Eco-Friendly Wedding Tips for Conscious Couples in Madison

In the wedding industry, so many items are brought in and used for just one day, and it can lead to a lot of waste. There are certainly ways to reduce your environmental footprint on your big day, and a lot of couples married at Barnwood Events keep the environment at top of mind when planning. Here are some of the ways they do so. 

Rent Instead of Buy

There are so many one-use items that go into an event like a wedding, but there are ways to minimize some of that by renting reusable items.

For example, instead of buying throw-away linens, napkins, and tableware, we recommend renting high quality items from Event Essentials. Barnwood Events gets an exclusive discount that we pass on to our clients to make reusing even more affordable. 

Other items that often get used once and then thrown away are decor – table numbers, table decorations, candles, arbors, and so much more. Barnwood Events has a closet filled with decor that couples can use (for free!). They’ve been used for hundreds of wedding days, and they’re not ending in a landfill at the end of the night. 

Photo by BellArt Photography

Compost and Reuse

If choosing real plates, silverware and napkins isn’t in your budget, we recommend working with your caterer to source compostable and recyclable dinnerware options.

We were inspired by a couple who brought in Curbside Composter on their wedding day to turn all of their compostable tableware and food scraps into compost. This was an affordable service that did some good for the environment – and we’d love to help you incorporate this into your big day, too. 

Florals can be composted as well, or turned into an art piece to remember your wedding day forever. Dried Flowers Forever is a local, Madison, WI business that preserves florals, and the end result is always gorgeous.

Skip Wedding Favors

At the end of the night, our staff is always collecting wedding favors that have been left by guests. A lot of them go to waste. It’s a cute way to say thanks to your guests for spending the day with you, but skipping it may save you money and room in landfills.

Other options to show your guests your thanks could be: 

• Giving a thank you speech at dinner
• Having a receiving line and greeting each guest
• Offering a fun activity like a photo booth or s’mores station for guests
• Making a donation to a charity in lieu of favors

Photo by Paul Gero Photography

Talk to your vendors about their ideas and initiatives for making a wedding day more eco-friendly. The team at Barnwood Events is happy to help in any way that we can. Schedule a tour here to see our facility and learn more about how we keep things sustainable.