7 Simple Ways to Make Your Next Event Green!



   

 Vintage China and Charger Found at Local Thrift Shop :)

Anyone who knows me, knows that I love green. It is my favorite color of them all. Not only do I love the color green, but I love the concept. I love that my generation is adamant about implementing environmentally friendly practices in everyday life. I believe that we are all connected to nature and if we take care of our planet, our planet will take care of us...end rant. Needless to say I try to encourage the clients that I work with to implement environmentally friendly practices in their events. To help assist hosts with this concept, I came up with a list of 7 simple ways to throw an awesome event while saving the planet all at the same time. Enjoy :)

 

1. E-Invitations: It is 2014 and we pretty much do everything via the internet. Why not save some trees and send your next event invite via email? There are some great sites out there that will allow you to do this. Some of my favorite are Eventbrite.com, Zazzle.com, and ThePurpleTrail.com just to name a few. There are various designs to fit whatever the theme or style of your event is!

 

2. Recycle mason jars to use as centerpieces: I don't know about you, but I eat pasta for dinner at least once a week. It's quick, it's healthy (depending on how you make it), and its fairly inexpensive. With that being said, I have stashed away in my linen closet, an endless supply of mason jars from pasta sauces. They are so easy to collect and there are tons of tutorials on Pinterest.com that teach you how to transform them into fabulous, elegant works of art. Wine bottles are great to if your a wino such as myself :)

 

3.Thrift: I promise you if you can get passed the unique antique smell that lingers in most thrift shops, you will not be let down. I have found table clothes, centerpieces, frames, glassware, and my all time favorite, vintage china, all in the thrift shop. And Hampton Roads is just filled with them. There are five alone just on Mercury Blvd! In my experience the church owned and family owned thrift shops have the best deals and they will usually bargain with you too!

 

4.Use an environmental friendly venue: Your venue can also be certified environmentally friendly. Ask about certification and what kind of practices they implement to ensure they are doing their part!

 

5. Have you ceremony and reception at the same venue: Not only does this save your guests some money on gas, allow you to add more activities to your timeline, and avoid someone getting lost trying to locate your reception, it also reduces you and your guests carbon footprint!

 

6. Have recycle bens at your event: self explanatory, but you may want to check on this with your venue and ensure there will be someone available and willing to take the recycled articles to a recycle center. You can find nearby recycle centers using google.

 

7. Lastly, send your thank you cards electronically using one of the sites mentioned above. Your guests will appreciate not having to find a place to stash the card and not feeling guilty for tossing it.

 

For more tips on how to keep your event green, there are various articles on the internet. Maybe the ones I've listed wont work for you, but I'm sure there are some out there that will. Even if you only use one of these suggested tips you are still putting forth the effort to make this planet a better place for all God's creatures, so hats off to you :)