Green Wedding September 2009

September 30, 2009

Forever Green reopens its doors

The newly refurbished Forever Green Eco Venue reopened its doors as a brand new green wedding venue back in June this year and, needless to say, it has been going from strength to strength ever since.

The venue's official launch party took place in September with a fantastic evening of entertainment which included stilt walkers, a hog roast, forest illuminations (see pictures above) and a charity auction. the venue was officially opened by Claire Young who featured on 2008 Apprentice.

If you're planning to get married in Nottinghamshire and would like to find out more about this exciting new wedding venue, Forever Green will be at the Newark Wedding Fayre, Kelham Hall this Sunday 4th October 2009.

Posted in Green Wedding Events , Venues

September 29, 2009

Designer Flower Zone

Mairead Curtin of Rebel Rebel is on a mission to open our eyes to the bounty and sheer beauty of British seasonal flowers.

She says "If flowers (and more particularly British Flowers in season) are important to you, choose the date of your wedding accordingly. For example right now, for the last six weeks, we have had the most glorious English dahlias and hydrangeas. Brides hoping for peonies on the other hand, would be disappointed and should plan to marry in May." She suggests too that brides should try not to be too rigid with what they hope for because English flowers are at the mercy of the weather.

Now brides hoping to learn more about British flowers, and florists who support British flower growers year round, can meet a whole bunch of them at The National Wedding Show Designer Flower Zone where 12 London florists who use the flower market regularly are all together under the New Covent Garden Flower Market ‘umbrella’.

The majority of florists in the UK never leave their shops and just use Dutch lorries which deliver to them, but that is not the place to get British flowers. British flower growers deliver to the New Covent Garden Flower Market at Vauxhall on Mondays and Thursdays so they're the days to get the freshest English flowers. English foliage comes in to the foliage specialists daily and, at Rebel Rebel, they like to stock as many English flowers and foliage as they possibly can. Some things, like the English Dahlias, are far lovelier than the ones which come from further afield.

Mairead has sent us this inspiring photo and says "I guess the olive tin is the ultimate sustainable wedding flower container. Start hoarding tins, jars and bottles as soon as you know you’re getting married. You can involve all your family and friends in the hunt for good containers – it’s an excuse for them to throw out the gherkins which have been mouldering away in their kitchen cupboard since 1984..."

What: Designer Flower Zone at The National Wedding Show
Where: Earls Court, London
When: Friday 2 October, 12 noon till 7 pm; Saturday 3 October, 10am till 6 pm; Sunday 4 October, 10 am till 4 pm

You can find more committed florists who grow and source British flowers in our Wedding Directory.

Posted in Green Wedding Events , Flowers

September 24, 2009

Deal of the Day!

Bario-Neal & Lucky Magazine Knottedrush Ring Deal of the Day!

Starting today until tomorrow 25 September 2009 at midnight US time, in collaboration with Lucky Magazine, Bario-Neal are offering 50% off their Knottedrush Ring in silver and 10kt gold.

Visit bario-neal.com and enter the discount code luckydaily3 when checking out to receive your discount.

Enjoy!

Posted in Green Wedding Jewellery , Special Offers

Organic Wedding Venues

Wedding planning takes off with a vengeance now the summer's over and we've got a glittering collection of ethical wedding venues listed right here for you to choose from.

Our fans trust us to find out-of-the-ordinary, quirky, beautiful and dedicated venues across Britain where you can get married or throw a house party or celebration.

We particularly support venues that work to preserve their heritage and buildings, support local growers and producers, work hard to conserve energy and also involve themselves in their local communities.

We've taken the hard work out of finding just the right place and there's something for every occasion and budget in our list of eco friendly venues.

Posted in Green Wedding Venues , Wedding Planning

September 21, 2009

Motasem wedding dresses - so stylish ... and re-wearable!

Don't you just love shopping for that wedding dress! And if you don't like the idea of wearing something only once, why would you wear a wedding dress once? This seems to be a growing trend amongst contemporary brides where the 'wear-once' wedding dress just seems extravagant and a wanton waste.

We think Sabina Ali of Motasem has the answer. She creates flattering dresses for women to make them feel sexy and comfortable. Her wedding dresses have a timeless elegance and a bit of an edge. The video speaks for itself ...

Posted in Green Wedding Dresses & Gowns

September 16, 2009

Recycled decorations for love and luck

paper+origami+cranes.jpg Our Blogger Bride, Kerry's post a week or so ago about her recycled paper wedding decorations reminded me of the oriental legend of the crane which is a symbol of peace and long life. It is believed in these societies that folding 1000 origami paper cranes makes a wish come true and in Japanese weddings, the bride who folds 1000 origami cranes before her wedding ensures a prosperous and happy marriage.

Also, of course, the 'Thousand Origami Cranes' has become a symbol of world peace through the story of Sadako Sasaki, a Japanese girl who contracted leukemia as a result of radiation from the atomic bombing of Hiroshima during World War II. Her story is told in the the book Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes.

So just imagine how many wishes can come true if 5,000 cranes are folded, collected and transformed into a mesmerizing chandelier?

The Wedding Co. is collecting cranes for cancer. By 2010 they hope to have collected at least 5,000 folded and signed cranes from newly engaged couples. For every crane collected they will donate 50 cents to cancer research. The final product will be a chandelier that represents the visual and spiritual unification of engaged couples around the world and will be displayed at the 2010 Wedding Co. Show in Toronto.

Request a paper crane here. Then simply fold the crane, sign it and return to:

The Wedding Co.
Attn: Crane Chandelier Project
110 Givins Street
Toronto, ON, Canada
M6J 2X9

We'd love to hear from brides who are participating! Email us at info@greenunion.co.uk with a picture of your creation.

Thanks to brideslittlewhitebook

Posted in Green Wedding Decorations & Details

September 09, 2009

This weekend! Organic Food Festival at Bristol

Get down to Bristol Harbourside for Europe’s largest showcase of all things organic.

As part of Organic Fortnight and now in its ninth successful year, the Soil Association’s Organic Food Festival, in association with Yeo Valley, will be showcasing delicious organic food and drink with shopping, cookery demos and taste workshops for kids - alongside gorgeous skincare, fabulous fashion, organic textiles, home design, and advice on organic gardening.

You’ll find hundreds of organic products, an organic bar, cooking with Raymond Blanc, Barny Haughton and other top chefs, and a lively street food bazaar. It’s a great day out for the whole family, not least because it’s £5 per ticket .

When? Saturday 12 & Sunday 13 September
Where? Bristol Harbourside
How Much? £5 per ticket and free for under 16s

For more information see the website:
www.theorganicfoodfestival.co.uk

Posted in Green Wedding Caterers, Food & Drink , Events

Somerset Wedding Event

If you're planning to get wed in Somerset over the coming months, you might like to go to the Wedding Celebration Event being thrown by wedding stylists What Katy Did. They promise to bring together the very best of West Somerset's wedding services including wedding dresses, florists, phtography, venues, event styling, statioery, cakes, hairdressing, lingerie, jewellery, local ice cream (mmmmmmm!), local wine, wedding and vintage cars, a piper, a harpist and function band The Man from Funkle.

Apart from the obvious pleasure of seeing what Somerset has to offer, the best thing about the whole event is that £4 of each entry fee will be donated to Help for Heroes, topical and just.

Where: Binham Grange, Old Cleeve, Near Minehead, Somerset, TA24 6HX. Tel. 01984 640056
When: Sunday 20 September
How much? £5.00 entry ticket on the day only and include wine tasting, canapés and raffle.

Posted in Green Wedding Events

September 07, 2009

Devon Open Studios

Throughout the next 2 weeks the very best fine artists and skilled craftsmen across the county of Devon will be throwing open their studio doors to the public. The range of work on show is fantastic encompassing painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics, photography, textiles, jewellery, collage, works in glass, metal, wood and paper, furniture making, installations and a variety of work utilising new media. Unlike traditional galleries there is no commission on sales and all the money goes directly to the artists themselves.

One of our favourite makers is participating. David Ames makes furniture for you to sit on, eat off, work at, sleep in and dream about. What a brilliant idea for a wedding gift! Go see him in his workshop and commission a unique piece of furniture to mark your green union.

He works with the natural beauty of the timber, an intrinsic part of the design, crafting the wood using a mix of traditional and modern techniques to produce pieces with an organic energy and contemporary feel.

Devon Open Studios is the flagship project of Devon Artist Network and largest event of its kind in the county. It is one of the highlights of Devon's cultural calendar and runs over 16 days each September attracting many thousands of visitors from across the South West and beyond.

The 2009 event runs until September 20 with over 240 artists showing work in 111 venues.

Posted in Green Wedding Events

September 04, 2009

We wish Kerry & Mark a happy day!

American couple Kerry and Mark tie the knot on Monday and we'll be thinking of them on this very special day of days. With guests coming to their green wedding from all over the US, Bermuda and even the UK (hope they've factored in some carbon offsets ...) it sounds as though they have already started celebrating and the party's likely to go on for a week!