Taryn & Craig's Silly, Fun-Filled, New Zealand Winter Wedding
Posted by Offbeat Intern · Real offbeat weddings

The Offbeat Bride: Taryn, Public Servant

Her Offbeat Partner: Craig, Public Servant

Location & date of wedding: Gothic Church and Wine Bar in Windy Wellington, New Zealand — 20 June 2009

What made our wedding offbeat: Every little detail was perfectly us! We made a whole heap of compromises to keep family happy, but they were easy things to do because we love our families. However we also pushed back on things that were really important to us. Craig's cousin Jessica is his best friend, and it was really important to him to have her in his groom's party, even though that upset some people. My family is traditional South African Indian Seventh Day Adventist and Craig's is pure Kiwi Party Animal so it was always going to be a delicate balancing exercise.

The wedding was totally and utterly focused on fun. Our reading was the Lovely Love Story and we had dinosaur cupcakes at the reception to match that. We hired a comedian to play an undercover offbeat guest at the reception to help keep guests entertained. We had conversation starters on the tables, mini guest books with Spiderman felt pens, and a corner of the reception with big comfy couches, stencils, board games, toys and colouring books. I love/hate/am obsessed with Mariah Carey and her brand of kitsch, so my baby sister and I wore butterflies in our hair and Mimi perfume. It was AWESOME!

Our biggest challenge: I've often said that wedding planning is actually a lot of fun, its just other people that make it difficult. Bringing others on board with our quirky ideas was always difficult. Striking that balance between my traditional conservative family and my New Zealand husband's family was tough, to say the least.

For me it was all about picking battles. There were things that Craig and I could easily let go, and things that we couldn't. It was easy for us to have our wedding in a church (non-consecrated) because it didn't mean that much to us and it meant a lot to certain members of my family. However, not changing my name was a biggy that I wasn't prepared to budge on. It was important for us to only argue about the things that mattered.

My favorite moment: think this would have to be the dancing. I loved seeing my super shy dad get up and do the knock knee dance with me and my four year old sister to the Black Eyed Peas. I also loved teaching my baby sis the YMCA and having her teach me how to go down 'Low' to Flo Rida. (We also had lots of PJ Harvey, Nick Cave, Le Tigre in there, we are cool I promise!)

My advice for other offbeat brides: Shop around, it takes a while to find the perfect dress, the perfect shrug, at the perfect price. Pick your battles wisely, there's no need to fight over the centre pieces if its going to be the difference between your mother-in-law attending with a smile on her face or not. However, I made the mistake of getting bullied a little early on, and it set up the expectation that I would continually allow it. That said, be firm, but fair.

We're silly and childish and immature and so our whole wedding was focussed around that, which is why it was perfect for us. Even the people who didn't agree with our ideas saw, at the end of the day, how perfect our wedding was because it was redunkulous like us (we signed our legal documents with a Shrek Donkey pen). I think the most important thing is to capture whats important to you, and go for it! If people see you happy and in your element, it will be hard for them to hold a grudge!

Care to share a few vendor/shopping links?:

• Photography: Kathryn Wilson Photography
• Wine Loft Wine Bar

ETSY!! (I LOVE ETSY!!!)

• the flowergirl top: SewKatiePie
• the groomslady necklace: kandcdesigns (donates a proceed of her sales to the American Cancer Society)
• the incredible bolero: hollystalder
• the flowergirl tutu: Ava's Mommy
• the peacock butterfly: TopsyTurvy Design

Enough talk — show me the winter wedding porn!: