Eco-Friendly Wedding Favors

Choosing beautiful and thoughtful wedding favors is important to the bride who wants to share the joy of the day with those she holds close to her heart. For couples who want to spread the message of green living with their guests, eco-friendly wedding favors serve as a gentle and thoughtful expression of respecting nature while thanking friends and family for joining in the wedding celebration.

The wedding is where you and your betrothed show the world your commitment to each other. The reception is where you and your new spouse can show the world your commitment to preserving the Earth, while showing your guests your deep appreciation for their joining you on your special day. Green as it is, a recycled grocery bag just doesn't seem to fit the bill as a wedding favor (unless you're packing it full of organic foods, but then, filled grocery bags might take up just a bit too much room on the reception tables, and too much room in your wedding favor budget).

Here are some eco-friendly ideas for small wedding favors that send a big message to the most important people in your life.

Candles are symbolic of romance. Spread the love to your guests with small candles made of soy or beeswax. These materials are clean burning, environmentally friendly, and a small treasure your guests will appreciate.

While paraffin candles are inexpensive and readily available, as a byproduct of the oil industry (and therefore born of a non-renewable source), they give off the same toxic gasses as produced by automobile exhaust. Most paraffin is made from the sludge that is found at the bottom of a barrel of oil, then bleached and processed with chemicals. They aren't clean burning--the EPA has confirmed paraffin candles and their smoke and soot emit cancer causing toxins in measurable amounts--and their petrol soot stains surfaces over time. Not quite the gift you'd like to give to your friends and family!

Natural and far more healthful options are available in soy or beeswax candles. Soy candles are made of a waxy substance from the soybean plant, a renewable source. Clean burning with no toxic soot or dangerous chemicals, soy candles are biodegradable and clean up easily with just soap and hot water. These are cruelty-free candles containing no animal fats, that burn up to 50% longer than their paraffin counterparts.

Beeswax candles are another all-natural source of energy. Sweet smelling, soot free and long burning, high quality beeswax candles burn with the full spectrum of sunlight, resulting in light that is naturally brighter than that produced by paraffin candles. Beeswax candles also emit negative ions when burned, naturally cleaning the air and energizing the body.

Soy and beeswax candles are available in small sizes and many colors, and may even be personalized to commemorate your wedding day.

Give your guests wedding favors that continue the celebration long after the nuptial day has passed. Personalized seed packets make thoughtful wedding favors your guests will cherish months after your wedding. Inexpensive and beautifully presented in a variety of packaging design options, these personalized favors are a sweet homage to a newlywed couple's growing love.

Symbolic of the ever-growing love shared between the bride and groom, personalized seed packets spread the remembrance of a special wedding day to the gardens of friends and family. Each seed planted serves as an affirmation of the happy couple's union, with hope for their continued growth and full blossoming. With each watering, these seeds can’t help but remind your guests to nurture love in their own lives.

Seed packets can be personalized with the wedding date and the names of the bride and groom, and some also include a brief, sweet poem. These personalized favors are embellished in a choice of lovely designs, including hearts, lovebirds, toile designs and beautiful filigree artwork.

Complete planting instructions are provided, but planting is easy, and with a little tender care, your guests will soon enjoy seeing your wedding favors sprout into a carpet of delicate wildflowers. Watching your heartfelt sentiments of love be realized in the form of beautiful flowers will surely bring cheer and delight.

Similar favors are available as seating cards or other paper gifts with the seeds embedded right in the paper itself. Guests simply bury the sheet of paper in soil, add water, and up pop blossoms of joy. Typically less than a dollar apiece, these eco-friendly favors are not only beautiful in their presentation, but also affordable to help any couple celebrate in style at a very attractive price.

Etch your special day forever in stone. Smooth river rocks engraved with the date of your wedding, the newlyweds' names, or even the simple monikers of "friendship" or "love" make fine reminders of the occasion. Guests can then place these stones in their home gardens--perhaps in gardens filled with wildflowers grown from your wedding seed packets!

Organic Coffee

Pair a small bag of organic free-trade, shade-grown CarbonFree® certified ground coffee with a stainless steel heart-shaped coffee measuring scoop, bedecked with an organza bow. As your wedding guests scoop fragrant grounds into their coffee maker each morning, the heart-shaped spoon will remind them to scoop up extra helpings of love in their lives. And every sip of the eco-friendly coffee will bring the reminder that it was harvested organically and responsibly, making the morning joe that much more enjoyable and appreciated.

Organic Fair Trade Chocolates

You wouldn't spray pesticide all over your wedding cake; why serve commercially produced chocolates that have been treated with chemicals? Adorable little truffles of organic chocolate, nestled in a small box, provide a delectable treat for the palate that every guest will enjoy. Not waxy or flavorless like the commercial brands, organic, fair-trade chocolates are full of rich flavor and even provide some health benefits. Each bite will assure your guest they are indulging in a treat that is free of GMOs and that supports beneficial farming practices, both for the laborers and the land. Of course, if all they think about is the sumptuousness of deep, true chocolate flavor, they'll be no less pleased.

Sun-Sensitive Paper

Share the power of the sun with your guests. Create seating cards or thank you notes using photo reactive paper. Gather natural materials with interesting silhouettes and arrange them atop the blue field on the sheets. Set out under the sun for just a few minutes and let solar power soak into the paper. Remove the objects and you'll see that the field of blue has remained the same, but a darker blue color will appear where the objects were placed. Now, slip the exposed paper into plain water, and watch while the dark blue images of nature are revealed in a crisp white relief, and the lighter blue field deepens into a royal blue. Each work is an original piece of art! You can even place stencils atop the paper to add in a special message of thanks or whatever you wish. Photosensitive fabrics are also available.

When considering wedding favors to present to your guests, choose thoughtful gifts that express your appreciation for their participation in your big day, while also conveying your commitment to the environment.

© M.S. Ross - All Rights Reserved

Are you planning an eco-friendly wedding? What favors do you plan to offer your guests that promote green living? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.