Waste Not, Want Not

-by Guest Blogger
Lisa

I know I have alluded to this in past entries, but I think it’s important enough to mention again. It’s all of our responsibility to protect the environment, be mindful of waste, and be socially responsible. Additionally, in these tough financial times, I think most would be interested in saving some dough! Of course, like everyone, I too have my hang-ups. When it comes to the wedding budget, I help my clients prioritize and define where they want to spend their money. Same holds true being conservative on waste, choosing items that are environmentally friendly, and offering budget friendly ideas. Many of my clients want to conserve on certain aspects of their wedding, but don’t want to completely toss out all those beautiful extras. We guide our clients in where to conserve and give them ideas on how to do so, while maintaining the look and feel of the wedding. So, that’s what I want to do. I want to discuss just a couple of areas where you can conserve and give you great resources on how to do so.

Favors – We have had couples offer favors, and we have had couples not offer favors. If you're a couple "in favor" of giveaways, you could opt for favors in the form of charitable donations. In other words, you could donate money in your guest’s names. If you're looking for some ideas on how to make this work, www.idofoundation.org is an excellent resource. They will allow you to not only create a foundational favor registry, but a gift registry as well.

Transportation – Couples want to get to and from their wedding in style. But this may be an area where you can cut down significantly. Many couples are opting to get married at a location that offers the ceremony and reception at one location. One huge advantage to this is that everyone can “get there” and you do not have to hire specialty cars and such. But if your ceremony and reception sites are in different locations, you can opt to not transport the wedding party, which would cut down on limos, gas, and cost. Often times, wedding party members and/or their dates have their own cars (rental or otherwise) that they can use and you can use your money to rent a classic car or hire an hourly airport shuttle. The Lincoln Town Car will cost you less, and offer you one way transport (rather than the expensive 3-4 hour minimums that most limo companies offer). How about contacting a valet company to drive you in a hybrid or electric car? There are many options and many possibilities that are “green” and budget friendly, and not take away from the elegance of the day!

In terms of guest transportation, a shuttle bus is a great option. Even though there is an extra cost to you, it makes it easy for your guests, especially if many are from out of town or unfamiliar with the area. It cuts down on the need for map and direction cards, gas consumption, as well as the worry that guests will get lost. This is especially true if your ceremony and reception are in two separate locations.

A few small changes by many couples add up to a lot of energy and money savings.
Happy planning!