July 02, 2009
Halcyon honeymoons
Robert and Diane Kirkwood have been married for 17 years and moved to France in 2000. They live in the village of Busserolles, in the Dordogne area of SW France and they opened their first holiday property, the Woodsman's Cabin (then known as 'Covert Cabin') in 2006. Since then, they have constructed their second cottage, Fisherman's Cabin, nearby. Both Cabins are available all year round. We asked Diane to tell us how they came to be the proud owners of two of the most unique honeymoon getaways that we know of. Over to you Diane...
 The northernmost part of Dordogne in France is a beautiful forested area with many lakes and it was to here that we came eight years ago, having done the classic Brit thing of falling in love with an old stone farmhouse in need of TLC and buying it without giving much thought to what we'd do when we got here! Soon after our arrival we discovered nearby a leafy overgrown lane where, hidden among the trees was a little lake. Right from the start, it had a sense of calm and of being untouched by the modern world, the woodland was overgrown with brambles like Sleeping Beauty's forest and, (here we go again!), we knew we had to have it! A few enquiries led us to the owner and a deal was struck, and then a few months later we became the proud owners of not only the lake and 6 acres of woodland, but also a rather ugly breezeblock construction with a corrugated roof. To be honest, we thought about demolishing this eyesore, but further inspection revealed it to be solidly built and then, somewhere along the line, the idea of transforming it into a cabin and the perfect honeymoon hideout was born.
Posted in Green Wedding Honeymoon & Eco Tourism
June 30, 2009
Low Impact Wedding Series - Ceremony
 In the beginning we talked about having a sunrise wedding. Doesn't that sound so auspicious and romantic? But then we thought about the details - all the guests would have to arrive in the dark and you'd have to get dressed and ready at four in the morning!
So instead, we had a morning wedding ceremony starting at 9:00 am. The wedding breakfast followed at about 10:30 AM and lasted until about 1:30 pm. The real party for the wedding was the rehearsal dinner and we invited all the wedding guests to a BBQ at the ceremony location the night before.
Ceremony Area - The ceremony was held with the shelter as a back drop. It worked out perfectly because the front had a peek that served as a beautiful frame for the alter.
Ceremony Music - Again we’re thinking eco friendly, so canned music with speakers was out. We have a friend who plays the cello and that just seemed perfect. He agreed and we asked that he pick the procession and recession. He actually composed the music and gave it to us a wedding present. The walk in was “Look, Isn’t She Pretty” and the walk out was “Okay, We’re Done, You Can Go Now”. I left the titles out of the program, but they make me smile. Our cellist friend was gratis.
Ceremony Officiant - The groom’s family is Catholic and mine is, well... a little bit of this and that. I have never been baptized and had no intention of joining the Catholic church so we were extremely lucky.
It was really important to the groom that Father Terry do the ceremony and Father Terry is one of the most open hearted and open minded priests I have met. He agreed to marry us “in the Bride’s place of worship” which I decided was to be outside and he did a wonderful job. He basically read the ceremony we came up with and we gave $100 to the church as his payment. Search for officiants and celebrants in our wedding directory.
Total Cost = $100
You can get more ideas on how to conduct your wedding ceremony and the legalities of getting married in the UK by going to our advice pages.
Posted in Green Wedding Celebrants & Blessings
, Natural Nuptials
June 26, 2009
Late Availability Venue Offer
 Grab it while you can!
Snap up one of these really special deals from Coombe Farm & Woodlands Trust in Devon, a most amazing wedding venue:
August Special Offer
Saturday 15 August Wedding Venue hire for 70 people now only £2,000 (normally £2,500) or you can choose an Intimate Wedding for 20 people in the farmhouse which is only a snip at £950! To be booked along with 7 nights farmhouse self catering accommodation for up to 20 people from Friday 14 August to Friday 21st August 2009 at 20% discount - now only £2,700 (normally £3,376).
September Special Offers
Late availability wedding dates for intimate wedding weekends in the main farmhouse for up to 20 people:
Saturday 6th September Wedding Venue hire now only £950
To be booked along with self catering farmhouse accommodation from Friday 5th September to Sunday 7th September 2009 now only £1,438 for 14 people, or £1,797 for 20 people.
Saturday 26th September Wedding Venue hire now only £950
To be booked along with self catering farmhouse accommodation from Friday 25th September to Sunday 27th September 2009 now only £1,217 for 14 people, or £1,521 for 20 people.
FOR ANY OF THESE LAST MINUTE SPECIAL OFFERS AT COOMBE FARM PLEASE GET IN TOUCH WITH ANGELA BY EMAIL info@coombefarmwoods.co.uk OR TELEPHONE +44(0)1884 821176
Posted in Green Wedding Special Offers
, Venues
June 23, 2009
Getting married soon?
Are you getting married within the next 4 weeks?
If so, Laura would like to talk to you about a magazine feature in the Sunday Telegraph Stella magazine about British weddings. They are looking for a couple who are planning an eco wedding and would be happy to have a Sunday Telegraph photographer capture an image of their day.
Please get in touch with laura@talktothepress.com and please tell her that you heard about this from us here at GreenUnion.
You will need to be willing to have photos of your big day published in the Sunday Telegraph magazine and be available for a quick phone interview too.
Posted in Green Wedding Natural Nuptials
, Press
June 19, 2009
Sparkly Things: More on wedding jewelry
 There are oh so many jewelry options to consider, and that can be more than a little overwhelming.
Starting with the engagement ring - I knew I did not want a diamond, and I ideally wanted an entirely already-in-existence, i.e. not brand new, ring. Mark was extremely fortunate that his Dad had been holding onto a Star Ruby gold ring that his Grandfather had passed down - and Star Rubies are purple, my favorite color! We spent some time looking into the option - using the gold (way more than I would need in a ring, since it was a man’s ring) to make our wedding bands, resetting the Ruby in an entirely new setting or making a necklace instead of a ring out of the stone.
It took some convincing to get what we wanted. The jeweler insisted on showing us all the brand new settings they had before pulling out a box of “vintage” settings, essentially waiting to be recycled. We found the perfect setting for the stone, and avoided the environmental costs associated with refining the metals for a new ring in the end. Overcoming the generalizations that you won’t be happy without a diamond, and definitely won’t enjoy having a “previously used” ring can be rough…
For my wedding jewelry I faced the same dilemma, in that I know I want certain things, but also know I want to stick to my low impact wedding resolutions. Borrowing earrings and a necklace from my sister might be the answer, though I won’t have them after the wedding, which for purely sentimental reasons is a factor.
Our wedding rings are the next jewelry item to address. We like the idea of having matching bands, but the chances of finding ones we like that match are slim in the vintage ring market. We’ve also pondered going the artisan route and having them made for us by a local jeweler, but face the same metal costs there. Buying new through a conventional jeweler would be the most cost effective option it seems (surprisingly!), but despite our budget we’ll probably choose not to go that route given the true costs of traditionally mined and processed metals. Here’s hoping we run into perfect, similar, previously used wedding bands at a local vintage jewelry shop!
Posted by Kerry - Blogger Bride
Posted in Green Wedding Blogger Brides
, Natural Nuptials
June 16, 2009
Stock up on soy wax candles
 If you're wondering wondering about stocking up on soy wax candles for your candlit wedding in the winter and want to know more about them and see them in the flesh then get along to the Eco Design Summer Fairs in London. Our partners Hapi Bean Soy Candles will be there.
Jo at Hapi Bean can show you how they burn and tell you all about how gorgeous her candles are. Unlike many soy wax candles where the soy beans are NOT sourced from deforested Rain Forest land. Hapi Beans candle wax is made from soybeans that are sourced from US farmers with long established farmlands free from pesticides, herbicides and they are GM free.
Hapi Bean's 100% unscented soy wax tealights and candles are hand made in the UK, they burn amazingly cleanly, leaving no soot residue. They offer traditional tealights and glass tealights, with more styles on the way.
Hapi Bean also creates gorgeous vintage china and glass candles exclusively for our own Eco Chic Boutique and will soon be offering a refill service.
Click here to buy vintage tea cup candles.
Posted in Green Wedding Decorations & Details
, Events
June 15, 2009
Blissful bride
[source: People]
What an inspiration! Barack and Michelle Obama, who were married in 1992, are great role models for couples everywhere. Not only do they appear to have had the chicest wedding, but they have mutual respect and genuine affection for each other which is abundantly clear in this relaxed wedding portrait which sits on the Obamas’ living room mantel.
If you're planning your wedding, don't let the main reason for your marriage get lost. Of course it's lovely to have perfect wedding plans, beautiful invitations, a gorgeous venue, all your guests dressed to the nines, generous wedding gifts, the bridal gown of your dreams, a slap up wedding breakfast, horse and carriage, bridesmaids and a wonderful honeymoon. But the most important thing of all is your love and respect for one another, nothing else matters...
Posted in Green Wedding Natural Nuptials
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