Zero Waste Bachelorette Party

When I think bachelorette I think…

• Strippers
• Vomiting
• Girls Kissing Bartenders and other girls?
• Shots, Shots, Shots and LOTS of alcohol
• WASTE (and wasted)

… and so when I was tasked with being the Maid of Honor for my cousin’s wedding, it meant that I had to be involved with planning the bachelorette party. I had a moment of panic (refer to above bullet points) So HTF do you plan a bachelorette party without waste? Here’s how.

I did a few things to ensure that the festivities were sustainable for our beach weekend bachelorette getaway and it basically all came down to planning. The three main topics I will focus on are bridesmaids goodies, food, and alcohol.

Bridesmaids Goodies:

I made bags of zero waste gifts from Package Free Shop for all of the women that were on the trip to ensure that they had all of the sustainable tools that they needed. I included a tote bag filled with:

• Stainless Steel Straws
• Mason Jars
• Plastic Free Sunscreen
• Condoms
• Pain Killers
• Bag to put everything in

I also went around Brooklyn and bought a bunch of secondhand sun hats that I put out on the table and had all of the girls pick their favorites and then they took them home.

For decorations, one of the other bridesmaids made a super cute DIY Instagram Picture Window that is 100% paper and can be recycled and/or composted.

Food:

For food we shopped ahead and got lots of greens and prepared food to cook at home. It is important to compost and recycle to prevent waste. We also went to restaurants that served local and organic food.

Alcohol:

• At the house
  • Focus on alcohol that comes in cans in boxes for beer (they don’t have the plastic rings) and aluminum is very recyclable.
  • If you are going to get wine or champagne, try to look for bottles that have glass corks (they are 100% recyclable) or natural corks (you can recycle them at Whole Foods).
  • Be sure to create a recycling section
• At bars or restaurants:
  • Ask for your cocktails without straws or skewers
  • If you are ordering beer, always opt for draft
  • If the bar only has plastic cups, be sure to bring your mason jar or stainless steel cup with you (the stainless steel cup is also beach friendly for resorts that don’t allow glass)
• For Hangovers 
  • I gave all of the girls little pouches of painkillers that I took from a 100% recyclable bottle.
  • Coffee is King (I buy bulk coffee, but if you are going out for coffee, be sure to have your mason jar)!
  • To get some throw up stains out of sheets or clothing or towels (don’t pretend you haven’t been there) use The Simply Co. to pretreat stains and then wash.

Ultimately, bachelorette parties are absolutely shit-shows so taking a few precautions before the alcohol starts flowing is always a good idea because the parties are always better when you are getting wasted as opposed to making a ton of waste.