The Green Party: How to green your wedding stationery

The Green Party

Even your wedding stationery can be green with the help of Danielle V. (Nick Scott/MNN)

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Danielle: For this installment of our eco-wedding series, we’re gonna be talking about stationery, invitations, thank you cards, place cards, any kind of collateral that you’re gonna have at your wedding. We’re gonna meet with some really amazing experts who can help show you what the options are and how beautiful this can all be while being low impact. So this is Alison Alfandre from Paper Love, an incredible adorable paper boutique in Brooklyn. So one of my favorite sustainable designers is Smock. And I know you do a lot of work with them. So, tell me a little bit about, kind of what is their vibe and why are they so great?

Alison: We love Smock. They use this amazing bamboo paper that’s great because it’s really sustainable. Bamboo grows really quickly. There’s, you know, no issues with fertilizers, or trees or forests.

Danielle: What are other types of papers that some of the lines you carry use or other elements like inks and things to make the product more sustainable?

Alison: Almost every company does have some option for something sustainable whether it’s something, you know, wind powered mills, paper mills, or hydroelectric mills are also really prevalent. You can ask for soy based inks in a lot of instances. So it’s really common. So I would tell brides to ask about it and they’ll be pleasantly surprised. There’s lots out there.

Danielle: So now I’m gonna introduce you to Bryn Chernoff from Paper Finger. She does the most beautiful calligraphy work and we’re gonna talk about how you can introduce calligraphy into your invitations whether it’s to help with the budget or just as another sustainable very cool chic option. Hi.

Bryn: Hi.

Danielle: How are you doing?

Bryn: Good. Thanks for coming.

Danielle: Thank you. Why calligraphy? Were you interested in it specifically because it’s more sustainable or was that just a nice benefit?

Bryn: The two have come together in an inseparable way for me. But I definitely came to calligraphy because I love writing by hand. I don’t pursue any work in my life that doesn’t have an opportunity for some kind of social or environmental good. It just feels like why wouldn’t you if there’s a way to connect the two?

Danielle: Absolutely.

Bryn: I really try to look for new ways to support the environment or work on green wedding projects if I can.

Danielle: So speaking to that point of sustainability, what are different things that you can do, different choices you can make within your calligraphy to make it even more eco-friendly?

Bryn: Well, for one, I made an official switch to using nibs which are all reusable along with the reusable pen base and not disposing of anything. There’s no plastic cartridges. There’s really no waste. I can work with inks that use natural pigments or non-toxic inks like India ink or [indistinct] ink. And those I just feel comfortable knowing that they’re not going off into the landfills to release any toxins into the earth.

Danielle: So what about budget? Does calligraphy necessarily mean that they’re going to be taking on a whole added expense? Or are there ways by introducing calligraphy that you can actually save some money?

Bryn: Sure. Well, I think within the spectrum of all the things that people spend money on during weddings, calligraphy is actually probably one of the least expensive parts. And I’m doing a lot more of these return address stamps that are custom written for the couple and then they don’t have to pay a printer or a calligrapher to write all the return addresses.

Danielle: Thank you so much. This is so helpful and these designs are so inspiring. It opens up a whole new world, I think.