Real Weddings: Western US

This is Offbeat Bride's archive of Real Weddings: Western US posts.

Here are some of the most freaky fabulous weddings from the shores of the ~~Best~~ West Coast all the way to the Rocky Mountain states … Offbeat Bride is based on the West Coast, and we definitely love our weird weddings in this part of the world.

Most Recent Posts About Real Weddings: Western US

Photos by Michael Chan, The Image is Found

The offbeat bride: Mary, Web Producer

Her offbeat partner: Charles, Site Acquisition Specialist

Date and location of wedding: Bali Hai Restaurant, San Diego, CA — July 16, 2011

Our offbeat wedding at a glance: We handcrafted as many elements as we could, and we really tried to keep a focus on infusing our personalities into just about everything. We eliminated the things that had no meaning to us (being given away, tossing of anything) and tried to jazz things up in other areas: a cake with flames and ushers on roller skates!

Take one adorably crazy cat man with awesome hair, one Rubik's cube-teaching bride, lots of helpful yoga-performing and cupcake tier-fixing friends and family, and a weekend of activities, and you'll get a wedding I want to have attended. Sadly, I didn't, but we can relive the events with wistful eyes and share in the joy that is a wedding with puzzle place cards and crossword programs.

A very cool Texas guest book, a Bender card box, towers full of homemade cupcakes (and zombie cupcakes!) , and all the ladies wearing cowboy boots: it's a feast for the eyes! Plus, they shared not only a first dance, but THE very first dance ever together. And if all that isn't enough, there's a cute pooch wearing a bow tie. You're hooked now.

I think if I were to hire a bride to make my own DIY details, this would be the one. She made awesome paper flowers and a rolled magazine page card box, but the most amazing contributions were the FABULOUS bridesmaid dresses and homemade cake — all of which look professional. This bride and her helpers have major talent. On top of it all, this pair is so damned cute that I will call them Squishies and they will be my Squishies.

When the whole party arrives in bike parade style, it's sure to be a kick-ass and casual celebration. With the Georgetown Ballroom as the backdrop to both the ceremony and the reception, two bands and a DJ, a zine creation station, and a drawing contest, there wasn't anyone without something awesome to do. And since these two are all about community, everything was crafted with love by friends and fam.

A vintage dress to die for, a heart theme (including awesome headpiece!), fun with piñatas, and the sweetest homemade book about their relationship — you're in for a backyard wedding with a ton of heart(s). These two moved their wedding date up seven months to coincide with a birthday party and Easter weekend, which left them with only days to finish. But finish they did, and you'll want to see the result.

Only three vendors and a whole lot of economizing didn't make this budget wedding any less awesome. Other cool details including tag-team officiants (at a really pretty church), handpainted wooden cake toppers, and a groom who is a little too nervous for long vows. Plus their 1950s retro theme fit like a glove in our era-inspired theme week!

Fedoras and cloche hats, seamed pantyhose, and tears of joy — I want all of these in my WWII era-inspired elopements. It's also a perfect fit for our era-inspired theme week! The good thing is, this wedding had it all plus the cutest couple you ever did see. All I could hear in my head was "here's looking at you kid" in these photos. Travel back to the 1940s in this week's era-inspired wedding theme week!