Go Green! Ten Tips to Help You Host an Eco-Friendly Engagement Party

Going green is not only essential to help save the Earth, it is also a great engagement party trend right now. Here are ten tips to help you plan an eco-friendly engagement party.

Diss disposables. Paper plates, paper napkins and plastic utensils may be convenient, but they sure generate a lot of waste. Do your own dishes and cut down on your trash significantly. If you can gather up enough cloth napkins for your guests that is a good green option, too.

If you plan on giving out party favors, consider small seed packets or other useful items. You can print out sweet messages or the 'save the date' notes and glue or attach them to the packets. Avoiding party favors will save waste, too, but favors are one of the most fun things to plan at a party, so just try to jazz up a useful favor with decorations that go with your theme.

If you are having your event catered, do a little research. Most big cities have restaurants and catering companies that offer eco-friendly menus and practices.

On the same note, if you are cooking, buy your produce at a local farmer's market. Consider serving lots of fruits and vegetable varieties. The fresh foods are pretty to look at, good for you and your guests, and locally grown organic produce is good for the environment. Farmer's markets offer much more than produce, too. Spend an afternoon at one, and plan your menu around all the scrumptious finds.

Send out invitations via email, Twitter, text, or by calling everyone. Make sure that you personally talk to everyone on the guest list to make sure that no one gets their feelings hurt. Be sensitive to those who are not so techno-savvy (some of us just recently figured out what a Twitter is. . . or is that a tweet?).

Consider a low key event. If you have a small guest list, an informal picnic or casual dinner should give everyone a comfortable environment to get to know each other in. It will also save on transportation, decoration, food, and favor costs (both for you and the environment).

Decorate using items that you can reuse at your wedding or reception. If you know your colors, purchase tablecloths, reusable centerpieces (mirrors, candle holders, vases, etc.) that you can use at your wedding. Few will actually notice that they are the same, but if they do just explain that you are "going green"!

Provide recycling containers for cans, bottles, and paper. This will save you some sorting time later, or at least some guilt for not sorting. Follow through with making sure everything gets to the appropriate recycling center.

Keeping it close in. I've been to engagement parties that take place forty miles outside of the city. While the settings were romantic, dozens of cars making the trek from and to the city seemed a little bit dirty. Cut your carbon footprint by limiting your guests' commute.

Being a minimalist. A successful engagement party is not about the decorations, elaborate food, favors and other items. It is about gathering friends and family, enjoying each other, and preparing to start a new chapter in your life. Do not go overboard on all the accessories.

Although going green for your engagement party may require some extra work, a few compromises, and a lot of creativity, it is worth doing. After all you do not want your marriage to be bad luck for the environment! Best wishes!