Sara and Gigi combined their mutual passion for motorcycles, 80s hard rock and heavy metal music to create their wedding theme. Married in Mantova, Italy, they created their wedding to feel just like a festival or biker party. A friend who is a graphic designer created their unique wedding logo which they then used on the cake and stationery. Their table plan was a denim jacket with patches on the back, just like a biker would wear!
If youāre on your own self-love journey (yay!) and want to share it with your friends so they too can nix the diet chat and self-loathing, read onā¦
Itās near impossible to avoid internalising the message that certain bodies (young, thin, white, able-bodied) are more worthy than others. Diet culture and the beauty standard are like the two evil step sisters ruining many of our Cinderella stories.
Even if youāre one of the lucky ones who has managed to opt out of diet culture itās still a daily battle to love yourself.
At Rock n Roll Bride, weāre proud that you, the readers, are pretty switched on when it comes to knowing that happiness isnāt a number on a scale, but we also know that being body positive is still a niche compared to the amount of people believing that their body needs changing.
How can you create a more positive group of people around you? Thatās what this article is all about! Your friend might be a few steps behind you on their bopo journey or might not have even taken their first step.
Before we crack on though, itās important to note that a) you can never force change in anyone else, you can only change yourself (and thatās powerful) and b) we can never fully know the reality of another personās experience, so staying compassionate and non-judgmental is absolutely essential when putting out your own body positive attitude.
Here are twenty small ways which can inspire positive change in your friendship group and family.
The Greatest Showman was a big inspiration for Jenn and Sean’s Pittsburgh wedding. They took vintage carnival elements, mixed it with a black and red gothic aesthetic and created magic! They even had circus performers at both the ceremony and reception. Stilt walkers acted as flower girls and when they said ‘We do’, a fire breather blew out a big fireball!
Portugese lovers Mafalda and Carlos met through mutual friends at a beach party. āWe joke that it was love at second sight,ā Mafalda told us, ābecause on the first day I thought we had nothing in common!ā
Two Ton Max in North Melbourne was the perfect blank canvas for our friends at Good Day Club to unleash all the festival party vibes for Becky and Gearóidās wedding day! The couple met at a music festival, but instead of the usual tipi and field theme for their day, they chose beautiful relaxed sunset vibes moving into a dark, neon-filled party night.
Our real bride columnist Rachel is getting married in September this year. Weāre following her journey of planning a feminist meets rock ān roll wedding. You can catch up with the series here, or subscribe to the magazine to read them first!
Iāve watched Say Yes to The Dress with my mum for years, so when the first big COVID lockdown ended and all the bridal boutiques were only allowing one or two people to accompany the bride, I felt fine about not taking a big entourage. More often than not, a big group can end in tears, and not the I-just-found-my-dream-dress kind! My auntie is a keen dressmaker, and generously gifted me a budget for my wedding dress, so I went with her and my mum.
To start with, for me, wearing white (or ivory, whatever) is always how Iāve pictured myself on my wedding day. Not because I want to present myself as pure and celebrate my pre-marriage chastity, but because itās what I want to do. I also want to wear a veil. Not because I want to demonstrate modesty in the presence of God and my future husband, but because they feel fabulous and look amazing. Thatās just my personal approach. Whatever anyone wants to wear on their wedding day, if it makes them feel their most confident, comfortable and happy, they should just do it.
Besides colour, there were four things I wanted to be sure of about my dress:
1. I wanted it to be made by an ethical, environmentally conscious brand that values its employees.
2. I wanted a dress that worked with the parts of my body I am not confident about, without feeling caged-in by corsetry and boning.
3. Given that this is the most expensive item of clothing Iāll ever own ā and the fact that wearing anything just once is neither sustainable or responsible, even if it is a wedding dress ā I wanted to be able to repurpose the dress and wear it again.
4. I wanted it to make me feel like Galadriel, elf queen of Lothlórien⦠because Iām a massive geek.