After spying Donelle and Adam's glorious 8-Bit wedding, we fell head over heels for their DIYed Shrinky Dink boutonnieres, hair clips, corsages and "diamond" necklace. And we were downright impressed with the fact that Donelle came up with the idea and executed it to complete perfection!

Donelle, graphic design maven of 8 Bit Onion, was oh so kind as to give us a tutorial chock full o' pictures. Read up, DIYers… this is a how-to you're going to wanna see.

Continue reading "How to make your own 8-bit wedding accessories, by Donelle" →

Anli on the left, and Laura on the right. Photo by Capturing Essence

The offbeat bride: Anli, data analyst

Her offbeat partner: Laura, public servant

Location & date of wedding: The Old Stone House, NSW Australia — 5 September 2009

What made our wedding offbeat: We wanted a ceremony that reflected our geeky, romantic, pink aesthetic, while at the same time being profound and meaningful. Our ceremony was themed around the video game Portal and the anime series Revolutionary Girl Utena.

We incorporated lots of geeky details, from the table names (Revolution, Sierra, Katara and GLaDOS) to the choice of music. We also kept several traditional elements such as bouquets, dresses and bridesmaids. However, we both walked down the aisle unaccompanied and skipped the garter/bouquet toss.

Continue reading "Anli & Laura's Lesbian Gamer Geek Wedding" →

The offbeat bride: Donelle (aka. OBT member "Donna"), Graphic Designer, Musician, and Professional Ice Cream Slinger at Baskin Robbins

Her offbeat partner: Adam, Creator of fine iPhone games such as The Battle of Pirate Bay

Location & date of wedding: Wedding at parent's backyard in Sacramento, CA. Reception at the Coloma Community Center in Sacramento, CA. — June 20th, 2009

What made our wedding offbeat: My first thought when I was proposed to was that I did NOT want to have just another white wedding. Yawn! I've been to those before, and I didn't want my guests to have to sit through yet another one. Then I stumbled across the wonderful Offbeat Bride website. It had never occured to me before that a wedding could be so creative and personal!

Continue reading "Donelle & Adam's 8-Bit Wedding" →

How much do you love the custom fortunes Kate included in her fabric fortune cookie favors?!

Offbeat intern cohort Megan spied this great DIY wedding favor that the crafty OBT member Kate had great success with, thanks to the no-sew, easy peasy tutorial from Megan over at Brassy Apple. It's a surefire way to kick out a cute favor with your own flair in no time.

Brassy Apple's tutorial is simple yet will have the "oohh" impact. The look could vary based on your theme and your fabric, and who says you can't jazz it up with some felt, ribbon or silly pom poms?!?! Dare I say, bedazzle it!

To get step-by-step instructions for how to make these fabric fortune cookie favors, head over to Brassy Apple.

The Offbeat Bride: Ande, Manager of Education Programs American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame (and OBT member "aNdE pArLoW")

The Offbeat Groom: Parlow, Musician-Part Time Server

Location & date of wedding: American Quarter Horse Hall of Fame in Amarillo, TX — March 28, 2009

What made our wedding offbeat: First off, it snowed over a foot and a half the day before my wedding and we had to change the venue because of the weather. Snow in the Texas Panhandle in late March! It was crazy.

Continue reading "Ande & Parlow's lime green DIY wedding" →