Sustainability
Traditional Wedding Industry
the
A wedding is a beautiful ritual designed to celebrate love and new beginnings. However, there is a major downside behind the scenes of many of these festivities: most weddings have a negative impact on our planet. One source estimates that
the average wedding produces between 400 and 600 lbs of waste. Between
single-use plastic plates and cutlery, excessive packaging and shipping of
decor items that will be used once then thrown away, carbon emissions
from travel, food waste, favors that guests will never use, hair and makeup
products with toxins, and the many other ways that waste is created, it
can be overwhelming for a newly engaged couple to know how
to minimize their impact and reduce the environmental harm
created by their celebrations. This is where we come in.
How We Are Different
At Dream Catcher Weddings, we believe that protecting the finite resources that this planet has so graciously shared with us is immensely important, in order to pass her gifts on to future generations. We are committed to providing services that honor the earth without sacrificing the authenticity of each couple's experience. We are constantly researching and implementing new methods of sustainability in order to reduce waste and minimize our carbon footprint. We never pressure our couples into anything that they don't feel comfortable with. We simply offer earth-mindful options and allow each couple to make those decisions for themselves.
Our Mission Statement
Capturing each couple's love story
through authentic celebrations
while mindfully cultivating a community
that cherishes our sacred planet.
Our
Core Values
Sustainability
We inspire and empower the wedding community
to shift toward a new normal of sustainability.
We practice creative ways of giving back and becoming better
citizens of the Earth.
creativity
We create
a safe space
for dreaming big.
We design weddings
that celebrate the uniqueness of
every love story.
inclusivity
We treat all people with dignity and respect, regardless of race,
gender, sexuality, or ability. We actively work
towards justice for
the Earth and
all her inhabitants.
excellence
We work to create
the best wedding
planning experience.
We never stop growing, learning, innovating,
and creating beauty.
Sustainable Business Practices
A taste of our ever-evolving
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We suggest eco-friendly alternatives for invites, gifts, décor, tableware, menu options, and food waste.
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We offer low-cost rentals of commonly used wedding décor.
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We opt to do business digitally as often as possible, in order to reduce our paper waste. When we do have to print something, we use recycled paper.
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We repurpose wedding florals, giving them a second life bringing joy to the faces of the elderly in a local nursing home.
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We purchase carbon credits through Colorado Carbon Fund to offset all of the carbon produced by our team’s travels each year.
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We offer composting and recycling services at every wedding, diverting hundreds of pounds of waste from landfills at each event.
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We work to eliminate single-use plastics and other wasteful items from our workspace and weddings.
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We create partnerships with and recommend wedding professionals that are committed to sustainability.
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We create free online resources so that anyone can come to us to learn how to make their wedding, or wedding business, more sustainable. We write in-depth blog posts and manage a Facebook group dedicated to conversations around sustainability in weddings.
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We donate 1% of our gross sales to One Tree Planted, a nonprofit organization committed to global reforestation.
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We create a company culture that encourages each employee to incorporate green practices into their daily lives, including composting, recycling and activism.
Giving Decor
a Second Life
One of our sustainability practices is repurposing wedding decorations. We receive donations of lightly used decor and allow our couples to access this inventory for their own weddings. Whether you are a Dream Catcher bride, or just an earth-lover looking to make sure their wedding decorations bring beauty to many more celebrations to come, we welcome your donation of gently-used, generic (non-customized) decor! To donate, click the button below and let us know what items you'd like us to take off your hands.
Trees Planted
1500 and counting!
When you work with Dream Catcher, you give back to our planet! We donate 1% of net sales to One Tree Planted, a non-profit organization dedicated to global reforestation. Click the icon above to learn how their work is restoring global ecosystems.