The Offbeat Bride: Karly, Writer

Her offbeat partner: Edward, Music Teacher

Date and location of wedding: The Oak Canyon Nature Center in Anaheim, CA - November 16, 2014

Our offbeat wedding at a glance:

Our wedding was inspired by some of our favorite fantasy series, our faith, our mixed heritages, and our interests in music and books. Most of the aesthetic was inspired by the Legend of Zelda video game series, including the deep purple and green color scheme.

Tell us about the ceremony:

We had a harpist perform the processional and recession: a rendition of "Zelda's Lullaby" from the Legend of Zelda video games. In the ceremony, we also incorporated Christian wedding traditions such as communion, blessings, and prayers with some Celtic rituals such as handfasting.

My brother and cousin performed a banjo and guitar duet of the Irish ballad, "Scarborough Faire," and the maid of honor gave a recitation of Shakespeare's "Sonnet 116." We read our own vows we had written.

The ceremony was officiated by my uncle, Reverend Zachary Brooks, who was assisted by my other uncle, Reverend Don Markham, with the handfasting and communion. My young nieces (ages five and four) were angelic during the ceremony, and took their jobs as flower girls very seriously.

Tell us about your reception:

The reception took place at a family friend's backyard. We transformed her gazebo into a dance floor, and the place was alive with gorgeous roses and twinkling fairy lights to complete the fantasy world look. Each table was named after different fantasy world or location, such as "Cair Paravel" (from the Chronicles of Narnia), "Rivendell" (from Lord of the Rings), and "Wonderland."

The food was catered by a local restaurant, Fantastic Café, which is owned by a family acquaintance, and the cake (each layer a different flavor) was made by a friend, complete with wooden cake toppers created by my sister-in-law that featured my husband and I as Link and Princess Zelda. Our first dance was performed to the song "Dear True Love" by Sleeping at Last.

We drove off in my husband's beloved vintage VW Bus, which had been appropriately decked out for the occasion.

What was the most important lesson you learned from your wedding? Any other advice for Offbeat Bride readers?

I cannot stress enough that you should learn to not sweat the small stuff. If it was not for the photographs, I never would have noticed many of the details, such as the flowers, that I labored over so much in the planning stages, because once you're in the thick of it, you just don't have the time! Learning to delegate would have helped me tremendously.

We also were lucky to have many friends and family who helped us out with everything from the dress to the flowers to the food to the decor to the cake, and often cut us huge deals. I recommend asking around before going with the most expensive vendors.

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