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Author of three editions of the Offbeat Bride book and its sequel (From Shitshow To Afterglow, the ultimate offbeat breakup book), Ariel Meadow Stallings is the publisher of all the Offbeat Empire web properties. She lives in Seattle with her son.
El Yunque Wedding 2 alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

4 offbeat destination wedding & honeymoon venues in Puerto Rico

Last month I went on a 5-day press tour of Puerto Rico, busing around the island with a pack of other journalists to check out wedding and honeymoon destinations. It was fucking awesome, and I saw some venues that OMG, you guys… if you’re planning a destination wedding (or looking for a honeymoon spot), you would LOVE these places.

No, seriously: goth vegan former convents? Zebra-print villas? Rainforest terraces? You’re going to freak out.

love note nice alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

Deliver a quick love note at the altar

It’s a cute idea, right? Totally cute. That said, I don’t think my note would have looked like that at all. I think it would have looked like this…

Annaliese Cakes alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

Cake potluck: ask family members to bake their signature sweets

In the comments to our post Let Them Eat Cinnamon Buns, Annaliese shared her wedding’s very alternative cake scenario…

188060 83a561079b alternative wedding ideas from Offbeat Wed (formerly Offbeat Bride)

Plan your pre-sunset toasts with the Golden Hour Calculator

When I was planning my wedding day schedule, I knew one thing: I wanted toasts to be happening on the front lawn of the B&B during the “Golden Hour,” that brief window of time before sunset when everything is glazed in that rich, warm, yellow light.

I spent a bunch of time online, looking at sunset times, trying to figure out how to schedule the transition from dinner to toasts so that I could nail the timing just right… if only the Golden Hour Calculator had existed then!