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While weddings are supposed to be a celebration of love between two, hopefully, happy people, some folks seem unable to resist the impulse to make it as tacky as possible. This can range from “creative” ideas that just look dumb to downright bizarre and horrible displays of wealth and excess.
A woman did a bit of wedding shaming when she attended one where the happy couple decided it would be a great idea to take the microphone and start reading out how much money each guest gave them. Readers shared their thoughts on just how weird this idea even was.
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Some weddings are just massive displays of poor taste
Image credits: Humberto Chávez (not the actual photo)
One woman shared her story of being the MOH at a wedding where the couple had some truly tacky ideas
Image credits: Tamara Govedarovic (not the actual photo)
Image source: Tiny_Security6360
There are all sorts of ways people can make something so beautiful as a wedding seem cheap
Image credits: Photos by Lanty (not the actual photo)
Weddings are highly personal events, reflecting the unique sense of taste and values of each couple. A few thoughtful touches can elevate a ceremony from good to exceptional, but occasionally the urge to be different seeps into concepts that are tackier than refined. What once was an effort at personalization rapidly clouds into overkill, with guests left scratching their heads more than reveling in unadulterated happiness.
Some couples persist in having a “money tree” leased on which visitors are invited to pin bills onto branches, only to find the final product looks like a confused Christmas decoration instead of a classy emblem of charity. The embarrassing ritual of pinning money in everyone’s sight can have guests both self-conscious and fearful of losing their twenty-dollar bill to a gusting breeze or being stolen by an overeager relative.
And then, of course, there are the behemoth inflatable wedding cake or flamingo-themed photo booths with sequined backdrops and neon “LOVE” letters. On paper, the idea of instant party pictures is so charming, but more often than not, these monstrosities dominate the reception space, reducing what could otherwise have been a sophisticated lounge ambiance to the visual equivalent of a 90s theme park.
Even small things can ruin the atmosphere
Image credits: Graphe Tween (not the actual photo)
Paying each guest to post using a special hashtag, such as, #SmithsSayIDo, and showing them all the hashtagged selfies on an enormous screen sets guests up for their close-up moment. What begins as a playful way of saving moments too often ends up making the slideshow riddled with fuzzy shots of Uncle Bob’s forehead or chicken fingers with tooth marks removed from them from the kids’ table, turning treasured moments into an overhyped social‑media sideshow.
Over-branded wedding favors cross the line, too. Mini champagne flutes with initials, monogrammed bottle openers, and matchboxes with the couple’s logo on them are adorable in concept, but when every guest leaves with a bucket of tchotchkes they’ll either throw away by tomorrow or use for a week and never remember the next, the gesture becomes more of an annoyance than a keepsake.
Extravagant dessert tables laden with dozens of mini‑desserts and candy sculptures can be tacky. Towering candy floss cones or brightly lit donut walls may look great on camera, but in real life most guests avoid them in favor of the center cake, giving rise to skyscraping piles of untouched sweets that contradict any green promises and leave hosts scrambling to clear mountains of waste.
There are cases of truly creative tackiness
Image credits: Kari Bjorn Photography (not the actual photo)
Far too choreographed “first dances” with hired helpers, think glow-in-the-dark hula hoops, sparklers, or confetti cannons, tend to turn a romantic moment into a mini production that distracts rather than delights. When the bride or groom becomes dizzy from a hula-hoop accident or the smoke machines envelop the entire couple, that moment of magic is buried in a cloud of theatrical smoke.
Finally, having a maître d’ of the barker variety loudly announce each course with a booming microphone comes on as slightly less fine dining and more game show. As the gentle clinking of silverware is replaced by a stadium-style “LADIES AND GENTLEMEN…CHEESE COURSE!” it is clear that sometimes even the most regular of traditions are perhaps there for a reason.
She gave some more details in the comments
Some folks shared their own stories
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What do you think ?
Lara Verne 5 months ago
I'm sorry if I'm offending someone's culture. Never heard about such a tradition, but announcing how much money you got from guests sounds like the way to force guests give more money than they can afford to avoid badmouthing.
Michael Largey 5 months ago
Isn't it too late to get larger gifts at that point?
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Mari 5 months ago
In many countries this is still tradition. I went to weddings like that. It used to be an honour to be able to give an (expensive) gift to your family member, that's why it was annonced. My mother in law knew exactly (50 years after her wedding) what people gave to her. It was tradition to offer the same gift/amount back when there was a celebration. She managed to remember how many sugerbreads, bottles of oil and milk, bags of tea and coffee she had received. Nowadays most people give money, but there are still who give sugar/tea/coffee/dates... to remember a beautiful tradition. To us it is weird, for others it is normal.
CP 5 months ago
People shouldn't be afraid to offend bad cultural practices. "I am sorry if I am offending someone's culture but cannibalism is wrong". It sounds just as dumb no matter what you substitute in for cannibalism. The people of that culture should be able to defend their practices. Nothing about it is inherently cruel or mean.
K Barnes 5 months ago
It's interesting because often those giving smaller amounts are actually giving a higher part of their income up than those giving larger amounts who can easily afford it. A rich person giving 300$ doesn't mean as much as a broke person giving 100$, IMO.
Apatheist Account2 5 months ago
From the headline it looked like a surprise, but it appears that it was traditional - BP is really disappearing down the tabloid toilet.
L.V 5 months ago
Clearly it still came as a surprise to OP since it hasn't been done for years
Load More Replies... Lara Verne 5 months ago
I'm sorry if I'm offending someone's culture. Never heard about such a tradition, but announcing how much money you got from guests sounds like the way to force guests give more money than they can afford to avoid badmouthing.
Michael Largey 5 months ago
Isn't it too late to get larger gifts at that point?
Load More Replies... Mari 5 months ago
In many countries this is still tradition. I went to weddings like that. It used to be an honour to be able to give an (expensive) gift to your family member, that's why it was annonced. My mother in law knew exactly (50 years after her wedding) what people gave to her. It was tradition to offer the same gift/amount back when there was a celebration. She managed to remember how many sugerbreads, bottles of oil and milk, bags of tea and coffee she had received. Nowadays most people give money, but there are still who give sugar/tea/coffee/dates... to remember a beautiful tradition. To us it is weird, for others it is normal.
CP 5 months ago
People shouldn't be afraid to offend bad cultural practices. "I am sorry if I am offending someone's culture but cannibalism is wrong". It sounds just as dumb no matter what you substitute in for cannibalism. The people of that culture should be able to defend their practices. Nothing about it is inherently cruel or mean.
K Barnes 5 months ago
It's interesting because often those giving smaller amounts are actually giving a higher part of their income up than those giving larger amounts who can easily afford it. A rich person giving 300$ doesn't mean as much as a broke person giving 100$, IMO.
Apatheist Account2 5 months ago
From the headline it looked like a surprise, but it appears that it was traditional - BP is really disappearing down the tabloid toilet.
L.V 5 months ago
Clearly it still came as a surprise to OP since it hasn't been done for years
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