Green is the new Black - Go Green on your big day.

Green is the new black.

Many brides, especially in Southern California, are going green on their big day. Here are the top 10 ways that you can help out the environment and still be elegant.

10. Do you have a flower girl? Have her throw eco-friendly silk rose petals that can be used again, and again, and again.

9. Use 100% recycled paper invitations. There are these options out there; you just have to ask for them.

8. Recycle all of your bottles of bubbly. Work with your site venue to make sure all your beverage containers get recycled.

7. Go organic when it comes to your menu. The organic option is very popular these days; select a vendor that will accommodate your request.

6. Use an eco-friendly dry cleaner to professionally dry clean and preserve your dress. Don’t pollute the environment and your dress with chemicals.

5. Donate the flowers from your wedding day to a local nursing home. Brighten the lives of others the day after your wedding with your extra flower arrangements.

4. Why let your bridesmaids dress sit in your closet? Donate your dresses to a San Diego organization that supports youth programs. A few organizations in San Diego are, The Princess Project, The Couture Girls’s Closet, and Vista High School Dress Drive.

3. Wedding favors; give the gift of a tree. The Arbor Day Foundation dot org has the perfect wedding favor, a tree. It comes in a clear plastic container ready to be dressed up and placed as a gift for all of your guests.

2. Serving coffee or tea? Make sure it is Trade Free. Trade free is an organized social movement that helps developing countries obtain better trading conditions for their workers.

1. Don’t trash your dress; donate it to Brides against breast cancer dot com. The proceeds go to fight breast cancer.

Top 10 ways to have a unique wedding

On average a person will attend up to three weddings a year. As a bride how do you make your wedding the one that stands out? Here are 10 ways to help you have the "wow" wedding your guests will remember.

10. Have an activity for your guests during the cocktail hour, the Now Flip This books and Photo Booths are a great way to keep your guests happy and entertained.

9. Table numbers, create your own during your engagement photo session, have fun holding up numbers as the photographer clicks away and then add them to the center of each table, or carry out a theme like places in the world, or name special places you visited while dating...

8. Get a live band.

7. Hire an Master of Ceremonies.

6. Go green... have an environmentally friendly wedding.

5. Send fun, multi-use save the date cards, i.e magnets, calendars, pencils...

4. Use long, flowing fabric to add elegance to the ceremony and reception.

3. Add flare to your seating cards, write a mini book, the cover is your wedding monogram the second page is the seating information, the rest of the pages are your story, or add the seating information to a straw in a cool glass of lemonade prepared for your guests upon their arrival.

2. Hire a lighting specialist to add texture, color and design to any room.

1. Go creative with your ceremony programs, tie them to the side of each chair, print the detail on a fan, or incorporate them with the exit toss item.