If visions of a carbon-guzzling, planet-draining wedding is enough to send shivers down your eco-conscious spine, you're not alone. Whether it's adorning your tabletops with pretty vintage crockery and donning a dress made of recycled fabrics or sourcing fresh produce and flowers from your doorstep, the modern couple is increasingly seeking ways to throw a planet-friendly party.
Eco weddings Cornwall
What started as a marginal movement of a few environmentally aware couples has become a wedding industry phenomenon that defines many a modern celebration. As Rosie Ames, founder of eco weddings website GreenUnion, observes: "The trend for eco weddings grows as more couples plan an element of 'green chic' into their wedding day. Eco-conscious couples simply don't wish to leave a big fat carbon footprint as they trip down the aisle, while others have cottoned on to the fact that a greener wedding can save the budget. You don't have to be rich to have a green wedding - in fact, if you source food and flowers locally and seasonally it's always going to be cheaper."
Eco weddings Cornwall
What's more, the sustainable celebration of today is an endlessly stylish affair. Let these tales of two weddings inspire...
MY COUNTRY ECO CHIC WEDDING
Holly and James
James and I chose to have a sustainable wedding because it was in keeping with the sustainable way in which we live our lives. We weren't trying to show-off our green credentials but having a sustainable wedding at our home was simply a logical step to take.
The venue
We live at Newhouse Farm in the village of Tywardreath, which is an organic smallholding. The farm featured on the BBC TV series 'It's Not Easy Being Green': the first series followed the Strawbridge family converting the derelict farm into a modern 'eco' home. It is designed to have as low an impact on the planet as possible: solar PV panels and wind turbines harvest energy from the sun and the wind, a waterwheel generates the electricity needed to run the lights in the house, solar thermal tubes heat the hot water, and our own spring water is used in the loos, showers, baths, dishwasher and washing machine. Plus we grow lots of organic vegetables and fruit, and keep pigs, geese, ducks, hens, turkeys and bees for their produce.
James and I spent a lot of time at the farm and it seemed like the logical choice for our wedding reception. Living sustainably is very important to us, so even though our choice of venue was about as green as you can get, there were plenty of other steps that we wanted to take.
Eco weddings Cornwall
The food
Food was possibly the most important thing for us to get right - so finding the right caterers was a big decision. We chose Cornish catering company About Taste who worked with us to create a completely bespoke menu using our own recipes. The caterers used only seasonal and local produce, as well as some of our own chutneys and jams. Highly recommended.
Eco weddings Cornwall
The flowers
It was important for us to use British grown, seasonal flowers rather than hothouse grown flowers imported from overseas. Aside from the ethics involved, the variety of beautiful British flowers is phenomenal, and very in keeping with the 'just picked from the hedgerow' look we wanted to achieve. Thinking seasonally with flowers provided a chance for us to get imaginative and creative. The Flower Patch Company specialises in producing homegrown seasonal flowers, which meant that the flowers had a much smaller carbon footprint than if they'd been grown overseas.
Eco weddings Cornwall
The booze
We're spoilt for choice in Cornwall with several local vineyards that produce some delicious wines and Proseccos: Camel Valley, Polmassick Vineyard and Bosue Vineyard to name a few favourites, not to mention the splendid selection of local ales on offer. The one restriction we found with choosing Cornish sparkling wine was simply the cost - we couldn't afford the amount we needed to buy in order to keep our guests happy. Instead, we compromised and used a mixture of organic wines and Proseccos chosen from our local wine shop. Our wedding was in June and the elders were in full bloom so we decided to make our own elderflower champagne. It was easy to make and the guests loved it.
The cake
Free-range eggs equals better tasting cake... simple! I made a mountain of fairy cakes using eggs from our free-range hens, organic flour, organic butter and UK grown sugar, plus some lemon juice to make the icing a little less sweet. If you can't be fussed to do it yourself, there are lots of great local companies out there.
Eco weddings Cornwall
The transport
We took several steps in order to try and make the transport required a little greener. We chose to have our ceremony in our village church, which is walking distance from the farm, so guests wouldn't need extra transport. We encouraged our guests to travel by train wherever possible and car sharing was another option for reducing transport emissions.
Now for the romantic bit: James wanted to whisk me away from the church like a knight in shining armour on his trusty steed. So we hired a pair of shire horses from Pikna Shire Horses who pulled a carriage to take us from the church, around the village and then back to the farm. In our eyes this was much more romantic than hiring a swanky car!
The dress
I hit a stumbling block here. I'd argue that a bride's dress is perhaps the single most important item of the day and, try as I might, I couldn't find an eco alternative that I either liked or could afford. Firstly I considered buying a second hand dress, but this would have meant a lot of travelling to and from 'once worn' dress shops, which I didn't have the time or budget to do. Secondly I spent a long time sourcing samples of peace silk, organic cotton and hemp. But in the end I crumbled when I found, by accident, the perfect dress in a high street shop. Unfortunately it wasn't made of organic cotton, and it wasn't second hand, but it was gorgeous and I ended up buying it.
The photography
It made no sense to hire a photographer who would have to travel halfway across the country when Cornwall has so many photographers. We chose Rich Rayner whose informal, relaxed style of photography we loved.
Eco weddings Cornwall
The honeymoon
Choosing our perfect honeymoon was a big decision, and one where we nearly ended up sacrificing our eco credentials for the sake of luxury! James and I initially got swept along with the idea of jetting off somewhere like the Maldives. However, after a lot of umming and ahhing, we realised that we wanted something more unique, memorable and eccentric. So we bought a gypsy caravan, decorated it, mounted a solar panel on the back to provide us with all the energy we'd need, and set off for a month-long expedition around Cornwall in the slow lane. Our 'horse' was a 1956 vintage tractor, which used only a tiny amount of diesel because we were travelling so slowly (approximately 10 mph!).
We realised that we had balmy weather and beautiful sandy beaches right on our doorstep in Cornwall, and there were so many nooks and crannies of the county that we had yet to explore. Travelling slowly meant that we discovered many gorgeous places off the beaten track that we'd never have noticed had we been zooming along in the fast lane. And the honeymoon certainly provided us with a bucket load of great memories, such as when we took tractor and caravan across the water on the King Harry Ferry!
Now the eco gypsy caravan is providing a sustainable source of income for us, as we're renting it out here at Newhouse Farm. It's perfect for a romantic getaway.
Eco weddings Cornwall
The verdict
We had a truly wonderful day. The weather was perfect, everything went smoothly, and most importantly of all, we all had a ball. We had intended to give our guests homegrown pots of herbs or small tomato plants as wedding favours, but sadly with all the preparations in the build up to the big day, this idea had to fall by the wayside.
FUN ON THE FARM
Located in a pretty corner on the south coast of Cornwall, Newhouse Farm is worth a visit, whether it's for a romantic break or foodie inspiration. Holly and James's gypsy caravan is now available for sustainable and affordable honeymoons. TV presenter and eco engineer Dick Strawbridge also runs food events at the farm, which makes for a great opportunity for couples to get inspiration for local, seasonal recipe ideas for their wedding menu.
Holly and James's eco address book
About Taste, (this company is not around anymore, please refer to our catering directory for some great catering businesses).
The Flower Patch Company (this company is not around anymore, please refer to our florist directory for some great catering businesses).
Gypsy Caravans Cornwall
Newhouse Farm
Pikna Shire Horses www.piknashirehorses.webeden.co.uk
Rich Rayner Photography (this company is not around anymore, please refer to our photographer directory for some great catering businesses).
MY SUSTAINABLE SEASIDE WEDDING
Christelle and Jonno
Jonno and I have been working towards a more sustainable lifestyle over the last few years. The ocean and stunning Cornish landscape is such an important part of our life together that we felt it was essential to respect that in the way that we planned our wedding. Therefore, we decided to make each element of our day as sustainable as possible.
Eco weddings Cornwall
The venue
Bedruthan Steps Hotel ticked so many of our boxes. It boasts stunning views of the ocean and, having won awards as a sustainable venue, the team was able to advise us in this field, helping us with the plans and putting us in touch with the right suppliers to make the wedding sustainable and bespoke.
The food
Jonno is a chef and very passionate about sourcing ingredients as ethically as possible. Furthermore, my mother's side of the family is French (and love their food!), so we decided that the food would be one of the most important aspects of our day. We spent considerable time in discussions with Adam, the chef, designing a sustainable menu. We had starters of hot smoked Cornish mackerel with gooseberry sauce or roast breast of wood pigeon. The main course was Cornish lamb on colcannon with wine jus or a Cornish fish and shellfish stew with saffron dumplings. The food was organic, local, seasonal, free range and in the case of the fish, ethically caught. Even the coffee was fair trade.
Eco weddings Cornwall
The flowers
After discussions with local florist, George Mackay, we decided that the main flower decorations would be Cornish palms still rooted in their pots so that they could be replanted after the wedding. They were beautiful and decorated with delphinium sprigs. All the foliage in my bouquet was sourced from Cornish hedgerows and, as far as possible, the flowers were UK grown. We also brought some palm trees from home. It meant that fewer flowers were cut and that the main decorations would continue living after the wedding. We now have the palms in our garden as a reminder of our day.
We chose glass bowls for the table decorations - as they are a recyclable material - and filled them with water, floating candles and shells and pebbles from the beach (they were returned afterwards).
The stationery
All the stationery - from the invitations to the name cards, table names, order of service and even the 'reserved' signs on seats - was made from sheep poo paper from Creative Paper in Wales. It is biodegradable and causes no harm to the environment. We asked our guests to put their invitations on their compost heaps after they were finished with them.
The jewellery
I found some bracelets with recycled glass beads in an eco shop in Truro that perfectly matched the bridesmaids' dresses. I sourced my pearls from Mai Pearls, which is a project working with a small group of Chinese women who make the jewellery by hand in fair trade conditions and as part of community initiatives.
The transport
As we had guests travelling from far afield, we wanted to reduce the transport load as much as possible. We hired a Biotravel coach running on biofuel to take guests in and around Newquay to and from the venue.
The photography
We hired local photographer Mike from Platinum Wedding Photos who really understood that we wanted the photos to be romantic and formal while capturing the Cornish landscape and natural additions of the wedding.
The verdict
We felt that we had a formal wedding and managed to break the myth that being more eco has to mean a teepee in a field. We weren't able to be 100% eco but we felt that we made a good contribution towards the sustainability of the day. We proved that important elements such as the venue, transport, food, flowers, stationery, decorations and jewellery can be sustainable without spending extra money. The day was just perfect and the happiest of our lives.
Christelle and Jonno's eco address book
Bedruthan Steps Hotel www.bedruthan.com
Biotravel
Creative Paper
George Mackay Flowers www.georgemackayflowers.com
Mai Pearls
Platinum Wedding Photos (this company is not around anymore, please refer to our photographer directory for some great catering businesses).
Words Rebecca Matthews
Copyright WED Magazine 2010
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