Environmentally Sustainable Wedding in Vermont with Kay Mae Designs

Destinations, Travel, Weddings

October 6, 2019

What does it take to plan an eco-friendly, sustainable wedding?

I had the pleasure of photographing a wedding in Jericho, Vermont with Kayce Mae of Kay Mae Designs, a Vermont boutique wedding production company specializing in sustainable weddings. Kayce Mae invited me to join her for Jewels and Scott’s wedding, and capture the day from the perspective of an eco-friendly wedding planner. I loved Vermont, and if you’re looking for a Vermont wedding photographer, I will happily come back!

The Wedding Story

Jewels and Scott held their wedding on a private family property near Stowe, Vermont. The wedding centered around two concepts: the couple’s desire for the wedding to be the best day of their lives, and the couple’s love for both their family and the land where the wedding was held.

The wedding was held on a family property in Jericho, Vermont. This is the family house.

Sustainability

Through reducing, recycling, composting, and donating, Kayce is able to plan events that minimize the impact we have on the environment. Here are a few ways in which Jewels and Scott’s Vermont wedding utilized sustainable practices:

The moss on the tables was real moss.
Every piece of dinnerware was reusable, which included marbled salad plates, hammered copper cutlery and tied pewter gray napkins. No plastic here!
Kayce bought the flowers wholesale from a local florist and arranged them herself.
The ceremony arbor was handmade with local wood.
Kayce Mae hand-dyed fabric for the table backdrop.
Many of the decorations were compostable or able to be donated or reused by other community organizations.
Kayce Mae makes a charitable donation to the nonprofit of the client’s choice.

The moss runners were made of real moss, artfully arranged by Kayce Mae.
Kayce Mae used wholesale flowers from a local shop to decorate the reception space.
Kayce Mae MADE this floral garland!
We found a honeybee on this stalk while decorating!
The arbor was built from local wood.
All dinnerware was reusable. No plastic here!
Kayce Mae hand-dyed this green fabric for the table backdrop. It also complimented the moss on the tables.

Sustainability Tips

How can you make your own wedding more sustainable? Here are some tips from myself and Kayce Mae!

Use native or local plants in your bouquet and decorations.
Consider edible or plantable favors. If many of your guests are traveling, look for biodegradable seed packets so they won’t have to travel with pots or soil. Edible favors from a local coffee or candy shop are also delicious and lower waste than keepsakes.
Send guests home with flowers! You can have someone on hand to rearrange centerpieces and bouquets into smaller arrangement for friends and family to take home and enjoy for a few more days.
Have recycling bins are the reception. You can even ask your local college’s environmental students to volunteer at your next event. Work with them to manage your wast program to ensure guests place their items in the correct bins such as compost, recycling, trash, etc.

Details

Every single detail of this wedding was incredibly intentional and tied into the couple’s love of the land.

The decorative wine bottles on each table came from the couple’s family winery and had custom labels.
The clear tent allowed guests to view the landscape around them.
You could see both Smugglers Notch and Mount Mansfield from the reception area!
The ceremony was held in the family’s apple orchard and included large sails that belong to the family.

The decorative wine bottles on each table came from the couple’s family winery.
The wine bottles even had custom labels.
The clear tent allowed guests to view the landscape around them.
You could see Smugglers Notch and Mount Mansfield from the reception area!
The ceremony was held in the family’s apple orchard and included large sails that belong to the family.