Category Archive

father of the bride

Lanterns, swords, and romance at this royal winter wedding

Should I invite my dad and brother to my wedding, if they don’t like my fiance?

My boyfriend and I have now lived together for over a year and a half, and have decided to get married (yay!)… But my dad and my older brother still don’t like him. Do I ask them to come to the wedding, or no?

Hankies at the ready: this couple made the decision to have a last-minute hospital bedside wedding

Hankies at the ready: this couple made the decision to have a last-minute hospital bedside wedding

Life continues to happen even as we plan weddings. Alysson and Adam’s circumstances led them to make a pretty huge choice. They decided to get married at Hackensack University Medical Center to be with Alysson’s ailing father. Photographer Stefanie Murphy had received an inquiry for a “last minute wedding ceremony” and soon realized that it was imperative that she take it.

I hope you’re wearing waterproof mascara for this one, y’all…

parent wedding gifts for mother of the bride and groom alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

9 creative ways to thank your parents for making it to (and through!) your wedding

Unless you raised yourselves (or were raised by wolves, which would be even better), you might have a parent figure of some kind to thank for helping you get to be the awesome human you are who gets to marry the awesome person who loves you for being the awesome person you are.

If this is the case, here are some fun ways to thank your parents before, after, or at your wedding…

6503865285 f26bc13521 b alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

Think “holding up” as an alternative to “giving away” the bride

For those who’d like to include the traditional walk down the aisle with a deeply loved parental figure but choke a bit on the whole concept of “giving away,” maybe all that’s required is some alternative thinking. This person has supported you and loved you, whomever they may be — how lovely to let them “hold you up” as you walk toward your partner.

14868815726 84d24acd78 c alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

Planning a wedding as a fatherless bride

Despite the joy and enthusiasm I felt about getting married, not having my dad there meant there was a shadow, which for me made wedding planning — especially some of the emotions and complexities — as if I were planning both a wedding and a funeral. Death and life. Beginnings and endings. Joy and grief. It was all wound up together in a giant ball of messy emotions.

dad first look alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

Surprise your dad with his own first look (and make us weep!)

By now you maaay know my love for first looks. They just get me every damned time. But Danielle’s take on the first look really got me right there in the ticker. She decided to have a DAD FIRST LOOK. Sure, dad might already be seeing you before the ceremony if you’re going that route (and if he’s there), but doing the surprise-and-turn just makes it that much more adorable.