Steps to Sustainability: Your Eco-Friendly Wedding Experience
At Latha na Bainnse we aim to answer your questions on taboo topics across the wedding industry, and we decided to begin with answering a question deeply rooted to our own experiences: “How can I have my wedding day exactly how I envisioned it, but also make sustainable choices?”
We get it - your wedding day has been perfectly curated, with your free time, attention and energy put into making your wedding day a breathtaking experience for you and your guests. You already recycle, and are pretty sure Sandra in HR has reminded you a few times to turn the lights out when you leave the building. What more are you supposed to do? So, we get it, navigating sustainability on one of the most important days of your life can be overwhelming.
Having a breathtaking wedding experience, which has sustainable benefits, doesn’t mean having to sacrifice your vision, aesthetic and values and this is the stigma we are going to break today! Who better to guide us through our eco-friendly wedding day than our Founder and Senior Stylist, Madeline! After studying Environmental Engineering at Queen’s University Belfast, specialising in Bespoke Net Zero Technologies and graduating with a First Class Honours, Bachelor of Science, Madeline boasts an extensive portfolio in developing and initiating unique sustainability initiatives for the Northern Irish and Irish Governments to meet the 2030 Decarbonisation Renewable Energy Targets, alongside primary stakeholders in the Renewable Energy Sector. Madeline is a uniquely qualified professional in both the sustainability sector and the wedding planning industry. So, we asked her thoughts on how to contribute towards a sustainable wedding and now it’s time to let you in on the secrets (you’re welcome!). Interested? Let’s delve deep into the realms of the sustainable wedding experience, where we have come up with an achievable and constructive list of ways you can reduce your environmental footprint of your wedding, without sacrificing your aesthetic and vision.
We are going to start at the beginning, because that always sounds like a reasonable place to start! You said “I do” on the sandy beaches of Bali, on an all inclusive island, on your first-class flight. The moment that you said yes, you kissed goodbye to committing to a fully ‘sustainable’ wedding, as your carbon footprint on your engagement trip of a lifetime is now equivalent to a family of five’s entire years household carbon consumption. We can see you spiralling in guilt. Don’t panic! We thoroughly believe that there is no such thing as a fully sustainable or perfectly environmentally viable wedding day, just as there is no such thing as the ‘perfect wedding day’, so allow yourself to breathe. Relax. You are here, reading this post, in hopes to incorporate some environmentally conscious tips to your wedding day, which means that you’re already doing more for our environment than most! That deserves a pat on the back!
Some statistics for the mathletes amongst us - the average wedding in Ireland produces 14.5 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2). Doesn’t sound that bad now does it? Well, to put this into perspective, 14.5 mT of CO2 is equivalent to fully charging 2 million smartphones, 37.7 round-trip flights between New York and Miami or eating 2000 meat-based meals. To offset the carbon footprint created on one singular wedding event, it would require 667 trees to be planted!
Before we get into the nitty gritty of environmentally ethical do’s, we wanted to share a list of the Wedding Industry’s Worst Offenders, which you might not have even realised were having such a negative impact on the environment.
Wedding Sustainability Faux Pas
Balloons
Ballon’s are often constructed from materials that are not bio-degradable and will leave residual waste in landfills for thousands of years to come. The materials balloons are made out of often pose as choking hazards for local wildlife, especially if you are beside a forest or coastal area.
Confetti
Throwing traditional confetti is a common tradition, but have you ever considered where it ends up after the celebrations are over? Unfortunately, this is another example of a common celebratory material which won’t degrade naturally. That means it often ends up being consumed by animals.
Exotic flowers
It’s not something that immediately springs to mind for a lot of couples, but requesting a specific flower for your wedding day, which isn’t in season for your chosen season, will require an order from further afield. The net result is a higher level of CO2 emissions, as well as the use of potentially unregulated and harmful chemical fertilisers, which can pollute the soil surrounding them.
Decorations
Paper products are undeniably essential for curating the elegant experience which you have tirelessly curated for your guests, but it’s still worth considering where you can limit its use. One primary example which is currently rising in notoriety for proving environmentally conscious, is digital save the dates. You are choosing to reduce your resource (and energy) consumption without compromising the elegance and sophistication that your final invitation suite will offer your guests. Let’s not forget, your chosen stationer will also craft elegant digital save the dates in line with your chosen theme, to ensure that your overall aesthetic is cohesive.
The bottom line? Don’t panic. There are always cost-effective environmentally conscious options available, which have already been explored by (now) married couples before you, so by the laws of probability, you have already been to a sustainably focused wedding without even knowing! See, our point stands, your aesthetic won’t be compromised as you feared! Reality will be you won’t be able to incorporate all of our sustainable wedding plans from this list into your day and that is okay! Our top tip is to pick one or two elements from the list below which you think will be achievable within your timeline and start there. It just takes for everyone to take one step in the right direction for the stigma to be broken, so let’s start there. One baby step. And you never know, this might be the change someone else needs to see to inspire them, and then the ball rolls. And after that brief detour, let’s explore Madeline’s thoughts on contributing towards a sustainable wedding experience.
Madeline’s Top Tips for a Sustainable Wedding
ONE
Choose your location wisely
Airplane and automobile emissions are primary offenders for higher carbon emissions, so before you begin to plan the nitty gritty of your wedding day, plan ahead on logistics: how you and your guests going to travel to the venue. This is particularly pertinent for our international guests, who travel to Ireland for a special destination wedding. As from our previous blog post on destination weddings, we are an advocate for finding your special place to celebrate your wedding day; however, if you are torn on which venue you want, ensure your guest list and logistics are prioritised to minimise the number of plane and car journeys you will need to take.
Explore Outdoor Weddings
Embrace the natural sunlight in an enchanted forest, botanical garden or on the rugged Irish coastline, to make the most of nature’s backdrops and minimise your environmental impact on the surrounding ecosystems. If outdoor Wedding Bells Bear Grylls isn’t for you, there are always options to have your ceremony and drinks reception outdoors at your chosen venue and then retire for the evening reception to dance the night away, so don’t be afraid to discuss your options with your venue and / or wedding planner.
Centralised location for ceremony and reception
Hosting both events in the same place not only reduces your stress and affords you extra time with your nearest and dearest, but this also means minimised travel requirements for you and your guests. So, not only will this allow your timeline to feel effortless and seamless for your ultimate guest experience, but these small choices will significantly reduce your wedding’s overall carbon footprint.
TWO
Eco-Friendly Wedding Venues - Sustainable or Suspect?
Your venue’s very own sustainability strategies will significantly impact your ability to control your efforts towards an environmentally conscious wedding experience. There are certain venues in Ireland and the UK who have obtained a ‘Green Status’, which demonstrates to potential couples that their sustainability efforts will be supported through robust recycling policies, energy efficient technologies and zero food waste strategies. This is also a reminder that some venues are trying to get to grips with sustainable operations, and this is exactly what we hope to encourage. Not everyone will be ‘there’ just yet, but this is okay, we all have to start somewhere and be recognised for our efforts! For example, Hotel Doolin in County Clare offers extensive vegan packages or Horetown House in County Wexford instigating a ‘grown not flown’ policy, which promises that all florals are grown onsite.
A final tip is to pay specific attention to the wording venues choose to utilise within their brochures. Have the confidence to ask the question to your potential venue if their ingredients and supplies are sourced from a third world country, and if so, are these suppliers within the Fair Trade Alliance. Look for the names of venue’s ingredient suppliers - are they local to the area, or within a reasonable distance? Are their fish farmed or wild caught? How do they dispose of their food waste? Are there any green or charity initiatives within the venue policies?
THREE
Make your menu eco-friendly
So, we now know the sustainability focused questions to ask your venue, now what about your catering if this is separate to your venue? Many blogs offering you wedding advice will highlight factoring your guests dietary requirements early in the planning process to ensure your chosen caterer will facilitate your guests unique needs; however, there is minimal guidance on putting thought into where and how your food will arrive on the plate!
Locally sourced
The key to sourcing your catering services in line with your sustainability ethos is to assess locality of their sourcing strategies in addition to their efforts and commitments to reducing their carbon footprint. Sustainability extends far beyond that of just your environmental impact, and heavily promotes longevity of employment within local communities, which is another factor which you can consider in hiring your chosen venue / caterer. By sourcing local food products, adopting a farm-to-fork approach, and committing to employing the local community within the framework of their venue operations, you can be rest assured your potential venue will be positively contributing towards overall sustainability efforts.
Organically produced
While we can’t deny that pesticides have their benefits in modern farming practices, they also carry harmful chemical pollutants if sustainable farming practices aren’t adhered to, which can have a negative impact on local ecosystems. Make sure to ask your caterer if their products conform to the certified standards. Sourcing your alcohol from local distilleries and breweries ensures that your emission consumption is offset from reduced supplier travel requirements and organic farming practices, to ensure that surrounding farm lands are free from pesticides, and soil pollutants. The Nude Wine Co offers organically produced wines without compromising the price tag than can be associated with ‘organic tax’.
Tableware offered
You can always provide this yourself, or source beautiful vintage options for your tableware through The Parlour Hire, but if you are relying on a catering company for all your tableware, ensure that you ask the question on offering sustainable products. This includes your crockery and glassware which are reusable, recyclable and biodegradable.
Food waste policy
Don’t be afraid to ask your caterer / venue what their food waste policies are - this includes both uneaten food, and food items utilised during preparation. Sustainable catering companies will typically have robust policies on donating food in line with local Health and Safety Regulations, to food banks or charities. Any uneaten food, that was served to guests will be turned to compost.
There are a plethora of rising sustainability stars amongst the Irish catering industry who adopt a sustainable ethos with a primary focus on sourcing organic, local and Fairtrade ingredients where possible. Local supplier Orla McAndrew Catering deserves a spotlight for their efforts in offering couples a five-star zero waste wedding meal, utilising surplus produce from local areas. There is also scope to offer vegan or vegetarian options on your menu to minimise your environmental impact where possible, as demonstrated through The Yellow Door’s mouthwatering vegetarian and vegan menus and their growing Kitchen Garden Initiative.
FOUR
The Great Irish Bake Off
This is one of the more attainable things on our list. Don’t be afraid to ask your star baker if they can source organic, local and Fairtrade ingredients, whilst incorporating local seasonal fruits into your cake. Depending on where the ingredients are sourced, or dietary requirements of your guests, a vegan option may have less of an environmental impact. Every little step towards positively contributing to your environmental impact, in addition to supporting your local farmers and businesses is a win for our shared environment and communities.
FIVE
Sustainable Stationary Showstoppers
Many sustainably-minded couples choose to incorporate some of their wedding correspondence digitally to reduce unnecessary paper consumption and wastage, in addition to reducing their carbon footprint through reduced postage services. A prime example of this is opting for digital Save-The-Dates or forgoing printing Order of Services for on the day stationary.
Personally, we are too obsessed with handmade paper and handwritten calligraphy to commit to a full digital stationary suite; however, one strategy for reducing your total paper consumption is to choose one stunning stationary showstopper, such as bespoke invitation suites with venue graphics and accompanying QR codes for a digital RSVP via your wedding website. Your talented stationary artist will also ensure that your digital elements are cohesively designed to ensure a seamless aesthetic to that of your printed stationary elements and overall aesthetic to your wedding experience!
For Madeline’s own upcoming 2026 wedding, she opted for digital Save The Dates, alongside QR code RSVPs to maintain her own commitment to sustainability where possible through reduced paper consumption. Her talented artist, Rachel from The Ivory Feather, is phenomenal at curating intricate digital designs, which are cohesive to our chosen invitations suites and stationary elements for on the day. Her ability to adapt to sustainably focused requests whilst maintaining Madeline’s vision is exceptional. Madeline hasn’t compromised aesthetics, guest experience nor her values in curating elegant stationary suites and is a real life example of making conscious sustainable choices, which have a real impact on your environmental footprint.
SIX
Ethical Bridal Designers
There is no one-size-fits-all all to achieving a sustainable wedding, nor does everyone have to do the same things to positively contribute towards their environmental footprint; however, for those who are fashion savvy and are hoping to explore sustainable wedding dress options, there are a plethora of options available for you to make ethically informed decisions on your bridal wear.
A fully sustainable, ethical and environmentally conscious wedding dress can be rather difficult to source, but don’t let this be a factor to discourage you from making smaller steps towards making ethical choices. Sustainable fashion is not about making perfect choices, it's about making better choices!
Repurpose and bring life back to your family heirloom dresses! From re-upholstering to repurposing or even recycling smaller elements of your generational wedding garments, these small actions will go a long way in contributing towards a positive environmental impact.
Purchase a second-hand dress from pre-loved or charity outlets. Do not be discouraged by the negative reputations of pre-loved sites or charity stores in finding your favourite bridal gown designers. Many charity stores, such as Oxfam Bridal or Bernardo’s Bridal Rooms stock brand-new gowns and accessories, which have oftentimes been kindly donated by some of Ireland’s top tidal retailers, wholesalers and designers.
Recycle, re-wear, resell or donate your wedding dress after your big day - this is an easy win for negating your environmental impact whilst supporting local communities. By contributing to bridal gown recycling initiatives you are holistically committing to the circular economy and a significant pillar of sustainability, without having to incur a hefty price tag or ‘eco-tax’.
Support designers who are committed to fair trading conditions and supporting local communities for their garment workers, in addition to sourcing fabrics from suppliers who ensure sustainability is at the forefront of their practices. Ethical bridal designers we recommend include: Leila Hafzi, Minna, Sanyukta Shrestha and Kindred of Ireland.
Even if sourcing a sustainable bridal gown is something which is not feasible for you at this point of your environmental journey, consider ethically sourced jewellery. From sourcing jewellers such as Ireland’s finest Chupi, who ensure conflict-free stones, fair-minded metals to jewellers who commit to retailing Fairtrade or sustainable manufacturing jewellery accessories, in addition to opting to shop vintage, all of your efforts to source ethically sourced jewellery will directly contribute towards a positive shift in your environmental impact.
SEVEN
Locally Sourced Florals
Season dependant, your florist will be able to provide you with sustainable ideas and curate eco-friendly floral designs to ensure that your florals are sourced locally through sustainable growers, provide you with your season’s floral options and offer locally sourced greenery/foliage as alternative option for a showstopper centrepiece. Don’t be afraid to discuss recycling your florals post-wedding with your florist - you could opt to donate your arrangements to local hospitals, hospices, or schools, as this will contribute towards your community pillar of sustainability.
We hear you asking “Flowers decompose, so how can they not be sustainable?” From unregulated pesticide use, and utilisation of single-use plastics and foams in preparing your bespoke floral arrangements, to long-distance shipping and refrigeration considerations, your florist and their floral choices can significantly impact your carbon footprint. Your florals could be sourced in the Netherlands, where commercial florals are grown in cooler environments, so gas-heated greenhouses are used to create artificial climates for optimum growth on stock. The gas-centred heating options, in addition to the required long-distance travel from the Netherlands to the UK / Ireland are exponentially increasing your carbon footprint for your wedding day. Finally, there are some florals which are sourced even further afield again such as in Kenya, Colombia, Vietnam and Ecuador, so they accrue a hefty carbon footprint when transported (often refrigerated). There can also be issues of exploitation in the supply chain.
In short, if sustainability is a priority for you within your floral arrangements, be sure to vet your florist, and their expertise in sustainable farming / sourcing to satisfy your choices are positively contributing towards your environmental footprint. Questions which you can ask your florist include:
Check for certification
Organisations like LEAF, the Soil Association and the Rainforest Alliance are all quality-checkers when it comes to the ethicality of flowers being sold in the UK, to give you peace of mind that your efforts to improve your sustainable consumption of products are within respected industry guidelines.
Find a sustainable florist
As with most sectors, there are a growing number of florists who are making sustainability a priority, such as Ireland’s only Master Florist, Lambert de Bie. You can spot a sustainable supplier by looking for those who:
Don’t / Minimise the use of floral foam or plastic in crafting your dreamy floral arrangements
Source local or ethically certified flowers
Are transparent about how they work and where their flowers come from
EIGHT
Reusable Décor
As we explored at the start of this post (we know, it felt like that was a lifetime ago with all this information today!), there are some modern wedding trends which carry a larger environmental footprint and ability to pose unnecessary risks to local ecosystems. Balloons and sky lanterns, as beautiful as they can be, are unfortunately harmful to the surrounding environment and ecosystem, depending on your chosen disposal methods. As seen often, the balloons and lanterns drift away under the night sky, and land in a field where the plastics are non-biodegradable and harmful when ingested. Additionally to this, lanterns also pose a significant fire risk for local plant species during summer months when surrounding land is dry.
Fear not! You can still curate a breathtaking wedding experience, which is bespoke to your vision and aesthetic whilst remaining sustainable - you can opt for intricate glassware, re-use ribbons, books (seating chart’s made with books is absolutely stunning!), vintage candlestick holders with sustainably sourced candles, and finally, biodegradable confetti. We are going to say this one more time for you, you absolutely do not have to compromise on your vision, style and aesthetics to also achieve an ethical, environmentally conscious and sustainable wedding experience.
NINE
Ethical Beauty Products
Another easy win for your environmentally conscious and sustainable approach to your wedding day is to opt for cruelty-free, zero-waste or locally produced beauty products for your pre-wedding skincare routine. Discuss your make-up and hair product usage with your hair and make-up artist to explore sustainable substitute products which they would be happy to use, or even better, already choose to use! Sometimes navigating the intricacies of numerous products can be overwhelming, so our advice is to start small and choose one alternative product. Every little step in the direction of sustainability is an achievement that benefits you, your local community and our shared environment.
TEN
Give Back
Last but not least one of our favourite ideas to incorporate into your wedding day, whether it is for sustainable reasoning or simply just to be a kind human being, is the idea of giving back to your local community or charities. Why not reduce your consumption of products and packaging by donating funds to charities as your wedding favours? This is a holistic approach to contributing to the zero waste initiative whilst also helping your local communities, and supporting your local people in their time of need. The true meaning of your wedding day can sometimes get lost in the extravagance of sophisticated celebrations; however, you can ask for charitable donations instead of traditional wedding gifts too. No effort is too small and no donation is too insignificant. From environmental charities such as Friends of the Earth, Irish Wildlife Trust and The International Fund for Animal Welfare, to charities who work tirelessly to end slavery in the bridal garment industry, such as War on Want and Anti-Slavery, or to local emergency services such as Air Ambulance.
Ways to reduce your carbon footprint
We have now given you the toolkit for success hosting a sustainably focused wedding experience, now it’s time to delve deeper to facilitating the reduction of your overall CO2 emissions through strategic planning. Don’t panic! Here are a few suggestions to further minimising your CO2 emissions on your big day.
A selective guest list
We have touched on this already, so don’t be shocked you are hearing this again! Your wedding day will be filled with all your nearest and dearest. Your guest list can present as one of those wedding tasks that quickly spiral from 50 close family and friends to 250 guests where your old babysitter is invited, so take this as your reminder to be sustainably selective with your guest count.
Your selectivity will directly benefit your impact on your carbon footprint. Fewer guests required to travel to / from your chosen ceremony and reception venues will result in naturally less automobiles on the road; therefore, minimising your carbon footprint in lieu of travel requirements.
Organise group transport
Utilise group travel where possible, whether this is chartering a shuttle bus service from your guests’ accommodation to your chosen venue, or kindly encouraging your guests to car share, or hosting your nuptials and reception in the same venue, the end result is the same: fewer cars on the road will significantly reduce your output of CO2 emissions celebrating your big day.
Pick the right time of year
Summer weddings are difficult to secure dates that your chosen venue and A Team of your chosen suppliers are all free. Setting your wedding date can be overwhelming on a good day, let alone having to wait 10 years and sell your kidneys to get your summer wedding date BUT, hear us out, with a little wiggle room and compromise on your wedding date, you could find you (and the environment) will directly benefit from a summer wedding date, as your event will consume less energy. The natural heat provided by the warmer seasons will assist in keeping you and your guests comfortable and minimising the use of artificial devices.
How do I find ‘green’ wedding suppliers?
How can you discern which suppliers are working sustainably and what key factors do you need to look for? Here’s the scoop for what you need to know!
Green wedding planners
Wedding planners are an excellent resource to utilise during your wedding planning journey, from curating a breathtaking experience for you and your guests, to selecting elegant décor that seamlessly compliments your aesthetic and vision, wedding planners are a fantastic resource, and highly knowledgeable in how to execute a sophisticated celebration. Now, add in a wedding planner who specialises in providing sustainable experiences and dedication to advocating for our environment, to curate a sustainably elegant celebration!
Sourcing sustainable suppliers
Your A Team can be both utterly breathtaking with their deliverables AND share your eco-friendly visions. From caterers to rentals, you’ll want to collaborate with suppliers who are equally passionate about their carbon footprint and sustainable outputs. Essential questions to ask your suppliers during your tendering process are:
Where do you source your products from?
What sustainability standards and certificates do you have?
Do you have an environmental management system in place?
Do you have a recycling policy in place?
What happens to any food/stock which isn’t used?
What other green initiatives do you employ to ensure that you are contributing positively towards your environmental footprint?
Vintage is back!
Hot and trending, or our own take is vintage is always a guaranteed timelessly elegant aesthetic, why not combine your love for vintage flair with your passion for sustainability and a reduced carbon footprint? Whilst vintage products were not specifically manufactured with sustainability practices at the forefront of decisions, it’s is better to repurpose these classic items in today’s sustainable standards, than letting them go to waste in a landfill or cluttering our land. From vintage tableware (Parlour Hire is THE vintage rentals of your dreams), dress choices or décor, this will remove the unnecessary waste produced for purchasing new items just for one day.
Book local suppliers
The wedding industry in Ireland is phenomenal, with incredibly talented photographers, videographers, florists, bakers, stationary artists, if you can think of it, Ireland will offer knowledgable, experienced and professional suppliers across the island! Rather than contracting a specific supplier which you know would require a flight / ferry or unjustifiably long car journey away, look to source local suppliers, who promote sustainable services, local to your chosen venue, through recommendations, referrals and reputable supplier directories, such as One Fab Day, or NI Wedding Directory. This tip is a rather small gesture to decide to implement, but collectively through minimised travel and supporting local communities, the hollisitic approach to your sustainability efforts can be achieved!
Have a post-wedding recycle plan
We can already see the vision where it reminds you of a remnants of a university house party. We promise the success of a post-wedding recycling initiative is mess-free, simple and achievable through simple discussions with your venue and suppliers about what you wish to do with any leftovers as your wedding day concludes. From leftover food, to florals and décor - all your chosen items can be recycled or repurposed with a forward thinking plan and buy-in from your A Team of sustainable suppliers!
Whew, that was a journey, but we hope that you now have the confidence to explore the plethora of opportunities to choose a sustainable solution to your wedding planning journey. There are no actions too small, with your environmentally conscious choices contributing positively to your local community, to your environment, and you now have the opportunity to stand as a guiding light for other engaged couples towards a sustainably focused wedding experience. Do not be afraid to hold your suppliers to account, and ask the difficult questions about environmental conservation initiatives or their impact on local communities. Ensuring that you make informed, educated and responsible decisions on your chosen sustainable suppliers is of paramount importance to ensuring your environmental efforts are focused in the right direction, without compromising your aesthetic, value and style on your wedding day!
For our peers within the wedding industry, this is a call to contribute towards a sustainable movement. To quote Tesco, ‘every little helps’ and when the wedding industry needs a positive example of sustainability, be the example you are looking for. Be brave and dare to be different. Research what sustainable commitments you can achieve, or what baby steps you can take on a path of decarbonisation, reach out to Sustainability Organisations to provide you with professional guidance, and learn from other educators in your sector. Obtain your Sustainable Ranking with the Sustainable Wedding Alliance. Hold each other to account. Educate your teams and educate others. Sustainability starts at your front door and your actions can provide worldwide, long-term industry benefits.
Let us know what steps to sustainability you are taking for your wedding day below! If you are a supplier, we would love to hear your thoughts on making conscious sustainable choices for your couples, and what challenges you have been facing in implementing environmentally friendly solutions for your business. A problem shared is a problem halved!
Until the next time, bíodh lá beannaichte agat,
Latha na Bainnse x