Tina & Shadow’s economical coastal tattooed wedding

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 | Photography by JackieSue Photography
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The Offbeat Bride: Tina, Photographer

Her offbeat partner: Shadow, Foreman

Date and location of wedding: San Luis Resort, Galveston, Texas — April 4, 2014

Our offbeat wedding at a glance: We wanted a small and intimate wedding. Our family is separated from California to Louisiana and we both knew not many would be able to join. We had eight guests, and including our family, it was a total of 12. We love our tattoos and wanted to incorporate them into the wedding with the bridal bouquet, necklace, and groom's tie. Our love for the all things nautical was pulled into the ceremony decor and cake.

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Our ceremony overlooked the Gulf of Mexico in Galveston, Texas with a gorgeous view from the San Luis Resort. We were working with a budget so our goal was to spend no more than $3000. We ended up spending about $4,300.00 total, which was higher than we were hoping, but manageable.

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After the ceremony, we had a lovely dinner at the resort's restaurant. Once our daughters left with my father-in-law for the night, we were able to hang out at the bar at the resort. We spent the entire weekend at the San Luis Resort up on the Club 10 level in a suite.

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Tell us about the ceremony:
The ceremony was very simple, maybe a little too simple for others, but it fit Shadow and me perfectly. Since Shadow was in the Navy prior to us meeting, and since we love the ocean and all things nautical, we wanted to include that in the ceremony. We did the Fisherman's Knot, and I found vows online that I loved and changed a few things to fit.

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Our vows:

My love for you is steadfast, unwavering, timeless, and forever. As the sea slowly slips upon the shore, so will I always hold you dear. As the sun appears with every dawn, so will my love always shine on you. Forever will my life be one with yours and I will share with you laughter, tears, and tenderness. I promise to respect and honor you, to encourage your dreams, and to be aware of all your desires. Constant will my compassion and kindness be in time of frustration and in fear. We walk side by side, our journey together.

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Our biggest challenge:
Our biggest challenge was that we wanted an intimate wedding with gorgeous views on a budget. We had a vision of how we wanted it to look, so we searched venue after venue in Galveston. I gave the San Luis Resort one last call and explained my situation. They were able to work with me and with what we wanted. It was not entirely planned to have my wedding at a resort hotel, but it worked perfectly for our budget and what we wanted.

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My favorite moment:
The most meaningful moment of our wedding had to have been our ceremony. My father-in-law became certified to officiate the wedding. He also walked me down the aisle. Our daughters participated in the ceremony by handing us the rings, the rope, and announcing us as one. Our daughters being able to be part of the day was amazing.

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My funniest moment:
Shadow and I have been together for seven years, and I never really thought I would be emotional during our wedding day. We pretty much have been married for seven years other than with paperwork. But the moment I knew my father-in-law and I were about to walk down the aisle, I was a mess. I walked down the aisle with tears rolling down my face and it followed through to saying our vows. Words were getting scrambled and mixed. I look at the photos now and see all the silly faces I was making because I was so embarrassed and shocked that I would be the one in tears. It's very funny to me now.

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Comments on Tina & Shadow’s economical coastal tattooed wedding

  1. You guys look fabulous! And Happy! I love your hair and Shadow’s beard and mustache and tie! Super-duper congratulations!

  2. The location is gorgeous so you definitely achieved that goal! I really love the way your daughters’ dresses matched yours – congrats on the work it took for you to put those together.

  3. Beautiful! It’s funny what grabs me about other people’s weddings…I’m super excited to see how handsome your groom looked–my FH is going to wear something very similar (well, with a not as colorful tie) and has a similar build. People kept trying to convince me he should wear a vest or something and it just didn’t sound right or like “him” so shirt with sleeves rolled up and gray pants it is. I can’t wait to see his hot self waiting for me when I walk down the aisle. 🙂

    • Oh, and the fact that my fella is also a redhead may have something to do with it! Yay for ginger grooms! 🙂

  4. happy to see this unique couple, they look pretty cool in this kind of dress & tattoos. best arrangement i ever seen in a marriage ceremony.

  5. PLEASE can we have a tutorial for your girls skirts!!!! I love them, and think they would suit my flowerfairies perfectly 😀

  6. Love your dresses! You looked gorgeous… so sweet to have your daughters matched. I’m getting married in Galveston in July so seeing the economical budget made me go ohhh. Your cake was great looking and I’ve had the biggest headache trying to find a bakery that didn’t blow our budget off the charts (food is where we’re putting the most $ in) So I looked up Sweet Creations and just hired them so tasty! Thanks for the tips and Congrats!

  7. I have to agree with everybody else i completely love your dress, just fabulous!!!

  8. Oh man, those matching dresses. I nearly died.

    Your dress is amazing and your wedding sounds like it rocked!

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