Hello there MarryThis friends! I am Mellissa, and I blog at de Lovely Affair. I was so excited when Allison asked me to write a guest post for the Charity Favors Series, and today, we are going green with a fabulous charity donation idea AND a super easy DIY project for you crafty, budget brides.
A green wedding isn’t just about going cheap; it’s about making smart, value based purchases for everything from invitations to your dress. NOT purchasing packaged, shipped, and then tossed wedding favors, is good for the planet and your wedding budget. There are so many green DIY options for a green bride but by far my favorite is donating to an eco-friendly charity close to your heart.
via The Costa Rica News
A perfect green cause for eco-conscious couples: preserving the Amazon Rainforest. Why? The Atlantic Forest region of this vast Amazon Rainforest was once a thriving habitat covering nearly 330 million acres. Now only 7% remains due to urban expansion, industrial development, agriculture, and illegal logging. It’s home to thousands of animals and plant life, some found nowhere else on Earth.This fragile, diverse, and lifegiving biosphere is worth saving for future generations. The Nature Conservancy has a fabulous program to help protect this beautiful rainforest with their Plant A BillionTrees Campaign. You can donate 50 trees for just $50 – a small price to pay.
Green charity favors are an excellent option for eco-conscious couples who want to make a difference with their dollars and give something a little more meaningful than Jordan almonds. And as with every MarryThis charity favor, we can’t have guests going home empty handed. So I have put together a super easy tutorial for Plantable Wildflower Paper. What better way to help the environment than to grow something beautiful?
Plantable Wildflower Paper
Plantable paper is made using paper pulp and seeds! Pretty simple. This is an easy paper making project, perfect for a DIY bride on a budget – no fancy equipment necessary. The end result is beautiful textured paper with a rustic feel, adding handmade charm to your plantable paper wedding favor. {All project photos via de Lovely Affair}
Here’s what you’ll need:
- Paper to make pulp – recycled junk mail, card stock, toilet paper roll – no glossy paper
- Wild Flower Seeds (small seeds are best)
- Mixing bowl
- Blender
- Wire hand strainer
- Cookie pan
- Towels or cloths
- Cookie cutters to make shapes (optional)
- Plastic wrap or parchment paper
Note: This is a messy and wet process therefore it is best to work on a well-protected surface.
Instructions:
1. Tear the paper into small pieces and toss them into a blender. Add warm water to cover the mixture and blend away. Make sure the pulp is really smooth.
2. Pour pulpy mixture through the wire hand strainer and squeeze out the excess water. All lumps should be removed at this stage and the paper pulp should be well mixed. Note: Squeezing out TOO much water will make the mixture too lumpy and hard to form.
3. Mix a handful of seeds and paper pulp in a bowl. The amount of seeds required will depend on the type of seeds used and the finished effect that you are looking for. Mix the seeds well using your hands or a spoon. Do not use the hand blender otherwise you’ll damage the seeds.
4. Grab your cookie sheet and your mold – a cookie or biscuit cutter, which I used. Press the seeded pulp into the mold, making sure that it is even on all sides. Make sure it’s not to thick or it will take longer to dry. Use a towel to press as much water as possible from the paper pulp.
5. Drying the seed paper quickly is essential, otherwise the seeds will start to grow! Placing the seed paper in a warm (but not hot) environment and ensuring that air can circulate around it is the best way to dry the paper quickly. Blowing the seed paper with a hair dryer on a cool setting will also help. Make sure the paper favor is completely dry before embellishing. Store on plastic wrap or parchment paper. Craft it up and you’re done!
Budget Breakdown:
The seeds and embellishments were the only things that cost any money for this project.
- Paper: Free, unless you want specific color paper. I made 10 seed discs and used three 8×10 sheets of paper. If you want to make thicker discs, add one more sheet.
- Cookie cutter: Grab one at the Dollar Store if you don’t have one. I like the idea of a heart shape.
- Embellishments: I used products I already had. I grabbed them at Michael’s for $1
- Seeds: Sometimes you can find big seed packets for very cheap at the Dollar Store. Any other garden store will have a mixed packet for around $5-$6.
Grand total per favor: Less than $1 each
Once I got it all figured out, it went very quickly. Less than an hour for my ten discs, but I would say this is an all day, grab your bridesmaids sort of project.
I also put together a printable tag for this project available for download over at de Lovely Affair.
Hope you’ve enjoyed this charity favor! As always, we’d love to see your projects come to life, so send your fabulous wedding favor photos to allison@marrythis.com.
Happy Crafting,
Mellissa
Mellissa de Oliveira is the creator and editor of de Lovely Affair, a practical wedding resource for modern multicultural couples. The blog blends world traditions and international “I Do’s,” practical planning and DIY projects with a good dose of humor, gorgeous photography and, of course, real weddings.
