The Offbeat Bride: Jessica, Film Studies Student
Her offbeat partner: Josiah, IT Technician
Date and location of wedding: The Frontier Cafe in Brunswick, ME — 06/15/2013
Our offbeat wedding at a glance: We spent $8,000 on our space-themed geek wedding and loved it. I have always been fascinated with space. The Frontier Cafe, where we held both the ceremony and the reception, has a theater, and being a film person, I couldn’t resist saying our vows there. We were married under huge NASA photos of galaxies and stars being projected on the big screen.
Josiah’s best man was a woman, we opened with a music video we recorded ourselves about how love sucks, and our guestbooks were one of Josiah’s guitars and one of my drumheads. We also had breakfast for dinner (it’s our favorite meal!), our song was about video games (“Mario Kart Love Song” by Sam Hart), and instead of a cake we had donuts!
Tell us about the ceremony:
One of the first things we decided about the wedding was that we didn’t want an officiant. Josiah was uncomfortable with a third person up there with us, so we were legally hitched at our local credit union before the wedding. We really confused the poor tellers at the bank!
I followed my bridesmaids down the aisle alone, as my father had walked my mother down before the video started. As a feminist, I didn’t want someone to give me away. My husband and I both read our “statements of commitment,” exchanged rings designed by my father, and then my brother stood and proclaimed us married by the power invested in him “by the intergalactic federation.” We high-fived, kissed, and walked back down the aisle to take pictures in our photo booth.
My favorite moment:
Josiah’s vows. They made me cry. Which doesn’t happen a lot. My wedding dress was incredibly meaningful too since my mom made it by hand!
Our sci-fi themed photo booth was also fun. Instead of an actual booth, we had a whole corner where everyone could go and pose for pictures. It was a great way for different people to mingle. I love the photos of my coworkers, mom, and nieces as well as my aunt, Josiah’s mom, and one of my bridesmaids fighting with lightsabers!
My niece Genevieve’s sixth birthday was the day after our wedding, so we presented her with a special pink donut and made the whole wedding sing her “Happy Birthday.”
My funniest moment:
The ceremony began with a music video Josiah and I made. He’s a musician, and I can play the drums a little, so we made a cover of Reel Big Fish’s “Suckers.” The lyrics are all about the horrors of falling out of love and the chorus is “This one’s for all the suckers who still believe in love.” Josiah and I then dedicated our wedding to those very same suckers.
As the video was playing in the theater, my bridesmaids and I were outside nervously waiting to walk down the aisle. The video was four minutes long so we were wondering what we could do. “Shots!” I yelled, and the bartender next to us happily obliged. It was a great, unplanned bonding experience with my ladies. Plus, it helped get us all down that aisle.
What was the most important lesson you learned from your wedding?
Be true to yourself and your wants. I learned that my happiness (and that of my partner’s) is the most important thing, and that everyone else needs to be in charge of their own happiness.
Care to share a few vendor/shopping links?
- Photography: Tom Couture
- Bride’s shoes: Steve Madden and Converse
- Groom’s custom suit: Indochino
- Groom’s shoes: vegetarian Kenneth Cole
- Venue: The Frontier Cafe
Enough talk — show me the wedding inspo!
