Whether you're planning a casual dinner party or mapping out your dream wedding, you want your mailed invitation to stand out (and to stay out of your buds' recycling bins). Also, with the high number (and cost!) of little cards, envelopes and printed papers begging guests to, "please -- please -- RSVP," you want to use eco-friendly supplies, right? Luckily, there are many companies that create invitations with eco-friendly ink and recycled or handmade plantable paper.

Plantable, Seed-embedded Paper

Sure, intricately designed invitations are the bee’s knees, but after the big day has passed, your invitations are pretty much worthless. Printing plantable paper with the details of your special event will keep the memory of your killer party in guests’ minds for as long as the paper’s buds are in bloom.

Plantable paper is typically handmade from recycled paper. Seeds (non-invasive wildflowers, herbs, veggies, etc.) are added to the paper mixture. The invitation can then be “planted,” and within a few days, green sprigs will start to grow from the planted paper.

For example: Porridge Papers’ handmade, seeded paper is 100 percent recycled, and peppered with various seeds:

“Wildflower and herb mixes are very popular, versatile and easy to grow - which is why we stock 19 x 25 sheets in two colors! Another option that grows very well are vegetable seeds such as tomato, lettuce and peppers. Our wildflower mix comes in white and our unique ecotan and may contain a mixture of the following seeds: black-eyed Susan, spurred snapdragon, Shirley poppy, Mexican hat, white yarrow, evening primrose, sweet, alyssum, etc (depending on availability). Our herb mix also comes in white and ecotan and contains dill, thyme, oregano, parsley, chive, and basil seeds."

Pretty darn impressive!

Here are a few other eco-friendly companies that create seed-embedded invitations by using recycled, plantable paper, and eco-friendly ink:

Bella Figura: Uses 100 percent reclaimed cotton (tree free). The company is wind-powered. Bella Figura also uses vegetable oil based and low-volatile organic compound (VOC) inks, and low-VOC and citrus-based solvents.

Barefoot Press: Uses recycled paper, soy-based inks and low-VOC, water-miscible chemicals to wash presses. Barefoot Press also updated its 1950s-era building space with sustainable materials.

Earthy Affair: Uses 100 percent post-consumer recycled paper (tree free) and carbonfund.org to offset shipments.

Green Field Paper Company: Offers tree free handmade paper, machine-made hemp paper and wildflower seed embedded paper. Also, Green Field offsets 100 percent of its electricity use by purchasing wind energy credits for its electrical usage in its manufacturing and office facility in San Diego, CA.

DIY Plantable Paper

Take a weekend and make your own seeded paper by following the detailed instructions in Kanelstrand’s handmade plantable paper article.

Image: SavvyChristine