rebekah justins hillbilly chic wedding

We decided from the very beginning that this wedding would be for our guests with an emphasis on fun.We found our reverend and DJ online, too… both had a cool vibe and responded well to our ideas. We wrote our vows ourselves and incorporated a hand blessing and multi-ethnic prayers in our ceremony.My children had to be a big part of the ceremony, so my 10-year-old daughter, Winona, was my MOH, and my sons, Calvin-8 and Jack-5 walked me down the aisle and gave me away. They were my only attendants. One of my best friends, Jay, performed "First Day of My Life," by Bright Eyes,Discount Wedding Dresses, for us all at the reception and my sons breakdanced for the crowd.Faux-to Booth fun.Justin is a music/celebrity photographer and a lot of our friends are photographers, too, so the cameras were flashing like crazy. We set up a "faux-to" booth outside with a crazy forest scene. Because Woodloch is a mountain resort, there were plenty of "props" around for our friends to hi-jack for photos and later get yelled at to put back. Oh well.Almost every element of the decor was either DIY or purchased on Etsy. My mother made the centerpieces from silk flowers and feathers, Justin and I did the stationary,Wedding Accessories, and most of the jewelry and hairpieces were purchased on Etsy. Instead of flowers,Empire Wedding Dress, my daughter and I carried Victorian bags filled with feathers.The beautiful white wedding cake with smurfs all around.I guess the one thing that was most uniquely ours was the Smurf theme running throughout the wedding. Justin and I regularly go on "Smurf-hunting" missions and for a game at the reception, we asked our guests find hidden Smurf figurines and bring them to us to make us kiss.We did most of our planning together as just the two of us and online, so we were the only critics we had to deal with most of the time.My favorite moment: Our ceremony was at the same time the most precious and most romantic moment of my life.I remember turning around at the end and seeing everyone clapping and crying, and I had just realized that there were actually people there.My advice for other offbeat brides: My advice to other brides is to be yourself and be open. Sometimes traditional may seem to corny or your personal ideas may seem too strange, but you don't want pigeon-hole yourself into not having a day you'll love. Be open to the ideas of your family and friends… they love you and they just want to be part of your joy.Be open to each other… it's your day. Plan together! Some of the most cherished memories of my wedding are crafting with my husband at two in the morning, tipsy on wine and covered in spray glue and tassels.