Our Winter 2011 Mini Mag!

So much has been going on behind the scenes that we thought it warranted a little update to our Winter 2011 Issue! Those Cotton Bride gowns are just about to be given away and you can see almost all of the new gowns from the Fireflies collection in this Mini Mag issue!

We have some great eco-cotton picks and an update on the Chevy Cruze Giveaway!

Learn about how to use cotton for your wedding and so much more! Click on the cover above!

(Nope the mini mag is not available for print -sorry folks!)

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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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Nico Cervantes Paper Wedding Design

Nico Cervantes does it again with this amazing paper wedding photo shoot! Since paper is perfectly aligned with our 1st Anniversary (ok - so it was not our wedding anniversary - but we are a wedding magazine!)

The vases and flowers were made completely from the pages of old books. Coffee filters and recycled paper fill in the gaps! And don’t take your eyes of that those cute as pie glasses.

Something like this would be perfect for decorating your escort card table!

Shredded paper can be reused for almost any type of decor as shown above! Hopefully Nico has inspired you to reuse paper from what is lying around your house to create unique and adorable decor for your wedding. Let us know what you come up with and thanks to Nico for the inspiration!

Photography by Anna and Michael Costa

Venue - Santa Barbara Public Library on 40 East Anapamu Street

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Thoughts on Terrariums

I have continued to give some thought to table centerpieces, and I keep returning to a terrarium theme instead of cut flowers. I like how terrariums are a living miniature ecosystem, how it is something that Dan and I can create together, and how it can have a purpose beyond the one night of our wedding.

I also think the glass and greenery would make an excellent contrast with the other rustic wooden decorations and the growler that I would like to have on each table. I am envisioning a short stack of antique wooden boxes or crates with a terrarium on top and tea light candles all around.

While both Dan and I love the idea, I don’t think our families are too thrilled with it. Perhaps it is the nontraditional nature of it or the lack of vibrant colors that we would have with floral arrangements. I am hoping we can appease our families by using berries in the terrarium, using napkins with a vibrant color, hanging brightly colored lanterns, and having more traditional bouquets for the bridal party.

So we decided to do a test terrarium construction. Dan was good enough to both acquire the materials and build the test terrarium.

And this is the idea coming together:

I keep going back and forth on this idea so any input is appreciated!

~Sarah and Dan

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“Are You A Cotton Bride?” Contest

Eco-Beautiful Weddings Magazine and Blog presents the “Are You A Cotton Bride?” Contest!

Want a Free Cotton Bridal Gown by Chris Kole of The Cotton Bride?

Click Here for the “Are You A Cotton Bride?” Contest Explanation, Rules and Regulations.

See what Chris Kole and The Cotton Bride are all about here:

Enter to Win one of these 3 dresses by writing us a note here! Let us know a little bit about your wedding plans and what are you doing to go green with your wedding!

We will pick the winner on February 15th, 2011!

Good Luck!

NOTE: Why is The Cotton Bride Eco-Friendly? Many high-end couture wedding gown designers that design their dresses in the United States and Europe ship their designs off-shore for production with appalling working conditions for cost savings (which is ironic as couture gowns are more expensive by nature) and most are not using cotton. The Cotton Bride produces every single one of their wedding gowns by hand (which is the definition of true couture). Chris Kole designs each dress from sketch to final fitting using fair-wage labor and fair-trade cotton fabrics (mostly from Italy and the US) right in New York City! Chris Kole is always looking for luxurious fabrics and will provide organic cotton fabrics when available.
While some cottons may be produced with pesticides, U.S. cotton growers use 50% less pesticides than they did 25 years ago, they use 45% less water than they did 15 years ago and all while growing 2/3 more cotton on 1/3 of the land. Why? The demand for cotton has never been larger as it is has literally become “The Fabric of Our Lives”!

UPDATE - WE CHOSE OUR WINNERS - THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR LEAVING ALL OF YOUR AMAZING COMMMENTS!!!

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Going Green with Train

If you have not seen the article yet about Train on page 28 of the Anniversary Issue of Eco-Beautiful Weddings - you really are missing a really fun and super hilarious interview with Scott Underwood (Train’s drummer). You best know Train for their “Hey, Soul Sister” song (which as I write this blog post has over 14 million hits to their youtube account and won itunes most downloaded song of the year for 2010). They recently released their new song “Marry Me” which is rapidly becoming one of the most requested first dance songs at weddings (and songs to get engaged to)! We get pretty intimate with Scott and what goes on behind the scenes of the band and how they keep it green on tour. He also mentions what we call in the east “a lil’ somethin’ somethin’” about the time he spends with his honey! Going Green With Train has never been sexier. Click here to get to the issue and get to page 28!

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