Teena & Anthony’s Delicious Orange Creamsicle Wedding

The offbeat bride: Teena, marketing coordinator and soon-to-be Etsy shop owner

My offbeat partner: Anthony, video editor extraordinaire

Location & date of wedding: San Francisco Bay — literally, we were on a boat

What made our wedding offbeat: Reflecting our approach to life, our wedding was simple, part handmade, part eco-friendly, part budget-conscious, and part compromise.

We wanted our wedding to be as handmade as our 5-month engagement would allow. I bought my handmade orange skirt on Etsy and built my own corset, using a strip of fabric from the skirt as trim.

A friend made the comb for my hair and my earrings to match my mother's pearl necklace, which my sister and I have worn at many special events, including our graduation ceremonies. I crocheted my shawl and made my bouquet, the boutonnieres and corsages, inspired by a design I saw here at Offbeatbride. The gift to our officiant, a close friend to us both, was a handmade leather portfolio, made by the same artist who crafted our guest book. Our thank you cards were 100% recycled, handmade, plantable paper, and our seals were made from recycled record album covers.

To stay within budget and to keep it intimate, we kept our guest count to about 30 people. We also followed my general rule: do not to spend money on anything that would be thrown away or useless after the wedding. So we did not have center pieces, programs, or favors. Though we could have come up with ways to make these items NOT useless after the wedding, I had enough to worry about.

I compromised on a couple aspects of the wedding to make my parents happy. Even though I find it a bit of an odd tradition, I asked my father to walk me down the aisle because I knew he wanted to. I was also opposed to make-up and the manicure/pedicure treatment because I've never had one in my life, nor have I ever had a desire to get one — especially since I don't like people touching my feet. But my mom wanted to have our nails done together, so my sister made an appointment for the three of us (MIL couldn't make it). Even though I thought I was crossing a line I didn't want to cross, I actually ended up liking the look, and we all had a good time.I did draw the line for no make-up, though.

Our biggest challenge: My corset was one of the most difficult and stressful aspects of the wedding because I made it myself. Though I have a decent amount of sewing experience under my belt, I'd never built a corset before, and doing so was totally different from anything I'd ever made. I chronicled the entire making of my bridal corset in my blog. I invested a ton of time, effort and money into the corset, so when the practice piece did not fit, I began to question my decision.

After three long months of labor and only a few weeks until the wedding, I wondered if I had made the right decision and began considering other options. But when I imagined myself the day of the wedding, I couldn't imagine wearing anything else with my skirt. Because of the time constraints, hiring a professional corset maker was out of the question, so I knew I had to keep at it. The last few weeks leading up to the wedding were intense and full of creating, and even though I'm not entirely satisfied with the final product, I'm glad I stuck with it.

My favorite moment: Our officiant was more nervous than my husband and I were. During the ceremony, I recalled public speaking classes I'd taken that encouraged smiling at the speaker, so I grinned at our officiant. He grinned back. For some reason I found this hilarious, and I could not stop giggling. Soon everyone in the room was laughing. I never imagined being able to describe a wedding ceremony as funny, but ours certainly was!

My offbeat advice: Stick to your solid lines, but know where your dotted lines are and try to be flexible on those — it could mean a lot to someone you care about. Try not to second-guess your decisions, especially if it's too late to change your choices. As the wedding day approached, I began second-guessing everything — the photographer, the outfit, the cupcakes. Trust yourself. Don't worry about keeping the traditions you like. I posted a blog entry about why I wanted a bouquet.

Oh, and if you're having out-of-town guests and they take pictures, be sure to get copies from them before they leave.

Enough talk — show me the wedding porn: