My fiancé has a very small family, while my family is ridiculously huge … do you have any ideas on how we might be able to help his family (of about eight Polish immigrants with limited English speaking abilities) be not so intimidated by my family (of about 50 festive Mexican Americans)? We've already decided that having the guests split up into a groom's side and a bride's side is just ridiculous and we're not having any of that. However, I am at a loss as far as how to diplomatically integrate our very different families. —Veronica
First, I have to take a second to say that Veronica and her fiancé Luke are one of the cutest couples I've ever seen at an Offbeat event. Look at how adorable they are in their matching little veils! So much of teh kyoot™!
But anyway, onto the question at hand: how to deal with enormously lopsided family guest-lists …
Continue reading "Lopsided families" →
I'm featured in the wedding section of The Seattle Times' magazine, Gender F. You'll see Offbeat Bride mentioned in two articles, the first being about wedding dresses (where I'm featured as the DIY option alongside the traditional and couture dresses), and the second about the offbeat ways we kept our wedding costs down.
And for those intrigued by my lab-rat Joriel's wedding-without-marriage, the section also features an article where Joriel and other singles-by-choice discuss their reasons for not getting married: Who is and isn't marrying, and why: Move over, marriage. When it comes to romantic commitment, you're not the only game in town.
(Thanks to John Lok at The Seattle Times for the photo!)
The offbeat bride: Joriel Foltz, writer (and Offbeat Bride lab rat!)
My offbeat groom: Ben Haley, photographer
Location & date of wedding: March 20, 2005, Plant Zero Art Center, Richmond, VA
What made our wedding offbeat: Technically, we didn't have a wedding. For various reasons we decided not to get legally married. But that didn't stop us from having a blow-out celebration of our decision to spend the rest of our lives together.
We designed our entire ceremony from scratch, turned an industrial-chic event space into a magical wonderland, and served a homemade vegan buffet that satisfied all but the most maniacal carnivores.
Continue reading "Joriel equinox commitment ceremony" →
Last weekend I have the honor of getting to attend the inaugural meeting of the Offbeat Bride DC Wedding Co-op. For those of you who have read the book, you probably remember the wedding co-op idea — Susan Beal's brilliant concept for sharing information and resources with other brides. A reader in Washington DC named Jamie (a lovely type-A after my own heart) decided that she was taking the idea and running with it, so she recruited some brides and set up a live journal community to compare notes, share resources, and commiserate with other DC-area brides.
Continue reading "Offbeat Bride DC Wedding Co-op" →
