How to ensure your table settings are sustainable at your wedding

Planning a sustainable wedding comes with a host of challenges, as you’ll want to evaluate every element to ensure it’s eco-friendly and in line with your values. While the bigger decisions such as choosing a sustainable venue, being mindful of the size of your guest list and opting for reusable or rented attire will naturally cut down on the carbon footprint of your day, it’s important to also consider the smaller details.

Wedding table settings are nothing short of stunning: the glistening glassware, polished crockery and delicate touches help to welcome your guests for a feast as spectacular as your love story. But unfortunately, many common items used in making the tables look so grand are often unsustainable. To help make yours as eco-friendly as possible, here are our top tips.

Use Fair trade and responsibly sourced items

Though it can be tempting when browsing Pinterest boards and other social media platforms for wedding inspiration, try to avoid purchasing items from overseas – even if they come with a cheaper price tag. Many table decorations are produced by people working in unethical conditions, who are poorly compensated for their time. Plus, such mass-produced items often get shipped in layers of single-use plastic and other unsustainable materials.

Instead, look for decorations which hold the Fair trade certification, showing they have been made by artisans who are treated fairly. If you can, buy from local, small businesses or at least those within your home country, to cut down on transportation emissions. For your napkins, tablecloths and chair sashes, look for sustainable materials such as hessian, pure linen or hemp rather than cotton. Around 2,700 litres of water are required to produce a single cotton t-shirt, highlighting just how big an impact the material can have on the environment.

Reuse or DIY

Another great way to boost the eco credentials of your table settings is to get creative. You could forage for unique pieces of wood in local woodlands or forests to add a rustic feel, or collect pinecones to use as place settings. A little DIY can go a long way to helping make your table settings more eco-friendly, and they can either be reused or returned to nature afterwards, too.

Thrift and vintage stores are brilliant places to find interesting and unusual items to bring your tables to life – and reusing these items helps to further reduce the impact of your day by cutting out shipping and packaging. Don’t forget about your cutlery and crockery, either. If your venue isn’t supplying reusable tableware, you can look for chic biodegradable options such as bamboo – which works really well for a BBQ or buffet-themed meal.

Use seasonal foliage and blooms

If you can, why not use the seasonal blooms from your garden to create centrepieces, rather than purchasing additional flowers from a florist? Many florists import their flowers, which are often grown using large amounts of water, pesticides, and artificial lighting. Rather than opting for exotic blooms, consider those which are naturally in season at the time of your wedding, field-grown and sourced from sustainable suppliers.

You could also consider using dried flowers, plenty of foliage and even artificial flowers as opposed to large quantities of fresh blooms. Contrary to popular belief, some artificial flowers can be more sustainable than their natural counterparts, due to their ability to be reused multiple times and the innovative, eco-friendly ways they are produced these

WRITTEN BY ASHLEY MORGAN