What are your plans for your wedding- and event-planning business? Are you hoping to be known for your upscale style? Or do you want potential clients to look to you for environmental knowledge? If that’s the case LWPI’s Green Wedding Planning course is for you. One recent LWPI graduate, Sharnice Thompson, shares with us why she chose the course and what she got out of it. Will you be the next certified Green Wedding Planner in your region?

Why did you choose LWPI? I did my research and found that LWPI met the criteria that I was looking for, and the institute as a whole is very sophisticated. The staff is knowledgeable about the school and programs, and this is the only institute that offers an eco-friendly wedding-planing certificate course.

What made you decide to be a Green Wedding Planner? My husband and I are very much into the “green” lifestyle, and when I decided I wanted to be a wedding planner I knew that I wanted to be a little different and make a big impact. Therefore, I choose to go with green wedding planning, something among the path I’m already on and am very much familiar with.

What did you like most about the course? I like that it’s at-your-own-pace. I was able to balance my cake business, school, work and the course at the same time.

How did the course prepare you to work in the event industry? It helped me become organized, and it guided me in the direction of a successful wedding planner.

Do you think Green Weddings will grow more popular? With the direction that the world is going I know that Green Weddings will absolutely grow in popularity in the years to come.

Why should a bridal couple try to plan a Green Wedding? Wedding couples should try Green Wedding Planning to see the bigger picture: their commitment to one another; their commitment to their community and the world; and their commitment to lessening their carbon footprint as a couple. It can also be the beginning of a green life together, and it may help them save money.

What are your favorite eco-friendly trends? I love eco-friendly clothes, jewelry and makeup. People are always trying to enhance their appearance, and if they use green materials it makes a large impact on our world.

What trends do you predict will grow in popularity and become more mainstream for non-green weddings? Gowns: They will be heirlooms, recycled, made from recycled materials and/or donated.

Do you have a background in event planning? I do not have any previous background in event planning, but I do plan to continue to grow my business to a full-time job.

Do you have anything else to share with aspiring Green Wedding Planners? Reach for your “green” goals, and be sure you’re making your clients aware of how they can reduce their carbon footprint.

You can find Sharnice through her business website, Haute Chic Cakes and More. Be sure to click on the Eco-Chic Wedding Tab for wedding and package information. To reach her, visit the Contact Page, where you will find her name, number and her email address.

Last month we shared with you some tips on planning a green wedding. This month, Kate Harrison, the author of The Green Bride Guide, shares with us the second of a two-part series on easy, eco-friendly wedding ideas. You can find more great ideas at Kate’s website, and if you’re interested in becoming a Green Wedding Planner sign up for her class through LWPI. It’s a great way to add a special niche to your wedding- and event-planning business!

Photo courtesy of Elizabeth Anne Designs

6. Meaningful Favors: How will your guests remember your day? It can be hard to come up with a small gift to give to over a hundred guests that will be a meaningful token of your appreciation, and a fitting reminder of your day. More often than not, guests leave a wedding with a tiny trinket that eventually gets thrown in the trash. Consider instead something that your guests will be happy to see every day as they remember your special day. Plantable items, like seeds and tree saplings, are growing in popularity as wedding favors, especially because of the wonderful symbolism they provide: They grow and blossom, just like your love.

Edibles make perfect eco-friendly favors, too. Chocolates are a popular option, but if you’re looking for something a bit different, you still have choices. You could create a candy station and allow your guests to fill a kraft bag with their favorites. Perhaps there is a local specialty in your area that would be a delicious reminder of your wedding day, like a tiny bottle of maple syrup for a Vermont wedding, or a miniature bottle of wine for a vineyard celebration.

7. Choose to Reuse: Much of the wastefulness of weddings comes from the multitude of single-use items that are associated with them. Clothing, décor pieces, and even leftover food can find a use beyond the trash can if you plan ahead. When you consider bridal-party attire, think with future use in mind. The men can purchase new suits that they’ll wear again and again, or coordinate their looks with formalwear they already own. If tuxedos are a must, rentals are the best option since most men do not have a need for a tuxedo in their personal wardrobe. Women’s attire can be a little trickier, but matching gowns in one color are the hardest type to reuse. Instead, bridesmaids and children in the wedding party can be given a color palette from which to choose something they already own, or to purchase something they will wear again.

The bride herself can consider refashioning a family or vintage gown, or buying a once-worn gown on a site like smartbrideboutique.com. If her heart is set on a new gown, she can consider reselling or donating it afterward. Bridal shoes are also typically a one-time wear. Like gowns, these can be bought once-worn and then resold after, or the bride can choose shoes in a color besides white that she is more likely to wear again.

Leftover food and flowers can also find another use after the wedding, but these details require advance arrangements. Contact local hospitals or nursing homes ahead of time to see if your flowers can brighten up their patients’ days after your wedding. Arrange to donate your leftover food to a shelter or soup kitchen so none of it goes to waste. Even décor pieces can be repurposed or reused. Sites like recycledbride.com and brideshare.net allow couples to share or resell décor pieces so they don’t become once-used items.

8. Eat Your Décor: Favors aren’t the only wedding item that can be edible! In-season apples in a variety of hues make bright, beautiful additions to your table décor. Add a name tag to a ripe orange or a juicy peach, and voila! You’ve created edible place cards. Fruits, vegetables, and even herbs offer a rainbow of options to add color to your ceremony and reception décor. You can even work edible elements into your floral arrangements. Once the wedding is over, put these edible décor pieces on the menu for your farewell brunch the next day, or arrange to donate them.

9. Use the Season: Seasonal food and flowers are eco-friendly options, to be sure, but you can take “seasonal” even further by using it to inspire all of your décor choices. Chances are, you’ve chosen to have your wedding in a certain season to capitalize on the colors and elements associated with it, so all you have to do is look around. A June wedding, for example, is the perfect time to choose berry hues. Take your out of town relatives berry-picking as a fun and festive activity before the wedding, and hand those freshly picked strawberries over to your baker to decorate your cake. Gather a group of friends to make berry jam, and then gift your guests with the sweet treat in jelly jars that they can reuse at their homes. Baskets full of deep purple and brilliant red berries make a striking presentation and a delicious addition to your dessert table. You can use these ideas with any season’s bounty: think of orange and green gourds and gold and red leaves in the fall or deep green pine boughs accented with bright holly berries in the winter. Be creative with what’s available in your season, and be sure to coordinate your décor ideas with your florist.

10. Give Back: Part of being environmentally aware is giving back. There are so many ways to recognize causes in which you believe on your wedding day. You can include important charities by creating a charity registry, through which guests are invited to donate in lieu of more traditional wedding gifts. You can also make a donation in honor of your guests instead of giving individual wedding favors.

A number of organizations allow brides to donate their dresses after the wedding. This is a great option for a bride who prefers a new dress for her wedding day; the charity resells the gown and uses the money for their cause. Brides Against Breast Cancer and the Bridal Garden are two such charities. Operation Fairy Dust collects bridesmaid gowns and then redistributes them to young girls who cannot afford gowns for proms or formal dances.

One final eco-friendly option is offsetting the carbon impact of your wedding. You can use a carbon calculator like the one available at www.greenbrideguide.com to determine your wedding’s impact, and then purchase carbon credits through an organization like Brighter Planet.

Whether you choose just a few of these options or try to incorporate all of them, every choice makes a difference. You can make your green wedding more personalized, share your values with your guests, and likely save money, too.

Many brides are looking for fun and easy ways to make their weddings more eco-friendly. But it can be hard to figure out the perfect details to create a fabulous Green Wedding. Kate Harrison, the author of The Green Bride Guide, shares with us today the first of a two-part series on easy, eco-friendly wedding ideas. You can find more great ideas at Kate’s website, and if you’re interested in becoming a Green Wedding Planner sign up for her class through LWPI. It’s a great way to add a special niche to your wedding- and event-planning business!

Eco Friendly Wedding Favors from Do It Yourself Weddings

Many of today’s brides are thinking about having a green wedding, but it’s hard to know where to start. The good news is that even small green choices can make a difference in decreasing your wedding’s impact on the environment. Adding eco-details is easier than you might think, and as an added bonus, going green is usually a money-saver as well! You have to make so many choices for your wedding day, so why not make some of those choices with the environment in mind? Get started with these ten easy ways to add eco-details to your wedding.

1. Think Vintage: Vintage elements are a hot wedding trend right now, plus they are eco-friendly and will likely save you money, too. Your jewelry can be vintage — heirloom rings make gorgeous green engagement pieces, and your grandmother’s pearls are a special way to honor her on your wedding day — but don’t stop there! Infuse your day with a retro chic look. Scour consignment stores for vintage mason jars, pitchers, tins or vases. You can fill them with flowers for centerpieces, or load them with candy for a colorful and sweet display. Find vintage fabrics to use as your table covers, to wrap your bouquet, or to serve as or backdrop for your photo booth. Buy vintage postage stamps in mint condition on eBay to use on your invitations. For the ultimate in retro-glam, find a vintage gown and have a good tailor fit it for you. The possibilities are endless!

2. Green Your Travel: The impact of wedding-related travel is significant. Consider a small-ish wedding of about a hundred guests; even if four guests pile into a car (which is unlikely; most cars probably only carry two), that’s still twenty-five vehicles driving from one location to the next. One of the easiest ways to cut down on your wedding’s travel footprint is to have your ceremony and reception in the same place, which negates those emissions, and saves your guests the hassle of going from one place to another.

If you must have your ceremony and reception in different places, consider hiring a bus or van to move everyone en masse. If you provide snacks and drinks on board, a wedding bus can be a real highlight for you and your guests. A trolley could also be a fun option, and if you find a company that has electric trolleys, it’s even better.

3. DIY Details: Do-it-yourself projects can be a fun way to add eco-details and a personal touch to your wedding. Utilize your creative talents to decide what kinds of projects you can do, then green your DIY ideas by choosing repurposed, recycled, or vintage materials. Have beautiful penmanship? Create your own place cards from recycled cardstock. Crafty with a sewing machine? Stitch purses using reclaimed fabrics and give them as bridesmaids’ gifts. Have a penchant for paint? Repurpose old picture frames by painting them in fitting colors for your décor. Print or draw table numbers or menus on recycled paper to put inside the frame, or fill them with family or childhood pictures of you and your intended to decorate the ceremony or reception site.

4. Incorporate Natural Elements: There are so many ways to include nods to nature in your wedding décor. Coordinate the use of natural elements with the season of your wedding, and you will have a bounty of options: richly colored leaves in the fall, pinecones in the winter, beach sand and shells in the summer…you get the idea.

Wood pieces can be a great starting point for your natural décor. Fallen branches in the backyard can be collected and repurposed to create rustic ceremony adornments, or cut to become surprisingly elegant name card holders. You could even use a thin slice of wood as a uniquely beautiful ring pillow!

Using natural elements in your floral arrangements adds an unusual beauty, and cuts down on the use of flowers overall. Moss, grass, and driftwood are some options for creating beautiful bouquets and centerpieces.

Rocks and stones offer a variety of colors and textures to suit your wedding’s style. Work them into centerpieces, line them up at the ceremony site to create an aisle (instead of a wasteful disposable aisle runner), or use a water-based paint pen on them to create place cards without paper.

5. Surf for Green: Because most couples choose to set up a wedding website these days, this one may sound like a no-brainer. However, utilizing the internet is a great way to keep the environment in mind when you consider how much paper you can eliminate from your invitations and the wedding itself.

Use your wedding website to house all the important information your guests will need: directions, itineraries, carpooling options, lodging, menus, and more. Make sure your guests can also RSVP directly on the site, and there will be no need for the additional RSVP card in your invitation envelope. If you have relatives or friends who are not Internet savvy (and there are likely only a few), they can RSVP by phone.

Green weddings are growing more and more popular, with good reason. They can be inexpensive if designed a certain way, and they make the bridal couple feel good about their choices. But going green isn’t only about choosing fewer flowers, wearing recycled gowns and searching out reusable decor. There are small choices that every couple makes that can have a big impact on the world. Consider engagement rings, for example. Here are some of our favorite tips for buying an eco-friendly engagement ring:

* “An heirloom ring is a green choice that provides a special connection to your family’s previous generations,” according to The Green Bride Guide. Considering an heirloom ring means that no new resources have been scoured to create it. Heirloom rings can also be easy on the pocketbook. And what bride wouldn’t be thrilled to receive a ring with family history attached? But what if your family doesn’t have a ring to pass down? Check out antiques stores, flea markets and estate sales for the best selections. Be sure, however, to know what the return policy is and protect yourself with insurance just in case.

Courtesy of MnMWoodworks on etsy.

* Diamond mining is a dangerous business around the world, often controlled by violent rebel groups. Shoppers have to be careful to avoid buying “blood diamonds,” which can have connection to death and war in many countries. What are your other options? Synthetic diamonds are growing in popularity, and many brides find that their friends and family can’t tell the difference between a real diamond and a synthetic one. If your bride is intent on having a real diamond make sure to search out stores that deal in conflict-free diamonds. Canadian diamonds, for example, are mined under strict environmental and worker-friendly conditions.

* It’s not all about diamonds, you know. Consider rings crafted from gorgeous, reclaimed wood. (But know in advance that wooden bands may not last as long and require special care.) Or choose bands crafted from reclaimed metals. The mantra reduce, reuse, recycle can be applied to engagement- and wedding-ring shopping, too.

* Consider choosing rings made from metals mined with the least detrimental effect on the environment. These include steel, copper and nickel. Gold, platinum and palladium are the most popular choices for wedding rings, but mining them also creates the most waste. Consider used, antique or thrifted rings made out of these metals.

Just like the eco-friendly wedding movement, green wedding rings are slowly catching on. Do we think it’s a trend? Perhaps, but we also think it’s a trend that deserves to stick around for the obvious reasons. While many couples will come to a certified wedding and event planner with that sparkly bauble already in place, they’re likely to ask for guidance in choosing wedding bands. Gently guiding them in the green direction has many benefits, for the couple and the earth.

Want to know more about going green? Sign up today for LWPI’s Green Weddings Course. If you’re already a wedding and event planner you’ll learn invaluable tips for protecting the planet. And if you’re dreaming of becoming a certified wedding and event planner you’ll be on the way to creating the perfect niche for yourself in the wedding industry.

It’s easy to get carried away when planning a holiday wedding. Tons of expensive decor and flowers are easy ways to kill your budget. But holiday weddings can also be budget- and environmentally friendly. Here are a couple of ideas to “go green” from Kate Harrison, the author of The Green Bride Guide and LWPI’s partner for Lovegevity’s Green Weddings Course.

1) Choose a winter-themed invitation on recycled paper. (This cute invitation was found on etsy.)

2) Save money and decrease the footprint of your event by choosing a location that decks the halls with holiday splendor. Most hotels and historic buildings create elaborate settings for the holidays, which can provide a beautiful backdrop to your event.

3) Create your own winter wonderland using Christmas lights, ice sculptures, potted evergreens, flowering branches, pine cones, and bowls of nuts and cranberries. If you choose seasonal decorations for your wedding that can be reused you can let guests or the bridal party take them home as gifts. For example, wreaths make beautiful centerpieces when interspersed with soy or beeswax candles.

4) Hang recycled paper snowflakes from the ceiling or windowsills.

5) Serve seasonal dishes - like hot pumpkin soup, sweet potatoes and grass-fed organic steak. (Soup recipe available on epicurious.com.)

6) Give a winter- or holiday-themed favor. Organic cookies in the the shapes of snowflakes or trees, personalized ornaments, and small jars of locally made jam can all double as seating cards.

7) Use (or have your baker use) snowflake stencils and powdered sugar to create winter cupcakes. (Check out these amazing cupcake ideas - including stenciled cupcakes - at the food blog Kuidadore.)

Do you have more ideas for creating a holiday-themed green wedding? We’d love to hear them! Interested in signing up for Lovegevity’s Green Weddings Course? Find out more about the course here. You can register today! And if you need another push to sign up, how about a $100 back-to-school tuition discount? Just enter the code GBGWPI100 when you enroll.

A green wedding is a celebration of awareness. At a green wedding, a couple is not just affirming their commitment to one another, they are also affirming their commitment to a sustainable life together - one that takes the needs of the environment and future generations into account. A Certified Green Wedding Planner has the knowledge and resources to help couples make eco-friendly choices throughout the planning process. The LWPI Green Wedding Planning course teaches the planner everything needed to help clients make the decisions that lead to a better world for all of us.

The four-week online course, written and instructed by Kate Harrison, the founder of the Green Bride Guide, will teach wedding professionals how to incorporate eco-friendly wedding solutions into their clients’ events to help lower costs and save the environment. Harrison graduated from Vassar College with a major in Environmental Conservation and Sustainable Development. She holds a J.D. from Pace Law School and is currently finishing her master’s degree in Environmental Policy, Law, and Economics from the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. She wrote The Green Bride Guide after she and her husband Barry planned their own green wedding in 2007.

Here are some interesting statistics about green weddings from Harrison:

1. 48 percent of couples are committed to incorporating eco-friendly elements into their wedding.
2. In a year when wedding spending fell 25 percent, green wedding spending actually increased 6 percent.
3. Green weddings are a top 5 wedding trend.

This all goes to show that green weddings are here to stay and that there is a need for qualified, certified professionals to help bridal couples reach their “green” goals!

Want to know more about this class? Read our recent interview with Wendy Dorsey of Essential Sage Weddings and Events. You can also take a tour of the course and register today.

And if you need another push to sign up, how about a $100 back-to-school tuition discount? Just enter the code GBGWPI100 when you enroll.

Wendy Dorsey, a recent graduate of Lovegevity’s Green Weddings Course and the owner of Essential Sage Wedding and Events, recently sat down with us to talk about her experience with Lovegevity and how weddings can be easily made more eco-friendly. Dorsey, who lives in Texas, decided to get into the wedding-planning business after her event-planning work slowed down, due to the economy. As she told us the move was a good one because “there will always be brides.” She had some wedding-planning training under her belt, but - and as we’ve recommended to Lovegevity’s certified wedding and event coordinators - Dorsey knew she needed to find her niche so she could “differentiate herself from the masses.”

“I started to look at what was important to me personally and professionally. It didn’t take long to land on my love of the environment and quest to be personally as eco-friendly as I could. I did some research to see what was happening in the movement and found that there was little attention being paid to the extraordinary amount of waste that conventional weddings produce in our country, Texas and certainly in Dallas. That’s when I knew, this was my niche. Albeit an uphill climb, I knew this was a business for me,” she said.

Dorsey, who had been following Kate Harrison and The Green Bride Guide for awhile, saw an advertisement for Lovegevity’s Green Weddings Course in one of Harrison’s e-newsletters. Dorsey says she especially loved communicating directly with Harrison through the course, and she calls Harrison “the godmother of green weddings.” When asked how the course prepared her, she said:

“More than prepare me, the course offered validation for how I aspire to participate in this industry. Many of the ‘lessons’ and ’strategies’ were familiar to me, but the content really drilled down farther, expanding my knowledge base. The resources provided have been a huge help in sourcing information. The course work also led me to be crystal clear that this venture would be a challenge in Dallas. There are a couple of vegan/all-natural organic caterers, but we’re very limited in terms of natural and organic florists. However, we do have many historical, arts and cultural venues that are just perfect for a wedding ceremony and reception. So right off the bat, we have an opportunity to cut back on the amount of transportation guests use as a result of attending a wedding. If a bride and groom are willing to have a morning or daytime wedding, there is additional opportunity to save on added lighting (form or function). For the more traditional couple, we have a few really beautiful hotels who have implemented a number of eco-friendly energy-based strategies, one recently receiving the Green Seal of Approval.”

Among Dorsey’s favorite eco-friendly trends for the upcoming fall wedding season and beyond is raising awareness. “Raising awareness, and doing it with grace, is one of the most meaningful contributions you and your groom can make. Consider that the U.S. wedding industry is a $70 billion a year business. Your event budget is part of one powerful lobby! Every time you question a product or service’s environmental and social impact, you send a strong message to Corporate America. When you buy locally, you are countering corporate dominance. You also have the ability to inspire. Your wedding is an outward expression of you and your groom’s inner values. Not only is your green celebration a promise to care for each other throughout your lives, it’s also a public commitment to nurturing the planet.”

Dorsey also likes such eco-friendly ideas as edible wedding favors, and those that “keep on giving” such as seeded paper notes or tiny terra-cotta pots with bulbs planted in them. Weddings with vintage elements, she said, are obvious “green” choices plus anything vintage is really hot right now. And wedding-party gifts made and/or wrapped in recyclable materials are another way she likes to send the “green” message.

Dorsey said she thinks it’s an exciting time to be a Green Wedding Planner because “the industry is ripe for change” and “target customers are on the cutting edge of environmental awareness.”

“The average bride, at 27 years old, has grown up exposed to environmental and social awareness. These are not foreign concepts to most couples, however, some couples may need to be shown how you can marry style and sustainability. Be sure you are choosing to be green for the right reasons. Being eco-friendly won’t be a trend for long; it will become a way of life. Your customers (seasoned and rookie eco-concious couples) will expect you to be their fearless leader, their green advocate with vendors.”

We’ve talked before about Lovegevity’s Green Wedding Planning course, and we’ve even discussed why it’s important to go green. Have you decided to take the plunge? (Pun intended, of course!) Or are you still wavering? Lovegevity’s Green Wedding Certification Course comes from a class designed by Kate Harrison and her book, The Green Bride. Harrison graduated from Vassar with a major in Environmental Conservation and Sustainable Development. She wrote The Green Bride after she and her husband, Barry, planned their own green wedding in 2007. According to Kate:

“With 46% of couples looking for green options, there has never been a better time to go green as a wedding professional. There are so many reasons to take the Green Wedding Professional certification class, but I think this Ripple (above), hosted by Andre Yap, might be helpful. For additional information, see the Green Wedding Planning Certification class page.”

As professional, certified wedding and event coordinators you’re expected to carry every available tool in your tool belt. Becoming certified as a green wedding coordinator is just one more way to grow your business and show your clients that you’re on top of things. If you’re still unsure of the reasons why to go green be sure to watch Kate’s video above. It will answer a lot of your questions about the green wedding industry, and how you can be a part of it!

You already know that the Lovegevity Wedding Planning Institute is the No. 1 place to turn when you want to begin a career as an event and wedding coordinator. But did you know that Lovegevity also offers a Green Wedding Planning Course? Going green is all the rage these days, and it’s with good reason: Doing so can be an affordable option for many weddings - especially for DIY brides - and it can leave everyone involved with a feeling of environmental responsibility. Environmentally friendly wedding ideas are exploding all over the U.S., and the Internet has a wealth of information on “going green.” As Lovegevity says, “A green wedding is a celebration of awareness. At a green wedding, a couple is not just affirming their commitment to one another, they are also affirming their commitment to a sustainable life together - one that takes the needs to the environment and future generations into account.”

Lovegevity’s Green Wedding Certification Course comes from a class designed by Kate Harrison and her book, The Green Bride. Harrison graduated from Vassar with a major in Environmental Conservation and Sustainable Development. She wrote The Green Bride after she and her husband, Barry, planned their own green wedding in 2007.

What are some ways you can turn a wedding “green?” Have you had any brides offer suggestions to make their weddings more environmentally sustainable?

Links you may be interested in:
*Take a tour of Lovegevity’s Green Wedding Planning Course.
* Enroll in Lovegevity’s Green Wedding Planning Course.
* Check out a blog by Lovegevity’s CEO, Cho Phillips, about Going Green.
* Read an excerpt from Kate Harrison’s The Green Bride or buy your own copy.