Looking for Some Wedding Planning Inspiration? Here Are 16 Wedding Moments We’ll Never Forget

“It included a dramatic reading by the bridal party of the email exchange between the bride and the groom when the groom first asked the bride out and the online flirtation began. It gave the wedding such a personal touch. As a guest, I felt I had a glimpse into love at first email.” —Rebecca Sinn, entertainment editor

“At a friend’s destination wedding in Costa Rica, the reception was held at a beautiful estate in the hills with an incredible view and an infinity pool. By the end of the night, everyone was in the pool, including the bride and groom!” —Jillian Cornejo, bookings editor

“When my cousin got married in Durham, North Carolina, first the bride lost her veil in the hotel room the morning of the wedding (she didn’t panic—what a cool gal), and then the wedding party spent the ceremony making mistakes and laughing. It felt so earnest—and so them. They’re a couple who love to laugh, and a serious ceremony wouldn’t have been the way to kick off their life together.” —Meredith Turits, online associate editor

“A bearded rock musician with the voice of an angel covered pop songs like Britney’s ‘Hit Me, Baby (One More Time)’ during cocktails at Glamour editor Lauren Vreeland’s wedding. Incredible, awesome, and unforgettable.” —Rachael Wang, fashion editor

“In college, I worked a catering gig for a fancy wedding outside Boston. The grounds were gorgeous, the champagne was flowing, and the bride and groom were very polished and stately—except for the fact that their big day was ‘monkey’-themed. The couple shared a love of primates—and incorporated this passion point into their festivities in more than a few ways: life-size bride-and-groom stuffed-animal monkeys were pulled in a wagon down the aisle during the ceremony (replacing the flower girl). The guest gift was a tiny stuffed monkey from FAO Schwarz. And the pièce de la résistance: In addition to the wedding cake, there was a banana split bar, to honor the monkeys’ food of choice. The contrast from formal to whimsical was a hard one to forget.” —Susan Cernek, fashion development director

“I went to a wedding in London, and the bride rented a red double-decker bus to take all the guests from the ceremony to the reception. When we boarded the bus, we were given a cute little bag with a traditional English crisps (a.k.a. chips), candy bars, and a premixed cocktail. Knowing how hard it is to drink on a bus, the bride even included red-and-white straws for everyone.” —Lindsey Unterberger, deputy online editor

“I was a flower girl at my Aunt Erika’s star-studded bash in the early ’80s. I was only three years old, but I swear I remember walking into the Helmsley Palace hotel in my tiny white Christian Dior dress with a basket of rose petals and holding my twin brother’s hand. It was so huge and so grand, and when 300 people turned around at the same time to say, ‘Aww,’ it scared me so badly I turned and bolted. My mom had to carry me down the aisle. Fortunately, my public-appearance skills have improved since then, but I still do have a special place in my heart for a grand, dramatic wedding.” —Kat Thomsen, digital managing editor

“I performed the wedding of my friends Andy and Sarah. I was ordained online, and we wrote the ceremony together, but I was so nervous on that day, I took a slug of bourbon beforehand with the groomsmen. It worked! People told me after that they thought I did it for a living. Some even tried to hire me.” —Lauren Iannotti, deputy editor, articles

“Last year, my friends Josh and Anthony planned to get married in a ceremony in Connecticut, where gay marriage was legal, and have the party in New York City, where they lived, loved, and worked but where their marriage wasn’t legally recognized. And then, a few weeks before their planned nuptials, New York legalized same-sex marriage—yay! The fancy-pants estate ceremony gave way to New York City-based ‘I dos’ in a public park, with an aisle made of rose petals and a bunch of squirrels among the witnesses. It was one of the first New York City gay weddings, and people walking through the park stopped to watch. I saw total strangers tear up at the scene and burst into cheering and applause at the end of the ceremony. And then we went down the street for barbecue and bluegrass—so basically, your typical NYC wedding, right?” —Anne Sachs, online editorial director

“I was the bartender at a wedding held outside a couple’s home on a hot Missouri summer day. They had huge outdoor tents, personalized fly swatters, Mason jars, and sunflowers—very outdoorsy DIY style, but it was so fitting for the afternoon. The bride’s dress was simple but gorgeous—lace with a green bow. The band played folk music. The best part was when it started to thunderstorm that evening. Rather than bemoan the ruined outdoor reception, everybody embraced the sudden rain. It became a fun party—they even had us bartenders join in the drinks and festivities. It was so much fun, and I felt like a part of the festivities, even though I didn’t even know the couple or their family and friends.” —Anna Moeslein, assistant online lifestyle editor