Eco-chic Watermelon Wedding

What fruit is hot pink & green and makes a wonderfully sweet & sustainable summer wedding theme?  The answer is the watermelon, of course!  There is just a feeling of nostalgia and childhood fun associated with this fruit. It brings to mind picnics, chasing fireflies and warm summer nights. 

Watermelon weddings are perfect for that eco-chic couple who want a relaxing country casual day filled with laughter, family & friends.  If this sounds like your kind of day, then read on as we discuss a variety of ways to bring in elements of this juicy fruit and its country casual mood to your eco-chic wedding attire, drinks, and décor.

Watermelon Wedding – Dreamy Details

Watermelon pink and green can be used in a variety of way in your wedding party outfits.  I’m partial to the bride’s side in pink and the groom’s in green. Give your bridesmaids the ability to find a vintage or eco-friendly dress they love by showing them the wedding colors and introducing them to fabulous vintage shops in your area. For groomsmen, accent their basic wardrobe with shades of green suspenders, bow ties, chucks, socks & cuff links.

Want an eco-friendly and fun watermelon seating area for your ceremony? If you are getting married on a farm or family land, in the spring, you can plant & maintain 2 lines of watermelon seeds which will make a truly eco-friendly and beautiful aisle runner outline for your summer wedding.  If you don’t have a venue where planting is an option, line up hay bales as seats in the ceremony area, then cover with hot pink blankets. Finish each row with a whole watermelon to give your nuptials that rustic picnic feeling.  You can even expand the picnic aspect of the theme by setting up picnic baskets & blankets for your able bodied guests and picnic tables for your older / more traditional guests. Add some country music and a hayride for the kids and you’ve got a farm-fresh watermelon wedding.

Watermelon Wedding – Delicious Drinks

Any awesome watermelon wedding reception is guaranteed to have tasty beverages & the ones I plan always use locally sourced fruit & organic spirits.  I’m sure you already know how to make a killer melon margarita, so let’s turn to one of my other favorite melon mixtures – Melissa’s Marvelous Melon Mint Mojito.  (Try saying that 10 times fast after a couple of these)! ;) The recipe is below!

Melissa's Marvelous Melon Mint Mojito

Ingredients

    20 fresh mint leaves, chopped

    2 tablespoons superfine sugar

    1/2 cup fresh lime juice

    Crushed ice

    3/4 cup Papagayo platinum rum

    6 ounces locally grown heirloom watermelon, strained &  pureed (collected from the DIY watermelon vases mentioned in the next section)

Directions

In the bottom of a large shaker, muddle the mint, sugar and 1/4 cup of the lime juice. Fill the shaker with ice. Add the rum, watermelon and the remaining 1/4 cup of lime juice; shake well. Strain into old-fashioned glasses over ice.

To offset your sweet & pink watermelon drink, add savory Mr. G’s Basil Old Fashioned for those wanting another option.  Watermelon and basil complement each other & in this case they work well to balance out the sweet/savory tasting spectrum. Now I may be biased because Mr. G. is my one and only true love, but I think his Basil Old Fashioned is delicious!

Mr. G's Basil Old Fashioned

1 orange slice

2 large basil leaves

2 dashes orange bitters

1 tablespoon superfine sugar

2 ounces organic or locally produced bourbon whiskey

Directions

Put the orange slice, basil leaf, sugar and the orange bitters into a rocks glass. Muddle until the juice is released from the orange & leaves are bruised. Fill the container with ice and then pour the bourbon over the ice. Stir well and garnish with a basil leaf and maraschino cherry.

Photo Credit: The Sweetest Occasion

Watermelon Wedding – Down Home Decor

Make your watermelon wedding décor eco-chic and on point, by following this easy DIY how-to on watermelon vases. Juice the red pulp to make the basis for your Watermelon Mojitos above. These vases are sustainable because you are using every part of the melon & the vase itself is completely biodegradable. You can also make a completely sweet photo opp by setting up the back of a vintage truck or old fashioned picnic table with stacks of whole watermelon & red and white checked tablecloths or vintage fruit boxes.

A good wedding is all about making memories, no matter how old you are. Follow my simple steps and your kid-friendly green wedding will be one which shapes a generation of future brides and grooms. Please post pictures of your Brilliantly Green Wedding with the hashtag #Ecopartytime so we can share in your wonderful and earth-friendly wedding! We’d love to see your kiddy-inspired ideas. This is Melissa Wagner-Gens, Chief Chica Verde & your green event expert and I’m “saving the world, one wedding at a time”™!

About the Author:

Melissa Wagner-Gens is Ecopartytime's Green Resident Expert. She is also a Green Event Educator, certified event planner & owner of Emerald Events and Weddings.