“I don’t think we could have chosen a better venue to show off what we do at Nature’s Larder.  The thing is we didn’t choose it, Kate and Katie did!

Birmingham Botanical Gardens is a magical place which has an air of being lost in time…… a time when creating gardens and growing plants was at the forefront of all that was British.  If you stepped inside one of their lovely function rooms on Sunday 8 March you would have come across what it is beginning to mean to be British in the 21st century.   Katie (Ethical Weddings) and Kate (Greenfinder) are carving out a better way to get married.   It is better because it gives considerable thought to the carbon footprint an event such as a wedding can create.

Nature's Larder at the Eco Chic Wedding & Home Show

With all this in the mix Nature’s Larder just wanted to join in! We knew as soon as we arrived that it was going to be a good day.   At Nature’s Larder we grow and dry herbs and cut flowers and then make them into crafts which are perfect as wedding favours.

We only ever use re-worked or remnant fabric.  We also make soy candles using wax made from soya beans and hemp wicks.  We dress our candles to blend in with the style of the day.   Finally, we create natural finishing touches using dried rose buds and our own farm herbs.

Nature's Larder - eco wedding favours

We have a theory.  Plants, particularly flowers, create their own atmosphere and people absorb that atmosphere.  The plants at Birmingham Botanical Gardens were leaning towards the light and releasing their fragrant aromas as we all made our way to the room to set up.  This wonderful atmosphere lasted all day and swept its way around and through the many visitors that this event attracted.

It felt very good to be part of this event.  It felt that we were helping to make a difference to people’s thinking about their day.   Kate and Katie did a wonderful job and I just know that they have created a firm band of happy followers….where next girls?!”

Fiona Doubleday & Sarah Cartwright
Nature’s Larder

First up, we have the lovely Sue from Forever, who also gave an interesting and informative talk and demonstration on the day. Over to Sue…

What a fantastic day we all had at the first Eco Chic Wedding & Home Show. I was amazed that around 80% of the people that I spoke to had never heard of Forever, which considering we have been the world leader in our field for just over 30 years made me realise the importance of such events.  Those who had used our products before couldn’t speak highly enough of them and it’s always great to hear those testimonials.

For me it was important to raise people’s awareness not only of the skincare aspect of Aloe Vera, with which most people are vaguely familiar, but of the power of our unique stabilization process which allows the Aloe to penetrate to cellular level and work from the inside out.

Get healthy with Aloe Vera

Most people were blown away to learn about the health benefits of drinking our Stabilised Aloe Vera Gel, both from a nutritional and wellbeing point of view, and in terms of the quite serious health challenges that can improve through the regular ingestion of our unique gel.  I know that many people from that day are going to go on and have a better quality of life as a result, which is one of the best bits of my business.

For those of us that believe and have a passion for what we do, events such as this that Kate and Katie organised are a great platform to meet likeminded people and to really make a difference.

My business is very much about word-of-mouth recommendations which are so powerful, but given the number of enquiries I received on the day about online ordering I have created a shop so that anyone wishing to place orders online can now do so at www.foreveraloeshop.net

Thanks again for such a great day and I can’t wait for future shows.
Well done Ladies.

Sue Edgar
Independent Distributor

See some photos from the day.

What made the Show was the great range of exhibitors who came along and of course the busy buzz of visitors perusing the gorgeous goodies on display, asking lots of questions about their ethical credentials – quite right too!

Fashion dahhling!

Two fabulous fashion shows went off in sustainable style featuring Dirty Pretty’s range of upcycled items, Motasem’s re-wearable wedding gown / cocktail dress range, gorgeous gowns from Worn Once with Love (that were snapped up quick smart by beady-eyed brides after the show) and the stunning eco gown, ‘Remnanta’ by Julie Dutton, created especially for the Show from scraps of fabric in her studio.

Our models were also thrilled to get the chance to wear delightfully delicate tiaras from exhibitors Papillon, Anna Clifton Jewellery and The Scarlet Room.

Talks & practical sessions

We enjoyed two beauty sessions courtesy of Sue at Forever Living Products and Melanie from The Body Shop at Home (see exhibitor list for details).  Both left at least some of the audience with smoother skin than they came with!

Meanwhile, Jen Marsden, author of the Green Guide for Weddings gave a talk that covered all the bases on green wedding planning – from options for ethical wedding dresses to the type of confetti to throw at the newlyweds.

Get £2 off the Green Guide for Weddings until 30 April 2009. Just quote GGW09 when ordering online.

Eco hamper competition

The winner of our wonderful Eco Hamper was Ellie Kendall - and our thanks go to all those who contributed to the hamper:

Angel Scent

The Body Shop at Home

EcoEscape

Eden & Home

Green Guide for Weddings

Nature’s Larder

WomPom Cards

Our thanks also to Wonderfully Relaxed and Angel Scent who provided pamper sessions as prizes for our Show competition, and to Eco My Party for the pretty decorations that fitted perfectly with the venue’s colour scheme.

More thank yous

Finally, we would just like to say a big thank you to the Birmingham Botanical Gardens for providing a fantastic venue, to our amazing volunteer models and helpers, to all our exhibitors who made the show such a success and to all the couples who made the effort to come and see what they had to offer.

We hope to see you all again next year! Watch this space…

Katie & Kate
Organisers of the Eco Chic Wedding & Home Show

So Julie, how did the eco gown come about?
Unlike my usual commission work, I set about making this gown using a pile of fabric in the studio. There are scraps of silks, chiffon and beautiful marocain for the bodice form and tulle for layers of skirt. I find it easy to be inspired by a collection of leftovers, I hate throwing anything away!

So a truly Cinderella dress takes shape. It’s the enchantment of rags to riches. Cinderella tended a hearth until “the dress and shoes” served to transform her into a beauty fit for a prince’s gaze.

How is the dress different from the usual wedding gown?
In this dress you can see the torn scraps giving an instant vitality. The dress seems to be enjoying its remnants for the thought of what previously existed. The idea of trashing the wedding dress, of making the perfect become imperfect is sewn into the very embellishment of this design.

And let us not forget the allure of undress. Cinderella’s working party has reversed and exposed and stripped, bringing the dressmaker’s secrets to the surface and allowing the luxury beneath the creation to be apparent.

Recycling, the concept that worthy constituents of one creation become elements of a newer one, was there in the fairytale and can work in any handmade 21st century bridal gown.

Do you have any plans to re-produce this design?
I have sourced a selection of organic silks that this style could be repeated in. I will seek to advise my future clients of the value of an organic silk dress and the unique style that can evolve when using interesting remnants or even restyling vintage pieces.

Thank you, Julie. The Eco Gown “Remnanta” can be viewed at Julie Dutton’s stand at the Eco Chic Wedding & Home Show on Sunday. It will also be modelled in the two fashion shows at 12.30pm and 3pm.

If you have a green wedding query that you would like Jen to answer, please enter it in the comment box below or email katie [at] ethicalweddings.com by this Thursday 5 March.

Jen will do her best to answer as many of your questions as possible on the day and we will then post her answers here after the Show.

Hopefully we’ll get to meet many of you at the Show on Sunday!

Katie & Kate

Ethical Weddings & GreenFinder

Organisers of the Eco Chic Wedding & Home Show

There’s Anna Clifton‘s creative ‘reuse and recycle’ jewellery and hair accessories, wedding directory The Natural Wedding Company, and Light on Life who craft really personal ceremonies that will stay with you for a lifetime.

Then we’ve got eco stationery guru, cherrygorgeous, the wacky Cosy Bike (I can’t explain – check it out on the exhibitors page!), The Scarlet Room – where you’ll find handmade wedding tiaras and reworked vintage jewellery, and Bubble and Balm‘s scrummy natural skincare products.

Read all about them on our Eco Chic Wedding and Home Show Exhibitors page.

Not long now!

Katie x

All of the the cupcakes created by the West Bromwich based company are individually handmade using good old fashioned baking techniques and use fair-trade, free range and local quality ingredients. The end result being scrummy and ethically positive cupcakes.

Being partial to a bit of tea and cake myself I’ve already been eyeing up the flavours on offer and urge anyone with a sweet tooth to do the same.

See you on the terrace!

Kate x

GreenFinder

Watch this space for more green giggles!
Kate x

For more Jurdy Green cartoons please visit the Jurdy Green website

But at least we’ve started! So we’re very happy to point you in the direction of our now updated Eco Chic Wedding & Home Show Exhibitors page where you can read all about:

• Ochre & Ocre‘s natural and organic homewares
• Papillon‘s contemporary ethical beaded jewellery range
• Arran Trading Post‘s fairly traded crafts and homewares
• Wompom Cards‘ recycled wedding stationery
• Chocolate Couture‘s ethical engagement rings and wedding bands
• Hapibean Soy Candles‘ sustainably sourced 100% soy candles (does what it says on the tin!)

Keep checking back or add us to your RSS feed to get the latest on who’s coming to the show!

Take care,

Katie x