The Offbeat Bride: Patty, Corporate Office Manager
Her offbeat partner: Will
Date and location of wedding: Amber House, Sacramento, CA — 10/13/2012
Our offbeat wedding at a glance: We chose a wedding planner and officiant that specialized in alternative weddings, Rockin’ Weddings and We decided to get married on October 13th, and embraced the number 13 as a lucky omen and not a bad one.
We have a black cat we adore named Knubbies, and included the superstition stories of the black cat and featured her on the mantle. We aimed for a spooky elegant vibe, with a mix of Victorian, goth, Halloween, and rock elements. We kept it small which made it more intimate. The music featured was string versions of alternative songs from artists such as H.I.M, The Smiths, The Cure, etc.
Tell us about the ceremony: Our ceremony was personal because we included our own vows to each other. With our officiant, we created a ceremony with some of the stories of pirates, black cats, and the number 13, and why they could also be seen in many cultures as lucky.
Neither of us knew what the other would say and it really hit home why we were getting married. The love and support that was coming from friends and family was enough to keep us emotional well after the wedding.
Our biggest challenge: Our biggest challenge was trying to get a vintage hearse to ride in for pictures after the ceremony. We couldn’t find one available to rent, but our wedding planners found a great compromise in a car named “Rachel,” a vintage red and black custom 1959 Chevy Biscayne with a spooky rockabilly feel to it featuring spider webs above the wheels.
My funniest moment: We had fancy champagne in a pink can for a toast as we were pronounced man and wife. Will hadn’t opened his yet, so there was a very audible and “classy” sound as he opened the can.
Have you been married before and if so, what did you do differently? I had been married once before. This time I wanted a more personalized feeling with hand-written vows and a small, intimate feel. I think we succeeded.
What was the most important lesson you learned from your wedding? The lesson I learned is that ultimately, it was our day to focus on our future as husband and wife. I also really tried to take in as much as I could so that the day didn’t just fly by without noticing the little things.
Care to share a few vendor/shopping links?
- Decor: Fog bubble machine
- Planners: and Rockin’ Weddings and Events
- Photography by David Verdugo
- Flowers: Rockin’ Weddings and Events
- Videography: RPM Productions (see the video here)
Enough talk — show me the wedding inspo!
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11 responses to “Patty & Will’s spooktacularly elegant wedding”
Holy beautiful wedding! And that car? So cool! Congrats =]
Thank you Kirstin!!!! It was the most amazing day! I’m so blessed to have had it featured!
Love this wedding! We did a Halloween themed wedding too and it was awesome. I love all your little details, especially the bottle labels. We kept telling people we were really throwing a Halloween party at which we’d happen to get married. I think one of the hardest parts of planning a Halloween themed wedding was finding inspiration (and wedding porn) when so much stuff out there is focused on spring/summer weddings. I remember being completely frustrated that bridal magazines hardly ever even touch on fall weddings and then being so relieved and happy to find the Offbeat community here. <3
Me too! I had a halloween wedding as well. I love finding other Halloween aficionados. I fond most of my halloween inspiration on Pinterest. It was probably the best place at the time to find Halloween themed wedding porn.
P.S. the dress compliments the bride’s tattoos. It’s fabulous she thought of everything.
Kelly – Thank you! The dress was a collaboration between Patty and I. It took about 30 hours to complete.
It turned out perfect!
Thank you!!!! I had a lot of awesome help from Celia Rose, Inc. and Rocking Weddings!
Hi Leslie! Thank you! Yea, it’s weird how mainstream weddings are still so prevalent! At least we have sites like Off Beat Bride to help! I was also so blessed with amazing people like Celia Rose, Inc. and Rockin Weddings who were amazing!
that cake!!!!!
I agree with charlie… That Cake!!! I love it!!, my daughter is having a Halloween wedding next year and we just love looking at past Halloween weddings here and getting ideas of what she wants to do with hers .. Congratulations to the bride and groom!! great pictures too!
Heyy we share an anniversary!! Good day to get married 🙂
Thanks all! Yea Oct 13th rocks! And I will tell Stephanie about the raves for her cake! 🙂