10 of the Worst Wedding Faux Pas That Have Actually Happened
Weddings cause a lot of stress. Whether it's the bride freaking out about the tablecloths matching the flowers or the groom figuring out how he's going to keep his weird uncle Joe in check, there's enough that a couple has to deal with without you piling on top of it. So before wedding season hits us in the face full-force, study up on the biggest wedding faux pas some women have witnessed. From the downright hilarious to "I can't believe this is actually happening," you can bet these are stories you'll pray nobody tells about you after the big day.
1. "Someone brought their own bottles of wine to my wedding reception…at a vineyard. We had beer, wine, and specialty drinks, so everyone had plenty of options. But this pompous asshole - who was on my husband's side of the guest list - brought two bottles to drink himself. I'm sure he thought he was so high class that he had to bring his own fancier wine, but I just wanted to deck him in the face when I realized what was going on." -Abby B., 36, NY
2. "We got married at the top of a mountain, and our guests hiked to the top with us. So it was obviously a more casual ceremony. But I kid you not, someone showed up in a bra with a hula hoop and started hula hooping and meditating. Then, at the reception (which was very purposefully small), someone brought a guest who wasn't invited and said, 'Oh, I know it's probably rude, but I did it anyway. It's OK, we'll just share laps or rearrange the seats.' Um, excuse me?!" -Allison P., 28, Hannibal, NY
3. "I had a lady bug me for a week straight, asking to bring her son that I barely knew to my wedding. I told her no, we didn't have room on the guest list, but that if someone backed out I would let her know. Having her son at my wedding was not on my priority list, so I pretty much forgot about it after that. But the day of the wedding, she texted me to see if anyone backed out (she had never brought it up again after the response I gave her). I was furious that she had the balls to ask, so I didn't respond. She must have taken that as a "yes" because she brought her son to my ceremony, and in the receiving line asked me once again if she could bring him to the reception. I flat-out told her no. There was no way I was giving in to her after pulling that stunt." -Shelbi S., 24, North Pole, AK
4. "My grandpa, a pastor, performed the ceremony for my husband and I. Usually, my grandma serves as the day-of coordinator for any weddings he does, but I asked her not to this time around and said she could enjoy watching her granddaughter get married without any stress. We had a coordinator provided for us by the venue - it was included in our fee - so I wanted to take full advantage and work with someone who was familiar with the vendors and venue itself. I always wondered if she was miffed about it, but she never brought it up so I let it go. But then she showed up at my wedding in head-to-toe white, and sat as close to the front as she could. Guess that answers that question." -Samantha L., 27, NY
5. "As a wedding coordinator, I feel like I've seen it all. The worst offense, though, is bringing a plus one when you haven't been invited with one, or you haven't RSVP'd saying you're bringing a guest. It almost always turns out that the guest gets mad when they don't have a seat! Sorry, but weddings are stressful enough - why people think they are the bride's main priority, especially when they're the ones to have made a mistake, is beyond me. And of course the bride and groom are, 99.9% of the time, absurdly polite about it all." -Betsy G., 36, Syracuse, NY
6. "I was in the wedding party for a friend, and her parents are close to 20 years older than the groom's. At the rehearsal dinner, the groom's mom is giving the closing toast when she says, 'I love my children so much, and love having a close family, so I've always prayed he would fall in love with an orphan.' As in, she didn't want to share her son for family holidays, so she was hoping that the bride simply wouldn't have parents. People looked around at each other, not sure if they should laugh. She continues, looking pointedly at the bride's parents and saying, 'Jim and Debbie have a few years on us, so I guess we'll see.' This woman was literally hoping that her son's in-laws would die soon so she could continue to have her son all to herself." -Lindsey S., 29, Washington, D.C.
7. "My own sister, who is 40 and married herself and should know better, wore a pure, solid-white dress to my wedding. Thankfully, my photographer edited it to be a pale yellow in all of the family portraits. -Jena D., 28, Cheektowaga, NY
8. "I was at a country wedding when the bride got drunk and started fighting with a bridesmaid. It was an outdoor ceremony and indoor reception, and they were outside screaming. I have no clue what it was about, but the bride screamed, 'You have ruined my f*cking wedding, you f*cking bitch!' Eventually someone picked up the bride and carried her away. While I do love a good f-bomb at a wedding reception, this one was a little excessive." -Karen P., 49, St. Johnsville, NY
9. "One of my bridesmaids, who had been my roommate for the last two years, got super trashed at my wedding. She had done it at my bachelorette party, too, but I thought she'd keep it together for the actual wedding. Nope. She got hot mess express wasted, left the reception early, and ended up nailing the bartender." -Elizabeth L., 29, Austin, TX
10. "I know someone who called her cousin the morning of the wedding and asked if there would be an open bar. She said that if there wasn't, then she and her family would not come. The cousin said, 'If that's all you care about, don't come.' And they didn't." -Kaitlyn K., 32, Albany, NY
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