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Ben Rosett on Unsplash
These days, it’s hard for a bride-to-be to
throw her dream wedding without a nagging feeling about all the wastage
weddings tend to generate. year.
According to a popular study, a typical
American wedding generates more than 180 kilograms of waste, and accounts for
more than 5700 kilograms of carbon emissions. For scale, that is a carbon
footprint equivalent to that of four people in an entire year, in the United
States.
Still, eco-conscious
weddings could break that trend!
There is no reason why you can’t have the
beautiful, special wedding you’ve imagined all this while, while being more
environmentally-friendly. We’ve compiled a couple of ways you can incorporate
eco-friendly choices into your wedding planning for a sustainable, yet gorgeous
to-do.
1. Send
e-Invites
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Leone Venter on Unsplash
This one’s a no-brainer!
If you’re willing to trade traditional paper
cards for an online version, you could be cutting down on a lot of one-time
paper waste. Even if you can’t imagine foregoing a mailed formal wedding invitation,
you could consider e-invites for Save-the-Date cards instead.
2. Consider
‘Something Borrowed’
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Thomas AE on Unsplash
The fashion industry–especially the fast
fashion industry–creates unimaginable amount of waste each year. In Singapore
alone, fashion and textile
products account for 137,000 tonnes of waste, of which “merely” 4 per cent is
recycled, said the Textile and Fashion Federation’s Ms Poon, citing 2020
statistics by the National Environment Agency.
On a more heartening note, the sustainable
fashion movement has quickly been gaining popularity over the past few years.
There are a number of ways you can shop sustainably, such as by looking
up any environmental commitment on
the company’s side, searching for clothes made from recyclable or partially-recyclable materials, or
even supporting a local boutique instead of a commercial chain, which would be more likely to be involved in
fast fashion practices.
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Clay Banks on Unsplash
Still, the search for a perfect dress that
meets all these requirements may be daunting, and there aren’t nearly enough
sustainable gown options on the market.
That’s when you can consider one more
option–your something borrowed! While renting a dress from a large boutique may still be expensive, shopping for
options at smaller, local boutiques both online and offline, might help you
strike gold.
In Singapore, there are options not only for designer gown rental, pre-loved gown purchase, and sustainable wedding dresses to purchase.
You could even try looking up online boutiques
selling pre-loved or once-worn wedding dresses, including those from renowned
brands.
3. Give Your
Flowers Purpose
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Takehiro Tomiyama on Unsplash
It’s time to think about the flowers!
It’s safe to say no wedding feels complete
without floral arrangements.
Growing flowers uses considerable energy and
water, especially if they are not in season or native to the country.
In Singapore, most flowers like roses need to
be specially imported and maintained and temperature-regulated at boutiques.
This is where opting for native flora and those in season may make a great
difference.
You may even want to opt for dried flowers which still create the
most stunning displays. Then comes the unknown hero of flowers–potted plants! Not only would they make
beautiful, elegant additions to your setting, you may easily donate them to a
hospital or elderly home after the wedding to give them a new lease on life.
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Finally, some florists in Singapore may help
you cut costs and wastage by coordinating donations as well as expertly
repurposing floral arrangements between different wedding events.
4. Trim It!
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Another no-brainer, but simply opting not to
include some things at your wedding may cut the costs and hassle of replacing
them with eco-friendly options.
These may include: elaborate wedding
decorations or favours and multiple venues. Keeping a smaller guest list
definitely helps to support the eco-conscious cause (and your wallet!).
Having a mindful registry may also make a big difference. If you’re opting on having
on for you and your partner, you may be tempted to do-up an exciting registry
full of things to start your new life with.=
In this case, asking yourself whether you may
need certain items along the way could help you curate a practical and more
personalised registry.
5. Take
Advantage of the Sun
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Jeremy Wong Weddings on Unsplash
Nature themes have been a great trend in
recent weddings, and that’s great news for the environment!
Using natural lighting by opting for a lush
outdoor wedding, or even just an indoor wedding during the daytime is a classic
way to go eco-friendly.
Imagine vivid greenery and large bay windows
with light streaming in onto your gorgeous table settings–what’s not to love?
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CHUTTERSNAP on Unsplash
It’s a thing to be grateful for that these
days, eco-conscious options are much easier to come by than they once were.
Ultimately, however, making eco-friendly
choices is a consumer decision. It’s up to us to initiate these changes as an
investment in the future of our planet, and a homage to the gifts it has given
us.
