Halloween nuptials with more flare than scare

Contrary to popular opinion, Halloween-themed weddings do not have to look like this:

Death marries death in the crypt of horrors

Surprising, no? The truth is, a Halloween wedding can be an elegant, beautiful affair, even if you decide to do the unthinkable and allow guests to come in costume. While you can’t stop Aunt Milly from dressing up like a sexy wizard, your nuptials needn’t look like a staged haunted house event. Here’s a great recipe that will help you create a memorable (and only slightly spooky) wedding that reflects your love of ghosts and ghoulies while still maintaining an aura of respectability.

Find one great red dress, like this gorgeous number from Uptight Clothing, makers of couture corseted gowns. You’ll look sultry rather than shocking, yet still embody your freaky theme.

Better to be stunning than shocking

Then get yourself some sweet centerpieces, like these mini Dutch oven pumpkin spice candles. But don’t overdo it with the orange, and steer clear of triangle-eye pumpkin heads and cartoon black cats.

CAMPWARE, PUMPKIN SPICE SCENTED

Spiders, on the other hand, carry a classier connotation. Why this is, I’ll never know. Personally, spiders freak me the heck out, but I think a spider cookie cutter tied with a ribbon matching you Halloween color scheme will make your guests smile.

Spider Cookie Cutter

Where cake is concerned, you can let your love of Halloween shine. Cake is often the most whimsical part of the wedding reception anyhow, so why not serve up something as delicious as it is frightful, like this Carlucci’s creation:

Scary and delish!

Finally, whether you ditch the Monster Mash and pipe something delightfully Gothic through your sound system, or stick with the classic Halloween tunes, just make sure you have a mix of both upbeat and downbeat music.

Happy haunting!

9 Responses to “Halloween nuptials with more flare than scare”

  1. Bunny with a Whip says:

    NtB- you should post a link to the Vogue article on Marilyn Manson’s wedding to Dita von Teese. True it wasn’t ON Halloween, but it sure could have been- and it was GORGEOUS. From the dresses (because she couldn’t pick just one) to the flowers and the invitations- it was stunning. Elegant, gothic and beautiful. (It sold me on getting married in an Irish castle.) So check it out– THAT is a halloween wedding.

  2. Twistie says:

    I saw a wonderful idea for a wedding cake once on someone’s personal wedding website. (I’m afraid I have no idea where the page is, if it’s still out there) It was a Goth wedding with all the trimmings: bride in mourning veil, blood red roses, etc. But I laughed out loud when I saw the cake. It had orange frosting and a pair of gargoyles as the topper!

    My favorite touch of all, though, may have been the getaway hearse with the strings of rubber bones and skulls trailing behind.

  3. JR says:

    gorgeous wedding cakes..very different from chinese culture..we have 5-tier cakes…and it reaches way up to the ceiling…

  4. La BellaDonna says:

    Actually, I like the bride’s ivory satin gown with its black Chantilly lace accents, and I’ve always been a pushover for a frock coat (during the day, however; for evening, something formal would be a better choice).

    I always had a mild regret that I didn’t get married on Halloween, my favorite holiday; on the other hand – just as well. Something To Think About: If you get married on a favorite holiday, and the marriage comes unstuck, what then? Do you wind up with Awful Associations forever after with that day?

  5. Never teh Bride says:

    Oh my gosh, Bunny with a Whip, I saw that piece and Dita von Teese’s gowns were so freakin’ gorgeous!

    La BellaDonna: I *do* like the gown in the first picture – it’s more the faces of death makeup that I take issue with 🙂

    And good point about holiday weddings! The mother of a friend of mine was married on Valentine’s Day. Wouldn’t it a be a shame if they divorced and all future Valentine’s Days were just plain ruined?

  6. Bunny with a Whip says:

    NtB- I KNOW!! The ravishing purple gown!! The green dress she wore to the rehearsal dinner! The black-velvet-with-peacock-applique sheath for the first dance!! The white 1940s number for the civil cermony in LA! And the corsets- don’t even get me started! Sartorial gluttony! Be still my heart! I am such a sucker for bustles topped with gracefully fitted corset bodices- its just so flattering to the feminine form.

  7. La BellaDonna says:

    Well, nothing happens when I click on the photo, so I’ll take your word for it, NtB. As far as I can tell, though, the bride’s makeup isn’t much different from my everyday makeup – that’s what happens when you’re a pale island mix (and the island is Britain).

  8. Never teh Bride says:

    While the couple’s makeup is definitely less goth-y than I at first deemed it (see ithere) and, in fact, the groom was more made up than the bride when it came to their relative levels of chalky white pressed powder, their wedding was certainly a frightfest.

    Turns out – and shame on me for leaving it linkless – they were married in a Las Vegas gothic theme chapel by an officiant dressed as the Grim Reaper! The chapel is apparently decked out to look like a cemetary, complete with dead ivy, tombstones, and coffins.

    But not everyone who marries there is that understated 😉 Check out these folks

  9. patient one says:

    If I were to have a Vegas theme Halloween wedding, I think I would go for campy over gothic. Can’t you just see Lurch towering over the bride and groom with a delicate lace ring pillow?