Anna & Jon’s family and sweets, hot-day wedding

The offbeat bride: Anna, Credit Controller

Her offbeat partner: Jon, IT Support

Date and location of wedding: Pitville Pump Rooms and The Tithe Barn, Cheltenham, UK — October 1, 2011

Our offbeat wedding at a glance: We started off with many grand ideas and eventually pared this down to the few things we both really wanted: awesome shoes, colour, SWEETS, family, and cupcakes. I also really wanted my brother to walk in with me, not due to any issues with my pops or step-dad, but just because my brother is my closest relative and I wanted him to be part of the day. We had centrepieces that were glass bowls filled with water beads in lime green and purple, and that served as our “colors.”

My sisters and best friend were my little bridal party, and all wore short black dresses of their choosing.

We wanted lots of cake and along with the 80+ cupcakes, we ended up with carrot cake and a lemon cake made by my mum. At the end of the night we were giving people trays of cake to take home.

Tell us about the ceremony: We had a fairly standard ceremony, but were able to include our own readings and music. We had a fab reading of “A Lovely Love Story” by Edward Monkton, read by my “makeup Jedi” Mary, complete with dinosaur noises and hand puppetry. My step-dad picked out his own reading as well:

MARRIAGE IS
Someone to believe in
And to put their trust in you
Someone who appreciates
The special things you do,
Someone to be close to,
In your heart and mind,
Someone who's the love
You might have thought you'd never find,
Someone who stands by you
And whose faith can make you strong,
Someone you will cherish
Every day, your whole life long
– Emily Matthews

As our piece of music whilst signing the register, we had “If I Didn't Have You” by Tim Minchin.

Jon is a massive Star Wars fan, so we had “The Imperial March” playing as we left the ceremony.

Our biggest challenge: We had some family issues that escalated into some guests not coming to the wedding. We realised that anyone spouting negative and spiteful things to us about our decisions was not what we wanted. So the decision was made to not include them in the day.

But everyone else was really excited and enthusiastic. My mum told all her friends how “alternative” it was going to be and how excited she was about it. I understand not everyone will react like this, but you might be surprised by who ends up being the most supportive.

Also, the day we got married was ridiculously hot. It was the hottest October day the UK has had for 100 years. It was baking hot and, if you know English weather, this was unheard of. Instead of dodging the rain for photos, we had to rush through them so people didnt pass out from the heat. Luckily, our reception venue had nice outside areas, so people ended up roaming around all day in the shade.

My favorite moment: I only teared up twice. The first was when my youngest sister gave me a letter on the wedding morning, and the contents of it just slayed me. The other moment was when the speeches started. My dad started out with some jokes, but then very seriously said he was proud to know me.

I also loved the moments with my brother before walking in to the ceremony, and then walking into the hall and everyone spontaneously bursting into applause. What a lovely moment.

My funniest moment: I loved when all the men with long hair and beards had a photo together. All the hairy men had gathered!

Care to share a few vendor/shopping links?

• Photography: friends of the couple
• Bride's dress: Vivien of Holloway
• Bride's birdcage headpiece: Custom-made by CuriologyOnline
• Bride's shoes: Iron Fist
• Groom's shoes: Fanai from eBay
• Groom's outfit: Famous of Cheltenham

Enough talk — show me the wedding inspo!

About the Author: Offbeat Weditors

@offbeatbride @offbeatwed

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