Sammi and Anton were married in London, where they live, but flew to the Philippines for their big gothic fantasy beach celebration. Describing the vibe as “beach goth” or “goths on the beach”, Sammi and Anton wanted their wedding to subvert expectations. The bride wore black, the groom donned a red and black suit, and the décor was like nothing their venue had ever seen or done before.

“Our wedding is proof that you can work with traditional wedding vendors to help create your non-traditional wedding day, but it requires a lot of communication and openness,” Sammi explained. “This is so they can have a clear understanding of your expectations, since it is easy to default to what is traditional. Our wedding planner at the venue wasn’t great at communicating, which was stressful at times, especially as it was a destination wedding, but luckily it all worked out in the end.”

They skipped a lot of traditions and rewrote others to suit them. The groom walked down the aisle with his parents, giving him his own moment rather than reserving it for the bride alone. The bride walked down the aisle with both of her parents too.

At the ceremony, the couple read handwritten vows filled with inside jokes, rolled into parchment-style scrolls. The entourage entered to Apocalyptica’s version of Nothing Else Matters. The couple met while studying video game design at university, so the groom walked to Nerevar Rising from The Elder Scrolls, and the bride arrived to The Power from Baldur’s Gate 3.

At the reception, their florist and venue took the fantasy theme and totally nailed the brief. They even hung a giant crystal chandelier from a tree. The cake featured a dragon, complete with a glowing mouth. It started as an idea they thought was probably unrealistic, but it ended up as a real centrepiece. Their custom cocktails included ‘The Daedric Prince’, inspired by The Elder Scrolls, and ‘AK32’ for Anton, referencing his initials and age. Sammi’s were ‘Vampire’s Margarita’ and ‘Sammi Special’, named after the one drink she reliably orders.

Sammi and Anton took dance lessons and opened the evening with a first dance to Faith Hill’s This Kiss. Sammi changed dresses for it, switching out of her black gown and shoes for the white dress she wore at their earlier legal London wedding so she could move and dance freely. Anton wore a Barong, traditional Filipino formalwear, for the moment. The dance then led straight into a traditional Filipino money dance. Guests pinned money to sashes and clothing as blessings. Fire dancers then closed the night.

Looking back, they do wish they had planned a clearer backup system. When things went wrong, they felt responsible for fixing them in the moment instead of handing that stress to someone else. Their advice to other couples planning something non-traditional is practical. “Work with vendors who understand what you are asking for,” Sammi said, “or be prepared for extra communication if they do not. Traditional suppliers can help create unconventional weddings, but clarity and patience matter. Planning a non-traditional destination wedding in a country that isn’t the most culturally progressive was tricky at times, but oh my goodness it was so worth it.”