(wedding dress): keep it small, and embrace the DIY aspects of it.

(wedding dress): keep it small, and embrace the DIY aspects of it.

I just got married. We planned our wedding short notice, and it was 3 weeks from the first plan to the ceremony. My bride and I have been living together for a year, and we dated for several more years before that. But we found out recently that she is pregnant, and we decided that it would be easier to take care of the baby if we were married. We seriously considered eloping at the courthouse, but we decided that our parents wouldn’t let us live that one down.

So, we chose a date where several members her family were traveling to our house for a normal weekend-visit. We rented some tables and chairs from a nearby party-supply place, set them up in the back yard, and decorated our garden with a few frills. We invited our immediate families and a few of best-friends, and all of the extended-family members who wanted to crash it were welcome. We encouraged family members who have special skills to do their thing (decorating, photography, music, crafts etc), and we kept everything else as simple and modest as possible. My wife made her own wedding  dress, and I built the garden fence that the officiant stood in front of. We are modest practical people with a DIY mentality.

Like any wedding, the biggest environmental and cost impact was travel. But, by keeping it small and not getting worked up over who could and couldn’t make it (most of my 5 siblings live far away and couldn’t make it on such short notice), the travel was was minimized. It really was more modest than most family reunions.(custom wedding dresses)

The whole thing felt like a weekend with family and friends that happened to feature a wedding. It was great, and since whole reason was to take care of the baby and to be kind to our families, it didn’t have to be perfect, which meant that it was very low-stress. We also got to socialize with everyone who came to see us, which hasn’t always happened with weddings. Spending 18 months attempting to plan the perfect wedding would have driven both of us crazy! I would really recommend the 3-week wedding-with-a-purpose to anyone who has a modest and practical mentality.

This was exactly the right way for us to get married — it matches our personalities, and it was absolutely perfect for us!!!

 

Welcome back to our Green Wedding Guide! If you’ve missed any of our issues in weeks past, we’ve already covered finding conflict-free eco-wedding rings, greener wedding locations, more sustainable invitations, and great gift & registry ideas. This issue of the Green Wedding Guide will highlight eco-friendly wedding dresses! We’ve got tips on finding the best eco-friendly wedding gown designers out there, as well as some other alternatives to find the dress of your dreams without putting a dent in the environment.