Weddings for a Cause
When I decided to take the wedding vendor plunge I knew two things for sure – I wanted to provide couples with the best possible ceremony experience and I wanted to do so while supporting causes about which I am passionate. I give 10% of all my ceremony fees to organizations making a difference in Seattle and across the country and I ask my couples to choose the recipient from a list of 16 organizations (check out my pricing page for more info).
The great news? I’m not the only one doing something like this. There are tons of wedding vendors who can help your wedding make an impact through non-profit partnerships, donations, and more. I’ve compiled a non-exhaustive list below of mostly Seattle-area venues, vendors, and stores that give back. Know of a local vendor who should be on this list? Email me and let me know so I can add them!
No commissions/partnerships here - just a list for couples who think like I do :).
Dresses
Brides for a Cause (Seattle, Tacoma, Portland, and Sacramento): Brides for a Cause collects and resells wedding dresses while donating proceeds to local and national nonprofits focused on women’s issues. They’ve recycled over 25,000 wedding dresses and raised over $1.4 million since 2012. Consider shopping for your dress (by appointment only!) and/or donating your dress after your big day.
Loulette Bride (based in Brooklyn, available in retailers in 13 states + Japan/Australia): Founded by two friends who wanted to create a sustainable, mission-driven bridal wear company, Loulette plants a tree for every dress sold and donates a portion of sales to a different nonprofit each season. They’re also committed to sustainability in both production and shipping, launched a mentorship program for students of color, and create made-to-order dresses for customers of all sizes.
Venues
Cathedral (Seattle): Located in the heart of Ballard, Cathedral is the only venue in the city donating 100% of profit to charity. With a beautiful space that includes a full kitchen and capacity for 120 seated/170 standing, Cathedral provides clients with a list of preferred charities to choose from (though you can also choose your own!).
Caterers
FareStart (Seattle): FareStart counts as both a caterer and a venue, but the pandemic has meant some changes to their offerings so make sure to check their website for updates. They’re a nonprofit dedicated to providing work and life skills to help people succeed, fighting joblessness, poverty, and hunger in the Seattle area and across the country.
Project Feast (Kent): Project Feast empowers refugees and immigrant cooks through a culinary skills apprentice program and culturally-appropriate community meals. Their catering wing brings recipes developed by their students and staff to your event and gives their culinary apprenticeship program participants invaluable hands-on experience.
Conscious Eatery (Seattle): For every meal purchased at Conscious Eatery, a meal is donated to a local nonprofit fighting hunger and aiding families suffering from homelessness. To date they’ve donated over 80,000 meals through local partners like the White Center Food Bank and Roots Young Adult Shelter.
Photography
Virdi Studios (Seattle): Rubal offers both wedding and portrait packages with 10% of proceeds going to nonprofits.
Jewelry
Baraka Gems (Seattle): Not only does Baraka Gems create stunning, unique pieces, but a portion of every purchase is donated through their nonprofit sister organization (A Ring of Hope) dedicated to supporting orphaned children worldwide. You can read more about Baraka’s impact on their site. On a personal note, I’ve gone to Baraka for my own repairs and have found Jamie and his team to be meticulous and incredibly talented.
MiaDonna (Portland): MiaDonna only offers lab-grown diamonds and gemstones, ensuring that your ring is conflict-free and ethically sourced. They also donate at least 10% of their annual profits to “rebuild and repair the land and lives damaged by the conflict-mining industry” and plant one tree for every order.
Invitations/Thank You Cards
Greenvelope (Seattle): With the advent of wedding websites and online RSVP tracking, more and more couples are opting to go paper-free when it comes to invitations. Greenvelope offers tons of save the date and invitation designs and their services include email address validation, centralized guest messaging, and more. On top of already doing good by saving paper, using Greenvelope supports stationery designers and freelance artists.
Cards for Causes: A great option if you want to stick with traditional paper thank you cards for your guests while still giving back - 20% of each purchase goes to charity with over $1.8 million donated as of June 2022. You can choose from their list of organizations or submit your own.
Florals
Petals for Hope: You’ve purchased beautiful, fresh flowers and don’t know what to do with them at the end of the night - enter Petals for Hope. They’ll send a team to remove your flowers and greenery at the end of the night and will work to repurpose them into bouquets that can be delivered to a charity of your choice or one of their pre-vetted locations such as hospitals, mental health facilities, and homeless shelters. They’ll compost anything they can’t use! Their fees are based on event size and are fully tax-deductible.
Registries
One of the easiest ways to make an impact through your wedding is a giving registry. You can offer this option in addition to or in lieu of a traditional or honeymoon fund registry, giving your guests the option to donate to a cause of your choice in your name.
SoKind Registry allows you to ask your guests for nontraditional gifts including donations (both monetary and in-kind).
The Good Beginning lets you choose up to 3 charities and will disburse any money raised equally between your choices.
The Knot also offers The Knot Gifts Back which allows you to pair a traditional registry with giving - you choose a cause from their list and 3% of all qualifying gifts purchased from your registry will be donated to that cause without any additional payment from your guests.