What a fun way to kick start green inspiration for not only your wedding but your lifestyle by visiting NY Botanical Garden’s Edible Garden!

I have visited the Botanical Garden before and it’s a must see, however this is a wonderful time to visit for those planning eco-friendly weddings to get inspired by Edible Gardens!

Starting this Saturday through Sept 13th, Botanical Garden will be hosting festivals, farmer markets, and exhibits promoting this summers main event, Edible Gardens. The idea is to be inspired to “Grow, prepare, and eat garden-fresh produce” NY Botanical Garden

As an engaged couple this would be a fun event for this weekend or any of the two festivals and Thursday wine tastings! Plus you will have the chance to get to meet a few famous chefs,Martha Stewart will be renovating Nancy Bryan Luce Herb Garden!

According to, Chloe Rosenberg’s New York Botanical Garden embraces fresh food movement in The Bronx, “Martha Stewart has collaborated with the Botanical Garden to revamp its herb garden. It has been transitioned from a facility housing mostly medicinal herbs to one containing herbs to be used in food. The herbs include five types of basil and three types of thyme. ‘I think it turned out really well. They made a really nice garden here.’ said Andrew Beckman, the garden editor at Martha Stewart Living. Stewart is scheduled to visit the garden Saturday. She plans to prepare herb-themed cocktails - including such creations as Purple Basil Mojitos and Marthatinis - for garden visitors…Others include Emeril Lagasse and Lidia Bastianich. Celebrity chef Mario Batali narrates the exhibit’s audio tour, which visitors can access via their cellphones.”
From www.mydailynews.com

Get more information at http://www.nybg.org/edible_garden/

Get your tickets!

ENJOY A ECO FRIENDLY WEEKEND!

Filed under: Green Wedding Ideas on June 25th, 2009 | 2 Comments »

Beautiful, simply, summer and why not green? A wedding in summer is a wonderful chance to make your wedding eco friendly. Get Inspired by Liesl Menning eco friendly marriage to Kevin Haynie.

From Perfect Bound

I wanted to share Liesl Menning, Martha Stewart’s personal assistant, and Kevin Haynie, famous country musician, environmentally conscious wedding. With the help of Wedding Planner Darcy Miller and a wedding bouquet made by Martha herself, their ideas can be an inspiration for any summer wedding!

Go to 2:23 for clips of Liesl Menning’s Wedding.

One of my favorite ideas was to combine the place setting with a gift by making the place settings a CD of songs written by Kevin. Now only if we could find a musician to marry!

Kevin wrote love songs for the CD.

Read More on TheMarthBlog

Check out some of their Vendors:

View more Pictures from their Photographer Josh Reeder

View the menu from their caterer Jeremy Barlow, Chef and Owner of Tayst Restaurant “first and only green certified restaurant in Nashville”

Filed under: Green Wedding Food, Green Wedding Ideas on May 21st, 2009 | No Comments »

WeddingWire partners with Carbonfund.org

WeddingWire is right on track with the latest wedding trends, Green Weddings.  WeddingWire understands weddings are large investments using lots of energy.  With this understanding, WeddingWire partners with Carbonfund in the effort to help engagned couples to offset their wedding’s co2 emissions by creating a calculator tool on WeddingWire’s wedding websites.

From the press release: Martha Stewart Weddings Editorial Director Darcy Miller believes, “With the state of the planet on so many people’s minds, it is natural that brides and grooms want to incorporate a green aspect to their wedding. The offering of the carbon calculator on a couple’s wedding website is a great way to educate the couple and their guests about offsetting their carbon footprint and throwing an eco-savvy event.”

After reducing one’s carbon footprint, carbon offsetting is the only way to become carbon neutral. “We are excited to have worked with WeddingWire in conveying our global warming message and integrating our carbon calculator on WeddingWire’s wedding websites, said Eric Carlson, President of Carbonfund.org. “This helps couples and their guests take responsibility for and offset their carbon footprint by supporting innovative carbon reduction projects.”

Carbonfund.org’s carbon emissions reduction projects are in the areas of renewable energy, energy efficiency, and reforestation in the U.S. and abroad. All of Carbonfund.org’s projects are independently verified to the highest certification standards. The nonprofit organization provides an array of individual and business offsetting options.

In addition to the carbon calculator, WeddingWire helps engaged couples reduce their carbon footprint by providing referrals on its site to local vendors in the couple’s vicinity for wedding needs. Using local vendors helps minimize CO2 emissions from transporting goods. Over 100,000 vendors nationwide are part of WeddingWire’s network, providing everything from wedding venues to wedding cakes.

“We are always looking for new ways to leverage our technology to better serve our users,” says Timothy Chi, Chief Executive Officer of WeddingWire. “This partnership with Carbonfund.org will be incredibly beneficial for the countless number of couples looking to be environmentally conscious. With the integration of Carbonfund.org’s carbon calculator, couples can ensure their personalized wedding website serves as the central place for wedding guests to become informed on the importance of a sustainable future, access event details, gift registry information, submit online RSVPs, and find local area information.”

For more information, please visit http://www.carbonfund.org/weddings.

SOURCE: WeddingWire, INC.

http://www.weddingwire.com/corp/press-center

Filed under: Green Wedding Ideas on April 17th, 2009 | 1 Comment »

Green weddings can be somewhat more challenging to organize and pull together. There are always different areas of a wedding that a couple can go green with. Common areas are catering, location, florals and it’s sometimes hard to know what will work best for your dream wedding.

If you are nervous or unsure about picking the right things, I’m here to help! This week will be dedicated to finding green wedding planners who specifically plan green weddings. Green wedding planners are a great resource for your ‘here and there’ or full on eco-friendly wedding in every aspect! Stay Tuned…

Filed under: Green Wedding Ideas on December 16th, 2008 | 1 Comment »

From now on, on Fridays, I have decided to leave you with a fun Go Green Weekend Tip that may or may not always have to do with green weddings. However, it will be a fun tip or something to think about until my post on Mondays.

That being said, the first Go Green Weekend Tip….

Use less water in the shower and take a shower with your fiancé!

That’s right you can save a lot of water and heating power by sharing bath time, so have fun and Go Green this weekend!

Filed under: Green Wedding Ideas on December 12th, 2008 | No Comments »

In keeping with the theme of Green Wedding Venues, I found one that is great for destination weddings!

Though some believe it is not totally green to have a destination wedding, but If you really want to have you wedding elsewhere, you still can do a part by picking an green venue. If you don’t want to have a larger party travel, why not venture here for a honeymoon!

Green hotels are springing up everywhere, so go ahead and travel but offset the traveling by opting for Green Venue. Try out Belize’s first eco-friendly beach resort as a perfect tropic green wedding venue, Palmetto Bay Maya Beach Resort located on the Placencia Peninsula in Belize.

• Beautiful vistas both sea and forest make perfect background to your wedding
• Amazing facilities including a roof terrace that can serve as a ceremony or reception location

  

• Beautiful rooms and accommodations will certainly make your guests remember your wedding
• Diverse culture with “a cross-pollination of cultures - ancient Maya people, Spanish and British, African roots, Mexican, Chinese, Japanese, Lebanese and Indian influences and yet the official language is English”
• 

  
  

• Activities range from lounging at the infinity pool to kayaking to exploring the Myan ruins

  

• BONUS- “Designed Green from the Ground up to Protect all this Forever”

Palmetto Bay offers “sustainable technologies and systems to reduce ecological impact. As the first resort development in the Belize to be designed ‘green’ from the ground up, the resort has integrated leading edge geothermal, solar, and water filtration technologies, which alone is estimated to conserve 1,000 gallons of water per day at full occupancy - beneficial to both the environment and reducing ongoing operational costs for owners.” From FindArticles - Palmetto Bay Resort to Bring Luxury Beachfront Resort Real Estate to Southern Belize’s Placencia Peninsula Business Wire, June 3, 2008

Filed under: Green Wedding Ideas on December 10th, 2008 | No Comments »

If your are getting married in Maryland and are trying to find a green venue to accommodate a fairly small guest list, then Avalon Cliff may be the perfect place.

Located 8 miles from BWI airport, this venue offers its intimate facilities tucked away in the wilderness overlooking 15,000 acres of the Patapsco River Valley State Park. Avalon Cliff offers 6 outside gathering areas as well as the main clubhouse which can hold 30 guests. While Avalon Cliff doesn’t have wireless and is only open in April May June August and September, it does offer Go Green Wedding Packages.

Imagine an all natural light show at the end of your beautiful wedding or rehearsal dinner. The kicker, knowing that you have done it the all natural way! Besides using locally organic products and picking up your guests in a eco-friendly limo, Avalon Cliff donates 10% of profit to environmental causes. As a Certified Wildlife Habitat, it has donated money to wildlife preservations. Click here for more information to a private green wedding venue.

Filed under: Green Wedding Ideas on December 9th, 2008 | No Comments »

While recently on WeddingWire I enjoyed reading brides wonderful reviews about Castle on the Hudson These brides were able to combine a fairytale wedding of the past with the future of green weddings. As a bride you can have it all at Castle on the Hudson located in Tarrytown, New York.

This historic landmark is not only nestled in the lush green lawns & gardens, but their energy source has also recently been updated with the help of Juice Energy. From the press release, “Through a new agreement signed in February, Juice will be supplying Castle on the Hudson with electricity equivalent to 100% of their annual use, in the form of wind power,” thus becoming the nations first eco-friendly castle!

Filed under: Green Wedding Ideas on December 3rd, 2008 | No Comments »

Some wedding elements are more difficult than others to be eco-friendly. However, your wine decision is an easy way to go green with your wedding!

Think about it, the taste and quality of the wine served to all of your guests is always a crucial decision, but not many of us know that organic will actually produce some of the best tasting and quality wine. Before I lend some organic wine suggestions, here is a small tutorial of what organic wine really means.

According to the USDA Definition for Organic food is as follows: “Organic food is produced by farmers who emphasize the use of renewable resources and the conservation of soil and water to enhance environmental quality for future generations. Organic food is produced without using most conventional pesticides; petroleum-based fertilizers or sewage sludge-based fertilizers; bio-engineering; or ionizing radiation. Before a product can be labeled “organic,” a Government-approved certifier inspects the farm where the food is grown to make sure the farmer is following all the rules necessary to meet USDA organic standards.” Read more

What does that mean? Basically all you need to know is that there are three variations of ‘organic’ wine:

100% organic: These wines are produced with grapes that are certified 100% organically grown and do not have any added sulfites.

Just ‘Organic’ - Refers to wines that have at least 95% of their ingredients from certified organic sources. These wines may have an additional 100 ppm of sulfur dioxide added to them.

Made with Organic Grapes - Refers to wines that have at least 70% of their grapes from organic sources. These wines may have sulfur dioxide added as well. *wine info from Stacy Slinkard, About.com

Now don’t get me wrong, any of these organic variations are better than nothing at all! Keep in mind, because of harsh conditions, unfertile the soil and nasty insects, grapes are one of the most chemically sprayed produce out there today. However, I would like to share a few organic vineyards that create wonderful wine without harmful pesticides.

The Organic Wine Company proudly displays organic in their title. This company offers a number of imported French wines. Like many organic conscious wine connoisseurs, this company is based off of a long tradition. Véronique, the founder of Organic Wine Company, states, “For more than 200 years, my family has grown grapes and made wine on our St. Chinian property, Château Bousquette, in the South of France. In 1970, our grandfather, a retired professor of medicine, decided to devote his “Golden Years” to the family estate. He studied and experimented, seeking better, healthier ways of growing grapes and making wine. In 1972, he began cultivating our 50 acres of vineyards organically.” Véronique even selects the wines they offer for the Wine of the Month Club that would make a wonderful gift!

Lolonis Winery really gives a new perspective on organic wine. The wine wizards at this vineyard don’t label it as organic, they claim “This is no accident. In our experience, the organic winemaking methodology makes a wine that is unstable, and its quality is often suspect. Quality is the highest priority at Lolonis. We stake our well-earned reputation on it” (Lolonis Winery).

What I think is great about Lolonis Winery is their deep appreciation for the ladybug! It’s the ladybug that keeps away harmful insects, there is no need for pesticides.

My third pick as helpful in times of economic crisis! Trader Joe’s defies a common misconception that organic wine is expensive. Trader Joe’s offers an inexpensive organic chardonnay. Read here for more information about that TJ’s wine.

The right wine can really enhance your guests overall dining experience for your wedding guests. So, no matter if you want a French wine, 100% organic, or something not too expensive these variations organic is the way to go green!!

Filed under: Green Wedding Ideas on December 2nd, 2008 | 1 Comment »

Are your family members gathering for Thanksgiving or the upcoming Holiday season?

If so, don’t make your family members travel again to participate in pre-wedding festivities. Save them money, time, and not to mention a large amount of energy used in transportation. Combine the joy of the holidays and the joy of your wedding with a few strategies!

No matter what state of the wedding process you are in, this can be the perfect opportunity to kick off your engagement, have a bacchelorette party, or even better, have a bridal shower.

1) Skip the formal written engagement announcements: Announcing your engagement at a family gathering will only add to the love and joy you are all giving thanks for.

2) Going to a fun area for the holidays: Everyone wants to kick back on around the holidays, so why not plan a night out for the Bachelorette or Bachelor party. Or better yet, holiday season many bars are booked for private parties, so, through a low key shindig at someones house and really save on transportation to and from bars, not to mention the pricey bar tab. If you’re sold on going out, since most likely you will be together, think about having a joint Bachelor/Bachelorette.

3) For the bridal shower announcement: The holidays often means all types of family members, old and young are all together. This is a prefect situation for the bridal shower. Thanksgiving, in particular, is a wonderful occasion to give a bridal shower as you are thankful for meeting your future husband or wife.

Also just for some organic fun…Here are some beautiful table setting and decoration ideas from Sarah Dennis Toasts and Tables blog using all natural items!

Filed under: Green Wedding Ideas on November 26th, 2008 | No Comments »