How to Plan a Vegan Wedding
Planning a vegan wedding is probably more difficult overall, but definitely easier in Austin where there are so many options. I photographed my first and only vegan wedding last year, Meesh and Chris' wedding at Tillery Place, and it was amazing. The food was great and there were no complaints!
Scroll down to see some photos from their wedding and get 6 tips for planning a vegan wedding.
1. Prioritize. Just like any other wedding, but I think especially with a vegan wedding, it's important to go in knowing what parts of the wedding are most important for you to spend your time, money, and energy on. Maybe getting amazing vegan catering is the most important thing, so you don't need to stress that your venue uses silk tablecloths. Think about what's most important for you, and spend the most there.
2. Give people a head's up. As a former vegetarian married to a vegetarian, a vegan meal is no biggie to me. But for your more carnivorous family members, they might appreciate a head's up so they can eat beforehand if they want. Consider putting your dinner menu on the website or just make a note somewhere on your invitations that the wedding is vegan so it's not a surprise.
3. Find a venue that allows outside catering. This is a big one. If your venue doesn't allow outside caterers, the caterers they do have might not have many or even any vegan options. Make sure you check on this before you put down a nonrefundable deposit on the venue.
4. Ask your favorite vegan restaurant to cater. Some of my favorite Austin options for vegan catering are The Vegan Nom (owned by Chris, who catered his own wedding), Pink Avocado, and The Peached Tortilla. Another option would be to get an Indian or Thai restaurant or to have a few other vegan friends who love to cook help you cater the wedding.
5. Brides: find a silk-free wedding dress. This might be the hardest one of all. Cotton, polyester, and chiffon are all great options to go with instead of silk. If you don't have a problem wearing animal products, you just don't want to purchase them, then you might like to buy or rent a used wedding dress. You can always customize your used dress with a tailor to make it your own! (Bonus points: shopping used or renting makes your wedding even more eco-friendly.)
6. Grooms: find an animal-free suit and tie. The same thing applies here! Find a suit made without silk or wool, and opt for a cotton or polyester tie, too. Renting or going used is always an option for men, too, so explore all your options!
The bottom line is that you want to have a wedding aligned with your beliefs, and with a little planning and creativity, you definitely can! If you're currently planning a wedding, vegan or non-vegan, get in touch here and let's talk about how I can get great photos of all your amazing food (and other things, too).