I do not want to wear makeup to my wedding. I could, perhaps, be persuaded to wear something like blush. I will, of course, wear something sheer and glossy on my lips. (They call it chapstick.)

But really? Is it that important?
I've never loved makeup, despite being Very Southern from a Very Southern family (my mother won't leave the house without her complete "face"). And having never loved makeup, I've never learned to really wear it.

We're getting hitched outside during the day so natural light. I'm pale and don't mind looking pale. (Next to my lady, I will also be the pale one.) My face and arms have loads of freckles that I want to show off. I'm wearing color, which peps most skin up. Oh, and I wear glasses.

Am I missing out on something here? Will the pictures make me look dead? Is there a reason to learn about this stuff in the next 393 days? Help, people who know more about this than I do!

Howdy folks...I'll try to keep this short.

I'm getting married in four months, and I just know the nagging about "tradition" from just about everyone in my family is going to get worse before it gets better. I thought I was out of the woods when the whole shock and revulsion about my not wanting a proposal or engagement ring died down...but no such luck. (For example, today I told my mom I wasn't planning on doing a bouquet toss, and she totally flew off the handle...I might as well have told her I'm quitting my job to join the circus.) It seems like everyone wants to throw in their two cents on EVERY aspect of the wedding, and as soon as our ideas don't mesh with theirs, they fly into a frenzy of "BUT YOU HAAAAVE TO" or "BUT IT'S A TRADITION", sometimes followed by motherly (or grandmotherly) guilt-tripping. Fun.

I know I shouldn't let it bother me, and I keep telling myself that these kind of negative reactions to our plans have more to do with the naggers than they do with me, but...it's still incredibly frustrating. I feel like my FH and I are being objectified and boxed in to everyone else's idea of what a wedding should be, which is unfair and so very annoying.

Anyway, I do sort of have a point to this post...does anyone who's already made it have any sort of advice on getting through it all? Is there any way to put your foot down without invoking reactions of "OMG BRIDEZILLA"? Is there some kind of broken record phrase that keeps the traditionalists at bay? Any advice is much appreciated...thanks for reading.

Hey guys, I wrote a blog post about finding cute, affordable dresses for plus-size brides. I'm looking for a colourful (not white!), cheap dress and it's pretty hard. Anyway, I thought some of you guys might find these links helpful?

We got married on 10.4.08 in Coney Island at the Museum above the Freak Show. I wore red and a little burlesque style hat. He wore a custom made southern gothic style suit. I walked down the aisle to the theme song from the show Twin Peaks (Julee Cruise, "Falling"). I made my bouqet out of fake gerber daisies, feathers, and glowing red lights that ran on a battery pack! His Best Man was also our officiant and the whole ceremony was custom to us...equal parts sweet and silly. We wrote our own vows (which included a high five in the middle). We had rings custom made out of imprints of sand, shells, and boardwalk we collected at Coney Island. Our recessional music ("Be My Baby") wasn't working and, instead, the entire audience stomped and clapped the classic girl pop drum beat and sang (amazing!) After the ceremony, the family went out to dinner at a restaurant next door to our reception venue. And then the family took off and the friends arrived for dancing into the night! The next day we went upstate to stay the night at Kate Pierson (from the B-52s) hotel called Lazy Meadow. It was the perfect little "Love Shack"!


( But enough blah blah blah...click for photos! )

Hi, I just joined and thought I'd introduce myself!

I got engaged about three weeks ago and have already started planning-- it makes me anxious to leave things like this! Plus, it's kind of fun :)

I guess my wedding is unusual because of our budget, which is $1,500. That's going to cover everything except the alcohol, which my parents have offered to pay for. The thing is, not only are we (my partner and I) pretty poor, we're really not interested in spending money on napkins and roses and tuxedos. These things aren't our style. I admit that sometimes I get envious looking at wedding pron at Offbeat Bride, but for the most part, I think that planning a spectacular wedding would just stress me out. And even if we had the money, I'd rather spend it on something else, like travel.

I still need (sane) people to talk to about the wedding, though! This looks like a good community for that.

I've also started a wedding blog at http://thesensiblebride.blogspot.com/ about planning a frugal wedding, if you're interested.

hey all, i've been a member for a little while and have been reading the posts, but never made one of my own. well, i need some creative thinking from like-minded creative brides.

for a while i had been thinking i was going to make my own dress, but all of a sudden a few weeks ago i just started looking at big white dresses, and i wanted one. after much internet surfing and obsessing, i tried on a few and settled on one that just was amazing when i put it on. great, that's done.

here's the part i need help with. i don't really like veils. when i was planning on doing my own dress, i was going for deconstructed victorian so i was thinking about wearing a mini-top hat with blusher/birdcage veil. now that the dress is picked out, well, i am not sure that will work.

here is the dress:

http://davidsbridal.com/bridal_gowns_detail.jsp?stid=962&prodgroup=10

i think it really is beautiful, and in my mind works with our Victorian/Alice in Wonderland tea party/garden party. but i don't think that this dress will work with a mini top hat.

i started looking around more (obsessive much?) for other options, but the big Victorian tea hats don't seem to match the dress either, and i am unsure how a birdcage veil would look. i suppose a birdcage/fascinator would be ok, but do you have any other ideas for a hair thing? i saw some orange blossom wreath/tiaras that could work, but i wanted to see if you amazing ladies had any other suggestions for me.

for reference, my hair is short (slightly shaggy pixie cut) and it's going to be short for the wedding.

thanks wonderful ones!

Current Location: La Jolla, CA
Current Music: beck - static/diamond bollocks

Does anyone know of any great shops / online retailers for cool and unusual dressy garb for my gent? I'm wearing a red gown and he would love to do something red/black/white with a southern gothic feel to it. He keeps saying he's going to do some research, but I figured I'd put my feelers out for some ideas to pass his way as well.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

I'm not sure if this is a frequently touched on subject, I haven't seen too much on this subject.

Celebrities at weddings. Does ANYONE have experience w/ that?

My fiance is a tour manager for some heavy hitters in the heavy metal/ rock industry. These bands/ band members/ crew are close friends of ours. People that we visit and send christmas cards to (and receive them from). They are invited to our wedding.

A few we know for certain will be there so long as there are no tour dates booked for our 1 January 2010 wedding- which is unlikely, and the reason that we chose that date.

Because we have other friends in the music industry attending, and our "normal" friends don't get all star struck we weren't prepared when *one of the guests on the periphery of our list* turned to us the other night with a "you're going to have THEM AT YOUR WEDDING?!?"

I almost had a heart attack. Not only did my day suddenly become about the showcase of bands that will be there, but now my friends are going to be harassed by my other guests?!

Has anyone had to deal w/ something like this? I know we usually have to deal w/ keeping guests away from other guests because of hostilities, but I didn't realize that there was a polar opposite to that!

I can easily talk to my guests that I think will freak out about this beforehand. That's not a problem. It's when the ball gets rolling at the wedding itself when everyone has relaxed and they think I'm not watching that I'm most worried about.

*And let me also mention, that this one person isn't the only one who will get star struck- a few family members more than likely will as well.*

Current Mood: restless

Who here has done or is planning on doing an iPod wedding?  I am considering it, but am trying not to have my brother "man" the iPod all afternoon and I have no idea what to do about sound yet.  Ceremony and reception site does not have loudspeaker capabilities so I would have to rent.  How did that work for you?  Did you decide it wasn't worth the hassle and just hired a DJ instead?  What swayed your decision one way or another?

I am not really having the whole 1st dance thing, parent dances, or really care if people dance or not.  Lots of Baptists will be present and I will have drummers and bellydancers there for some of the "entertainment" and dancing opportunities.  However, I will need ceremony music and some ambient noise for at least some of the reception.  So a DJ will be under utilized and would mainly serve as an equipment tech.  Any suggestions?

x-posted

I'm looking at all these sets of champagne flutes, cake knifes, guest books, ring bearer pillow & flower girl baskets and it's making me mental.

I'm approaching burn-out and I need help for fun ideas that don't look like this standard issue crap!

Please help.

Thank you in advance.

(x-posted because I'm desperate)

Current Location: Devil Box
Current Mood: irritated
Current Music: Take Me Away - Ween