The offbeat bride: CJ, Entreprenuer
Her offbeat partner: Jessica, Homeland Security Expert
Date and location of wedding: Decorah, Iowa — February 11, 2011
What made our wedding offbeat: We eloped to Iowa — which is not the place most people choose! We decided on the date first — 2/11/2011 — and then searched the internet for places where you could legally be married as a gay couple. They were all cold. And then the website “Welcome in Decorah” popped up and we knew we had found the right location.
I wanted to dress in black and be slightly steampunk, so I bought all of our wedding clothes either online through eBay or at second hand stores.
I made my veil using a broach that I had and a peacock feather.
Tell us about the ceremony: It was very low key. We got up that morning and the inn keeper made us a wonderful breakfast. The water heater was being fixed, so we weren't sure if we would have hot water to take a shower, but they rushed to fix it for us. I am sure most brides would not have been as calm as we were about the possible inconvenience!
We picked up our bouquets and headed to the church. There were seven people total at the church, including us. Our officiant is a strong advocate for gay rights (actually all rights) and had prepared a printed script with our vows and poetry on it. I cried during most of the ceremony because I was so happy that it was actually happening!
Our biggest challenge: Since we lived in separate places at the time, coordinating everything from California and Louisiana to meet up in Iowa was a challenge. But Amalia, the Welcome in Decorah website creator, helped us find everything we needed and she and her husband even served as our witnesses.
My favorite moment: Just as the ceremony ended and we walked outside to take a photo in front of the historic white church, it started to snow. As soon as we were done, it stopped, so we took it as a good sign and the photos turned out magical!
My funniest moment: We wanted to ceremony to start at 2:11 (no particular reason, it just seemed harmonious), so we all kind of stood around the church waiting for it to be time.
Also, for the end of the ceremony, I had asked the acoustic guitarist to put together a medley of songs from the Sound of Music for our recessional. He did a great job considering it was just him playing, so we walked down the aisle and then turned around to listen!
We took everyone involved in our day out for drinks after the ceremony and ended up making some friends for life. Everything was perfect.
Was there anything you were sure was going to be a total disaster that unexpectedly turned out great? I was a little worried about the weather — but the snow just added to the magic.
My advice for offbeat brides: There are so many great ideas on this site and others for making your wedding reflect your personality. Be sure and hire a great photographer, because you will live your wedding day over and over through the photos.
What was the most important lesson you learned from your wedding? This wedding was just for us. Our families felt left out, but we will make it up to them over the years. We plan to have a reception before the end of the year and will use all the inspiration and great ideas on this site!
Sometimes you need to be selfish. It was more important to do what we wanted than to make other people happy or follow convention.
Enough talk — show me the wedding inspo!