Zero Waste & Sustainable Wedding Décor (including flowers)

Weddings today are often elaborately decorated. It’s becoming more and more common to rent things like lounge furniture, create a photo wall with props or flowers, and design personalized, one-time use details. But each additional component of décor adds monetary cost, fossil fuels for transportation, and resources used in making the decor.

There are many negative environmental consequences to consider when determining wedding décor, such as:

• High water use of flowers
• High pesticide use of conventional flowers
• Pollution associated pesticide use for conventional flowers (water, soil, and air)
• Fossil fuel use in transporting tropical flowers to non-tropical wedding sites
• Fossil fuel use from transporting décor to/from your wedding site
• Resource use during production of furniture, table décor, and personalized items

Salvaged paper + secondhand glue/string = my DIY ceremony banner

Here is a quick list (in order from best to worst) of the most sustainable options when it comes wedding decor. All of these options are better than conventional decor.

1. Minimize décor as much as possible. For example, outdoor ceremonies need very little, if any, décor due to the naturally beautiful space. If you’re not super attached to having florals, flowers can be a great décor item to reduce or remove from your wedding.
2. Reuse items you already own for décor. As an example, some weddings use books or board games as table centerpieces. Not only is this interesting and personal, but it reduces cost.
3. Borrow décor items. If you want to include photos, sentimental items, or collectibles as part of your décor, these items could be borrowed from family members or friends. For example, you could borrow a relative’s lifelong owl collection for décor use at your wedding or show off childhood photos of you and your partner. Again, this can be interesting, personal, and reduce décor cost.
4. Rent décor; aim to rent all rental items from the same company. Renting décor is incredibly common and easy to do. Renting ensures continued use of an item, whereas buying secondhand or sustainable items may harder to resell. If you rent everything, such as décor and tables/chairs from the same vendor, you’ll reduce fossil fuel use in transporting rental items to your wedding.
5. DIY décor from recycled or reused materials. If you’re crafty and you want something personalized, DIYing your décor can be really beautiful. For example, you could use salvaged materials to create a banner or other décor.
6. Buy secondhand décor. If you’re having trouble sourcing items or if you want to keep some of your wedding décor, buying secondhand may be a good option. For example, many couples purchase wedding signs, faux flower arrangements, table numbers, and vases for their wedding; you may have a relatively easy time finding these items secondhand for your own wedding.
7. Buy sustainable décor. For example, buying local and organic flowers is absolutely better than conventional flowers. If having personalized wedding signs is important to you, and you plan to keep them as keepsakes, work with a local artist to design a sustainably sourced version.

My partner’s DIY salvaged paper boutonniere

How can I find a good rental company?

• Try to find rental companies near your wedding venue; this will reduce fossil fuel use and potentially cost, if your rental company charges transportation fees.
• Look for rental companies with a variety of rental items. It’s very common to rent multiple types of items for weddings, so ensuring your selected rental company has a range of items can reduce your need for multiple rental vendors.
• Find a rental company that specializes in your wedding style. For example, if you are having a more bohemian wedding, find a rental company with bohemian items to match.
• Read reviews. If you’re part of a local wedding Facebook group, an active member of the Knot, or your potential vendor is available on Google reviews, see what other renters have to say about service, cost, and quality of rental items.

Where can I find materials for DIY décor?

• Your recycling bin and items you already own are a great place to look. For example, using mason jars for wedding décor is really popular. If you already have jars at home, or you know someone who would borrow you some, consider using them in your décor.
• Ask around to friends and family. For example, you may have a relative who previously loved a hobby, but doesn’t anymore. They may have leftover yarn, scrapbook paper, or paint that would be perfect for use in your wedding décor.
• Thrift stores. Thrift stores often have faux flowers, paper, beads, fabric, and art supplies that would work for wedding décor.
• Salvage shops. You may have a salvage shop near you that specializes in salvaging vintage items or office supplies. These items could be great for place cards or interesting table décor.

Borrowed tablecloth/cake stand/cutlery + secondhand napkins + DIY salvaged paper labels/secondhand string + already owned mason jars = my dessert table decor

What are the best places for secondhand décor?

• Local wedding Facebook groups. For example, there is a Facebook Group for Minnesota Brides that is used just for selling wedding items.
• Local wedding consignment shops. When searching, ensure the consignment shop includes décor, as many wedding consignment shops focus on wedding/wedding party dresses only.
• Ask your recently married friends/family! Many couples do purchase a portion of their wedding décor outright, so ask around to see if anyone you know is selling décor.
• Local thrift shops: many couples end up donating their wedding décor when they are unable to sell it. This can be a great option if you’re willing to be persistent and open to what is available.
• BravoBride includes: linens, table décor, ceremony arches/chuppahs, wedding signs, and more.
• Wedding Recycle includes: linens, table décor, and wedding signs.
• Tradesy includes: linens, table décor, and wedding signs.
• Facebook Marketplace includes: linens, table décor, ceremony arches/chuppahs, wedding signs, and more.
• Craig’s List includes: linens, table décor, ceremony arches/chuppahs, wedding signs, and more.
• Poshmark includes: linens, table décor, and wedding signs.

Where can I look for sustainable decor?

• Farmer’s Markets can be great for local flowers or handmade candles.
• Local shops that specialize in fair trade goods, upcycling, organic flowers, or artisan goods.
• Etsy is a great spot for personalized items, many types of faux flowers (including silk and paper flowers), linens, and macramé décor.

My DIY salvaged paper bouquet

My Story

Books are a huge element in my life and I knew that I wanted to incorporate them somehow into my wedding décor. As we ultimately decided to skip conventional flowers, I found some DIY instructions online for making a recycled paper bouquet and boutonniere. The recycled paper I got was salvaged from vintage books (the books were in disrepair, so the paper was salvaged). I wasn’t able to find wire or pins secondhand, so I did purchase those new. When I had leftover salvaged paper, I thought it would be cool to create a heart banner to put behind our ceremony spot. All of the banner elements were recycled; the glue and string were both secondhand.

For our dessert display, I used vintage cake stands; one was borrowed and two were thrifted. Each table had a vintage lace tablecloth; one was borrowed and one was thrifted. I also found secondhand signs from Poshmark to label the different desserts. I DIYed a few labels for cutlery and hand sanitizer; each label used salvaged paper and secondhand string.

Other than that, I would say the décor was the outdoor ceremony space. It was September, so we had crunchy autumn leaves everywhere. There was a creek nearby, so we could hear and see water from the ceremony spot. It certainly helped that our ceremony spot was naturally beautiful!

Although my reception was canceled due to COVID-19, the space I selected came pre-decorated. It already had filled in bookshelves, couches, artwork, and faux florals that came with the space. The space also had a kitchen area with many food display options and extra dinnerware. Thus I had no plans to purchase centerpieces or food displays for this space. Honestly the space was so perfectly decorated that I think if I wanted more décor, I would have had to remove some of the existing décor to make it work.

Like this post?
Check out the other posts in my sustainable wedding series such as Read This Before You Purchase Engagement/Wedding Rings, Zero Waste & Sustainable Engagement/Wedding Rings, Read This Before You Purchase Wedding Invites, Save the Dates, RSVP Cards, and Thank You Notes, Eco-Friendly & Low Waste Wedding Invites, Save the Dates, RSVP Cards, & Thank You Notes, How To Create a Low-Waste and Sustainable Wedding Registry, What You Need to Know About Eco-Friendly and Low Waste Wedding Venues BEFORE You Select a Venue, and How To Make Your Wedding Venue Low Waste & Eco-Friendly.

All photos by Jen Montgomery Photography.

None of the links in this post are affiliate links; I have received no incentive to include brands or companies in this post.