How to: Recycle your wedding items

We love weddings and all the joy they bring us, but what on earth do we do with all of our supplies post-wedding? We’ve summed up every possible way to make the Earth a better place and recycle your wedding items after your big day. After all, if you’re saying goodbye to them, you want them going to a better place!

Wedding dress

The list of where your wedding dress can go is endless. If you are not interested in having it take up 90% of your wardrobe, then read on for some thoughtful ideas.

  • Donate it to a charity that gives gowns to brides who need them
  • Hand it down a family or friend
  • Get creative and turn it into your first child’s baptism dress (or get someone else to do it for you)
  • eBay it. There is a large amount of budget friendly brides-to-be’s who love shopping online
  • Use bits and pieces to make something for your home. I.e. A sofa, a piece of art, a blanket
melbourne bridal honeymoon expo

Invitations

If you’re still in the stage of buying your invitations, may we suggest having a look around at some companies who offer recyclable invitations. There are brands that sell plantable, yes plantable, wedding invitations! Never heard of this? Neither had we! We suggest jumping on their website and deciding if it’s the right move for you.

melbourne bridal honeymoon expo

Food

Where does the leftover food go after your reception? Consider these options:

  • Arrange for your caterer to package up the leftover canapes. Organise a local shelter to pick up the food at the end
  • Ask your reception venue to refrigerate leftovers, and enjoy for breakfast in the morning! (Especially if the dessert included sticky date)
  • Organise one of your family members to help wrap up anything left over at the lollies station
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Floral

There is no possible way for all of your wedding flowers to fit in your lounge room. Instead of leaving them to die, consider these:

  • Let the guests know they are welcome to take the flowers home with them
  • Donate them to the local nursing homes or hospitals
  • See if the couple getting married after you would halve the cost in flowers and share them with you
  • Ask your florist for any other arrangements they may have
Wedding flowers

Decorations

There are some handy websites out there that will happily buy or receive your unused decorations in order to make some more. Think about where in the house you could put your decorations. It may be a nice reminder of the day that was!

melbourne bridal honeymoon expo

We hope this helps you feel better about the money you’ve spent on your supplies, and know that it can always be used somewhere.

If you’re in the stages of planning your wedding for 2017, we suggest coming along to our massive Melbourne Bridal & Honeymoon Expo on Sunday 22 January 2017. Buy tickets here.