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The Offbeat Bride: Elise, student and aspiring artist
Her offbeat partner: David, Technical Analyst
Date and location of wedding: The Kelly Gallery, Overland Park, KS — June 21, 2014
Our offbeat wedding at a glance: Instead of using flowers in the wedding, I made a brooch bouquet for myself, my bridesmaids carried lanterns, and the groom and groomsmen had brooches as their boutonnieres. I also made the not-so-traditional choice of having both of my parents walk me down the aisle.
I make and sell jewelry, so along with the brooch bouquet, I made all of my and the bridesmaids' jewelry, which was fun. I gave my bridesmaids a few color guidelines for dresses and set them loose to find their own, and I love what each of them picked! I love the colorful, mismatched look with which we ended up. Also, we had guests sign a globe instead of a guest book.
Tell us about the ceremony:
Our ceremony followed the traditional Anglican guidelines, because my husband and I both continually find this tradition to touch us personally. It also included communion for everyone; we find the Eucharist to be a beautiful sacrament and way to commune with loved ones so it was really special for us to participate in that with everyone.
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Our biggest challenge:
The biggest challenge of the wedding itself was trying to get everything done in the allotted time. I have lupus, which comes with fatigue and joint pain, so to avoid wearing me out too much we tried to keep all the festivities, from the beginning of the ceremony to the end of the reception, to under three hours. It sounded like plenty of time during the planning stages, but in practice we struggled to make everything happen (ceremony, photos, toasts, cake cutting, first dance, father/daughter dance, greeting guests… it all takes longer than you might think!). It was for the best, though, because my body couldn't have handled much more exertion. The time constraints really were best for my health, so ultimately I don't regret the decision.
My favorite moment:
Having both of my parents give me away was definitely one of the most meaningful moments of my wedding. My parents always had equally-involved roles in my life; my dad is my protector, my mom is my best friend, and they have both always been my primary teachers and advocates. I couldn't imagine going down the aisle with just one of them. I will treasure forever that walk down the aisle toward my wonderful husband with my dad on one side and my mom on the other.
Another special moment was when our priest was serving communion and one of my favorite hymns (Sufjan Steven's cover of “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing”) was playing, and one of my bridesmaids started singing along softly. I joined her, and then my husband joined us, and soon the whole wedding party was quietly murmuring those beautiful words together while all my closest family and friends were communing with us in the Eucharist. It was really beautiful and another moment I will treasure forever.
Another very meaningful moment was my older brother's toast. He is generally introverted and not given to telling people how he feels about them, but in his toast he shared thoughts and feelings about me that I never knew he had. It was the only time during the whole day that I cried. The amounts of evident love, admiration, and respect in his words were baffling to me in the best way imaginable.
The toasts from my brother, dad, sister-in-law, brother-in-law, and maid of honor all blew me away with their love and kindness. Also, the enthusiasm and reverence with which my husband made his commitment to love and cherish me as his wife as long as we both shall live was the ultimate confirmation of his love for me, which made me feel like my heart could burst from happiness.
My funniest moment:
The funniest moment of the reception was probably my dad's toast, which was an adorable little poem that he wrote about love, marriage, and me and my husband. It ended with an old political joke, which made everyone in the room laugh and groan.
Care to share a few vendor/shopping links?
- Photography: Courtney Jean Photography
- Dress: Ida's Bridal and Tuxedos
- Shoes: ModCloth
- Food: Delish Catering
Enough talk — show me the wedding inspo!
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I love the dresses the bridesmaids chose, and your bouquet is amazing, everything is so beautiful! Hello from another Overland Park bride!
omg, love love LOVE the bouquet/lanterns idea, and the globe guestbook! 😀
Your jewelry looks amazing; I can’t believe you made it! So talented. A beautiful accent to your beautiful wedding.
Thank you!!
LOVE all the jewelry and the bridesmaids dresses were fabulous! And you rocked your glasses – AWESOME!
I can’t tell you how much I love seeing Christian weddings on Offbeat Bride, and yours is beautiful. I can’t believe I’ve never heard Sufjan Steven’s version of Come Thou Fount, it’s one of my favourite hymns and we will be using it in our ceremony. Thanks for sharing such a beautiful moment.
Jessie, just making sure that you know about our archive of Christian weddings: http://offbeatwed.com/tag/christian 🙂
Thanks for the info!
Ah! Truly a beautiful wedding with such special detail. And what a memory to hear your bridal party quietly singing “Come Thou Fount.”