produces, but shows us some of her favorite eco-design tips! We called it her “Martha Moment” and she shines with helpful ways in reducing, reusing, and sourcing sustainable design for your wedding or special event.
And what’s a green wedding without carbon offsets? I took the Bloomberg team over to visit Jason Smith of LiveNeutral and ClimateCheck. Jason and I graduated from Presidio School of Management together and have had the pleasure of being able to continue to support each other through our mutal businesses. Jason rocked the interview, explaining carbon trading and offsets in the simplest and most meaningful way I’ve heard yet! You’ll begin to see why this simple step in greening your wedding is my #1 Green Wedding MUST!
Our last stop was a conversation with incredibly talented fashion designer Lily Achatz, who is starting a new line of eco-inspired wedding gowns in SF. Being sold at top eco-fashion store EcoCitizen, her green wedding gowns feature repurposed vintage dresses with additions of hemp silk and charmeuse. Lily was incredibly sweet to bring one of her newest gowns for the TV shoot, working around the clock to get it ready for us to see. Lily is a true artist, and you’ll be WOW’ed at the possibilities she brings to your green wedding gown choices!
It was an honor to be able to share these fabulous vendors with the Bloomberg viewing audience and to have them tell their unique and special stories as small green business owners. Talented, smart, and inspired, these friends of mine are the reason I love what I do. Together with the help of each green bride and groom interested in a green wedding that supports their values and beliefs; we are making a real difference and transforming this industry one (aisle) step at a time!
Thanks so much to Vivek and Christine, thier family and friends, Desiree, Eric, Kim, Nicole, Jason, Lily, Joslin of EcoCitizen, and mostly to the Bloomberg News producer Elizabeth Gould and her kick-butt crew who busted through six interview in one day. We’re so happy to be recognized for our work here in San Francisco and to inspire more Great Green Weddings around the country!
You’ve done a great job including eco-friendly options into most all aspects of your wedding, from the location to the flowers, from the gown to the gift registry. But now you’re left wondering “How do I green my wedding cake?”
Never fear, many options abound for a sustainable, organic, locally sourced (and not to mention healthy) wedding cake. Seek out a baker in your area that is used to working with natural ingredients like unbleached flour and unrefined sugar. Also ask where they source their products from, as most European bakers import their materials from Europe adding to the carbon footprint of your wedding. Finally, be sure the chocolate and vanilla are not just added flavorings, but sourced naturally from Fair Trade organizations.
Choosing the right cake for your wedding can be a fun experience, so take your time, go to the cake tastings (YUM), and get to know your options so you can make the right choice that meets your style expectations as well as your personal values. Everyone has their own motivations as to why a processed, refined cake just doesn’t cut it for their green wedding!
You have food allergies. Whether you’re gluten intolerant, diabetic, or just plain health-conscious, no need to worry. Bewitching Elegance in Burlingame, CA offers diabetic friendly cakes made with agave nectar. Short Street Cakes in Asheville, NC has delectable treats and wedding cakes in gluten-free and sugar-free options. Many bakeries these days can cater to special dietary needs, so just ask!
You’re vegan. Many bakers now have redesigned their recipes to replace anything animal-derived, and there’s no sacrificing on flavor! Sticky Fingers in Washington, DC promises to have even the pickiest guest’s mouth watering over their vegan creations. 
Dulce Vegan in Atlanta, GA also offers 100% vegan, organic, and unprocessed sweets. On the West Coast, try Sugar Beat Sweets in San Francisco, or Black Sheep Bakery in Portland, OR – both are uncompromising in their values and committed to providing 100% vegan confections.
You want it to be organic. With the growing awareness of pesticides and contaminants in our food, of course that extends to our special-occasion baked delectables as well! Tree House Pastry Shop in New Mexico specializes in all-organic creations, while Stephanies in San Diego focuses on nutritious, wholesome ingredients. Lotus Cake Studio in Philadelphia makes all organic couture cakes and “artful edibles.”
Sustainable environmental and Fair Trade practices are important to you. Consider the lifecycles of each ingredient in your cake – was that decadent chocolate produced by workers subjected to slave labor? Was that sugar harvested in a plantation that destroyed the local habitat? Though easy to overlook, these are serious issues as well. Sweet and Organic in Oak Park, CA creates wedding cakes using kosher, organic ingredients, and supports sustainable business practices. Hippie Chick Bakery in New Hampshire sources their ingredients locally and utilizes green practices themselves – they even use eggs from their own flock of free-range rescued shelter chickens!
You’re a raw foodist. Although most bakers do not have a “raw option,” you know as well as I do that a raw cake can be done – just as rich and heavenly as a baked one. Karyn’s, which blesses Chicago with a raw food cafe, conscious foods restaurant, and a day spa, offers gourmet raw wedding cakes upon request. Also try Mary’s Secret Garden in Los Angeles to special order a raw vegan wedding cake that truly nurtures mind, body, and spirit or Veggie Munn in Miami for raw, vegan, wheat-free, sugar-free, organic delights. Tried and true Cafe Gratitude provides scrumptious raw wedding cakes for the San Francisco Bay Area.
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