Or maybe, more realistically, you’re going down your mental list trying to work out which wedding TV concept remains to be pounced upon (gipsy weddings – done, grooms planning weddings – done, surplus guests giving your wedding marks out of 10 – done, big and fat weddings – done, done, done!) and whether there is anything the TV bigwigs could come up with that could possibly tempt you to take part.

Hand over the reins of your wedding planning

I’m not saying this will be the one to do it but just in case, here is the deal:

For a new Channel 5 series a major TV production company is offering to pay for one couple’s very special day. The only condition is that you hand over all responsibility to a famous, mystery wedding planner, plus they film your wedding plans and of course the wedding day itself.

I replied to the production company and said that this could only be of interest to our readers if there was the chance to have an ethical and green wedding. I added that it could give the programme something of a twist.

They responded that the couple that features in the series will be able to give the wedding planners some information about the type of wedding they want but ultimately it will be down to the celebrity to decide what kind of wedding they want to plan for the couple.

Were you to take part and make clear your ambition for a sustainable wedding I think it would come over very badly if the celebrity planner rode roughshod over this, ramped the carbon footprint up sky high and went in search of sweatshops to kit out you and your bridal party.

But it’s a very big decision to make about your big day – not one to be taken lightly.

If you do want to find out more just email: weddingplanner@renegadepictures.co.uk

Katie

The information we have is somewhat cryptic.  The producers simply want to know how you will be spending the festive season.  Let them know and if you’re chosen to take part, you could win a life-changing prize in time for Christmas.

We have no idea what it is!

If your curiosity has been kindled, get in touch by email or text (see below) and leave your name and contact number.

families@monkeykingdom.com

or text/call
07768 537 851 / 020 7749 3174

But the twist is that the 2 couples involved will plan each other’s wedding.

And they won’t have met before (the couples won’t have met before, not the respective brides and grooms… I think you get the picture).

Can you compromise to create the day of your dreams?

So the 2 couples have to work side by side, sometimes compromising to design the weddings of their dreams.

The best bit: the TV company will pay for it.

Of course, this could be a chance to go crazy with the Cinderella coach and the type of meringue extravaganza that requires the bride to walk sideways up the aisle, but it could also be an opportunity to showcase just how stylish and desirable a green and ethical wedding can be.

What next?

If you’re looking to get married in 2011/2012 and want to find out more, contact: brides@dragonfly.tv or call 0207 033 2291

Katie

Our thanks to Arià Clotet for the photo and Emma Field for modelling

They say:

“We would like to find a couple who are holding a green wedding before the end of the year and who would like to help us convince a member of the public that going green is best.

We would like to be able to feature pictures from your wedding in the programme to show how beautiful a green wedding can be.”

It should be fun! If you are interested please contact Mark Wheeler.

Memoirs of a Geisha full movie Sin divx

• Terms of Endearment hd

• Changeling psp

So if you’re browsing your local newsagent’s shelves wondering what will tickle your fancy, why not give Eve or New Consumer a go – and let us know what you think of the green wedding articles!

Take care,

• Groundhog Day dvd

Katie
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Yep, I dragged my university French out of the cupboard (hey, it was only 7 years ago!) and agreed to do an interview for Europe 1.

I admit, I struggled… but I think I got the message across in the end. If I did or not, you can find out today as the programme airs between 5-6pm (in France, 4-5pm in the UK) – listen live on Europe 1 or listen online any time after it has aired.

Elmo Visits the Fire House

And feel free to make fun of my French!

Katie

Over the last few months, we’ve had curious queries from all over Europe but particularly France and Spain (handy for me as I studied French and Spanish!), with ethical weddings featuring in publications ranging from ‘Femme Actuelle’ (a women’s magazine) to financial Spanish newspaper, ‘Expansion’.

The big question seems to be: what’s it all about? And they’re turning to us for answers – the UK is seen to be leading the way… or being a little eccentric when it comes to weddings, depending on how you interpret the interest!

Our latest European enquiries come from Swiss TV, who are looking for a couple to feature who are planning an ethical and green wedding in the next few months; and German International Radio, who just want to speak to you about your plans – but it doesn’t have to be in German!

If you’re interested in sharing your experiences with the rest of Europe, email us and we’ll see if we can connect you up with the nice people at Swiss TV or German International Radio.

Or if you’re a French, Swiss, Italian, German, Spanish…etc. bride or groom planning a green wedding, we want to hear from you!

Take care,

Katie

First up, Central News in Nottingham is champing at the bit to champion ethical and green weddings in the East Midlands area and is looking for a couple from the region (Nottinghamshire, Leicestershire, Derbyshire, Lincolnshire and Northamptonshire) to tell them what it’s all about for a short feature. 

Let us know if you’re happy to tell other couples how you can go green in style on your big day.

The radio request comes from Living Planet, looking to do a short report on ethical weddings. 

They are keen to find a couple who are preparing for their wedding and would be willing to talk about how and why they are thinking of going ethical. 

Over to reporter, Martin:

The report will be more documentary style than interview… so I would love to be able to go along with you when you  talk to the caterer or perhaps you could show me how you sourced the invitations – anything that would make the piece a bit more fun and give the listener some interesting sounds to listen to!

What would be really wonderful would be if you wouldn’t mind me coming to the actual wedding just for a few minutes to record some of the sounds there and perhaps ask some of the guests what they think of the whole “ethical” idea. I think this would be a great way to end the piece.

I realise weddings are stressful stuff but if you think you might be interested I promise I won’t take up too much of your time – and you will have an usually nice way to remember the day.

If you would be interested in chatting to Martin about possibly taking part in this interview, just drop us a line.

See more press requests in the Ethical Weddings Forum.

Happy planning!

Katie
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Evidently, others weren’t of the same mind as when I did dare to download my emails my inbox was inundated thanks to a great green weddings piece from Reuters that appeared around the world, including on the Yahoo homepage, yesterday!

Featuring several Ethical Weddings brides from this blog

• Baseline Killer

and from the forum, the article provides an interesting peek into the preparations and priorities of today’s ethical bride.

It has also led many new brides to the Ethical Weddings forum throwing in posts on everything from balloons and crockery to gift lists and ethical weddings on a budget.  So get on there and get chatting!

Now all we’re waiting for are the green grooms…

Back soon – when I’ve got through all my emails!

Katie

Another week and another inbox full of questions from journalists wanting to get the lowdown on the growing interest in ethical and green weddings.

One of the questions I get asked most of all – and one you may well be asking yourself if you have just come across the concept of ethical weddings – is:

“Can one day really make a difference?”

According to The Independent it can. They reported that Liz Hurley’s wedding: “…has produced a carbon footprint so large that it would take the average British couple more than 10 years to contribute as much to heating up the planet as she and Arun Nayar have done in little over a week. It would take a typical Indian couple a massive 123 years.”

Hmmm…! But we’re talking about making a positive difference. And it is a valid question. In the context of global warming, cities being ravaged by fire or floods, famine and drought, a wedding day could seem a little insignificant.

However, there are a number of reasons for not giving up on the whole idea before you’ve even started.

You may, like us, feel that you want your wedding to be a cause of celebration for everyone, that you don’t want people or the planet to suffer for your perfect day. So you choose fair trade products, support local suppliers, source organic fabrics, and make your own invites on recycled paper.

You will probably see this day as a new beginning, a chance to start as you mean to go on in your green and ethical married life (especially if you have a green gift list!).

If these values are already engrained in your day-to-day life, why would you have your wedding day any other way? Wouldn’t you rather your wedding day reflected who you are rather than tradition and convention dictating the day?

And of course you shouldn’t forget about your lovely guests either. This celebration, potentially the biggest party of your life, is a great chance to show your friends and family that a green lifestyle isn’t just about being a ‘hippy’ and that there are lots of great eco and ethical options out there in everything from fashion to food. And if they tell their friends and they tell their friends etc. etc…. you get the picture!

Most of all, keep asking questions. Even if your venue isn’t completely eco for your day, chances are your questions about energy efficiency and locally sourced produce will plant a seed that bears fruit for another couple’s wedding. And if this spreads throughout the huge wedding industry, well, one day will certainly have made a difference!

I can’t help thinking of Edmund Burke’s quote: “No one could make a greater mistake than he who did nothing because he could do only a little”

Or to put it in the words of one notorious famous trying to be green grocer: “Every little helps”!

Katie
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