Hi Brides!
What shoes are we wearing for beach ceremonies? Mine will be in Tahoe so I’m a bit nervous about the thick rocky sand. I’m getting my dressed altered next week and need to land on shoes by then.
Thoughts? Suggestions? Can anyone speak from experience on what worked for them?
TIA!
Initially we were only going to invite our parents and siblings (12 people), but later my partner realised he also wants to invite some aunts who are very important to him. When we discussed it beforehand, I said he can of course invite them, because it fits within our budget, and we should also invite the family of his aunts (his uncles and cousins).
We will have a short ceremony at the city council and dinner after.
We could afford to invite up to 50 people, but right now we’re only at 20 (including his aunts, uncles and 2 cousins). He says I should also invite more of my family because we can still invite 30 more people.
However, I already told my extended family that we were only inviting our parents and siblings. I’m afraid that if I tell them that my partner’s aunts, uncles and cousins are invited after all, my family might feel offended. And if I only invite some of them, the rest will be offended for sure. My partner comes from a small family, but my side of the family is 60 people.
We could spend less on other things (like change the location) to make room in the budget for my entire family, but if I'm honest I don't want to. I wanted a microwedding, and there are a couple of people in my family I would rather not have there. And even if I only invite the people in my family that I feel close with, it would be more than 50 people. I can't pick 30 "favourites", I love spending time with all of them, just not all at the same time.
Is it rude towards my aunts, uncles and cousins if I don't invite them, even though my partner invited his? Would they feel excluded and hurt?
My fiancé and I want to do an outdoor ceremony in the woods with immediate family (20) and a dinner reception. This is also local so there’s no travel or hotels needed.
For many different reasons i don’t want to give a lot of notice for the wedding. I won’t bog down the sub with details but trust me there are legit reasons (ex: keeping the family I’m no contact with in the dark).
Would it be ok if my fiance and I planned everything out and said: “we are getting married in 2 weeks, these are the details we would love if you can join us.”
We are having a 15 minute ceremony and then a private dinner experience. There will be a photographer for before, during and right after the ceremony.
Do you all think I need a bouquet? My instinct is to not get one, because we will be walking down the aisle together and I don’t really want to hold one. BUT is that weird!?
Are there any other options? I don’t really want a flower crown, but I feel like no flowers at all might look strange. Do I just get one for photos only?
Please let me know what you all think!
Quick update: Ericka got back and confirmed that there was no contract and this was a service that she paid for on behalf of the bride--a gift, as I mentioned in my original post. Ericka, as the purchaser, is happy with the video.
I'm a reasonable person, so I recognize that any requests made by the bride afterward were not subject to any contractual obligation. So I'll leave it at this: please take a look at the link below. Decide for yourself if you want a highlight reel from Jock's company.
By the way, the bride and groom are Mya and Elijah--not Patricia and John, so I don't know WHY that random text is there in the middle of the video.
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My friend was married on November 7th, 2025--six months ago today--and she still has not received the following from B&J Media Group (aka Jock B. Hill aka @shotbyjock), based in Milledgeville, GA:
\- An actual, properly edited highlight reel--my friend pointed out the long interviews in the video, the numerous transitions, the awkward slow motion moments, none of the songs being ones that they chose or had in their wedding, and the fact that pivotal speeches and audio from the ceremony are nonexistent. They had the groom's childhood pastor, a jumping the broom ceremony--none of that made it.
I cannot emphasize this enough--in the few minutes that a highlight reel allows, he included a solid few seconds of her mother smacking on gum and giving side eye? Why?
\- The raw footage of the ceremony--no edits, no cuts, just the footage of her own wedding. There are no backups. People were asked to put their phones away because she had a videographer. She was not aware that Jock was not going to provide the full footage of the ceremony.
\- There is no contract that my friend can get her hands on. This service was apparently gifted to my friend by Erika, Jock's assistant.
When my friend asked for the documentation so she could see exactly what was requested, none was provided by Jock. She even offered to pay for the raw footage and it has not been provided despite him and Erika saying he'd give it to her.
\- When asked for the rest of the footage in December, Jock said “let me see what I have” and got upset with my friend for crying during one of their discussions. (There have been several discussions). In fact, he told her husband that maybe next time just the men should talk.
She tried to work with his assistant, but she has been unresponsive as well.
At this point, my friend has no hope that she’ll be getting any of the footage. She just wants to make sure that this does not happen to anyone else.
And now for the positive: thanks to @Tiffany Greeson Photography, who also shot my wedding, my friend’s photos were both affordable and stunning. Tiffany is an absolute professional and we could not recommend her more.
As someone who has been married myself, I know how pivotal these services can be for one of the most important days of your life. We just want to make sure this does not happen to anyone else.
I am happy to post the footage that she received in the comments.