A whimsical polyamorous wedding joining two families in awesomeness

Offbeat partner: Katie

Offbeat partner: Audree

Date and location of wedding: Ivywild School, Colorado Springs, CO — August 12, 2017

Our offbeat wedding at a glance:

We have a polyamorous family. I have been married to Ben for 11 years, Audree has been married to Allan for 11 years, Allan and I are partners, and Ben and Audree are partners. The four of us live together with our children.

There were very few traditional elements to our wedding. Audree and I went for a whimsical and eclectic vibe that centered on joining our two families with a commitment ceremony and a fun party afterward. The venue was a historic elementary school that has been converted to a marketplace and brewery. Our ceremony and reception were in the school's old gym, which serves as an event center.

Cocktail hour was in the brewery's barrel aging room. Our beautiful cake was made by my mom, who does the baking for our family restaurant. We chose a palette of muted rainbow colors. We handmade all of the pinwheels that became our centerpieces and placed them in colored glass vases around the room.

We had custom Converse made, with rainbow soles to represent pride. Hers were black high-tops and mine were decoupaged with champagne-colored glitter. Our husbands and son wore white button-ups with pinwheel boutonnieres. Our daughters wore white dresses, each with their own accent color represented in the bouquet and color of Converse they wore.

Tell us about the ceremony:

Audree and I chose to have our guests seated in a circular arrangement so we could feel surrounded on all sides by those most dear to us. We walked in as a family, first our husbands and son, then our daughters, and then us. We didn't abide by the no-seeing-each-other-before tradition. In fact, when we chose our dresses, we went shopping together!

Our friend, Steven, led the ceremony. Our ceremony script was carefully written, with emphasis on honoring growth, support, and encouragement. We wrote our vows, sharing promises to take care of each other, to stand up for one another, and find happiness in the other.

Tell us about your reception:

During cocktail hour, we were in the brewery's barrel aging room where we had appetizers and drinks with our guests. During that time, the gym was converted from the ceremony space into the reception space. Audree and I shared our first dance, then invited Allan and Ben to dance with each of us, then switched partners, then danced as a whole family with our kids. We danced and laughed and had so much fun with our friends and family. The kids all loved getting up on the stage to have a dance party. We did cut the cake together, one of the few traditional elements of our wedding!

What was your most important lesson learned?

The most important thing I learned in planning this wedding is how important it is to make your celebration what you want it to be. Nothing has to be by the book. The personal, unique, and creative touches are what are remembered and cherished.

Vendors

• Planning: Anna Adkins with The Raggedy Anna Celebrations
• Hair: Molly McDonald at Molly Sue's Salon
• Venue: Ivywild School
• Cake: Kasie Swain at Mountain Shadows Restaurant
• Food: The Blue Star
• Drinks: Bristol Brewing Company
• Photography: Broken Glass Photography

Gallery

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