Green Wedding Chica

The 1st and Only Eco-Friendly Wedding Magazine

weddingchica — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 07:59:47 +0000

My new magazine has gone live all about eco-friendly weddings! Take a look:

Green Wedding Planning 101

weddingchica — Thu, 26 Nov 2009 05:59:53 +0000

Congratulations! You just got engaged! Now What? The labyrinth of wedding planning will now begin!

The difference in planning a green wedding versus one that is not green are the choices you make along the way. All weddings have a different shade of green to them. If all engaged couples made at least one eco-friendly choice in their decision making process for their wedding, the environment would benefit greatly.

There are two main things to consider when planning an eco-friendly wedding. One thing to note is that if a vendor is eco-friendly, they will most likely have some sort of green mission statement on their website. Secondly, once you meet with a vendor, ask them about what they are doing to make a difference in their community and the environment as whole. Being green is not just about using eco-friendly materials and supplies, it is about social justice as well.

Even if you are just starting your planning process or you a week away from getting hitched, you can still always make green changes to your plan. Have the mindset to make a difference with your wedding. If you start off green you will make a difference not only with your wedding day, but with how you live your life together as a married couple!

Just a note: having a green wedding does not mean the colors of your wedding have to be green or brown! You can have an eco-friendly wedding bright or muted hues of any color! Geesh – I am so tired of all these wedding magazines making green weddings green!!! Hence the reason none of these photos in this article are green!

Congratulations on your engagement!

Happy Green Planning!

Leave me a comment or a question or come follow me on twitter @greenwed!

~Katie Martin

Elegance & Simplicity, Inc.

Eco-Beautiful Weddings®

Eco-Friendly Invitations!

weddingchica — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 06:05:43 +0000

Oh, how we love Earthly Affair invitations – look how cute!

At Earthly Affair, you can take advantage of digital printing, which allows them to print small orders at a lower cost to the environment. They offset all shipments through carbonfund.org (which is who we use as well as they are based locally near us in Silver Spring, MD), and they run everything out of their eco-equipped studio. All of their invitations are completely customizable and they work hard to ensure 100% satisfaction.

Buy invitations that are for the greater good! Check out their website and their amazingly helpful blog!

Eco-Friendly Wedding Jewelry

weddingchica — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 01:07:33 +0000

One of the most basic things that many brides struggle with is their wedding jewelry. If you are going for an eco-friendly tone for your wedding, it is best to start from the beginning. You might not have any control on the type of engagement ring he gives you, but you can have more control over the bands and other jewelry that both you as a couple will wear and your wedding party might don as gifts from you!

Consider conflict-free diamonds. Conflict-free diamonds are easy to research on the internet and sometimes not so easy to find in local jewelry shops. You can always start with a jewelry shop, but better to to do your research before you go to a jewelry shop to make sure they don’t greenwash you!

A favorite website of mine is Brilliant Earth. You can easily browse their website online and they are recognized by Green America. Here are a few samples from their website:

There are several conflict-free and fair trade sources on the internet when it comes to finding other fine jewelry. Of course, you could always use your great grandmother’s diamonds or your grandmother’s diamonds and remount them in a more modern setting! That is what I did!

Whatever you do, do your research about conflict-free diamonds and learn more about fair trade gemstones. Some good online sources for this are:

Conflict-Free Diamond Council

Fair Trade Jewelry

Another option is to not use diamonds at all for your engagement ring or just use bands. All of this is a personal choice, so take your time to find the best ring that will be on your finger for the next 50 -70 years!

A few other ideas:

Estate Sales

Pawn Shops

Online certified auctions of Estate Jewelry (be very careful and do your research here).

Happy Shopping!

Eco-Friendly Honeymoons

weddingchica — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 17:13:45 +0000

Who said that having an exotic honeymoon can’t be eco-friendly as well. There are so many exciting options right now to help you have a green honeymoon.

The first thing you should be thinking about is if you really have to leave the country. If you do not travel often – there are so many fantastic eco-wonders right here in the US! However – if you are looking for the complete getaway. Here are a few of my eco-friendly favorites!

Well – with my husband being from the Dominican Republic – I have to start with my favorite! The Dominican Republic has been heralded as one of the top 5 most eco-friendly countries in the world!!! They have one of the most protected forest in the world which forces Dominicans to reuse wood until it quite literally turns to dust! Conservation of energy is a must at almost all of the resorts and most have an amazing filtration rainwater system and solar panels. The coral reefs are in fantastic condition as they are fully protected as well (fines and jail are an imminent threat for any object thrown in the the coral reef and anywhere around its coast). On top of the amazing selection of things to do in the Dominican Republic – the price for most resorts, hotels and packages tend to be hard to beat.

My favorite thing to do is to go up to Altos de Chavon and dine while looking over Chavon river. Not only is Altos de Chavon an architectural and visual delight – it is also a major arts university with outreach programs through its Cultural Center Foundation. A must see if you are in the Dominican Republic.

While in the Dominican Republic, you can rock climb in the morning and then surf on the beach all in the same day!

Puerto Rico – Since it is a United States protectorate, you can still consider it local. Really not that far off the east coast and it boasts the US’s only tropical rainforest which is amazingly protected. The best way to enjoy the rainforest is through a day trip to El Yunque. There are so many amazing things to do just in El Yunque alone. The other natural wonder about 1.5 hours southwest of San Juan is the Rio Camuy Cave Park – which is the 3rd largest cave system in the world (so far).

Botswana – Besides the flight (which you should carbon offset at www.carbonfund.org), Botswana is a hot bed for eco-tourism. More than half of the wildlife is protected by the government. If you are looking for an adventure honeymoon – think about the Kalahari Desert and get a guide! This is the type of honeymoon that will require a travel agent! (Some historians say that the Kalahari Desert is where the Garden of Eden was!)

Happy Green Traveling! ~ Katie Martin

Organic Beauty Products for your Bridal Beauty Regimen

weddingchica — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 01:05:45 +0000

All brides know and feel the pressure of having to look their absolute best for the wedding day. This does not mean you have to sacrifice the environment while concocting your beauty regimen!

Here are few of my favorite products and why they work; where to get them and save the environment in one fell swoop! You can have an eco-friendly wedding from your head to your toes!

Let’s start with your head! This is the one place where you do the most primping and expend the most time!

Shampoo & Conditioning Products

Weleda has a wonderful line of products that are 100% natural. For a deep conditioning treatment, try their Rosemary Hair Oil. Click on the photo to learn more and peruse their website.

Compliment this conditioning treatment with Carol’s Daughter’s Rosemary Mint Shampoo with Sea Moss!

The main thing you want to be looking for is that the shampoo is free of parabens, sulfates, petroleum, mineral oil and artificial colors. Typically if you don’t know how to pronounce something in the ingredient list – it is not natural!

For your face, you will need to peruse a few website to find out what will work best for your skin.

The best place to start is Pure & True.

You have fans like Jennifer Aniston & Halle Berry using their products! All organic beauty products with beautiful and recyclable packaging! My favorite is their Blossom Flower Milk Cleanser.

For make-up, you have a whole host of options out there for you.

Best place to start is Sephora online. They have a ton of different companies that you can look through online first. Not all of their stores sell all of the organic products. By far, the best products that I have found (and I use on a daily basis) are by Korres. Greek based company using nothing but natural ingredients with recyclable containers and packaging. Here are my favorite products from their website:

Pressed powder, concealer, lip butter and blush. I use bamboo make-up tools (can be found at any Target store)! These products help me look fresh, young and beautiful every day. The Lip Butters are a great gift for your bridesmaids as well!

Finally, taking care of your body!

You will need to stay smooth and supple and you need both organic body washes and manicure products.

You have some real inexpensive options here that are easy to find. Yes to Cucumber/Tomatoes/Carrots products are organic and natural and found in any Target store. My absolute favorite is their Yes to Cucumber Body Wash and Butter as well as the Yes to Carrots Body Butter – YUM!

For your hands – try this fanstastic cream for manicures from Boscia at Sephora online (click on image below to buy):

My best advice for pedicures is really to find the best eco-friendly spa near you and make sure you get pedicures at least every 3 weeks to make sure your feet look fabulous! It is really hard to maintain a pedicure regimen on your own. Find a fantastic body butter (like the ones mentioned above or L’Occitane’s 100% Organic Shea Butter) and slather your feet every night to keep your feet moisturized. To add an extra boost, put socks on right after your slather your feet to have the best looking feet in the morning! A true quick fix!

Finish off both your feet and your hands with a formaldehyde-free nail polish from Honeybee:

Of course, I could go on and on about the best products out there. Hopefully this has got your thinking about your daily beauty regimen and how to kick it up a green notch!

Happy Greening!

Katie Martin

Plan to Reuse What You Purchase For Your Wedding Day!

weddingchica — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 14:16:15 +0000

It used to be that a bride would have a trousseau for her wedding that would help her to have clothes for the 1st month or two after marriage. It was also common for brides to wear their wedding gowns at weddings of their friends during the 1st year of marriage. Where has the thought of not using your wedding gown again come from. The answer is obvious – fashion. While some dresses can never be worn again by you – they can be worn by others! The likelihood of your daughter wearing your dress is slim. Donate or consign your dress if you don’t think you can wear it again.