Belinda & Craig’s Aussie rock apocalypse wedding

It's another theme week!! This week is dedicated to the brides and grooms gutsy enough to perform at their own wedding. In others words, this week is for couples who, literally, rocked their wedding! How better to kick off our first ever Rock Your Wedding theme week, than with the bride and groom who rocked their reception? -Becca

The offbeat bride: Belinda, University Lecturer and DBA (and Tribe member)

Her offbeat partner: Craig, Learning and Development Consultant

Location & date of wedding: Deakin Chapel and Lakehouse, Geelong, VIC, Australia — November 21st, 2009

What made our wedding offbeat: We decided that, as newlyweds, we would make a surprise entrance and rock out on Bass/Vocals (bride) and Guitar (groom). Our guests were flabbergasted and haven't stopped talking about it or posting photos and videos all over the internet since! (See videos here and here!)

We gave custom guitar picks as favors. Each guest requested a song on their RSVP card and we put together a playlist with a bit of everything, especially metal, punk and rock and roll.

I made a traditional fruit cake with my grandmother and also baked a hoard of cupcakes to place on the cupcake stand I made from a vintage record player and old records.

Our wedding was a non-religious ceremony at a sentimental place, with nods to our Scottish heritage. One of our readings was a poem by Robert Plant.

We had an eco-conscious reception with a 100-mile menu and vegetarian choices. We used recycled paper for invitations, envelopes and packaging for our wedding favors, which were seasonal vegetable and herb seeds that people could plant in their garden after our wedding.

Our mothers made living/native centrepieces that were re-plantable and reused. We used recycled timber pallets to build a wishing well.

A friend custom made my tea-length 50s-style dress made with recycled material, and I wore a bright blue petticoat to match my shoes! We had our close friends as best man and maid of honour, wearing absolutely whatever they wanted.

Our biggest challenge:
Our biggest challenge was trying to make everyone happy, which, in retrospect, would have ultimately been impossible. We just remained as laid back as possible about every hiccup we encountered.

It rained on our wedding day — not just a light shower, but the highest level of rain experienced in fifty years. One of our readings was The Rain Song by Led Zeppelin, which finishes with ‘its just a little rain.' So not only was it appropriate on the day, but it was our mantra. Whatever comes our way, at the end of the day, we will be happily married to our bestest friend.

My favorite moment: At the reception, our best man and maid of honour walked in the front door, with everyone expecting us to follow.

Instead, Eruption by Van Halen kicked in over the PA as we snuck in the back door, onto the stage and I held up my white bass with ‘Just Married' printed on it. I'll never forget the shocked looks on peoples faces as people cheered and squealed with excitement.

I think people had an inkling that we were going to be doing something unconventional but it was a huge surprise to all our family and friends. We wanted all our loved ones to have a great time and celebrate with us but also have a different experience from the typical wedding.

My advice for offbeat brides: Everyone will tell you their own (oft misguided) ideas of how your average wedding should play out. We both wrote down a few things that we truly wanted for the day and scrapped everything superfluous.

Care to share a few vendor/shopping links?

• Clutch Purse: Red Ruby Rose
• Custom guitar picks: Custom Picks on eBay

Enough talk — show me the wedding inspo!

About the Author: Offbeat Weditors

@offbeatbride @offbeatwed

Working tirelessly to bring you stimulating content day after day, the Offbeat Wed editors will not sleep until you've gotten your offbeat fix.