An eco-friendly gift registry allows conscientious brides and grooms to make the world a better place as they begin their new life.
Gifts and weddings have gone hand in hand for centuries, as family and friends eagerly shower the bride and groom with tokens of their well wishes. There was a time—in the not-so-distant past—when it made sense to give practical household items to help fill the newly wedded couple’s home with the essentials for everyday living. But today, with a majority of engaged couples choosing to share addresses long before sharing a last name, traditional wedding registries are giving way to a modern form of gift-giving: the wish wedding registry.
As the name implies, a wish registry can contain anything and everything the couple deems important. But for many environmentally conscious brides and grooms, it’s important that the bridal registry reflects their “green” principles and philosophies. By its very nature, an online registry promotes eco-friendly shopping, as it eliminates product packaging and emissions produced by travel and shipping.
Below are some quick tips for creating an eco-friendly gift registry:
Make a list of registry “must-haves”. When creating a “cash registry” (a registry based on the fulfillment of monetary wishes in the form of cash gifts instead of items), add only the items you truly need as a way of minimizing resource usage and reducing your carbon footprint. Don’t think you’ll use that fancy china or sterling silverware more than once or twice a year? Substitute more practical, durable place settings for your wedding registry.
Register for like-minded brands. There are many modern brands that offer green products. Find out what qualifies their products as eco-friendly, whether it’s all-natural organic materials, recycled materials, fair trade production, an absence of toxic by-products, energy-efficient usage, or a combination of these. Some brands and products further lessen their impact on the planet by donating funds or resources towards environmental causes.
Plan an eco-friendly honeymoon. Consider creating a honeymoon registry that allows guests to donate funds toward your travel expenses. As you jet-set across the globe, help to preserve it by choosing environmentally conscious airlines, hotels, and resorts that share your green sensibilities. As one bride puts it, “I try to live my life in the most eco-friendly way, from buying energy-efficient home appliances to driving a hybrid car, so why not do the same with my registry?”
Fund your green thumb. Love the great outdoors? One of the beauties of a wish shower registry is that you can request anything your heart desires. Instead of buying toasters and crystal, guests can donate money toward gardening tools, landscaping services, or flowers for planting to beautify your home and sustain the environment. You can even encourage guests to purchase a tree on your cash registry, to be planted in their honor.
Support your favorite green initiative. If you’d like, you can bypass the gifts altogether and create a goodwill wedding gift registry. Instead of accepting cash gifts, you can choose a few of your favorite green charities and allow guests to make donations through your wish registry wedding website to commemorate your big day.
In addition to providing guests with an easy, convenient way of expressing their support and well wishes, eco-friendly gift registries allow conscientious brides and grooms to help make the world a better place as they begin their newly wedded life together.
Find more ideas for your wedding gift registry, cash registry or online wishing well at UponOurStar.com. UponOurStar is a wedding registry for wishes, not stuff, whereby your family and friends can contribute wedding money towards your most meaningful wishes - whatever they may be - instead of giving you more cutlery. Create your own personalized wedding website and fill your online registry with meaningful gifts such as your dream home, honeymoon activities, charitable donations, education, and health. Browse other brides’ wedding registries with UponOurStar to brainstorm ideas for your very own Wish Registry or wishing well registry.
