Flowers continued....

I started my search for an eco-friendly florist or at least a florist who "got" what I was looking for, with high hopes. I was quickly disappointed.

I met with a florist in a small town in North Carolina so excited and eager to share my passion and ideas. I assumed my desire to use non-toxic, in-season flowers for my wedding would be applauded and/or admired. And to my surprise, that was not the case at my first stop.

The florist was very nice, but when I expressed my opinion on only wanting to use organic or non-toxic flowers, she immediately brushed off the idea by saying, "All flowers use chemicals, they'd die otherwise." I knew this was going to be a long appointment that may go nowhere, but I didn't want to give up on her so quickly.

I gently continued to drop hints that I was serious about using local, organic flowers that were in season and I wouldn't back down. But I didn't feel she was listening to me. I mean, I did a lot of research before I went into this appointment. And although I'm not a florist, I know some things about the flower business and how hard it can be on the planet and its workers. She explained a lot of organic flower farms were located in Holland or other countries and that was about my only option. I wasn't happy with that and left the appointment frustrated and discouraged.

A few days later, I heard about another florist who was very into "the green thing" and grew a lot of her flowers at her house. As soon as I pulled into the driveway, it was apparent that this florist and I were going to click. I saw flea market finds, eclectic furniture and there was a no-fuss, natural vibe to her house. My fiancé and I immediately knew she was the one. She listened to everything I said, understood my thoughts and even AGREED with what I was saying!!! We were in-sync on environmental issues and I couldn't be happier. She told me about local, organic farms in North Carolina and showed me pictures of the flowers that would be in season in October. She gave me great ideas, fully supporting what we want to do.

I was relieved to have found this green-goddess of a florist and scratched that off my list as soon as we left!

Next step...the dress!

Take 2....

Wow, I had no idea how much of a commitment blogging was. Life gets in the way, but you still have to make time to write...lesson learned :)

After freaking out about my ring, I've decided to focus on things I have control over. Flowers for example...or lack there of. In all the eco-wedding books I've been reading, the subject of flowers is "kind of a big deal."

I read that most flowers in the U.S. come from flower farms in Central and South America. That right there account for energy and transportation costs to your wallet and the environment that can be avoided. Many of them use toxic chemicals on flowers that end up poisoning the ground water and soil. This effects the food chain because birds and other animals eat the toxic flowers. Not to mention, a lot of those flower farms treat their workers poorly, by under paying them and forcing them to work with chemicals that end up making them sick.

The good news is there are more and more organic flower farms popping up around the world and I see no reason not to use local, organic flowers at my wedding. To me, it's one easy step I can do to reduce my carbon footprint and save some mula, which I might add is VERY important to me. To limit my flower usage, I also plan to incorporate other decorative elements that aren't so hard on the environment. Now, some brides choose not to use flowers at all, and I applaud them for that. But I'm not too keen on an all feather or candy bouquet. Because I'm choosing in season/local flowers, this means I probably won't be able to have exotic orchids or peonies for a mid-October North Carolina wedding, but hey...that's okay! The flowers end up dying in a few days anyway. Bring it on...in-season-North Cacalacky-flowers...show me whatcha got!

My First Time...

Wow...well, I guess I'm not a blog virgin anymore. I kind of feel all grown up! Better late than never right :)

I'm so excited to have a voice and to share my everyday experiences, ideas and thoughts about living a more sustainable life. But at the same time, not freaking out if I took a long shower or chose the filet over a vegetarian dish. I believe everything in life is about balance, and I'm honored to share my thoughts with you.

My main focus right now is planning my own wedding that is ecologically, economically and socially responsible without becoming obsessed or going overboard. Sounds easy right? Luckily, I still have just over a year to go and I already got a head start.

I bought the book Eco Chic Weddings by Emily Elizabeth Anderson. I found it to be very helpful and a quick read. It's nice because it's small and paperback so you can stick it in your purse and use it like a hand book.

As I began to read, I noticed one of the first chapters was about engagement rings. I started to panic as I stared at my new best friend...my very first diamond ring. I have to say that I immediately started grilling my fiance about where he got my diamond and if it's conflict free and when he didn't know the answer, I had a sick feeling in my stomach that turned into guilt-fest. I thought, "Well...way to start off your green wedding Natalie. Your diamond ring you love so much is probably supporting all the evil practices against children and labor workers in sub-Saharan Africa along with polluting the earth from all the mine waste... AH!"

After slightly insulting the man of my dreams even though he took so much time to design my ring, I took a deep breath and calmed down a bit. I realized that my beautiful ring was a gift given out of love and that I will take this whole "green wedding" process in stride. Some things will be more eco-friendly than others and that's okay...at least in my book.