It is always helpful to know what other Brides and Grooms are doing to make their wedding day an extra specially Green one. Veil and Train have been listening to and reading many stories, not only from the weddings we work on, but also from around the world to bring you a list of our top Eco tips.

In this our latest article we look at some ideas to make your wedding a truly Eco friendly affair. Now you can enjoy the most special moment of your life knowing the extravagance is entirely guilt free. So have a read through and hopefully you can make your promises to each other and also to the planet:

• Keep the wedding in one place as opposed to moving about to reduce transport emissions
• Reduce air miles by using local traders to source items such as dresses, food, drink etc
• Make your own wedding favours and accessories – check the The Make Lounge for their forthcoming ‘DIY Bride’ workshops
• Use organic caterers who promise entirely biodegradable equipment
• Use only food that is currently in season and source it locally
• Source beer and cider from local organic breweries
• UK vineyards produce some excellent sparkling wines consider these instead of Champagne
• Horse drawn transport instead of a wedding car can be a fun and green way to arrive and depart
• Have a seasonal theme – e.g. Autumn weddings, collect berries and leaves from the surrounding countryside for décor
• Reduce carbon footprint further by emailing invitations rather than posting them
• Rather than receiving a traditional present ask guests to contribute to an eco charity, or get them to bring along sapling trees to plant
• Use local entertainers for the evening do
• Ensure empty Champagne, wine and drinks bottles are suitably recycled
• Fairtrade is the name of the game – source roses, wine and wedding rings with ethics in mind
• Another way to get eco-friendly flowers is to use locally grown flowers
• Continue the theme by taking your honeymoon closer to home
• Instead of buying copies of bridal magazines see how many people can lend you their copies or use the internet to do research
• Consider wedding rings made of welsh gold or find a retailer who supports the No Dirty Gold Campaign

Useful Links:

Contemporary craft workshops with a stylish social twist – www.themakelounge.com
Exceptional Produce from the Orkney Isles – www.orkneysbest.co.uk
Ethical Wedding Blog & list of suppliers – www.ethicalweddings.com
Eco Chic Wedding directory – www.greenunion.co.uk
Ethical Gold Retailers and Suppliers – www.nodirtygold.org
The Eco Chic Wedding & Home Show – www.ecochicweddingandhomeshow.com

Veil & Train visited the Designer Wedding Show in London’s Battersea Park on Saturday 14th February 2009. 

Brides-to-be from around the country gathered to see the leading lights of the British Wedding Industry under one roof. Here you can find the best centre pieces, photographers, marquees, travel, food and catering while enjoying the catwalk show and champagne bar.

We were sure to meet some of our friends and colleagues as we Twittered our way round the exhibition. Click on the iPhone pictures below to discover the businesses behind the faces.

The next Designer Wedding Show will be held on 9th – 11th October 2009. Why not avoid the rush and book early.

It’s been a while getting the next post up on the blog mainly due to the enormous amount of business development work going on at Veil and Train at the moment.

As part of all this we spent some time at the Designer Wedding Show in Battersea during October not only to promote Veil & Train but also to help out our friends at Little Bevan.

For any one who has not been to the Designer Wedding Show it’s a real treat for any Bride-to-Be with lots of extremely high quality service providers under one roof. Not only that but you also get some of the best in-show catering supplied by Anton Mosimann.

We saw some really great products from Suzanne Neville, Nene D, Chartula Studio, and of course Little Bevan, as well as some of the country’s best Wedding Photographers and Videographers. More on some of those in later posts.

One stand we absolutely adored was the one owned by the Utterly Sexy Café who offer a breathtaking vintage style catering service. Imagine fine bone china, antique cake stands, elegant canapés, and staff who look like they just stepped out of a 1950′s tea room!

So when can you go to the show? The Designer Wedding Show runs twice a year in October and February – the next show is due to happen on 13th-15th February 2009 and is a great chance to see the creme-da-la-creme of the UK’s wedding service providers under one roof.

Head down to the expo pavillion in Battersea Park near the Battersea Bridge side. Alternatively hop on a free shuttle bus from Sloane Square direct to the show. Perfect!

Lots of love, Veil & Train x