The wedding day is one of the most important in a person’s life, and today’s brides- and grooms-to-be strive to create a one-of-a-kind experience that is both personal and memorable for their guests - all while trying to stay within their budget. For one lucky couple, Mirassou Winery plans to help.

Mirassou Winery has announced its 6th annual “I Do with Mirassou” contest, which will help one engaged couple with both the cost of their wedding and a special, personalized California-cuisine-inspired wedding menu designed in conjunction with two food and wine experts: Celebrity Chef Aida Mollenkamp and sixth generation of America’s oldest winemaking family, David Mirassou.

This year’s contest runs from now through June 27, 2010 at www.mirassou.com. Couples can enter to win $10,000, plus a trip to San Francisco and northern California wine country for a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to meet with wine expert David Mirassou and Celebrity Chef Aida Mollenkamp, host of the popular Food Network show “Ask Aida,” to plan their custom California-inspired wedding menu, complete with food and wine pairings.

The winning couple will be announced in August and will meet with Aida and David this fall to learn about the hottest wedding food and wine trends, as well as plan their own personalized wedding menu. Go to www.mirassou.com to view the official rules and enter to win.

Here are more green wedding ideas:

The traditional white wedding is getting a green twist. The “Green Wedding” is one of the fastest growing trends in weddings today, according to internationally recognized wedding expert, Linda Kevich - director of The International Institute of Weddings, and creator of the popular online wedding planner, SuperWeddings.com.

Weddings have become synonymous with conspicuous consumption, and that’s not so great for the earth. But there are many ways to make your wedding as environmentally friendly as possible.

Green Invitations - Rather than opting for  heavy card stock with environmentally damaging gloss or matte, choose recycled paper for your eco friendly wedding invitations

Eco Friendly Wedding Dress - The wedding dress makes the bride.  That doesn’t mean you need to create a heavy environmental footprint with a brand new dress that you’ll never wear again. Consider vintage wedding gowns or family heirlooms.  There’s nothing more meaningful than walking down the aisle in your mother’s wedding dress. It can be modified and stylized to suit your own fashion sense.

Other options: Some wedding dress manufacturers create beautiful custom made eco friendly wedding dresses for todays green wedding using enironmentally friendly fabrics like hemp, bamboo or organic cotton. Some even “upcycle” older gowns.

Green Wedding Gifts - As you prepare for your eco friendly green wedding, are you prepared to deal with the ending up with two toaster ovens or electric can openers you’ll only have to hassle with returning? Use your wedding day to promote some well deserving charities and eco causes. Ask your guests to make a donation to your favorite instead of giving wedding presents. Giving back is the greatest gift of all. There is much truth in these statements “you have to give to get”, and “to give is to live”.

Eco Friendly Wedding Flowers - Consider the season when selecting  flower arrangements for your green wedding. Out of season arrangements are often shipped from overseas adding to emissions. There are also a number of issues regarding the ethics of the cut flower industry, with many sources citing cheap labor and unfair work conditions. Where ever you live, you can be sure there is an abundance of flowers grown right in your local area. Better yet, go organic!

Eco friendly Wedding Food - Organic caterers are BIG for weddings now. They provide some of the best food that you can be sure is pesticide-free and delightfully delicious. Look for a baker that uses organic eggs and flour and other sustainable ingredients in the wedding cake.

Wedding Venue and transportation - Choose a venue for your green wedding that’ll be easy to get to. Encourage guests to carpool, or better yet, provide some shuttle bus transport yourself. Having the wedding reception for your green wedding in the  same location  as the ceremony also cuts down on travel and emissions.

Eco Friendly Wedding Rings - Forget diamonds;  eco is a girl’s new best friend! Today a lot of jewelers are “up-cycling” jewelery from older pieces. Take in an old family heirloom and have it re-crafted to create your own one of a kind wedding ring to add further to the eco friendliness of your green wedding.

What would a wedding be with confetti? While this is a big part of your wedding day, if you are the eco friendly type you may be a bit concerned. Fortunately, there is answer to this problem. You can purchase eco friendly wedding confetti, and in turn forget about damaging the planet on your big day. Believe it or not, more and more companies are selling eco friendly wedding confetti. In the past this may have been hard to come by. But in today’s day in and age this is not the case any longer.

So what is eco friendly wedding confetti? Generally speaking, this type of confetti is water soluble. This way, it is not going to last very long no matter where it lands. As soon as one good rain comes, all of the confetti will more or less disappear. To go along with this, all eco friendly wedding confetti is biodegradable as well.

Many people avoid searching for eco friendly wedding confetti because they feel that it will not suit their needs. Of course, this is a myth. There are many different kinds of eco friendly wedding confetti. It comes in all shapes, sizes, and colors. As long as you keep an open mind you will find exactly what you are looking for.

If you are interested in eco friendly wedding confetti you do not have to look any further than the internet. You may also find a few local stores that sell this type of confetti. As long as you keep your eyes open you will find the perfect confetti for your big day!

Are you aware of how to put together eco centerpieces? If you want to have an eco friendly wedding your answer should be yes. You can create eco centerpieces that are cost efficient and beautiful. Even though it may take some more creativity on your part, it is well worth the time and effort in the long run. Not only are eco centerpieces great for the environment, but they will allow you to feel good about yourself as well. Talk about the best of both worlds!

Some of the best eco centerpieces are those that are made from natural elements such as twigs, flowers, etc. You do not have to rely on centerpieces that are full of materials that are bad for the environment such as plastics. Even though you can recycle centerpieces that are not exactly eco friendly, you never really know if this will happen. You will be much better off opting for eco centerpieces that are made from things that are good for the environment.

Look for designers who make glass centerpieces from recycled material. You do not have to worry about these making their way to the garbage because somebody will be sure to take them home.

What types of eco centerpieces are you most interested in? You can buy centerpieces that are eco friendly, or decide to create your own. Either way, this is a great way to add to your eco inspired wedding while hopefully saving time and money along the way.

Do you want to be an eco bride? Even though your wedding day is full of action, you can still do your part in keeping the planet safe. Fortunately, there are more ways than ever before to be eco friendly on your big day. And believe it or not, becoming an eco bride is more cost efficient than many people think. In other words, you do not have to spend a lot of money to have an eco friendly wedding. You simply need to know what you are doing.

To start, a bride should consider how she can be eco friendly from start to finish. Some areas to consider are centerpieces, invitations, and flowers. All of these areas can be handled in an eco friendly manner if you take the time to think about what you are doing. Remember, there are more resources today than ever before for eco brides.

Once you get in the right frame of mind you will find that planning an eco wedding is easy to do. There are some changes that you may have to make, but most of them can be handled with ease if you are smart about what you are doing.

So do you want to be an eco bride? If so, don’t give up on this. There are many ways that you can make your big day eco friendly. Once you have a few ideas in place, all you have to do is set them in action and get started.