NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS WEDDING WITH A HALLOWEEN FAIRY TALE MASQUERADE

With all the guests in costume and a Rocky Horror Picture Show screening, Lea and Mazz adopted a Halloween theme for their wedding. They had masquerade masks for their walk down the aisle and a fall color palette.

Lea explained, “Mazz and I love Halloween, and coming from a pagan family myself, I always loved having a big Samhain party growing up. As Mazz and I also love Tim Burton films, especially The Nightmare Before Christmas, it was obvious to draw inspiration from them for our wedding. We both love fantasy too, so incorporating disguises ticked that box for us too.

The couple had two ceremonies; a legal ceremony and a personal ceremony with their celebrant. With a quick, last-minute change of venue for the legal portion, Lea and Mazz focused on their “big” ceremony. Lea told us, “I walked down the aisle for Dorothy’s Raise Hell, with our youngest son in his wolf mask and the bridesmaid’s wedding coven and our bridesmaid. The bridesmaids performed a circular blessing and an elemental blessing. We both wrote our own vows – Mazz’s vows were inspired by the lyrics of my favorite songs.

Family and friends were very present; Lea and Mazz’s moms got involved in the ceremony. Lea continued, “Both of our mothers presented a ribbon that was tied together for our handfasting, to represent our families coming together, and my mother led the ritual handfasting section. We walked back down the driveway at the end of Cage the elephants Ain’t No Rest for the Wicked and jumped the broom at the end of the driveway. The broomstick itself was covered in colorful ribbons with messages from our guests, which they wrote when they arrived before the ceremony.

Lea admits there were a lot of tough decisions to make while planning, as with any big event there are always challenges! She told us, “The budget and the guest list were our biggest challenges. Feeding people doesn’t come cheap, and with Covid concerns on top of that, we weren’t really able to get everyone we wanted there. This meant looking long and hard at the guest list and making tough decisions. When it came to the budget, we really had to think about what was important to us and what was “nice to have and not to miss”. Catering was our biggest expense, but the food was absolutely amazing so no complaints! Who doesn’t want to be filled with amazing food, have a shot glass of something delicious, and be served by the friendliest people you can meet?!”

But it wasn’t just about making tough decisions, as Lea explained: “Planning a wedding is a bit like a big art project. You can choose your theme, your colors, your flourishes… for me the best part was collaborating with all the people I love and building something beautiful that meant something to all of us. It was amazing to see what masks each in the wedding party chose, or what shoes the bridesmaids fell in love with. Seeing everyone really get into the theme and be inspired was wonderful.

Lea also acknowledged the stress that comes with planning such a big celebration, telling us, “It’s okay not to love every second of planning a wedding. It’s stressful, budget can make or break it. what do you have in mind for your dream wedding It’s okay to compromise, doing things can save money and relieve some of the financial stress…and most importantly, remember why you’re doing it!