Aw yeah, it’s Halloween week! Get ready for a big helping of tricks and treats with your romance. Today we’ve got jack-o-lanterns, Royal Navy sailors, and a volcano delaying the dress!
The offbeat bride: Kerri, sales assistant (and Tribe member)
Her offbeat partner: Chris, Royal Navy
Location & date of wedding: Northover Manor, Somerset, UK — October 31, 2010
What made our wedding offbeat: We tried to keep everything very simple: no seating plan, no gift list, no first dance, minimal speeches, and a buffet. We made our invites from copies of vintage Halloween postcards and I hand-sewed bunting for decoration. I customised my jewelery and accessories.
We booked one of our favourite bands, Zombina and The Skeletones, to play, had apple bobbing outside in the courtyard, and a wandering magician to keep guests entertained. We grew our own pumpkins and asked guests to bring their own jack-o-lanterns as well. Some people left the carving of theirs until they were sat at the dinner table.
Tell us about the ceremony: It was an extremely short ceremony with no readings. We wanted to be sure it wasn’t too long or boring since they came to see us do the deed. Our ceremony music featured Incubus, Hannah Fury, and Johnny Cash.
Our biggest challenge: My dress was the biggest challenge. I found it in a local store and it fit perfectly when it arrived, but it had to be shipped from America. A volcano exploded just as it was due to leave the warehouse, so it was delayed for longer than I care to remember.
We also wanted the dress code for guests to be black, which somehow caused a lot of confusion and I was answering queries about it every day for months.
My favorite moment: Having my mother give me away. There were a few raised eyebrows when people found out, but she has been the most constant force in my life and I couldn’t have imagined not having her as a major part of the whole day.
My funniest moment: Just as everyone was finishing dinner, the doors were flung open as children (who we knew) came charging in screaming “trick or treat!” We had no idea it was going to happen. It become a good way to announce that the Halloween candy bar was open.
Was there anything you were sure was going to be a total disaster that unexpectedly turned out great? I was pretty confident about everything but Chris was a nervous wreck about the band. When the day came and they were running late, there was some mild panic, but it couldn’t have turned out any better. They ended up converting a few of our friends into fans.
My advice for offbeat brides: Leave yourself plenty of time. It’s never too early to start buying bits and pieces, especially if you’re handmaking things.
What was the most important lesson you learned from your wedding? I’ve hopefully learned to worry less. I was so nervous about everybody else liking the wedding and enjoying themselves, but the day was really fun.
Care to share a few vendor/shopping links?
- Photographer: Graham Slocombe
- Cake: Just Scrumptious
- Flowers: Enchanted Florals
- Masks: Mad Hatter’s Joke Shop
- Band: Zombina and The Skeletones
Enough talk — show me the wedding inspo!
