Photo by Kelsey White

The offbeat bride: Bailie, Wax Studio Assistant Manager

Her offbeat partner: Curtis, Tattoo Artist

Date and location of wedding: Our Backyard in Fort Collins, Colorado — June 23, 2012

Our offbeat wedding at a glance: Curtis and I wanted to keep our wedding intimate and true to who we are (fun-loving, silly, and quirky). We knew we wanted to have our ceremony at our home as well. We shared our first kiss in the backyard!

mjerr 071812 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

We mixed my love of vintage housewares with Curtis' love of all things unexpected. I used old scales, cameras, and tablecloths I had collected from my grandmother's house and thrift stores as well as tons of oversized paper flowers. Curtis painted our wedding invitation which featured a squirrel bride and fox groom. He also made a huge backdrop for the ceremony.

Since I was a little girl, I knew I didn't want to wear a white dress, so I went with a blue lace dress I got off Ebay for $50. All the bridesmaid's dresses were made from vintage floral fabrics. Our English Bulldog even had his own blue bow tie. We gave guests noise makers to make a loud roar after the ceremony.

We had a full vegan Mexican buffet, and an assortment of vegan treats from donuts and cupcakes to cookies and pie. We covered the reception tables in brown craft paper and provided guests with crayons to let their inner artists out.

I'm not a big dancer, so we used an iPod with a playlist of our favorite songs and skipped the traditional dances. We had a photo booth with a massive trunk full of props, and a vintage suitcase full of vintage-themed toys for the kids.

Tell us about the ceremony: I walked down the aisle to Rise Against's “Swing Life Away.” Curtis and I walked back down the aisle to “Then He Kissed Me” by The Crystals, followed by the Loony Toons' “That's All Folks!”

Since you can officiate yourself in Colorado, we had our siblings officiate for us. We focused on how a relationship is not only made up of a couple, but also every individual around them. We did a handfasting ceremony instead of exchanging rings. We asked each guest to tie a knot into a piece of ribbon which symbolized their love and support for our marriage.

vintage2 071812 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

My favorite moment: We had enlisted so many friends and family to help with all the little details of the wedding and it meant the world to us to have our ceremony represent all of us coming together to celebrate love, family, and friendship.

After our ceremony was over, we took a brief walk around our neighborhood, just the two of us. It was probably the best moment in that we were able to completely focus on one another and the fact that we were married.

Was there anything you were sure was going to be a total disaster that unexpectedly turned out great? There was a pretty large wildfire about 12 miles from our house that had been burning for a few weeks. The smoke in town made it hard to breathe outside, made everything smell like a campfire, and even lowered visibility. We woke up on the morning of our wedding to clear skies and no sight or smell of smoke. It was a beautiful day!

My advice for Offbeat Brides: Accept that you will have moments in which you will think, “Why are we doing this?” Accept that others will have their own opinions and wishes for your big day. Accept that the picture you have in your head may not completely come to life in front of you. At the end of your wedding day, the details will be obsolete.

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Comments on Check the dresses at this tattooed vegans meet grandma’s attic wedding

  1. this whole thing is adorable! your new husband is mega-talented (that fox painting! that back drop) and you look spectacular in your blue dress. what a beautiful wedding, congratulations!

  2. Love your dress and your “favourite moment”. You look so into each other!

  3. I love your dress, and that oversized flower in the last picture! And your dog! 🙂 The whole thing smade me smile.

  4. The picture of the blonde bridesmaid with the bird in her hair – did you make the bird hairpiece, or buy it? And how / from where?

    It looks like it was loads of fun! 🙂

    • We made them the morning of the wedding. I collected birds from craft stores and purchased all the flowers and mushrooms from 32 North Supplies (https://www.etsy.com/people/32NorthSupplies). I used washi tape to secure the pieces together, but you could use a hot glue gun as well. We then pinned them in the hair with bobby pins, but if you have time, you could easily attach to a clip.

  5. It was an honor be a part of bringing your visions to life! You & Curtis are very special to us! Thank you for the opportunity to be behind the scenes. Hugs, the girls @ Inspired vintage rentals!

  6. I love these ideas! Wish we could have something outdoors, but no chance in NJ in the winter!

  7. Swing Life Away, what a beautiful song. And hats off to you for such an awesome VEGAN dinner menu. You and your bridesmaids look gorgeous in your vintage-y dresses. I just got finished up with my own ceremony of love/fiesta of the century, but I have to admit I’m a little jealous of yours. Nice work!

  8. Im pretty sure my heart almost stopped beating when i looked at these. OH MY GOSH

  9. Absolutely love this wedding – i have shared on my facebook page as i really enjoyed how refreshing it was to see a bride & groom follow their hearts!

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