Events are wasteful. There I said it. It is so hard to have a special occasion without creating more trash than a usual day at home. That’s the honest truth- there is waste from food service, decorations, rental packaging… and if you’re anything like me, this weighs on your conscience.

But good news! There are things we can do to be more eco-friendly. Here is a list of Green ideas to incorporate into your next event so you can celebrate with a guilt-free, glamorous, green-event.

1.      Green venues. Steamwhistle Brewery and Toronto Botanical Gardens are excellent examples of eco-friendly event spaces. Finding venues in the city that have policies in place to reduce waste are becoming more popular and are an easy choice when looking for environmentally-friendly venues.

2.      Paper straws. One: they are compostable and recyclable (yay!). Two :they are 100% cuter than plastic straws and elevate any cocktail.

3.      Re-use your flowers, and don’t purchase your vases. Florists typically give you the option of either buying vases from them.  This allows guests to take home a centerpiece right in the vase  BUT- if you just borrow the vases from the florist, we help reduce our consumption. Last May I had a beautiful Bridal Shower Brunch where the client chose to simply rent their vases, but still wanted their guests to be able to take home the flowers. So we decided to create a flower-packaging station (with recyclable paper). This is not only a fantastic way to reduce waste, but it also creates a lovely interactive station that guests can participate in. It makes guests feel extra special because they get to leave with a personally wrapped bouquet!

4.      Party favours. I see a lot (like a lot a lot) of party favours delivered in approximately 1 million layers of plastic packaging that are often left behind at the end of the night. Which is just tragic, because I always hear clients say “We want guests to be able to actually use it, I hate getting a favour that just sits on my counter collecting dust.” I recommend choosing party favours that are useful or non-perishable foods. Think: mini Nutella jars, honey pots, tiny tea cups, beautiful candles, etc. This way guests will make use of the favour and you reduce waste, because usually the packaging for these items are lighter than something like a macaron or Ferrero Rocher.

5.      Rent your suit, rent your dress, let your bride’s maids buy what they want, let your groomsmen wear a suit they already own. This doesn’t need much explaining. A contentious topic, so I’m just leaving this as a gentle suggestion. Something to think about!

6.      Digital save the dates and e-vites. I love beautiful stationery, and I love getting mail. But, if you want to cut back on expenses and make a greener choice, you can skip print and go straight to digital. Having a wedding website with online RSVPs have many great benefits. For example, you can put way more information on a website than on a printed card. You can have detailed menus, and space for guests to fill in dietary restrictions. You can provide more thorough details on the location, hotel and accommodation options. You can feature your love story, you can update information should anything change, and you can reach out to guests much more easily. And, you got it- no waste!

7. Food. Make sure you ask the caterers their policy on leftover food. Smaller and often higher-end caterers will never make more food than what was ordered. If there are 50 orders of beef, that’s what will be made. This naturally reduces waste. But a lot of larger caterers offer “guest choice” on the day of your event, meaning that they have 75 quantities of beef, 75 quantities of chicken, and 75 quantities of fish ordered in advance, so that your 100 guests can request their preference on the day without the kitchen running out. This is amazing because it saves the client the drama of getting meal choices from guests in advance. But it also means an extreme amount of waste. Make sure to ask the caterer what they do with leftover food. Can you take it home with you? Do they donate it? Can you pick-up meals the following day? Ask these questions to help you make smart choices.

Even if you just choose one of these options to help reduce waste, you’ve made a difference. Give it a try, Momma Nature will be grateful and I bet you’ll feel pretty good about your choices once it’s all said and done.