Outdoor Ceremony with Handfasting

My poor blog has been dormant for so long and it has been quietly nagging at me to return. So, voila! Here I am.

I thought I would start back with a video, graciously shared with me by Jaysin of NightOwls Media. I had the joy of creating a short and sweet wedding ceremony for Jaysin and Andrea, two of my favorite people. Ever.

They gathered their families at a pretty lakeside location on a cool fall day. As they exchanged vows, the geese on the lake chimed in with  their approval. (You never know who will show up to an outdoor wedding!)

Andrea and Jaysin's love story was centered around Wilferd A. Peterson's "The Art of Marriage." They also participated in a handfasting ritual, opting to have loved ones help with the tying and untying of the cord. To include their family and friends in the ceremony, the cord itself was made from ribbons and wire contributed by each o their guests.

While some couples want to have a big wedding to celebrate their love, an intimate ceremony with just a few important people can be just as meaningful and special. I'm so happy I had the honor of being a part of this wonderful couple's ceremony!

Carla & Steve - Gamers Get Married!

Carla and Steve's wedding ceremony at European Crystal was everything a ceremony should be - sweet, fun, and completely "them."

They met in college at anime club, so it goes without saying that their ceremony would have lots of nerdy references. Their unique touches included music from favorite movies. It began with their parents and the wedding party walking in to "Storybook Love" from The Princess Bride and ended with them exiting to Harry Belafonte's "Jump the Line," popularized by the movie, Beetlejuice. 

The ceremony itself included quotes from Doctor Who, as well as mention of their favorite character from Dragonball Z - none other than Vegeta. They exchanged rings inspired by The Legend of Zelda, and even included the three elements of the Triforce - power, wisdom, and courage - in their vows.

After the vows, guests made wishes on blessing stones, which were then collected and poured into a vase. Carla and Steve then made their own wishes on heart-shaped stones and placed them on top. The blessing stone collection will be a keepsake for them - and a reminder of their special day and all those who shared it with them.

The wonderful Genevieve Lee of TrueLee Photography captured it all on film. You can see more photos of Carla & Steve's wedding by visiting their album on the TrueLee Facebook page.  

Congratulations, Carla & Steve!

DIY Flower Crown

Just saw a tutorial on Offbeat Bride with showing how to make your own flower crown for your wedding. 

The process is pretty easy and the results are so pretty! 

Check it out HERE, my crafty friends!

When Your Wedding is Out of This World.....

...... wear this!

This necklace would be so cool for bridesmaids ..... or a bride! Originally posted by the folks at Think Geek, the necklace (and other fun planet-themed jewelry) is created by ShopGibberish and can be found on Etsy. 

And my close, personal friend, Dr. Neil DeGrasse Tyson, will be happy to know that Pluto is not represented in this necklace.

Finding the Right Partner

A Lego Save the Date!

Check out this save-the-date video that I came across on one of my favorite blogs, When Geeks Wed.

I want to be invited to this wedding!

Cupcake Love for Nerds and Geeks!

This morning I was in a funk. It's been a long week. And it's only Wednesday.

It doesn't help that I'm mourning that fact that Walking Dead is over for the season. And then, to make matter worse, last night I watched the end of Doctor Who season two. And, of course, bawled my eyes out. 

But then I saw these:

Doctor Who cupcakes

Walking Dead cupcakes

This totally made my day! And if there was ever any question as to why I love Luscious Layers Bakery - I rest my case. 

So go over there right now and tell Caitlin she's brilliant. And buy some cupcakes. (And get me one, too.) 

An Evening in Nerd Heaven!

Last night I was in nerd heaven, or as my husband called in, "Nerdvana." We went to Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson's lecture, "Cosmic Perspective," which was offered as part of the Elmhurst College Roland Quest Lecture Series. 

And I even wore my blue galaxy scarf. (Hey, don't judge)

It was great! His presentation was funny, enlightening, and passionate. One of the highlights of the evening was when he discussed the demotion of Pluto. Neil (well, we are on a first name basis - in my fantasy life, that is) discussed the reasoning behind the decision to remove Pluto's planet status. After a lengthy discussion, he said, "Pluto had it coming."

He asked if there were people in the audience who were still upset about the whole Pluto issue. Several folks raised their hands (including my hubby). He then walked over to his computer and clicked to this:

Pluto defenders: "Get over it."

During the lecture and the Q & A that followed, he touched on topics ranging from the inarguable genius of Newton (and if you do try to argue with him, he'll tell you to "shut up forever"), killer asteroids, science education, the Higgs boson particle (explaining it with a Hollywood party analogy) and his views on the existence of God. See..... nerd heaven!

And now that I have confirmed my nerdiness, I'm going to go read The Space Chronicles. (Yes, I bought it at the lecture.)

Wedding Inspiration for Whovians

For the longest time, two of my friends (that means YOU - Carolyn & Heather!) have been urging me to watch Doctor Who. I resisted for ages. My TV watching is pretty limited and I'm way behind on the few shows I do watch. (As in a whole season behind on Breaking Bad!) I did not need to start another show.

Then I broke down and watched. And you guessed it - I'm hooked.  

So, imagine my delight when I came across a Doctor Who stylized wedding video! That's one of the many wonderful surprises you'll get when you browse around one of my favorite blogs, When Geeks Wed.

I love just about everything about this video, from the darling dress to the funky cake. But, I think my favorite part is the wording for the ring exchange - "Together, or not at all." Swoon.....


Through All of Time and Space: Wedding Inspiration from Doctor Who from Jakfoto Films on Vimeo.

Star Wars wedding featured on Offbeat Bride!

The ceremony ends with a kiss - under the watchful eye of Darth Vader.

I'm so excited, I can barely stand it!!! I just found out that one of my weddings was featured on Offbeat Bride!

Karrie and Matt's wedding - from the ceremony to the reception - featured Star Wars and LEGOs. Their awesomely geeky wedding was one of my favorites. Yes, partly because of the theme, but mostly because they're just so darn awesome! 

Here are a few of the photos by the wonderful TrueLee Photography. But for the whole deal, check out the feature on Offbeat Bride by clicking HERE.

Incredible Star Wars cake, created by the chef at Starved Rock Lodge!

AnitaWeds Giveaway - Lego Zombie Couple!

It's time for a giveaway, folks!

As most of you probably know, I am a big fan of zombies. Waiting for The Walking Dead to come back is killing me!! So, as I wait impatiently, I've decided to offer a zombie giveaway! 

I have a lovely Lego zombie couple for one lucky winner. This is a brand new Lego wedding couple, but has been "turned" by Lego artist Customized Bricks (who just happens to be my son). 

The unhappy undead couple show the typical wear and tear of the zombie lifestyle, including blood splatters - and even bullet holes on the groom! 

The set also includes a veil and extra hair for the bride (blonde and brunette).

And..... you can opt to receive two brides or two grooms instead of the bride/groom combo. Just let me know what you choose if you win.

So, how can you win this amazing prize? Just leave a comment to this post telling me why you'd like to win. Please include your first name and wedding date! 

The deadline to enter is October 5th. Winner will be announced here on Saturday, Oct. 6th. Good luck, fellow zombie lovers!

Poetry for Sci-Fi Lovers

I love this poem for a wedding ceremony! 


Scientific Romance Redux by science fiction writer Tim Pratt. He wrote it for his wife.

Zombie Love - me & my hubby on Halloween

An excerpt:


"If we were the sole survivors
of a zombie apocalypse
and you were bitten and transformed
into a walking corpse
I wouldn’t even pick up my
assault shotgun,
I’d just let you take a bite
out of me, because I’d rather be
undead forever
with you
than alive alone
without you."


It also mentions time travel, alien invaders and virtual fajitas. What's not to love?!


Thank you to my colleague, Dr. Robera Koepfer for suggesting it to our Life-Cycle Celebrant group!

Save the Date for Your Geeky Day!

Oooh!! Look what I found!! Geekvites has some awesome save the date cards for you, my geeky friends! 

Of course, this Nemo design made me swoon. 

Check out all the cool options HERE...... But, be warned - you'll find that the descriptions are as creative and brilliant as the designs. I spent a good chunk of my morning reading and chuckling to myself.

And don't forget to visit the blog. 

Alex & Sam's Wedding: The Building Blocks of Marriage - Legos!

Lego Tower for Unity Ritual

Alex and Sam's wedding last weekend at the Lincolnshire Marriott Resort was a true reflection of their love for one another - and for Legos! The ceremony centered around the theme of "building" a relationship on a foundation of love and friendship. So, of course, it had to include a ritual involving Legos. 


Before the wedding, they built a tower out of Legos, with the red bricks representing Alex and the yellow representing Sam.  During the ceremony, they completed the tower with a bridge of orange bricks, symbolizing the life they share. 


And, they capped off the festivities with a Lego-shaped cake from Lovin Oven!

Lego Wedding Cake

Congratulations, Alex & Sam!

Congratulations, Samantha & Alexander. I wish you all the best! 
It was such a pleasure to be a part of your "Happily Ever After."

Sara & Nate's Wedding at Greenhouse Loft

Yay! The Greenhouse Loft Blog featured Sarah & Nate's April wedding! 


Here they are with their fabulous cupcakes from Bleeding Heart Bakery. How can you not love this couple??


I had so much fun working with them on their ceremony, which included a tree planting ritual and readings from Shel Silverstein and Dr. Seuss. This is one awesome couple! 


The picture above is from the Greenhouse Loft post - see more photo goodness HERE.

Gia & Keenan's Steampunk-Inspired Wedding

I am fascinated by th steampunk movement and so excited that it has made its way into weddings. So, you can imagine my giddiness at having had the honor of officiating a ceremony for a steampunk-themed wedding this past February. Not only did they plan a cool wedding, Gia and Keenan were great to work with. They were so laid-back and made the process easy - and really fun!

The wedding took place at Tazza Italian Ristorante in Homer Glen. Gia's cousin, Rose, who happens to own the restaurant, went all-out with the decor. Each of the tables were adorned with a clock- and gear-embellished centerpiece. 


And the piece de resistance? The unbelievable fabulous robot cake topper - made by Gia's cousin. She surprised them with the cake topped just before the ceremony (see pix below).

Robot cake topper - the clock even has the start time of the ceremony!

Surprise! Gia & Keenan see the cake topper for the first time

Each table had a different centerpiece

Place cards for guests

Gia was the calmest bride ever - here she is doing her friend's hair before the ceremony

Love the details on the card box!

Keenan's very cool hat

Another view of the robot couple

After the ceremony - all smiles!

Many of the guests got into the steampunk theme

Decor for the bride & groom's table - love the vintage bicycle clock!

Congratulations, Keenan & Gia! It was such a joy to be a part of your incredible wedding! I wish you all the best!

Robot Love

Earlier today I was looking at robot wedding cake toppers. Why? Because I like cake toppers. And I love robots.


So, in my internet wanderings, I came across this tutorial for making your very own robot wedding cake topper. Ya gotta love Instructables!


While it did take about a week to put together this particular pair of love-bots (each tiny part had to be individually painted), it only cost about $20 to make. 


It's a great way to save money - and make your wedding a little more YOU.  

An Ode to the Octopus

I know, the octopus was very trendy for awhile. But, it seems that the fickle fashionistas have moved on to the cute little owl. I, however, remain loyal to my tentacled friend.

Who can - in an instant - change shape AND color? Who can squeeze into unbelievably tiny spaces? Who can brilliantly mimic other sea creatures? Yes, that's right - the octopus, my friends.

So, in honor of my love (some might say obsession) with all things cephalopod, I present to you, octopus-themed wedding ideas..... Enjoy!

Wedding invites by RSVP Invites

Ties by RokGear

Ocean cake by Cake Lava

Cufflinks by Southern Belle OOAK

Fascinator/Hair clip by Hair for the Dramatic

Cake topper by My Custom Cake Topper

Favor bags By Richner

Raquel & Jim's Perfectly Purple Wedding!

It's long overdue, but I wanted to share some tidbits from Raquel & Jim's fantastic wedding held at Chateau Bu-Sche' last November.

Jim and Raquel were two of the nicest (and most fun!) couples you could ever hope to meet. I had a blast working with them on their ceremony and knew their wedding would be pretty cool.

On the big day, I was literally ooh-ing and ahh-ing over all the amazing details. Raquel poured her heart - and talent- into the wedding and it showed. Everything from the place cards to the table decor was amazing.

I clearly remember standing at the sweet table with photographer Dawn Roscoe, both of us swooning over the purple and silver sweet table. And who was responsible for that amazingness? None other than Luscious Layers Bakery.

I can speak from experience when I say that their macarons are unbelievably delicious. But,

I still kick myself for not tasting those chai marshmallows when I had the chance! Sigh....

I think my favorite detail had to be the the wedding cake topper - Iron Giant and Hello Kitty, hand in hand. Oh so fabulous.

Raquel & Jim's wedding was featured on WedLoft, with lots of great photos by the always wonderful Dawn Roscoe. Check it out here.

Happy 1st anniversary, Raquel & Jim! May every year bring you more love & joy!

And thanks to Dawn Roscoe for graciously sharing her work!

A Cephalopod Wedding Dress.... Happy Monday!

You may not know this, but I'm a bit of a cephalopod nut. Squid, octopus, cuttlefish - I love them all. So, imagine my delight when I found details of this wonderful DIY wedding at craftster.org.

The bride sewed her own wedding dress - a funky frock speckled with squid! There was a bright green peek-a-boo petticoat that completed the outfit.

The wedding cake was modeled after their invitations, which featured the couple as giants chasing movie monsters. Thus, the cake featured a city skyline and was artfully adorned with tentacles. Love it!

Just had to share this delight with you. It truly made my day!