Just an FYI – I’ll be missing in action until Friday. I actually have a wedding to attend a day from now (on top of an already busy work week) and no dress. And yes, while naked is eco-friendly I hardly think that would make for nice wedding pictures. Hence me taking time off to finish up some other work and find a dress.

I’ll be back with something wonderful and green on Friday but until then here are some pretty little eco-friendly wedding items you might enjoy. Oh, and I know, the chocolate is not OH SO pretty, but I’ve been having crazy chocolate cravings so…

1. Heart Filigree Turquoise Sea Glass Locket Necklace
2. Plantable Bird Tags
3. Organic lavender & rosebud favor sachets
4. DIY wheat & roses bouquet
5. Belov(ed) – lovely vintage hair pin set
6. Organic and Fair Trade chocolate lip balm favors

If you’re looking for a green wedding favor that leaves a very tiny footprint take a look at the adorable and useful Heart Organic Bird Seed Favors from 2 Birds In Love.

Each pretty little favor is handmade to order with locally grown organic wild bird seed and personalized with hemp or satin ribbon color of your choice. There are also some amazing new graphic design tags available for FREE with an order of 100+ favors. Orders under 100 may purchase tags for $.08/each.

Favors are reasonably priced and since the birds will gobble them up these favors leave almost no waste. Favors are also available in a cute monogram design, but I like the hearts best I think. Very sweet. Visit 2 Birds In Love to see all the great favor options.

Springerle cookies are just about the prettiest cookies you can have at a wedding with their delicate look and ability to fit any theme. They look great on a table, sweet in treat bags, and can be made organically. My favorite Springerle cookies as of late, are the simple, but oh so delightful Springerle cookies I found at Country Living.

These are pretty simple in design so far as Springerle cookies go but I think that’s part of their charm. I can’t get over how sweet the coloring is. To make these cookies, basic floured rubber stamps were used and then they were colored delicately with luster dust. I love that they look like tiny watercolor paintings. You could easily use this recipe to fit the theme of a nature wedding, sticking to flower and leaf stamps or use your initials. Note, you’ll want to switch out the conventional ingredients for organic.

Springerle have been a traditional Christmas cookie in Bavaria and Austria for centuries. The cookies are made with a simple egg-flour-sugar dough and have designs stamped on with a special rolling pin, mold, or press. Designs can be enhanced after baking with edible food colors. Springerle cookies are typically flavored with anise, but you can also branch out to other flavors (not everyone is a fan of anise). Lemon, raspberry, or almond are all nice flavors for a wedding.

You can buy organic lavender heart token or rose flavored Springerle cookies (shown above – too pretty!) at The Occasional Cake or browse the resources below for more DIY info and other places to find these pretty cookies.

Springerle cookie resources:

• To learn more about the history of Springerle cookies visit What’s Cooking America.
• How to make non-sticky Springerle cookies in the summer.
• House on the Hill has a wide array of Springerle cookie molds, including an entire wedding section.
• Queen City Cookies has some amazingly gorgeous gourmet Springerle cookies available for weddings and use organics when possible.
• Lemon Springerle recipe
• Vignette Springerle Mold
• Floral-Motif Springerle Cookie Mold
• British Isles Springerle Kit

The super talented and crafty Jeanne Winters made this sweet little pyramid box for her hubs on Valentine’s day, but it would also make a fantastic small wedding favor box, wedding card, or wedding table place marker.

Winters’ notes that it was really easy to make with a simple template. You could hand write the words or a phrase of your choosing on the box or use the computer to print out some text. These are also made so that you can tuck a little gift or other treasure neatly away inside.

A beautiful idea and one you could easily use recycled paper and scrap paper for. In fact this would be a cool project to do with leftover wall paper samples you can get at places like Home Depot.

Visit Jeanne Winters for many more awesome DIY projects – you won’t believe your eyes.

Sorry I’ve been absent. Some freaks broke into my car during the last week of November, which put me behind being as I had to fix my windows (they broke two) get a new cell phone (they took it) and more. And right now the holidays have been throwing me for a loop. But I’m back now and have a nice review for you.

I first tried a Vanilla Pear Silky Soy Moisture Bar this summer, then later got the chance to try some new scents and pretty much love them all. I think these eco-friendly bars would make a wonderful and unique green wedding favor.

PRODUCT: Silky Soy Moisture Bar from Evergreen Candleworks

USE: You use these bars as a wonderful moisturizing treatment. Rub the bar into your skin to help moisturize dry areas.

INGREDIENTS: The wax is 100% vegetable, guaranteed! There are no beeswax or petroleum products hidden in it. The wax is FREE of pesticides, herbicides and Genetically Modified Material. Linda, Evergreen owner notes that the soy wax they use is made from organically grown soy beans and the fragrances are all natural plant oils.

COST: $12.00 for one 3 fluid oz bar.

ECO PERKS:

• 100% natural soybeans used in products and then enhanced with botanical oils.
• Soy biodegradable and 100% vegetable; no beeswax or petroleum products hidden in it.
• Their soy is free of pesticides, herbicides and Genetically Modified Material.
• The company uses 100 % wind power to make their candles, so I’m guessing the same for these lotion bars.
• Company recycling program in place.
• Recyclable packaging used for products.
• Containers for soy candles and soy lotion bars are washable (soy wax cleans out easily, unlike paraffin wax) and totally reusable.

Scents I’ve tried:

• Soft Amber
• Vanilla Pear
• Citrus Basil
• Brown Sugar & Fig
• Wildflower

The company sent me a special sample of a Patchouli, Sandlewood, & Amber bar, that’s not yet available for retail, but it smelled divine – not all hippish but sexy and clean. They also have a Vanilla scented bar which I haven’t tried in the soy lotion bar, but I did have a vanilla candle from the company and it smells delicious.

WHAT I THINK:

I love, love, love these silky soy bars. I rarely like lotion bars because they’re time consuming to use, don’t seep into your skin, and can leave a mark on your clothing. These bars rock though. You rub the bar over your body – or better break off a small piece, warm it in your hand then rub that on your body. Easy. The lotion bar melts into your skin and soothes the even the most dry skin.

The scents are amazing. Citrus Basil is so great. It smells clean and fresh and natural. The Vanilla Pear smells juicy and fresh, and the Amber and Brown Sugar scents are subtle but sensual. Wildflower, to me, smells like roses, which normally I hate. Rose scented stuff is ALWAYS too strong and “rosy” but the Wildflower bar is softly scented and clean like fresh cut roses, not fake perfume flowers. I test drove Wildflower on another friend who also hates rose scented stuff and she loved it too.

The scents linger but do not overpower at all. My boyfriend thinks they all smell yummy and sniffs me all day when I use these bars. He especially likes the Amber and Vanilla Pear.

I also like that these bars work on wet or dry skin and that you don’t need to reapply. Unlike lotion, these bars make your skin feel soft all day long – clear to your next shower. Lastly, the bars are long lasting. One bar should be enough for a month or so if you use it daily. This bar is not sticky doesn’t leave any residue on your skin or clothing.

I also like the fact that the container is reusable and pretty. It’s basic (silver colored) and the labels come off easily with some water, so you can reuse it. It’s the perfect size for beads, rings, or other small items. If you gave these as wedding favors it’s a perfectly reusable gift. When I got a solo bar from the company, the packaging it came in was beautiful – a nice little bag – (prefect for gift giving) and recyclable.

Any cons?

• This bar picks up lint like a fiend. All lotion bars do this. In this case it still works great, but just doesn’t look as pretty.
• The scents are strong at first. I actually don’t think these bars are overly scented, but I also really like scented items. If you’re the type who likes very lightly scented items, these bars may not be for you. T wouldn’t say this is a con, but a preference issue.
• The packaging and website don’t share full ingredients. Also the first time I reviewed these I had no idea that the soy was organic, because the packaging and website don’t make this clear. The owner emailed me later and noted that yup they do use organically grown soy, but it’d be nice to see some info about this elsewhere for consumers.

Overall score:

5 out of 5 pretty little trees! While I don’t like that the company doesn’t list their product ingredients in full at their website, they do disclose if you speak to them, the bars work like magic to sooth dry skin and they smell like a dream, no matter which scent you try. The packaging is beautiful and reusable and ALL my friends who tried these loved them, and seriously wanted to steal them from me.

I almost never give a score of five to anything I review, but these bars are amazing and I highly recommend them. If you did use these as wedding favors the price point is a little higher than some other favors, but in my opinion, they’re worth it. Your guests will walk away with a eco-friendly, reusable product that they’ll adore. See Silky Soy Moisture Bars at Evergreen Candleworks for more info or to buy.

See my green product rating system and green product rating criteria.

Gingerbread Sweets has the most adorable little gingerbread cakes – perfect for a green Christmas wedding.

gingerbread love hearts

These little cakes are baked fresh to order and each one is decorated by hand. Gingerbread Sweets uses high quality natural ingredients like organic pure set honey, organic eggs, flour and spices for their cakes. They can also do custom orders – which is awesome; you could get little initials or any other design that might go well with your chosen green wedding theme.

The best thing about edible wedding gifts and treats is that they’re gone. They leave no footprint or trash. If you’re packing these little cakes up as a wedding favor, you could use compostable containers as well; which aren’t perfect, but better than plastic baggies.

+ Gingerbread Sweets

The WishFrame is a perfectly sweet and memorable way to capture the thoughts, dreams, and wishes of your wedding guests at your green wedding.

The WishFrame made by the always delightful Cardboardesign, is a cardboard frame with tons of tiny honeycomb pockets for holding wishes. Guests can write on the included tiny slips of paper and then slip them into the honeycomb pockets for not only a dazzling affect (very Light Bright like) but a super keen way to capture memories from your special day.

After the wedding the WishFrame is an enchanting eco-friendly home keepsake of your wedding. WishFrame is crafted in the USA with chemical-free, bleach-free, recycled and recyclable fibers. An also eco-friendly WishChest holding 500 colored leafs of paper is included. For a wedding with LOTS of people there’s also a WishWall – much larger than the WishFrame, and very cool.

Today a product review of Scandle Candles for you – this could make a great wedding shower favor and it’d be excellent as a honeymoon gift.

PRODUCT: Scandle Essentials 4oz Travel Tin in Uplifting Blend – Pink grapefruit & spearmint essential oils create the uplifting blend – this Scandle comes in a square lightweight travel tin for easy application.

INGREDIENTS: According to Scandle, these candles are “Made from 100% natural ingredients” – the label on the candle says “This product contains soy and other nut products, if you are allergic to these products, please do not use. (May contain soy butter, shea butter, aloe vera, jojoba oil, and fragrance or essential oils).”

USE: The Scandle Candle burns at 2 degrees above body temperature to produce a soothing oil for massage, manicures, pedicures, or as a daily moisturizer. Or of course, you can use it as purely a candle to light up your space. (including soy), The Scandle emits less soot and toxins into the environment than traditional paraffin candles. Scandles feature refillable/reusable canisters and sustainable packaging options. Burn time 15-30 hours.

COST: $12.95

ECO-PERKS & OTHER GOOD STUFF:

• Soy is an eco-friendly candle option when compared to paraffin candles, emitting less soot and toxins. They’re not 100% safer if you have allergies or are sick, but way better than wax candles. Soy is also biodegradable.
• I think they’re made with fairly natural ingredients, but if you look below in cons, you’ll see that I can’t 100% guarantee it. They don’t smell fake though, they smell as if they were scented with essential oils vs a fake fragrance.
• Feel great on your body. You can pour or dip into the candle and use it for massage, cuticle rub, or to smooth dry skin. Not oily or too hot on your skin, and the scent is subtle, not obnoxious. I also like the scent that fills your room when you burn this candle – very nice and yes, uplifting as the product notes.
• VERY long lasting. I’ve burned and burned this candle and it just keeps going and going.
• The candles are multi-use and long lasting.
• Candles come in great little reusable tins that can be used for any number of small objects; rings, beads, etc. If you buy their larger candles they offer refills which is excellent and saves on packaging.
• 100% Vegan.
• Cruelty free – member of PETA’s Caring Consumer Program.
• Zero petroleum or mineral oils added.

PRODUCT CONS:

The ingredient listings are sketchy. The website does not list a full ingredient list and neither does the packaging. Some terms used to explain the ingredients at the website include…

• Scandles are made with FDA approved ingredients.
• Hypo-Allergenic.
• Cosmetic grade soy oil.
• Those allergic to nut based products should not use Scandle, because the Scandle contains soy, jojoba, and shea oils.
• And as noted above my packaging says, “May contain soy butter, shea butter, aloe vera, jojoba oil, and fragrance or essential oils.”

So basically, I’m not sure what exactly is in this candle. It’d be easy to include an actual ingredient list and I wish the company  would have. I was able to find more info when I looked up the fragrance mixes, because it noted that my blend is pink grapefruit & spearmint essential oils.

According to Skin Deep, this company has not signed the Compact for Safe Cosmetics and there’s no info on their product ingredients listed there.

Not made with organic soy or organic essential oils as far as I can tell.

OVERALL SCORE:

Three out of five little trees. Because I can’t find a full ingredient list anywhere and because this product is not organic so far as I can tell, it loses some point. The cost is fairly comparable to other soy candle companies; maybe a little less on some products, and I’m guessing you might be able to work out a bulk buy situation with them if you wanted these for a green wedding favor. Overall, I’d recommend Scandle Candles because they smell great and work well as both candles and a moisturizing + massage tool. Plus they have nice reusable containers – a great green choice.

However, if you want a totally green candle, I’d suggest Evergreen Candleworks – an organic soy candle company who also makes a soy massage candle but they use organic soy.

Visit Scandle Candles to learn more.

See my green product rating system and green product rating criteria.

Lush makes fresh beauty and bath products for guys and gals that smell amazing and bonus, I just recently noticed that they carry cool eco-friendly wedding favors as well. These are perfect for a green wedding because the favors are totally biodegradable.

Lush wedding favors consist of your choice of bath bombs in White Wedding, a limited edition bath bomb with a decadent blend of jasmine, rose, ylang ylang and bergamot essential oils and/or the Butterfly bath bomb with the sensual scents of jasmine, larkspur, ylang ylang and everlasting flower.

Each bath bomb is packaged in a biodegradable cello bag with a cute raffia ribbon and custom tag. See custom tag options below. Lush has also improved their green company policies lately.

To learn more visit Lush Weddings.

Most folks have cake for their actual wedding sweet, but the parties leading up to the event are edible flexible. If you’re looking for an easy green treat idea for your green wedding, take a look at the yummy offerings from Beautiful Sweets Organic Bakery such as the Cherry Blossom Trees below…

Beautiful Sweets is an all green bakery – perfect for eco-festivities. They bake their treats fresh then ship them right to you. They use organic ingredients from small sustainable family farms and organic coops that support living wages. They use gorgeous, eco-friendly recyclable gift packaging including post-consumer recycled boxes and organic cotton ribbon. They also guarantee that their cookies will arrive well protected and unbroken.

As for design, they don’t have a specific wedding category of treats but they do have plenty of cookie styles that will fit any wedding shower occasion or you could even have these as an extra treat at the reception OR give them as wedding favors. Some designs that could work for a wedding include…

1. Bride Groom Heart
2. Heart with Names
3. Bridal Dress
4. Bridesmaid Dresses
5. Swans

They also offer a huge array of wedding cake shaped cookies, a cute wedding set, and plenty of leaves and flowers for a more natural green wedding. Cookies come in vanilla, chocolate, or a mix. Visit Beautiful Sweets Organic Bakery to learn more.