Day 4 of Rock Your Wedding theme week features a singer/songwriter bride who surprises her groom with a song during the ceremony and sings with her band during reception. She really rocked the whole wedding! – Becca
The offbeat bride: Karyna, singer-songwriter (and Tribe member)
Her offbeat partner: Jorge, musician and grad student
Location & date of wedding: Sanborn County Park, Saratoga, CA — June 14, 2009
What made our wedding offbeat: Both of us are musicians, so we wanted the emphasis of the day to be on music. We asked my super-talented rock star cousin to sing and play The Beatles “Across the Universe” for the processional and Jack Johnson’s “Better Together” for the recessional. 
Jorge’s brother-in-law officiated the non-denominational ceremony that we wrote ourselves. It was important for the ceremony to be emotional and meaningful, and for the guests to really feel our love for each other.
Following my vows, I surprised everyone with a song that I wrote for Jorge.
We bucked some traditions: no giving away, no garter, no bouquets (I carried a fuschia paper parasol instead, and my Super Gals carried sandalwood fans).
Jorge is known as the pie guy, so we ordered pies from our favorite local bakery, along with a delicious tres leches cake.
We had street tacos for dinner, which were a huge hit, and guests were serenaded by a Mexican guitar trio.
After dinner, I took the stage with my band and guests rocked out until sundown.
We were on a budget, so much of the wedding was DIY: invitations, ceremony arch, table runners, Jorges boutonniere and corsages for the moms and grandmothers. One of my Super Gals whipped up a huge jar of her mean sangria. Jorges sister made her own gorgeous flower arrangements. We was blessed to have a lot of help from friends and family.
Our wedding date fell on the 57-year anniversary of my grandparent’s wedding, so we displayed pictures from their wedding day. I wanted to have some sort of a dedication for my grandfather, who passed away last September.
The bride surprises the groom with a song she wrote for him.
Our biggest challenge: We are very close to our families and included them in the planning process. Our non-traditional approach to many aspects of the wedding presented some challenges.
Little things such as wanting to serve pies, not carrying a bouquet, not wanting to be given away, not letting people bring guests were all questioned and disputed, and it was difficult not to let the friction stress us (me) out. We knew the day was about us, so we wanted it to reflect us. We had to calmly explain our reasoning behind our decisions, and, since family is important, make compromises.
In the end, when guests saw how everything fell into place on the day, everyone had a wonderful time and remarked how ours was the most enjoyable and meaningful wedding they had ever attended.
My favorite moment: I had the most fun dancing in the dirt to the music of the wonderful group we hired, Trio Sol de Mexico.
I channeled my inner flamenco dancer, and Jorge and I jumped the gun on our first dance by spinning each other around doing lots of gravity-defying dips.
Then for the last song my friends requested “La Bamba.” Soon enough everyone was dancing and singing and it brought both all our friends and families from both cultures together.
The bride’s mom sings too!
My advice for offbeat brides: Stick to your guns, but be gracious. The last thing I wanted was to become a Bridezilla, but there were moments when my calmness was challenged. I learned to be understanding. When family is involved, cultural and generational differences are inevitable. Realize that loved ones are heavily steeped in tradition, and its hard for them to comprehend that traditions can be changed for the sake of doing it your way. Politely explain why you want to do something a certain way. Be honest about your reasoning. If they still dont understand, do it your way anyway and let them see the end result. I found that people understood and appreciated the choices we made when they saw how all the pieces fit together.
Care to share a few vendor/shopping links?
- Music: Joey Eisinger of Fat Skeleton, Trio Sol de Mexico, Stompbox
- Pies: Beckmann’s Bakery
- Caterer: family friend
- Invitation materials: Paper Source
- Paper Parasols: Luna Bazaar
- Tissue Paper “Papel Picado:” Casa Bonampak
- Chair and Table Cloth Rentals: Exquisite Party Rentals
- Paper lanterns: eBay
Dress: on clearance at BCBG Max Azria
- Headpiece: Custom order by Q.G. Designs
- Shoes: Crafttastrophe
- Lace shrug: Rohm
- Earrings: JaniceMarie
- Bracelet: Charter Club at Macy’s
- Groom’s Suit: Express Men
- Groom’s Tie: Nordstrom
Enough talk — show me the wedding porn!
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