Are you and your partner wondering how to have an eco-friendly wedding in Indiana? From outfit and floral options to sustainable venues, we have some tips to help you relax as you think through how to plan an eco-friendly wedding.
Sustainable Wedding Ideas in Indiana
It is easy to get lost in the amount of information on the internet about sustainable wedding ideas which is why we are writing this. Sustainability doesn’t have to be hard—it can be fun and filled with creativity once you get past the initial whirlwind of change.
Sustainable weddings are filled with beauty, and they aren’t some far-off dream. People are becoming more aware of sustainability these days so it’s possible for you to have an eco-friendly wedding in Indiana that dreams are made of.
Indiana Eco Wedding Checklist:
- Sustainable Outfits
- Intentional Guest List
- Aim for Reusable Decor
- Food + Reducing Food Waste
- Sustainable Florals
- Finding an Eco-Friendly Venue
- Leave No Trace Photo + Video
- Plan a Slow-Paced Day
Sustainable Outfits for Your Eco-Friendly Wedding in Indiana
When thinking about how to have an eco-friendly wedding in Indiana, don’t stress about what you and your partner are going to wear. You have quite a few options!
- First, get your outfits secondhand. Thrift, antique, and consignment shops are so much fun to explore and look for hidden gems! When Jonathan and I renewed our vows, this is what I did for my dress and it was perfect. I even recreated parts of the dress myself to make it fit my style. Places like Retulled Boutique are fantastic—this is where I got my dress. Designer Consigner Boutique and The Perfect Stitch also might have some options and don’t forget about Facebook Marketplace or Poshmark as well to give a second life to some incredible outfits.
- Rewearing/recreating outfits is also a fun outfit option. If someone in your family has an outfit you’d love to wear to your wedding day, recreate it or use parts of it to create something one of a kind! There are many seamstresses and tailors who are incredible at doing this! The House of Bretón and Beth Bennett are just a few in Indiana.
- Of course, you can also rent your outfits if you don’t really want an outfit that you won’t wear again. Tuxedo/suit rentals are most common at places like Sophia’s Bridal + Tux and Ivry Lane. Finding dress rental shops might be trickier, but they do exist!
- Another route you can go with your outfits is to borrow something from a friend or family member. It’s so intentional and great to connect you to people who mean a lot to you. We had one of our brides wear her cousin’s dress and it was something special the two of them shared.
Hair, Makeup, + Accessories
With hair and makeup, one of the most sustainable choices you can make is to use what you have or find conscious vendors who will ensure eco-friendly products. There are some awesome brands out there for this sort of thing. I personally like Ethique as well as Zera and Co.
With accessories, once again, secondhand and borrowing are fantastic options. We’ve had brides borrow a friend’s veil for her wedding day. Ties, bowties, garters, etc. can all be borrowed as well! As always, if you don’t want to incorporate these items into your outfits, then you can skip them.
Intentional Guest List
Ethically Kate is a Sustainability Inspirer and a person that has been so helpful to me (Ashley) in my personal journey in living more sustainably. She had a sustainable wedding herself and I reached out to her about this. When I asked Kate what her top sustainability tip was, she said, “Focus on the people.”
This means to think about who you truly want to be there on your wedding day. Be intentional with your guest list and who means the most to you and your partner. (Side note: Obviously, less people will create less waste, but make sure that you have who you want present.)
Being more intentional and focusing on who you want there on your wedding day can lead to less stress. An eco-friendly wedding also includes taking care of yourself and having a sustainable pace on your wedding day.
In focusing on people, Kate shared, this can also mean shifting away from any guests bringing gifts. Instead, ask for “acts of service” in lieu of a gift. It’s eco-friendly and allows them to be an active participant in your wedding day. Another option for those unable to participate is to give money to a honeymoon or first house fund. These ideas limit waste and allow your guests to gift something to you if they choose.
With a smaller, more intentional guest list, this will change how you navigate invitations to your wedding day. Keeping things digital means saving some trees! Zola is a great option for your wedding website/invite that you can send out via an email and they look lovely. We’ve had past clients go this route with great experiences!
Aim for Reusable Decor
Anything that can be reused is a win when you’re thinking about how to have an eco-friendly wedding in Indiana. From reusable plates, silverware, cups, glasses, and cloth napkins to centerpieces and other décor, you can have a classy looking wedding day without hurting the environment.
When looking for a venue or catering service, look for ones that include these reuseable items rather than single-use plastic ones. You can also rent specific pieces as well instead of buying new. Violet Vintage and A Classic Party Rental are a couple rental shops you can look at here in Indiana.
If you can’t find what you’re looking for in rentals, then you can thrift instead of buying brand new. Give new life to beautiful things and when you’re done, donate or sell it to someone else so it continues to get used.
Food + Reducing Food Waste
Eco-friendly food and reducing food waste are two big topics that come to mind when navigating sustainability. The biggest piece of advice we can offer here is to find a vendor, friend, or family member that shares your heart for a sustainable wedding day.
To avoid food waste, make sure leftovers don’t get tossed out by having reuseable containers ready to house any leftover food.
Support local as much as possible! Locally grown foods and local shops help to cut down on carbon emissions.
Be sure that there is recycling on site (either provided by the venue or otherwise) for any glasses or cans depending on what beverages you plan to have available for yourselves and your guests.
Sustainable Florals for Your Eco-Friendly Wedding in Indiana
As you think through how to have an eco-friendly wedding in Indiana, flowers are high up on the list. Good news: finding sustainable options for florals is not hard! Here are a few different options to consider:
- Locally sourced, in-season flowers from eco-conscious florists
- Grow your own flowers (Ethically Kate, who I spoke about earlier, had home-grown sunflowers from her dad as her wedding flowers)
- Cut your own flowers at a local flower farm in Indiana
- Get local, in-season flowers from farmer’s markets
Avoid avoiding plastic coverings and floral foam by getting in touch ahead with any florist you might be working with. Woven Blooms is a local florist with beautiful work who is floral foam-free! You can always pick up your flowers in your own vases. Sustainability is all about planning ahead with intention.
After your wedding day, you can dry or press any flowers to preserve them. If you don’t decide to keep them, compost them instead of throwing them away.
And if flowers aren’t your jam, skip them!
Finding an Eco-Friendly Venue in Indiana
Choosing a sustainably minded venue is vital in setting the vibe for your wedding day. As we stated earlier, you’ll have to ask venues about the things that align with your sustainable values because venues vary.
Having your ceremony and reception at one location cuts down on carbon emissions so this is something to consider as well.
Both the Indianapolis Zoo and The Wilds talk about green initiatives or have written articles about sustainable wedding tips so these are two options in Indiana for sustainably-minded venues.
You can also let nature be your venue! Keep in mind to follow Leave No Trace practices if you do this and follow all park rules. A few gorgeous parks and outdoor venues in Indiana include:
- Turkey Run State Park
- Sugar Creek Retreat
- Cataract Falls State Park
- Shades State Park
- Eagle Creek Park
- DePauw Nature Park
These venues don’t have any details about sustainability specifically on their sites that we could find, but would be worth checking into for beautiful nature vibes. Many of them supply some decorations:
- The Conservatory at Evergreen
- Owl Ridge
- Avon Gardens
- Lizton Lodge
Leave No Trace Photo + Video Coverage for Your Eco-Friendly Wedding in Indiana
No matter your venue, there is probably some part of your day that will take place outside to some degree. If leaving nature better than you found it is important to you, then you need to find photographers and videographers who share this vision with you.
Leave No Trace knowledge is vital for weddings that take place fully in nature. Find photographers and videographers who are certified who can help you navigate this and give you tips about communicating with your guests about Leave No Trace.
They can be an excellent resource for you and your partner as you figure out how to have an eco-friendly wedding in Indiana. Good news is that we are certified and this is something we are very passionate about. We wrote an entire blog with all the details about it here.
Plan a Slow-Paced Day
Craft a slow-paced wedding-day timeline is one of the most important things you can do for yourselves as sustainability is a mindset. The best news is that you don’t have to do this alone because your photographers and videographers can help with this.
Less Waste Means:
- Not wasting time
- Not wasting energy
- Not wasting money
- Not wasting resources
When planning a wedding day that strives to be environmentally conscious, the biggest thing to keep in mind is a change of pace. All the options above require a slower pace and intentionality.
Finding a sustainable pace in planning a wedding as well as on your wedding day means slowing down to make intentional choices about your day. You can skip the unnecessaries that you don’t want to do and use that money saved to support causes that are close to your hearts.
Zero Waste Weddings in Indiana
Zero waste may not be a reality for you and that’s okay. There’s no shame in that as we are all trying to do our best. The most important thing to take into consideration as you think about how to have an eco-friendly wedding in Indiana is to find creative solutions that make sense for the two of you.
Kathryn Kellogg wrote two articles about her zero waste wedding full of unique ideas if that’s something that interests you. Here’s part one and part two.
It’s Your Day
If helping the earth is something that you two are passionate about, then incorporate it into your wedding day. The most important thing is that your wedding day brings you both joy and peace.
I have covered a lot of information here in this blog to help you starting thinking through different ways of how to have an eco-friendly wedding in Indiana. In case you want more information, Kate shared Mindfully Wed on Instagram with me and I have to pass this along! They have lots of resources that dive even deeper into sustainability and weddings if you want more information.
If this is what you’re looking for, you can reach out and contact Jonathan and I here. Then we can start talking about your peaceful, eco-friendly wedding day and any photo or video needs you might have.
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