Rock n Roll Bride - The ultimate guide for alternative brides

Polka Dot

Black & White Retro Inspired Friday 13th Wedding

Erin Balfour

Whitney Rogers

May 1, 2018

Emily and Ricky's polka-dotted monochrome meets Friday 13th wedding was a long-awaited event. They'd been engaged for six of the nine years they've been together! Traditions, particularly the money-suck ones, were shown the door as these two felt the pressure of the financial side of things and so did it their own way by only including details that truly meant something to them. The budget was just under $10,000 and there were some clever ways they had up their sleeves to stick to it!
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Nautical & Retro Wedding in Canada

Kat

Maddie Mills

December 7, 2017

Sarah and Drew wanted their wedding to really showcase where they grew up (and hosted their wedding): Newfoundland and Labrador. Although they had been living in Alberta for a number of years, they wanted their wedding to reflect their love of the most easterly province of Canada. “We had been living in Alberta for a number of years, and wanted our wedding to reflect our East Coast roots, so we included elements that evoked the island everywhere we could, "said Sarah. “The aisle was lined with rubber boots, we used a lobster trap as a card holder and the reception tables were named after Newfoundland communities. The head table was named Heart’s Content.”
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Glam Las Vegas Inspired Wedding

Rachel Webb

Jody Sutton

April 15, 2017

Laura and Dom got engaged at the Grand Canyon while on a trip to Las Vegas. As they both love the city and 1950s glam, they decided that should be their wedding theme. Laura wore a red wedding dress, and they had a polka dot theme for the bridal party; the bridesmaids wore 50s style polka dot dresses and the groomsmen had polka dot pocket squares. For entertainment they had casino tables, a pianist, and Laura did a choreographed dance with her dad.
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1950s, Rockabilly and Polkadot Wedding: Carrie & Neil

Kat

Jennifer Peel

March 12, 2014

Carrie and Neil had a red and white wedding with rockabilly and polka dot touches! The day was held at Highbury Hall in Birmingham and was full of DIY décor. "We would like to think we were far more relaxed, friendly and laid-back than other wedding we have been to", began the bride. "So many weddings we have been to seem so stiff and uptight as a whole. We wanted a fun party atmosphere with a live band playing lots rockabilly, plenty of food for people to stuff their faces, and encouraged dancing until your feet dropped off. The word 'formal' never entered our vocabulary."
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Comic Book & Superhero Wedding: Holly & Anthony

Kat

November 26, 2012

Happy Monday you lovely little critters - have I got a wedding to start this week off with a bang or what!? Unusually I was actually submitted this wedding by the groom and via twitter because his gorgeous bride, Holly, was nervous about doing so. Er, girl, are you KIDDING me?! I'm dying over your wedding. The comic book, superhero and geek chic radness is just too good. This is one of those weddings that I genuinely wish I'd been invited to!
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Red, Polka Dots & An Ice Cream Van – A Budget-Friendly DIY Wedding: Kelly & Matt

Kat

August 17, 2012

With a budget of just £8500, Kelly & Matt pulled of a wedding that perfectly encapsulated everything about them. From the cute red colour scheme, the DIY details and the relaxed photography, their wedding was one to remember. "We did absolutely everything ourselves for as little money as possible!," began the bride. "We wanted the day to represent us as a couple and to be really personal. We wanted to make it a really relaxed atmosphere and make sure all our guests and we had fun. The theme was slightly retro, with red as the main colour set around black and white polka dots and loads of red love hearts! Everything looked exactly as we had imagined and seeing it all for the first time was one of my favourite parts of the day. All the details looked amazing and we were glad we put so much time and effort into them."
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A Black, White & Red Wedding in a Windmill: Suzie & Andrew

Kat

August 3, 2012

Suzie & Andrew wanted a really unique venue for their unique wedding and so chose a Willesborough Windmill in Ashford, Kent. They had just 47 guests (including 13 bridesmaids!) and they really did things their own way. From the DIY catering, to the ice cream van dessert, and the chocolate favours to the lady bug bouncy castle, the day was planned around the things they love. "My main goal for our wedding was that I wanted a day that wasn't strictly structured," began newlywed Suzie. "I wanted a laid back afternoon and evening filled with fun, laughter, eating, drinking and general enjoyment for everyone. All my close family & friends wanted to help which was great and they are contributed so much to our day."
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An Anti-Princess, Nerdy & Eco-Friendly Wedding: Josh & Jaclyn

Kat

August 31, 2011

Josh & Jaclyn were legally married on July 13th but had their reception on the 16th at Smith & Wilson Winery in Cedar Springs, Ontario. "We decided to have the reception and the ceremony were on separate dates," Jaclyn told me. "On the Wednesday before the Saturday reception Josh, I, our parents and two close friends went to city hall for a justice of the peace ceremony. It was really relaxed - we didn’t even dress up in our fancy wedding attire. I wanted this because wedding ceremonies always bore me to tears and didn’t want to put our guests through that. It is also a good thing because I got a case of the giggles so bad that tears streamed down my face and we had to pause so I could catch my breath. That would have been so horrible in front of 100+ people!"
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Hannah & Jack’s Rockabilly Party Wedding

Kat

November 30, 2010

"When I was little, I dreamed of having my very own big, white wedding," began Hannah. "However, when Jack and I decided to get married and started to make plans, it became apparent that even if we’d been able to afford it, we’d both feel out of place at a huge, formal gathering. What we really wanted was to have a great party with our families and mates, a party that just happened to include a wedding ceremony. So we threw ourselves into the planning and tried to make it ours." And that's exactly what this Rock n Roll couple did! The entire day reflected them and the things they love.
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Dottie About Dots ~ Dottie & JP’s Polka Dot Themed Bash

Kat

November 10, 2010

Dottie is dottie (!?!) about...erm...dots so that's exactly the theme she wanted to go for in her wedding! She and JP were married at Christ the King Church in CA followed by a polka dot themed wedding at Elements Venue at the Ice House. The bride (real name Amanda) wore a gorgeous Mori Lee dress, customised with a polka dot sash (and a polka dot garter!) which matched JP's tie, made by Elmmies. The polka dot theme continued into the cake, the linens and even the groom's socks!
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Leigh & Aaron’s Beer & Bike Themed Bash

Kat

October 6, 2010

"We live in a South Philly row home with a garage that houses our bicycles and Aaron's home-brewing equipment in lieu of a car," bride Leigh began. "We knew as soon as we were engaged that we'd ride our tandem bike, acquired from craigslist a few years back, into our reception entrance. We kept the bike theme going with a tandem bike cake topper, a Ketubah that was designed for us especially by Chris Soria, and hotel gift bags and DIY thank you notes with tandem bike stamps."
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Candy Anthony, Cupcake Tattoos & Pink Converse Trainers

Kat

September 27, 2010

Some eagle-eyed and long-term readers may recognise Nicola, who's 'Do It Yourself' wedding I featured way back in May 2009. Nicola decided that she wanted to rock her gorgeous Candy Anthony wedding dress just one more time, so got in touch with photographer Caroline to see what she thought. Luckily, when Caroline heard 'Candy Anthony, cupcake tattoos and pink Converse trainers' she was totally up for it and they planned this fun and fashionable shoot. Caroline also persuaded Nicola to bring a few more outfit changes (does this girl just live in gorgeous 1950's style dresses or what!?) and they were good to Rock n Roll!
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Aaron & Jay’s Sushi-Loving Rock n Roll Wedding

Kat

September 16, 2010

When I read the email that Aaron & Jay send to their photographer when they enquired about her shooting their wedding I was smitten. I wonder why huh?! "I love your photos and would be thrilled if you could shoot our wedding on July 17th of this year. We are planning a super fun, little bit retro and a little bit country wild and crazy with a whole lot of DIY elements party here in Vancouver. ps. I found you through Rock n Roll Bride (the best wedding blog in the world)." Yeah...flattery really will get you everywhere. Aaron & Jay's wedding is also completely stupendously rad ...always helps when you want to get your wedding featured on these here pages!
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