Eco-Friendly Wedding Centerpiece

The wedding month is over but some prefer to be wed after the wedding month itself. Like my friend, Tin, who is scheduled to be married on the 28th of this month, never liked the idea of becoming a June bride although his groom wanted her to be one. Instead, she chose the 28th of July, which day coincides their 3rd year since they started dating, as her wedding date. I became part of their wedding preparations as Tin asked my opinion, suggestion and help on what theme and motif suits them, how not to spend so much on decorations and other things which will help them cut their wedding expenses. The couple being advocates of environmental preservation just like me, agreed on an eco-friendly wedding or “green” wedding, as sometimes it is called. With global warming as one of the major problems the world is facing today and the couple being overly concerned at how they can help save our mother earth, they made sure that every detail and aspect of their wedding, from wedding invitations to the centerpieces of the reception tables, is centered on using organic or natural materials. They used handmade paper for their wedding invitations and put it in an envelop made out of pandan leaves and the giveaway to be given to each guest is a weaved wallet made of buri leaves. They commissioned me to make their wedding centerpiece as they have seen one of the eco-friendly wedding centerpieces that I made. A wedding centerpiece adds attraction to the usual decorations in a wedding reception. In many weddings that I have attended, I noticed that most of the centerpieces are costly and imported flowers which I think is just a splurge. Those flowers are usually thrown after the wedding which tantamount to throwing of money. Here’s how to make a very inexpensive mother earth saver wedding centerpiece: Materials Needed: Water Lily stalks or Kangkong stalks – 20 pcs. String or recycled wire A combination of flowers in the backyard or in season String Beans Red, Orange and Yellow Bell Pepper or Siling Labuyo Ferns (choose those that do not wilt easily) Pandan Leaves Twigs, small branches or vines Directions: 1. Cut the water lily pulps or kangkong stalks to at least 6” inches long 2. Bind together the water lily pulps to make a bundle which will serve as the base 3. Insert the twigs or vines to both ends of the bundled water lily 4. Insert the ferns or pandan leaves or any other long or wide leaves 5. Insert the flowers at the center 6. Put the string beans under the flowers 7. Put the bell peppers as an adornment and to give a contrasting color Congratulations in advance to Bryan and Tin!!!!!