Ashley & Josh's home-brewed prison wedding with a rap video #Real Weddings: Midwest US#crafty wedding#diy centerpiece#fall weddings#homebrewer#memorial#michigan#origami#overcoming adversity#paper flowers#photo booth#prison#video#vow examples Updated Oct 12 2015 (Posted Apr 12 2013) Offbeat Editors Photos by Beatrice Katcher and Michelle Awe The Offbeat Bride: Ashley, Nanny/Crafter/Chocolate Maker Her offbeat partner: Josh, Caterer/Rapper/Producer Date and location of wedding: Armory Arts Village (formerly the first state prison in Michigan), Jackson, MI — September 22, 2012 Our offbeat wedding at a glance: As a crafter, I knew early on that our wedding would be deep in the DIY. I did not realize I would still be crafting half an hour before the ceremony! From the 1000 paper cranes, to the hand-cut chair ties, to painting Josh's shoes, I had my hands in just about everything. All the flowers (except the baby's breath) were made from coffee filters. The cake topper was made out of found objects, and the objects used represented who we are as people. He was made from technology and food, I was made of craft supplies, and we were surrounded by music. I also designed and sewed my bridesmaid's sashes and my hair do-dads. My amazing brother and sister-in-law home-brewed all the beer, wine, and soda for the event. My father-in-law built our altar/photo booth. More good friends handled the lighting, DJing, and catering. It was a day that everyone built together. It still warms the cockles of my heart to think about how hard everyone worked. Our venue, The Armory Arts Village, was the first state prison in Michigan, dating back to the Civil War, and is now an artists' community. The space where the wedding was held is what the artists' now use for their gallery showings, but was once the original prison. The walls are the original stone, and you can still see the holes where the bars used to be. The chandeliers in the venue are made from old wagon wheels, also dating back to the Civil War, that were made in the old carriage wheel factory that is next door. The venue was redone during World War II, and now boasts a '40s-era bandstand stage, and an amazingly fun wallpaper border with caricatured bullets and American flags. On top of it all, the place was a STEAL at $100 an hour. Tell us about the ceremony: Since Josh is a rapper and I'm into theater, we decided our processional should be a bit theatrical as well. Our processional song was Queen's "Somebody To Love" and each member of our wedding party danced down the aisle alone, including myself. Once they all had made it to the altar, the crescendo of the song had begun, and they all stamped and clapped along with the build-up. When Freddie finally sings his "SOMEBODY TOOOOO" I stepped out and lip sang along into my bouquet. The official, accidental dropping of the rings Josh's aunt officiated. We had a ring warming, and my mom and aunt performed "Naked As We Came" by Iron and Wine. Josh's best friend Sayrd, who he has known since he was two weeks old, read "A Lovely Love Story" by Edward Monkton. Our other good friend Paul read a version of Aristophanes's speech from Plato's Symposium. At the end, we personalized the vows to say, "Do you Ashley, take this tall, beardy, food-obsessed, beer guzzling, white rapper to be your husband, whether times are good or bad, happy or sad? And Josh, do you take this tiny, fiesty, overly-emotional, chocolate-addicted, craft explosion to be your wife, whether times are good or bad, happy or sad?" Our biggest challenge: I think it was learning to let go of the many DIY projects for which there wasn't time. A perfect example is our invitations. There was a mix-up with the size at which I designed them, so they wouldn't fit into the envelopes I really wanted to use. So i had to compromise on that particular project. There was also a whole big balloon installation that was supposed to go up in the venue that never happened, even though Josh and his groomsmen spent the morning of the wedding trying their hardest to make it work. At the end of the day, balloons or no balloons, I was no less married. My favorite moment: Josh and I have not had an easy road to the altar. Four and a half years ago we lost our newborn son, a week after he was born. We had only been together six months before getting pregnant, so this was yet another shock to our young relationship. We named him Miles Davis, and about a year after he passed we found this sweet toy trumpet in a vintage shop. At the ceremony, we had a tiny chair with his trumpet on it. There was also a piano in the venue that we set up as a memorial for him, with his pictures, the cast of his feet, a baby blanket I had crocheted, and all the trumpets we have been collecting over the years. Being able to acknowledge him, and the gifts he'd given us, meant so much. We know that he's the one who taught us what love is. This was our tribute to him in our vows: In one mere summer, I learned more about love and the power of friendship and family than I had ever hoped to know. I learned that love can be just one comfortable moment in a ragged and tortured day. I learned that love is, in its simplest form, true friendship. It is the breaths through the silences, and the peace in the night. It was also really special having some family members cross the pond from England to be with us. In addition, I had reconciled a four-year silence with my dad's side of the family. It felt so good having them there, and being able to dance and laugh with them. My funniest moment: The funniest moment was when I presented Josh with his wedding present. He is a rapper, and years ago he wrote a song for me called "Dancin' Girl." As his gift, I remixed the song he wrote for me, made it all about him, called it "Rappin' Man," shot a music video, and projected it on the wall of the venue at the wedding reception for all to see. His reaction was priceless. Here's the video: My advice for Offbeat Brides: Plan out the day's schedule with every step. I don't just mean your projects or your general timeline, I mean your whole day. We didn't, and had a supremely awkward moment right after doing our entrance, where we all just stood at the head table not knowing what to do. Eventually someone waved the caterer over and asked "Okay, now what?" It was so awkward! Think about those transitional moments. What was the most important lesson you learned from your wedding? I learned that love is an overwhelming and all-encompassing thing. It makes you do things you'd never think you'd do, and it makes people come out of the woodwork to help in ways you never thought imaginable. I learned that forgiveness is key, panic gets you nowhere, and that sometimes, when you really need one, a hug can feel like being squeezed by a rainbow made of kittens. Care to share a few vendor/shopping links? Photographers: Beatrice Katcher and Michelle Awe Dress and sparkle belt: I Do, Too Bridal Groom's suit: Macy's Venue: Armory Arts Village Cake, cupcakes, and cookies: Benny's Bakery Rentals: Kutcha's Party Rentals and Your Event Enough talk — show me the wedding porn! PREVIOUS 12 natural black wedding hairstyles for the offbeat and on-point NEXT Kitten heels for a meow-meow-meow wedding day Show/Hide comments [ 14 ] I applaud your DIY dedication! It turned out great! Reply Thank you! It was definitely A LOT of work, but I couldn't be any happier with how it all turned out. Reply Its too early for these happy tears you've induced! The tribute to your son was beautiful, and so were the visuals. Reply I am all cried out for the day, and I will NOT cry because of that beautiful tribute to their sweet baby. *sniff*. Seriously, that's one of the sweetest things I've seen in a long time, especially the picture of Josh reading to their son. Reply Thank you! I love that picture, too. At the time Josh was obsessed with Anthony Bourdain books, and I had gotten him three for Father's Day, which was just a few weeks before Miles was born. He hadn't stopped reading them since he opened his gift, and that moment made me smile, because his whole world had just changed, and yet there he was getting right back to his life. 🙂 Reply Thanks for the kind words. 🙂 Reply I love your rap video!!! hahaha amazing!! your wedding looks like it would have been a blast to be at Reply Seconded for the best video ever. Awesome! Reply Thank you! It was a blast. Wish we could do it all over again! Reply Love all the colors! So much fun! Reply Thank you! People seemed a bit skeptical at first when I would say my "colors" were gray, white, and florals, but when the day came they were all blown away. I still can't believe it all came together! Reply Ok, I cried. So, so beautiful. Also, I think I love the dancing groomsman in the third to last photo. Hook a girl up. Reply Thanks! It was a pretty awesome day. And that handsome groomsman is Marcus, and he's single. 😉 Reply This wedding touched me beyond words. The crafting was beyond amazing and the tribute to your son…well, I am still shedding tears as I write this. That quote, "In one mere summer, I learned more about love and the power of friendship and family than I had ever hoped to know. I learned that love can be just one comfortable moment in a ragged and tortured day. I learned that love is, in its simplest form, true friendship. It is the breaths through the silences, and the peace in the night." If only I were so eloquent. Good luck to you. My condolences for your loss and my happy wishes to you for your future. This is truly inspiring. Thank you for sharing your special day! Reply Join the conversation Cancel ReplyYour email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *Comment Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Sign me up for your offbeat awesomeness newsletter! No-drama comment policy Part of what makes the Offbeat Empire different is our commitment to civil, constructive commenting. Make sure you're familiar with our no-drama comment policy. Biz owners & wedding bloggers Please just use your real name in your comment, not your business name or blog title. Our comments are not the place to pimp your website. If you want to promote your stuff on Offbeat Bride, join us as an advertiser instead.
Thank you! It was definitely A LOT of work, but I couldn't be any happier with how it all turned out. Reply
Its too early for these happy tears you've induced! The tribute to your son was beautiful, and so were the visuals. Reply
I am all cried out for the day, and I will NOT cry because of that beautiful tribute to their sweet baby. *sniff*. Seriously, that's one of the sweetest things I've seen in a long time, especially the picture of Josh reading to their son. Reply
Thank you! I love that picture, too. At the time Josh was obsessed with Anthony Bourdain books, and I had gotten him three for Father's Day, which was just a few weeks before Miles was born. He hadn't stopped reading them since he opened his gift, and that moment made me smile, because his whole world had just changed, and yet there he was getting right back to his life. 🙂 Reply
I love your rap video!!! hahaha amazing!! your wedding looks like it would have been a blast to be at Reply
Thank you! People seemed a bit skeptical at first when I would say my "colors" were gray, white, and florals, but when the day came they were all blown away. I still can't believe it all came together! Reply
Ok, I cried. So, so beautiful. Also, I think I love the dancing groomsman in the third to last photo. Hook a girl up. Reply
Thanks! It was a pretty awesome day. And that handsome groomsman is Marcus, and he's single. 😉 Reply
This wedding touched me beyond words. The crafting was beyond amazing and the tribute to your son…well, I am still shedding tears as I write this. That quote, "In one mere summer, I learned more about love and the power of friendship and family than I had ever hoped to know. I learned that love can be just one comfortable moment in a ragged and tortured day. I learned that love is, in its simplest form, true friendship. It is the breaths through the silences, and the peace in the night." If only I were so eloquent. Good luck to you. My condolences for your loss and my happy wishes to you for your future. This is truly inspiring. Thank you for sharing your special day! Reply