I won’t say that it’s easy to live like a vegan, much less get married like one. It requires the deepest commitment to one’s values to stick to the vegan lifestyle. You have to consider every aspect of your life, from your diet to the shoes and clothes you wear, and all of the health and beauty products in your home. Most people who don’t choose to live as vegans probably don’t pay much attention to just how many of the foods they eat and how many the products they use contain animal products. A really committed vegan won’t even eat honey because of vegans’ belief that the bees are being exploited. Vegans have to scrutinize just about every item they buy to be sure that it doesn’t contain any animal products. Now, just think about it what it will be like when you try to plan a wedding according to vegan principles. Planning and executing a wedding is a massive undertaking under any circumstances, but trying to plan a vegan wedding adds an extra layer of complexity to the entire task.
However, even if you’re planning to handle a lot of the vegan wedding arrangements yourself, it doesn’t mean that you’re totally on your own. As more and more people adopt a vegan lifestyle that means there are an increasing number of resources available, either on the Internet, or through health food stores, vegan magazines, or your own network of vegan friends and family members. Because being a vegan is not really in the mainstream yet, vegan culture still has an aspect of “do it yourself,” and that means for weddings, too.
When you’re planning a vegan wedding, where you live has a large bearing on how easy it will be to find a vegan caterer or a vegan bakery in your area. If you live on the West Coast or in a major metropolitan area like New York City, Chicago, Atlanta, Dallas or Miami, in all likelihood you’ll be able to find caterers and bakers who can accommodate your needs. However if you live somewhere away from a large city, you might find it a lot harder to find vegan food and wedding cakes. That’s where the Internet comes in mighty handy for vegans; it’s an invaluable source of information. If you don’t have the time to do your own vegan catering, you can go online, order what you need, and have it shipped out to you. If that’s the course you take, just be sure that you order everything in enough time to have it arrive for your wedding. It’s always a good idea to give yourself a couple of days’ lead time to avoid disappointment.
If it turns out that you can’t find vegan catering, then you can always try doing it yourself with the help of friends and family. That’s not only a good idea to ensure that you’ll have a totally vegan menu, but it will also save you a fair amount of money over having a caterer provide the food. Doing it yourself is also a good way to involve your friends in your wedding; some of them may volunteer to do it as their wedding present to you and your fiancé. It might be a lot more work, but it’s a win-win situation for everyone. By the way, did you know you can even find organic, vegan friendly wines, beers and liquor on the Internet? Even someone who’s been a vegan for years may not be aware that some liquor is made with animal products like bone meal.
And while it may not be exactly easy to find vegan food and a wedding cake for your wedding, finding a vegan-friendly wedding dress and accessories may be even more of a challenge. Fortunately, there are a growing number of designers out there like Stella McCartney and Natalie Portman who are also vegans and vegetarians and they’re making lovely shoes, handbags, belts and other accessories. Now, McCartney and Portman’s shoes aren’t cheap, but they are beautiful and high quality. Nobody can say that vegan shoes and clothing are dowdy anymore. Vegan clothing and shoes are just as hip and fashionable as anything else that’s out there.
But being vegan involves more than just clothes and food. You need to be thinking about the kind of cosmetics and beauty products that you use, too. In the case of cosmetics and beauty products, you’re fortunate there, too. With the advent of the Internet, it’s simplicity itself to track down vegan cosmetics, shampoo, body wash and other personal care products. That can make it very easy for you to take care of yourself, and all the women in your bridal party, too. As long as you’re living the vegan life, it’s a good idea to get your friends involved, even if they don’t all share your values. There’s nothing wrong with setting a good example.
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