I am proud to share with you "Kate & Brian: Down the Aisle with Style", my own green wedding featured on The Green Bride Guide.  I have always been a fan of the Real Green Wedding section on their website so when they asked if I would be willing to share my own story I couldn't resist.  They did a wonderful job capturing and detailing all the eco-friendly wedding ideas my husband and I incorporated.  I hope you check out this piece and get inspired for your own wedding.  Love, Kate

I completely adore the green wedding we are highlighting this week, shot by the talented Lauren Kennedy.  The ceremony was held in the garden of the bride's childhood home in Lima, NY and this made for an absolutely stunning backdrop. The photographer (who is moving to Seattle this June) did an amazing job of capturing all the emotions, details and decor.  This couple really got creative and you can see their individual personalities and love for one another shine through as a result. They incorporated several eco-friendly elements such as serving local food and using flowers from the garden to make the bridal bouquet.  The bride's dress was also absolutely unique and sentimental as it was made by one of her closest friends.  One of my favorite parts of the wedding however has to be the use of the typewriters! During cocktail hour, all the guests sat down at a typewriter and wrote a personal note to the couple...such a beautiful idea.  I will let the images tell you the rest of their story: 

Emerald Weddings has been fortunate to be in contact with Australia's very first eco-photographer, Holly, owner of HJ Imagery.  She recently shot an absolutely stunning green wedding in Melbourne, Australia (with one of her friends from J Studios) that I can't wait to share with everyone.  Some of the fun green wedding details the couple included were:

• Using flowers from their own garden
• Brides dress was handmade by a friend
• Fresh organic lemons were used for the centerpieces and as a favor to their guests
• DIY buffet for people to choose what they wanted to eat
• Ceremony & Reception were held in the same beautiful place 

One of our readers, Aileen was kind enough to share some beautiful photos from her eco-friendly wedding in Connecticut this past August.  They were married at Castle Craig in a lovely outdoor reception, which required no decorating due to the natural beauty of the grounds.  Aileen is a highly creative and talented individual and therefore was able to incorporate a lot of DIY projects that not only reduced the environmental impact of her wedding but also kept her overall wedding expenses down.  I was blown away when I saw all that she did!  Through her creativity and design she was able to incorporate her Japanese heritage and I must say her work paid off, as her wedding was absolutely stunning.

Cermony Location: Castle Craig

Not only were the flowers and decor eco-friendly but they also provided their guests with local, edible candies from Lamothe's Sugar House and kept their guests informed through their wedding website.  You can check out more photos on our facebook page but I thought I would leave you with a little advice from Aileen:

"It's your day. Do as you want and envision. Don't worry about breaking traditions or doing something new or unusual. The most important thing, in the end, is that you are married to the man you love and everything else is just window dressing. If you are having fun and enjoying yourself so will everyone else. And being different is fun! :) "

Monica and I are proud to be working with such a lovely couple, Matt and Mary, who live in the DC area. We are currently helping them plan their June Cinciannti wedding.  Mary is such a joy to work with; she is so open to new ideas, we are having a lot of fun with it.  I thought it would be great to post something about how to be green during your engagement and not just focus on "the day".  There are thousands of things you can do along the way which really add up to make a huge difference.  I am hoping by showcasing some of the decisions Matt & Mary have made it will inspire some of you other engaged brides as well.

First up: Save the Date

Mary was totally open to the idea of sending an electronic Save the Date to save paper.  She used a website called Pingg to personalize their card. I can't copy the entire card to show you but this is the image they uploaded with the following text:

Save the Date -Matt and Mary are getting hitched!

We are absolutely thrilled to be getting married and we hope you will be able to join us. Don't forget to mark your calendar!

Next Up: Engagement Photos

They were able to save $green$ by going green on this one and hired a local DC photographer (and close friend of theirs) to take the photos.  He did an absolutely amazing job.