Thus with a Kiss, I Die — Unholy Matrimony

BY ANNIE MOLENAAR

Why do weddings exist?

The functionality of a marriage does not require us to partake in a grand scale wedding production so why do we do it?

Lots of people answer this question by saying the wedding offers a good excuse for a party with their favourite people. But if that were true, why all the obligatory invites? And surely you’re not getting married just to have a party - you don’t need to enter into a legally binding life-long commitment with a person just for the sake of throwing a party.

No. I think it’s deeper than that.

A wedding is an opportunity to celebrate your love, sure. But more than that, it’s an opportunity to create an event that truly expresses who you are. And I don’t necessarily think a person needs the excuse of a marriage to throw a self-expressive party like this but if you’re already planning to get married and take this huge leap of faith with someone, you might as well make it as genuine and authentic as possible, right?

Like, if you’re not religious, it wouldn’t make any sense to be married by a priest in a church, would it? And if you hate pastels and lace, you’re going make some fairly discerning colour/fabric choices when it comes to selecting your wedding attire.

Logically, this all makes sense.

Love is a smoke

made with the fume of sighs

The problem with logic is, it is often defied - balked even - by trend and expectation.

Our ability to stay steadfast in our pursuit for self-expression and individuality is truly put to the test when wedding planning as people try to push and prod you into a mould they feel comfortable with. It’s not their fault and most of them probably aren’t even aware they are doing it. Preconceived ideas about what your wedding should look like have been borne out of centuries of societal construct and tradition.

The most burning question now then is how to avoid your plans and ideas being watered down by well-meaning individuals. And the answer, my darklings, is simple: HIRE A FEARLESS CREATIVE TEAM.

The images you’re seeing here were put together by a team such as this. Mike from Sacred Wedding pulled this crew together to create a shoot that would give couples insight into the beauty that can be created when vendors are given license to truly flex their creative muscles and work outside of the realm of expectation and tradition.

“I was becoming slightly sick of white box wedding venues and generic hipster style weddings, to be honest, this is why I set up the whole Sacred brand,” says Mike.

“My bounty is as boundless as the sea,
My love as deep; the more I give to thee,
The more I have, for both are infinite.”

When pressed for details about how the shoot came together, Mike said, “The first thing we locked in was the venue. Dark in nature and featuring a steampunk bar, it just seemed like the perfect place. From there we took inspiration from the deep soul-crushing love stories of the likes of Romeo and Juliet and tried to turn that into a visual aesthetic. Grabbing elements of Baz Lurhman and mixing them with the Lana Del Ray born to die video clip, we were able to create something that was truly unique, dark in soul and burning with hardcore love.”

What you, as readers, might not know about [some] wedding suppliers is that they are deeply artistic thinkers who are champing at the bit for the opportunity to help you express your own individuality. If you approach them with some thematic ideas, they will magnify and multiply them. If they don’t/can’t, they are not your people.

The answer to your wedding woes lies in your ability to source a creative team you genuinely align with. Fortuitously, Unholy Matrimony has scores of teams right across the country who are ready and waiting to bring your wedding dreams to fruition.

Apply within.