Eco Bridal: Organic Wedding Dress

From high end couture designs in eco silk, 100% locally grown organic cotton, second hand gowns on auction and DIY, this is a joyfully fun list of all the cool organic wedding gowns there are to choose from! You don't have to compromise your style, elegance or celebration in order to make your day eco friendly - now there are so many great choices out there it will only enhance the beauty & solidify your environmental values. Whether your budget be large or on a shoe string there will be something for you in this list :)- and that is something to celebrate!
1.Designer Rene Geneva makes incredible, show stopper, eco wedding gowns and corsets (as pictured here)- using sustainable materials such as hemp, organic cotton, and eco silk. This is for the high end eco wedding, these ethical bridal dresses can price well into $3,000 range- but holy crap they are awesome!
2. Get Conscious makes extraordinary eco wedding gowns for every genre, from the clean lined strapless (as pictured), to the flowy Marilyn Monroe, Flamingo Dancing, Mermaid, and various other fun designs. Seriously, these dresses have character! Their prices start around $630 and go up well into $2,000 range for their eco couture styles. They also carry bridesmaid & groom gear.
3. Thread Head Creations -Choices! Choices! At Threadhead Creations you can choose from a handful of organic bridal designs already on the rack, or design your own dress, or even work one on one with designer Rai-Lynne to design your very own dream dress. All materials used are sustainable fabrics like hemp/silk blends. These dresses are very affordable (as far as organic weddings go) starting at $475.
4. Isadora has designed a beautiful stylish bamboo wedding gown that is absolutely gorgeous!!! This is for the wedding goddess in you. It runs about $750, which for an all eco wedding gown is pretty reasonable, or rather comparable to a traditionally made gown (aka-sweatshop/bad for the earth).
5. Wholly JO - Custom made eco wedding dress created exactly the way you want it, by someone who lovingly will help you design just the right one for you. Only drawback for gals in the USA is this designer is based in the UK - Prices start around $600. Check out her picture gallery for inspiration! For those in the USA, try Olivia Luca who provides the same personalized service as the UK's Wholly Jo.
6. Gaia Conceptions is an eco designer on Etsy, her organic Wedding dress is made with locally grown and milled organic cotton, this is a simple formal wedding gown that you can have custom designed, starting with this basic example. AWESOME price at only $250!!!
7. RawGanique- Not my favorite store (because they don't always return e-mails from customers and dang their website is cluttered), but they do offer a reasonably priced eco wedding gown for $369, made of fine hemp linen. And for those of you on an eco budget, this is one of the cheapest options on the market.
8. Spiritex - here is an article local to Asheville NC, where our local organic clothing/fabric maker SPIRITEX has added organic, bamboo, hemp and silk wedding gowns & bridesmaid gowns to their collection. Call to order & ask questions (828-254-8949) because their designs are absolutely stunning (see picture at the top with waterfalls of fabric). A must see for the eco-bride!( Green Wedding Gown Guide for Asheville.)
9. Blue Sky Bridal (for wedding accessories) - an eco esty store that carries pretty organic & vintage wedding veils, wraps, and corsets. Prices start as low as $35.

QUICK UPDATES: (July 2008)::: (Found these wedding dress gems on Sprig):::
www.adelewechsler.com - made with certified organic hemp and vegetable dyes.
www.naturalbridals.com - made of silk and sustainable hemp.
www.deborahlindquist.com - vintage lace, sustainable hemp and silk.
www.whitechocolatelabel.com - sustainable and organic materials.
www.consciouselegance.co.uk - hemp, silk and 100% pure unbleached cotton.

NOW for the part I LOVE... this section is the re-wear, second hand, vintage, charity donation, & DIY wedding gowns! Some are so affordable & you can get so creative with, you'll be dizzy with post marital giggles.

1. E-bay - for a crazy amount of used & vintage wedding gowns - sometimes priced as low as $5 ! Whoa that's freaken cheap and totally eco friendly! :) You can have your seamstress transform these old bridal gowns into new one of a kind creations, and leave almost no environmental footprint behind!
2. Brides Against Breast Cancer - This is the place to buy once worn and new donated gowns, and supporting breast cancer awareness ta' boot. They tour the USA with their collection, plus it currently says their online store is "coming soon". That could be now- so check it out :) (http://www.makingmemories.org/)
3. The Frock - Exquisite, stunning, fabulous vintage wedding dresses, that would make a drag queen shed tears! These though are not cheap, running $1,000 and way up. The selection is 16 pages long, and every gown is a complete showstopper.
4. ETSY - This is the place for everything affordable & handmade, making the carbon footprint lighter, and the wedding dress, accessories, and party supplies more intimate. Supporting small businesses who don't use slave labor & mass manufacturing processes will always be the more earth friendly option.
5. DIY - A great way to go would be hire your local seamstress who can wip up your pretty dream dress from a picture or pattern (look for vintage patterns on e-bay and at local thrift stores), and purchase the organic fabric online from a store like Near Sea Naturals - who sells swatches and samples so you feel it before you decide what you want.
Also look to Crafting A Green World, for a long list of fabulous eco fabric stores online. The types of fabric with the most traditional look and feel would be hemp/silk blends, tencel or eco silk.
Learn about how beautiful upcycling old clothing can be here. Try Amour Sans Anguish for inspiration!
Now go get yourself a saucy eco gown and get married!!! :)

PS- for some eco friendly party supplies try www.ecoparti.com , which carries earth friendly wedding favors including soy candles, natural soaps, and seed favors. They also offer tossing cones, baskets, freeze dried rose petals and biodegradable ecofetti!