Okay, so you’re trying to cut down your wedding carbon footprint, but you still want to give your guests little gift bags.
This doesn’t go along with the whole idea of reducing consumption, but if you’re determined to ahead with this idea, here are some tips for making this generous gesture as green as possible.
First, plan the contents of your gift bag, and the bags themselves with an eye on being green, giving reusable gifts, and try to make what you give from local sources so that it doesn’t have to travel a long distance to get there.
The financial and environmental costs of transporting everything must be carefully considered.
You can start shrinking your carbon footprint by ordering your gift bags from Lucky Crow.
This company is based in Oregon, so the bags don’t have to be shipped too far.
They’re also eco friendly because the bag and its pretty tie-ribbon are woven from organic cotton, and they’re reusable.
Well, we’ve taken care of the bags for our gift bags, so now let’s consider the contents.
Keep your gifts green, keep them modest, and wherever possible, try to buy local.
Buy as many locally produced products to stock your gift bags as you can.
Personally, I think that locally produced handmade soaps are a nice idea.
And if you’re one of those people who just has to give away disposable cameras, then at least give your guests a recycled one.
There are some decent ones available at The Knot website for $3.49.
They’re used, totally refurbished, and encased in plain white cardstock.
They’re not bad for what they are, though I think I prefer the idea of taking everyone’s digital photos and making a massive photo album of the best ones.
Put your photo album online at a site like Flickr and people can download the ones they want to their hearts’ content.
Best of all, if people print the photos using their own ink-jet printers and special photo paper, they’re cutting down on the amount of nasty photo-developing chemicals that need to be used to develop the wedding photos.
Doing it the way I suggest means less waste all the way around.
For a really nice green gift, how about putting a handmade scented soy candle inside a recycled steel candleholder from Haiti.
They’re unique, they’re beautiful, and they’re recycled.
And they’re only $19.99 at Are Naturals.
You don’t have to take these suggestions for green gift bags, but you’d be foolish not to.
