Weddingbee Blog

Don’t laugh. When I spoke at my high school graduation, the main theme of my speech was Harry Potter. OK… laugh. It is just as ridiculous as it sounds. I connected our graduation to the Sorting Ceremony in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone—we were all about to be sorted from a gaggle of 18-year-olds into actual adults, embarking out in the real world for college, jobs, bills…

Yes, feel free to continue laugh and doubt my credibility as a serious wedding blogger. One final piece of context: I did this directly following another speech that detailed the harsh realities of the cold world we were about to enter and likened our future lives to something from The Jungle by Upton Sinclair. To say the least, I felt somewhat like an idiot savant…

All the same, I have found another parallel between Harry Potter and my life (insert applause here). You might say it has all come full circle because the reference now comes from the final novel in the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. Some minor differences, but overall… same same!

**warning, Harry Potter spoilers ahead**

(do we still have to post these type of warnings?)

The hunt for the perfect vendors for a wedding is strikingly similar to the hunt for the Horcruxes that Harry undertook in the last installment. Stick with me! See, every single vendor contains a part of the soul of your wedding—each piece, when brought together on your big day, brings the vision that you laid out so many months before to life before your eyes. If you listen closely, you can even hear yourself repeating all the vendors you have left, just like Harry did so he wouldn’t forget: “the cup, the locket, the snake…” = “the invites, the photog, the venue.”

THIS

EQUALS THIS

Sometimes the long search for the perfect vendors is just like the dark, scary, death-defying search that Harry pursued. The only thing you have to get you through is the knowledge that these vendors DO exist- just as the only thing Harry had those dark days hiding in the forest was the deep knowledge that the Horcruxes were out there. There IS the perfect caterer who has all of your favorite foods for your budget… and Voldemort DID hide his soul in meaningful objects.

Sometimes on this adventure for the perfect wedding and the ideal vendors, you may argue and lose sight of the end goal (marrying the person of your dreams!)… just like Ron and Harry and Hermione fought and lost sight of their end goal of destroying Voldemort. Perhaps you, like Ron, worry that there is no plan and that it’s a shot in the dark to find what you want! Perhaps you, like Ron, take it out on your parents or your fiance or your MOH or your dog! You know you have… don’t lie!

The long road of wedding planning…

Just like Harry had Dumbledore to impart to him vital knowledge so he could fulfill this quest, so too do we have those who guide and inspire us as we plan our weddings! Well, we don’t have Dumbledore—we have fellow wedding bloggers and each other! Same same! (Minus the actually-died-in-book-six part)
Just like Harry’s quest, sometimes there is a LOT to do—so much it’s overwhelming—and it all seems to happen at once! And then there are days, weeks, where we’re just biding our time, because our venue is booked but it’s too early for cake tastings and invitation creation. Sometimes these lags lead to those arguments I talked about before…

But in the end, we win, just like Harry wins. Because after the long search for vendors, you will find the ones perfect ones for you—Harry found the Horcruxes! And thus destroyed Voldemort. And this, my friends, is the final analogy. When you find your vendors, after weeks, months, perhaps years, you will have destroyed the Wedding Industrial Complex—you will have found women and men who care about you, your vision, and your wedding day!

And just like Harry, your scar will never burn again… uh… erm… like your wallet won’t burn again?!?! From overuse??!?!

I should have left it at Voldemort and the WIC.

• First photo: yours truly
• HP book: source
• HP Horcruxes: source
• Inspiration board: source
• Long road photo: source
• Win: source

P.S. Please forgive my momentary indulgence of my love for Harry Potter, and also, if you have no clue what I’m talking about… jump on the bandwagon!

Have I lost my mind with all this wedding planning? Have you thought of any analogies for this journey of wedding planning?