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Creating a unique wedding celebration with thoughtful details truly makes the big day that much more special. Jenna and Jay put so much care and detail into their multi-cultural Headlands Center for the Arts wedding. Not only did they have a personal, hybrid ceremony, but with help of their wedding planner Heartthrob Weddings and Events, they also added a champagne cocktail hour with a remarkable view of the Golden Gate Bridge.
On top of stunning views and personalized ceremonies, Jenna and Jay created stunning wedding favors—a pinch bowl with incense—and hand-dyed their napkins to match their wedding color palette. Keep scrolling to see this absolutely creative wedding as captured by Eve Rox.
The Couple:
Jenna and Jay
The Wedding:
Headlands Center for the Arts, San Francisco, California
Advice for Nearlyweds
Get a wedding planner!Even if you think you don’t need one. We were so excited to make our day feel really special that we were initially hesitant to give up control. It turned out that there were so many details to think through that having a planner is what ended up making it possible for us to focus where it mattered most to us. Oh and start writing your vows early!
Choosing A Headlands Center For the Arts Wedding
We exhaustively searched and there were times where we wanted to just settle for something easy. At the last minute, we found the perfect place. Its blend of history and scenic beauty gave it a romantic and dreamy vibe. Plus, the fact that it’s a non-profit that supports local artists enabled us to give back to our community and choose a place that was within our budget.
Personalized Ceremony
We worked with friends and family who were members of two communities that are really important to us—Jewish and queer communities—to create a highly personal hybrid ceremony that blended tradition with our personal values.
DIYed Wedding Details
We DIYed our favors and hand-dyed our napkins with support from friends. For the favors, we were lucky to have the help of a friend and professional ceramicist, Jo Boyer Ceramics. Jo generously donated their time, know-how, and supplies to help Jay and another friend make pinch pots with our wedding date stamped on the bottom for every guest. We packed these bowls in bags with incense from another friend, Rituals Incense.We love that everyone could light them with intention and bring the sense of love from our wedding day with them.
Backyard weddings have become increasingly popular in 2021—a trend we don’t see going away anytime soon. Emily and Abdo’s Woodland Hills sunset backyard wedding proves you don’t need an over-the-top or expensive wedding venue in order to pull off your dream celebration. With the help of planner Bone Soiree Productions, their backyard was fully transformed into a breathtaking wedding space complete with candles, draped twinkle light, and a band that turned their reception into a fun-filled party.
Photographer Lauren Belknap did a great job capturing images packed with memories—fully immersing us in Emily and Abdo’s sunset backyard wedding. This is what photographer Lauren Belknap had to say about this unforgettable celebration:
This event was the epitome of, “love is never canceled.” Emily and Abdo had a large wedding planned to celebrate with all their family and friends. But when COVID regulations continued into the winter months of 2020, the two realized that getting married in an intimate backyard wedding with loved ones was important to them.
This wedding is a gorgeous example of practicing COVID guidelines while also celebrating love! The bride’s wedding gown is from Marchesa and the style of classic, romantic, and stunning was impeccable throughout the night. The tent created an intimate scene, candles enhanced the atmosphere, and the band created a lively mood.
The Couple:
Emily and Abdo
The Wedding:
Woodland Hills, California
Enjoy The Planning Process
I would challenge every couple to really think about what is the most important part of the wedding. COVID forced us to give up the idea of a giant party at a big venue. It was initially difficult to accept this, but it ultimately made us realize that it didn’t matter where, when, or how we got married. We just wanted to be married, and for the most important people in our lives to be there. The wedding is just one day of your life, your marriage is forever! Enjoy the process as much as you can, be kind to yourself and others, and just remember what this whole process is supposed to be about: you and your person committing to each other forever. Everything else will fall into place.
Most Memorable Sunset Backyard Wedding Moments
The most memorable part of the day was exchanging our vows in front of our closest family and friends. It felt incredible to be surrounded by so much love, during such an awful time in the world, and vowing our commitments of love to each other. I also loved the moments we had after our ceremony—just us—eating appetizers between photos while our guests enjoyed cocktails in the front yard while listening to live music—everything from classic jazz hits to Kanye West.
Meaningful Handmade Wedding Favors
My mom made each guest an embroidered monogrammed blanket. Our wedding was fully outdoors, so it allowed guests to stay cozy when it got cold, and was something unique they could keep and use to remember our wedding.
Congratulations to Emily and Abdo on their beautiful sunset backyard wedding! They were faced with many obstacles that forced them to trade their large wedding for a micro wedding—like many couples during these crazy times. Their celebration turned out beautifully!
Whether you’re looking to avoid canceling or rescheduling your wedding or simply looking to trim your guest list to have a more intimate celebration we’ve got you covered. Whatever your reasoning for downsizing your wedding may be, we have the ultimate planning guides for you. Check out our micro wedding guide and elopement planning guide to get started now.
Maisie and Ques were engaged during the pandemic and, after watching others schedule and reschedule their weddings or opt for elopements, the two decided to quickly tie the knot. Two weeks before their wedding, the United Kingdom announced that wedding numbers would need to be reduced from 30 guests to just 15. The change was set to kick in weeks before their planned wedding date.
Maisie pulled her wedding forward and reorganized the event—in one hour. They had their wedding ceremony at a venue built in 1609, Tissington Hall with a reception in the rose garden. Maisie looked stunning in her gown with thousands of flowers stitched in.
We’re so glad Natalie J Weddings was there to capture this intimate Tissington Hall wedding. Keep scrolling to see the perfect English micro wedding planned in an hour.
The Couple: Maisie and Ques
The Wedding: Tissington Hall, Peak District, England
Incorporating Themselves Into The Wedding
We wanted our wedding to represent us both as individuals and as a couple. I wanted people to walk in and say “oh that’s so them.” We didn’t cater to anyone else but us—it was a day dedicated to Ques and I, the way a wedding should be, and I actually believe our guests enjoyed it more because of that. There was no worrying about what other people wanted. We stayed true to ourselves completely and it paid off.
A Tissington Hall Wedding Memory
After we were married and we’d just had a few moments to ourselves, we were announced into The Carriage House for our Tissington Hall wedding and we walked into the room to see all the faces of the people dearest to us, all bursting with love. It was quite surreal as we’d hardly seen anyone for most of the year after being in lockdown. That image sticks in our minds and we talk about it all the time.
Building The Dream Wedding Team
When I selected the vendors I wanted to use, I made sure I had a good connection with them all. I believe that every detail for your wedding is important, no matter how small. It’s the finer details that bring it all together. So don’t just pick someone for the sake of it. For example, even our cake was carefully selected for its style. I didn’t just pick a cake because we needed to have one, I’d followed BAKE Ashbourne for ages. I knew she was the lady for our wedding cake because she suited our style. The same goes for every wedding vendor we used.
Get Organized Early On
Being super organized helped me a lot, I had lists, schedules, apps which all came in handy when Boris Johnson changed lockdown restrictions which made me move the date last minute! We were very lucky that we found a venue with a wedding planner. Fiona, the wedding planner at Tissington Hall saved my life. She saved me from having wedding and personal meltdowns numerous times.
Personalized Wedding Favors
We had beautiful personalized boxes made by The Cross Eyed Fox who I found on Etsy and filled them with a packet of wildflower seeds. I adore flowers and wanted guests to take these away and plant them and see them grow. We also included delicious Macaroons (inspired by Marie Antoinette) made by Petit Pithivier from Etsy—but local to Derbyshire. She also included a couple of vegan cupcakes for our vegan guests.
Working with Natalie J Weddings
Natalie was an absolute dream to work with. I feel honoured that she took our booking. I was totally fangirling when she arrived. She just knew everything, had so much advice to offer, and was so professional. Natalie whizzed around all day and looking back on the photographs I can’t even remember her being there snapping half of them, she wasn’t intrusive at all. Everyone felt comfortable around her and she was just perfect.
Congratulations to Maisie and Ques on their beautifully intimate Tissington Hall wedding! Special thanks to Natalie J Weddings for sharing it with us. If Maisie and Ques’ intimate wedding has you feeling inspired, you’re in luck. Whether you have a small or large guest list, we can show you how to make it an intimate affair to remember.
Denise and Lee had a rustic goth enchanted garden wedding at The Poe Museum, and their wedding featured handfasting ceremony with beautiful handfasting cords. If you’re curious about handfasting, Offbeat Bride has a massive archive dedicated to handfasting ceremonies and weddings, but today we’re going to share Denise and Lee’s handfasting ceremony script. If you’re thinking of doing a handfasting ceremony, this script will give you ideas for your vows and ceremony wording. This ceremony script uses the words bride and groom to reflect Denise and Lee’s wedding, but of course the language could easily be tweaked for a wedding with folks who identify as LGBTQ or nonbinary.
Wedding ceremony introduction
Today, this couple comes before us to enter into the sacred covenant of marriage, vowing to be partners through the trials and triumphs of their shared life.
They are declaring to each other and to all of us present that they will be by each other’s side, no matter what life brings their way.
The marriage ceremony has been an important feature of nearly every culture, religion, generation, and society.
We have thousands of important moments that happen throughout our lives, but this one is regarded as one so meaningful that we acknowledge its special status by sharing it with others.
Why this moment?
Because, despite all our unique differences, love is what we all share. Love is the great unifier — our one universal truth. No matter who we are, where we have come from, what we believe, we know this one thing . . . love is what we’re doing right.
Love is why you both are standing here. That’s why you all have been invited to watch them stand up here at this moment and be reminded that the ability to love or to be loved unconditionally is the most precious gift a person can give or they can receive by someone.
Handfasting ceremony
As I ask the two of you these questions, please respond together, making your promises before this circle of witnesses.
[Bride] and [Groom], will you honor and respect one another? (We will)
Will you support and assist each other in times of pain and sorrow? (We will)
Will you be present in the difficult and challenging times so that you may grow strong in this union? (We will)
Will you share each other’s laughter and joy and look for the brightness and fun in life and the positive in each other? (We will)
Is it your intention to bring peace and harmony into your everyday ways of communicating? (It is)
And when you falter, will you have the courage and commitment to remember these promises and take a step back towards one another with an open heart? (We will)
Are you willing now and always to make this commitment to each other? (We do)
This cord represents the marital bond. It is strong enough to hold you together during times of struggle yet flexible enough to allow for individuality and personal growth.
Please join hands.
And now, as your hands are bound together, I ask you to declare your vows to each other, repeating after me.
Handfasting Vows
[Groom], please repeat after me as you look at [Bride].
I, [Groom] Promise you, [Bride] That I will be your husband from this day forward, To love and respect you, To support and to hold you, To make you laugh And to be there when you cry, To softly kiss you when you are hurting, And to be your companion and your best friend, On this journey that we will now make together as one.
[Bride], please repeat after me as you look at [Groom]. I, [Bride] Promise you, [Groom] That I will be your wife from this day forward, To love and respect you, To support and to hold you, To make you laugh And to be there when you cry, To softly kiss you when you are hurting, And to be your companion and your best friend, On this journey that we will now make together as one.
As your hands are now bound together, so shall your lives be bound as one.
Keep this cord as a visible reminder of your promise to one another, and let no one unbind it as long as you both shall live.
Ring exchange
Who has the rings?
We all understand the gesture that you are now making. To reach out to someone and be acknowledged, held, and loved is what we all want. Taking the hand of the one who loves you is the symbol of that unspoken bond.
You fell in love by chance, but you’re here today because you’re making a choice. You both are choosing each other. You’ve chosen to be with someone who enhances you, who makes you think, makes you smile, and makes every day brighter.
Every day, as you look down, you will see a brief flash of light, a sparkle as the ring place on your finger today will shine. It will remind you, again and again, over and over, of your promise to your loved one. Every time you take hands, you will feel that wedding ring on your partner’s hand, and you will both be reminded again in turn.
It will always be with you, visible, worn openly, and with pride. It will say to the world that someone loves me enough to make me a promise to share a life.
[Groom], please take [Bride]’s hand, place the ring on her finger, and repeat after me as you look at her: I give you this ring in token and pledge of my abiding love. [Bride], please take [Groom]’s hand, place the ring on his finger, and repeat after me as you look at him: I give you this ring in token and pledge of my abiding love.
May you enjoy a lifetime of love and peace, happiness, and prosperity.
Go in peace. Live in joy
By the authority vested in me by the [State or Region], I now pronounce you husband and wife.
When it comes to the 90s, we think about AOL Instant Messenger, scrunchies, and VHS tapes, right? With that nostalgia in mind, Junebug Member Nikk Nguyen Photo and his talented team created a vibrant and fun 90s wedding inspiration shoot. With colorful, rainbow streamers and clear inflatable chairs, wedding planner XO Moreau Weddings elevated the 90s vibe by adding stunning florals by The Farmer & I Flower Co and minimalistic table decor.
To stay on the 90s trend, the bride rocked a two-piece, puffy, off-the-shoulder gown from Unbridaled while the groom wore a striped t-shirt under a Bonobo’s grey suit. Plus, they added narrow, rectangle sunglasses to complete their ensembles. Trust us when we say that you’ll want to grab your Walkman and Pop Rocks for this one.
The Photographer’s 90s Wedding Inspiration
With this 90s wedding inspiration shoot at The Riley Building, we wanted to create a chic and modern throwback to a classic decade. It was unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. The vendors went all out with a playful 1990s-inspired wedding design. It was really important for the designers to mimic the fashion, colors, and vibe of the 90s. With stunning streamers from Pop & Drop, neon flowers with butterfly accents from The Farmer & I, and the inflatable lounge rentals from Bee Lavish, this 90s wedding inspiration shoot was rad!
