Moving Past Traditional to the Science Fictional

…The 2008 wedding of Mr. and Ms. Marovich in San Pablo, Calif., details of which were later posted to Offbeatbride.com, was not the first to contain references to zombies. But it highlighted something of a trend among a certain subset of couples who are looking outside (sometimes way outside) accepted custom.

Ms. Marovich, 35, said she received several e-mails from people who wanted to copy her vows, and the Offbeatbride site has since featured dozens of zombie-themed weddings. So many that the site’s founder and publisher, Ariel Meadow Stallings, said she recently cut back on them, for fear of overexposure.

“It’s being used in ceremonies in ways that aren’t just gimmicky,” she said. “It’s actually kind of a powerful cultural metaphor that people are tapping into.”

Read full article.

Remember when Mark Zuckerberg had a relatively simple backyard wedding a couple months back? Well, the New York Times ran an article this weekend about that fits into the growing trend of simple weddings, and we were featured:

Over at the wedding site Offbeatbride.com, the publisher, Ariel M. Stallings, said the number of visitors to her Simple Wedding archive has grown since the Zuckerberg-Chan event … “The backyard is the new ballroom,” said Amy Kaneko, an events planner in San Francisco.

Read the full article.

From Let Them Eat Cinnamon Buns:

Ariel Meadow Stallings, the founder and publisher of Offbeat Bride, a wedding blog, said, “It’s not an anti-cake movement, it’s more like: If you’re going to spend a fortune to feed your guests at your wedding, you might as well feed them something you’re going to really enjoy, and that they’re going to really enjoy.”

She has featured ceremonies in which candied apples, churros and even schlopp, a Dr. Seuss-inspired parfait, take the place of the cake. Ms. Stallings said the couples’ challenge is making less formal substitutions look special.

Ms. Stallings added, “Candy buffets can be really colorful, and really playful, and have a real sense of fun.”

Continue reading →

Last month I was interviewed for an article in an Irish magazine called U Magazine about women proposing to their boyfriends as part of Leap Day. Granted, I didn’t propose to Andreas on a Leap Day — I had no idea women needed a special day to propose. I proposed to him on New Year’s, when I felt like it.

Anyway, for a look at the whole “proposing to your boyfriend” phenomenon (and some revealing truths about how it worked out for me), you can read the article.

(Oh and PS: and we’ve got lots more proposal stories.)

One of Vera Wang's designs for David's Bridal

After checking out the new bridal gown line from Urban Outfitters called Bhldn, Ariel Meadow Stallings, who created the Offbeat Bride Bride website, found something to like. This is someone who wore a custom blue corset over a green skirt and a multicolored ribbon veil at her nuptials.

“In the Bhldn line, you’ll notice a lack of structured taffeta and a welcome absence of the ubiquitous strapless white ball gown,” she said.

“And I love that Vera Wang’s designs are more accessible to brides who are into her vision. For years, budget-minded brides have fallen in love with Vera Wang gowns and have had them replicated by dressmaking shops in China, so this is a smart business move for her…”

Read the full article.

Parents letting boys like pink, girls blue

Ariel Meadow Stallings, 35, who runs a blog called offbeatmama.com, has observed that gender-neutral parenting has become a hot topic of discussion in the parenting community.

Stallings, who has a 17-month-old boy named Octavian Fetz Stallings, has strong feelings against “handing down an identity” to children, in her case shaped partially by the fact that her mother and mother-in-law are both in same-sex relationships. Determined to give her son a “gender-neutral start-off,” Stallings keeps her distance from trucks, balls and blues.

“So many assumptions about gender roles are just entrenched in our culture,” said Stallings. “Being gender-neutral encourages people to pause and think about their perceptions.”

Read the full article.

Vera Wang, Bhldn wedding gowns up the ante

After checking out the new bridal gown line from Urban Outfitters called Bhldn, Ariel Meadow Stallings, who created the Offbeat Bride website, found something to like. This is someone who wore a custom blue corset over a green skirt and a multicolored ribbon veil at her nuptials.

“In the Bhldn (for “beholden”) line, you’ll notice a lack of structured taffeta and a welcome absence of the ubiquitous strapless white ball gown,” she said. “They’ve also got several tea-length dresses, a retro look that’s super-popular with the nontraditional right now.”

Read the full article

Seattle author Ariel Meadow Stallings offers tips for offbeat weddings

Engaged couples throughout the Northwest are ramping up for summer wedding season, planning one of life’s biggest — and potentially most expensive and stressful — moments.

But some couples are bucking recent trends toward elaborate weddings, pushing aside traditions that don’t fit their personalities or budgets.

This is where Seattle author Ariel Meadow Stallings comes into the picture…

Read the full article.

Feminist brides saying ‘I do’ to creating own traditions
By CORILYN SHROPSHIRE LIFESTYLE WRITER

… Yet these days, plenty of women who don’t necessarily identify as feminists are including more egalitarian moments in their wedding, says Ariel Meadow Stallings, author of Offbeat Bride: Taffeta-Free Alternatives for the Independent Bride.

Some, for example, ask both to parents walk the bride and groom down the aisle.

For them, she says, it’s not necessarily feminist — just modern.

“You don’t have to identify as a feminist to be squicked out by the idea of being your father’s property to be given away.”

Read the full article