Top Designers Green the Runway…
Photo: Chloe Crespi
Next week marks the start of the Fall/Winter 2011 New York Fashion Week. Many of us can’t wait to see the new looks from our favorite designers flood the runway. One of the first concerns that many of our readers have about going green is how their new green lifestyle will impact their personal style. The truth is, there simply are not enough green products in the market yet to meet the fashion needs of all consumers.
Over the past few years, more and more eco-friendly apparel has started to enter the market. I believe the days of designers satisfying consumers with one product line are over. Consumers are starting to request more and more eco-friendly products in all aspects of their lives, especially fashion. It’s no secret to anyone that one of the top concerns of our time is the sustainability of our planet.
On March 29, 2011 at the Rockefeller Center in New York City, Christie’s and Runway to Green are hosting Christie’s Bid to Save the Earth. The event and auction will benefit multiple environmental groups whose mission is to save our earth. The beauty of this event rests in the largest commitment ever from luxury designers to investigate and implement sustainable manufacturing practices into their operations. Designers will work directly with the Clean by Design program, which is run by the NRDC*. All the designers will design an eco-friendly item for the event that will be sold in select stores. Some items will also be sold exclusively on Net-A-Porter.com.
Check out the participating designers:
Gucci, Balenciaga, Prada, Burberry, Yves Saint Laurent, Marc Jacobs, Manolo Blahnik, Oscar de la Renta, Stella McCartney, Jason Wu, Alexander Wang, Diane von Furstenberg, Tory Burch, Derek Lam, Marchesa, Marni, Michael Kors, Rachel Roy, Rag & Bone, Thakoon, Osklen, Pringle of Scotland, Timex80 and Tommy Hilfiger.
*The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) is an international nonprofit environmental organization with more than 1.3 million members and online activists. Since 1970, the NRDC’s lawyers, scientists, and other environmental specialists have been working to protect the world’s natural resources, public health, and the environment. NRDC has offices in New York City; Washington, D.C.; Los Angeles; San Francisco; Chicago; Livingston; Montana; and Beijing.
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Going Green for your Wedding Venue
Finding the venue of your dreams (that is also green) is not always as easy as it seems apparently. We have had several brides write to us asking about how to find the perfect eco-friendly wedding venue. In particular, recently my friend Jennifer over at Earth Friendly Wedding Blog let me know about a particular request from CA. This surprised us as I have seen so many green event venues in California online, but apparently green is hard to find anywhere! Here a some of our tips for going green for your wedding venue:
- Choose a venue where you can hold both your ceremony and reception. This cuts down on transportation pollution and makes it easier on your guests and vendors.
- If the building is a historical space, you are giving money to a non-profit typically. Your money helps with the upkeep and maintenance of the building. Many event spaces have to have events at their space in order to supplement government grants and fundraising. While they may not see (or announce) this as green, it is a fairly important element of being green. Being socially responsible with your money is one of the biggest factors that brides overlook.
- Are they a LEED certified building? This is a relatively new undertaking for event spaces, but they are out there!
- If the event space does not recycle, they are probably are not green. However, this does not mean you can’t bring in a caterer that will do this for you. Some caterers will have a recycling bin, compost bin and then a trash bin. This is required by any caterer that has the mark of Green Restaurant Certification.
- If the venue houses an organization that does community outreach and educational programs, then you are also helping those programs by putting your dollars in their space.
- If you are going the hotel route – Marriott, Sofitel and Kipton are a few of the larger chains that have green initiatives. Ask the hotel if they have recycling bins in the hotel rooms. Sofitel is the first chain to be powered by Wind Power – either through energy credits/offsets or direct wind energy resources.
- If the venue does all the food in-house, make sure they are using locally sourced food and beverages.
Keep in mind that some businesses do incorporate eco-friendly practices even though they don’t advertise them. When touring a venue, don’t hesitate to ask if they are doing anything environmentally friendly. They should want your business, so we would expect most places to at least offer help in fulfilling your desire for an eco-friendly wedding, but if they look at you like you’re crazy, then move on.
(photo credits: Jade + Matthew, Jennifer Hughes, Kristi Odom)
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Eco-Friendly Bridesmaids
There’s more to being eco-friendly than dressing your wedding party in green frocks. Equally important is the burning question:
“Will they wear it again?”
“Reuse, recycle” isn’t an eco-mantra for nothing!
So, select dresses not only made from sustainable textiles using ethical practices, but also consider who’s wearing it.
What style and color is likely to look best on everyone? Or think about mixing it up; choose a color, and allow each woman to find a dress that works for her. Finally, the best idea of all is a convertible frock, customizable to suit every silhouette!
image credits clockwise from upper left:
Terra Amore by Jessica Charles
Wrapture Collection by Seams
Convertible Wrap dress by Isadora Clothing
Reversible Convertible Wrap Dress by Isadora Clothing
Bamboo dress, Gina Michele Eco
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More Green Contests!
We were so excited to hear about Earthly Affair’s grand re-opening and their Kindle giveaway! Click below to see their “bribe” and how to win:
Then….PreOwnedWeddingDresses.com is having an amazing giveaway….
They are giving away a $2,000 wedding dress - but hurry - their contest ends on 1/31! Click on the dresses here to learn how to win!
Let us know if you won!
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Eco-Beautiful Weddings Magazine in Print!
We are now able to provide a print version of every single issue we have produced “on demand”! Being on-demand helps us reduce the amount of printing by thousands of magazines for no waste! All of our issues are printed on FSC Certified recycled paper and we will be carbon-offsetting all of the printing.
All of our issues are available for $35 per issue plus shipping and handling. All shipping and handling will be $3.95 per issue for shipping and handling within the United States. All shipping and handling outside of the United States will be billed separately.
Due to the nature of our on-demand printing process, each issue will take approximately 3-5 weeks for delivery in order to accommodate the on-demand process.
Click below each cover to buy the issue of your choice!
If you are located outside of the US, we will bill additional postage once your issue is ready to ship!
Currently, we will only be accepting paypal payments for each issue online. If you would like to make a special request for paying by check or credit card - please email us at [email protected].
We are excited about this new way to serve all of our vendors, brides, grooms and bloggers to spread the word about going green!
Buy your issue today!
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Sea Shepherds App
If you are a fanatic like us about Sea Shepherd - activism in your pocket has arrived! Stay informed about everything Sea Shepherd is doing by downloading this amazing app, which will keep you up to date on their mission and keep you empowered!
There is nothing greener than giving back to your world and staying informed about saving it. Sea Shepherd’s app does it effortlessly for you! Keep their mission alive by downloading the app today! Click on the image above to learn how!
