Love and Minecraft: A Very Nerdy Wedding

July 18, 2012 in
Etsy.com handmade and vintage goods

Matt Dunn
mattisdunn

Matt is one half of a nerdy couple from Sacramento, Calfironia, with a passion for games and creativity. He and his wife recently launched Happily Married Nerds, a website that aims to prove that nerds do find love!

You know that old phrase, “a wedding is for the bride”? I’ve heard many grooms reference it in the past, and I have always disagreed. A wedding is the celebration of love between two people, not just the person with color coordination skills or the best taste in clothing.

It’s easy to look at pictures from our wedding and quickly jump to the conclusion that this was all my idea. “A video game wedding? How did he get away with that?!” is a common statement from people who don’t know anything about us. If there’s one thing I know about by wife, it’s that she loves video games. Sometimes I think she loves them ever more than I do!

It all started the first time we booted up Minecraft and joined a game together. It’s difficult to describe Minecraft, but let’s just say it’s essentially an open sandbox world that you can explore, build and create in. The first goal of the game is always to build a shelter to protect you from the evil creatures that lurk at night.

“If there’s one thing I know about by wife, it’s that she loves video games. Sometimes I think she loves them more than I do!”

We created a crude house and, after the first night passed, Asia kicked me out to go hunting for food while she tidied up the place. While I was out searching for wild pigs and cows, I heard her giggling from across the room. I walked back to our “home” and found a sign that said “I love you.” From then on, I knew things would work out. Obviously our love goes deeper than a video game, but it was amazing how much we learned about each other by playing the game together.

After proposing to Asia in front of over 5,000 people at MineCon, the first Minecraft convention in Las Vegas, it seemed natural to continue the theme to our big day. We made plenty of friends at the convention, including Lydia Winters, “Director of Fun” at Mojang, the studio behind Minecraft. She was key in helping me arrange the proposal – and by that I mean she pretty much did everything while I showed up with Asia and a ring. She was also responsible for hooking me up with several key contacts who were involved with the show.

One of those contacts was Jones Soda, which generously donated 150 custom Minecraft soda bottles for our wedding. Junkboy, the original artist behind the fantastic 8-bit art style of the game, actually took time to design the diamond Jones bottles used in the proposal, as well as the rest of the amazing Minecraft labels. Another important person was Greg Aronowitz, the incredible artist behind the Minecraft statues seen at the show. Greg let us drive to LA and pluck the figures from his studio for the wedding – while he was overseas in London! The most incredible thing about Greg is that he put full trust in a couple of nerds he had never met to bring his artwork home safe and sound after the wedding. We can’t thank him enough.

There are many other people who played pivotal roles in making our wedding happen, like my aunt and cousin who arranged all of the botanical decorations, or the owners of the wedding location – Beatnik Studios – who gave us a killer deal, but I really want to draw attention to the untold pillars on which we built this wedding: our wonderful friends. When I posted a Facebook event advertising that we needed to meticulously spray paint over 100 boxes using stencils to recreate Minecraft blocks, I expected a few friends to volunteer. At one point during the event day we had over 15 friends helping us with the project, from building the boxes, to painting on the base coat, to spray painting different colors with homemade stencils. It would have taken ten times as long without their help!

Our wedding turned out better than we had ever imagined and we have great friends and family, incredibly generous people, and months of hard work and planning to thank for it.

All photographs by The Goodness.

  • Suravi

    Suravi from Suravi says:

    Love it! You are right in that the wedding is not just for the bride--it is the celebration of love between two people. It should represent who you both are! Grats!

    11 years ago

  • thevicagirl

    VaLon Frandsen from thevicagirl says:

    I love it. Such a great wedding. It is so fun when you can throw a party that everyone can enjoy. Great photos.

    11 years ago

  • amber4you

    amber4you from amber4you says:

    Great idea! I love idea of unique weddings.. after all every relationship is unique, has it's own unique habits, traditions, attitudes & story.. and I believe, that wedding day should show that one of the kind relationship :) Beautiful bride & groom, beautiful photos!

    11 years ago

  • AlternativeBlooms

    Alternative Blooms from AlternativeBlooms says:

    When my son saw this he declared "I want a mine craft wedding!" However he is 10 years old, so I hope the passion is still alive when he eventually finds his bride :) Cal is also a huge fan of Etsy, searching out all things mine craft (he recognized Asia's awesome necklace!!) Harry Potterish and BACK To the Future related. What a wonderful wedding ! We have seen a lot of weddings but this is one for the record books! Thank you for sharing your day with us!

    11 years ago

  • emmashepard
  • GardenofYve

    Danielle Yve from GardenofYve says:

    I got my husband an 8 bit tie for our wedding :)

    11 years ago

  • LadyAria

    Jennifer Smith says:

    My fiancee and I are planning a geeky wedding much like this. We are both Minecraft fans and it will be apart of the wedding. I really love the ideas of the Jones sodas! Thanks for all the wonderful ideas!!

    11 years ago

  • mattisdunn

    Matt Dunn says:

    glad to help spark some ideas! just so you know, i actually posted all of the jones label artwork online for anyone to use. you can find the link here: http://dl.dropbox.com/u/22167375/Minecraft%20Jones%20Labels.zip

    11 years ago

  • FabricFaerie

    Hillary from FabricFaerie says:

    I love minecraft! I also have a wedding coming up and this definitely inspired me! :)

    11 years ago

  • JeneeORama

    JeneeORama from JeneeORama says:

    What a cute idea. The ties are my favorite thing, but yes weddings are a celebration of love, and they should represent both personalities. This just makes my heart so happy. Congratulations.

    11 years ago

  • mystichintime

    Marcy Mongelluzzo from MyStitchInTime says:

    I showed this to my 9 and 10 yr old boys. They of course thi.k this is the greatest thing ever!!! I love the ties :)

    11 years ago

  • LunaJewelry

    Julia Nicole from LunaJewelry says:

    This looked like such a fun wedding!! My 10-year-old daughter saw these pictures and thought that the pictures were so cool. Her comment was "minecraft - yeah! I would do that for my wedding too, except that I'm never getting married!" Yep, apparently boys still have cooties, LOL... Congrats Matt & Asia!!

    11 years ago

  • KawaiiBits

    Shannon from KawaiiBits says:

    That is sooo sweet! I love everything about this wedding and the last photo is so touching! Congrats you two and have a wonderful life together!!

    11 years ago

  • trixieweddig

    Trixie Weddig from trixieweddig says:

    I think this is great! I want to do this only with Runescape!!

    11 years ago

  • kelandkyle

    kelandkyle says:

    I love this theme! It's so cute! This couple reminds me of my husband and I: we both love video games and we both love Minecraft :)

    11 years ago

  • samoangirlsoap

    Shelly Fultz from samoangirlsoap says:

    This brought tears to my eyes! What a great story. I totally agree ! Weddings should be about both the bride and the groom. Celebrating what's special to them and what makes them uniquely perfect for each other is so brilliant. Thanks for sharing your amazing day !!

    11 years ago

  • meowadays

    meowadays from meowadays says:

    So amazing!! The future Mr and I love video games too so this was very inspirational!

    11 years ago

  • falibe

    Roberta from falibe says:

    So cute! Love it!

    11 years ago

  • DOTTO

    NICOLE Dotto from DOTTO says:

    oh my god ADORABLE, you two. congratulations!

    11 years ago

  • envision1prosper2

    envision1prosper2 from LittleYellowMonkeyZ says:

    SHEESH! I'm totally emotional tonight! YOUR LOVE IS SOOO TANGIBLE IN THESE PICS.. I MEAN I JUST LOVE IT!. Congrats on a totally unique idea and the fact that it represents you BOTH, is top shelf!.. CONGRATS!.. (as i wipe away my tears!)... I just love LOVE!!!

    11 years ago

  • SweetSincerity

    Bethany Coulombe from SweetSincerity says:

    I love this! It's a unapologetic celebration of who you really are.

    11 years ago

  • teamriggi

    Gina Riggins from allforLOVEbyGina says:

    yay matt & asia! thank you for sharing your wedding story with us. i love everything about it..most of all the originality. when i was busy planning away just over a year ago my husband was very much involved..it is about both of you, as you said. we also had a something-out-of-the-ordinary wedding (our love of music & michael jackson)..completely us..& that's all that matters!

    11 years ago

  • TwistedSilverDesign

    Yuen Wong from TwistedSilverDesign says:

    LOVE IT! 100% unique wedding. One of the most fun and creative wedding I've ever read. Congrats!

    11 years ago

  • Autaven

    Amanda Brown from BarkingMadBoutique says:

    WOW!! :) I am in love with Matt's pixel tie.

    11 years ago

  • TreadleLady

    Donna Kohler from TreadleLady says:

    "A Very Nerdy Wedding"kicked classic weddings in the butt! So great to be yourselves and go your own unique direction. We can all learn from your story and apply it to different areas of our lives. Congratulations!

    11 years ago

  • jbeaudet

    Jennifer Beaudet from JBeaudetStudios says:

    So cute and creative! Her dress is beautiful!

    11 years ago

  • JeweledAmbrosia

    JeweledAmbrosia from JeweledAmbrosia says:

    What an awesome wedding! My boys are always playing minecraft :)

    11 years ago

  • karicreates

    Kari McNew from KariCreates says:

    Nice! Congrats, Matt & Asia!

    11 years ago

  • ErikaPrice

    Erika from ErikaPrice says:

    Aw, such a lovely couple - and Asia's dress is fabulous! Shame about all the spelling mistakes in this post, though :)

    11 years ago

  • lilbabybumble

    Dee from LittleBabyBumblebee says:

    Thank you for sharing your wedding story, how very sweet! My son who is almost 9 LOVES minecraft, so I called him over to me to read this story on my laptop. He thought it was sweet as well. Congratulations!

    11 years ago

  • tweekedbycard

    Emma from tweekedbycard says:

    Hands up Nerd and Proud! love this wedding totally unique, Congrats to the happy couple !

    11 years ago

  • alliede

    Allison DeStefano says:

    My 12 year old son is now dreaming of the Minecraft wedding he'll have one day! :)

    11 years ago

  • volkerwandering

    Jess from volkerwandering says:

    What a great story! Congrats!

    11 years ago

  • inflict

    Elisabeth from inflict says:

    This is a lovely story and such an awesome wedding. Congrats! :)

    11 years ago

  • Harumaki

    Chi V. says:

    Congrats, indeed! The detail is absolutely delightful.

    11 years ago

  • chezviolette
  • ArgentCavs

    ArgentCavs says:

    This is so incredibly charming. I love it and it looks like it was a beautiful wedding. My husband and I are a pair of unapologetic geeks who met online a long time ago and are celebrating our tenth anniversary next year, so I'm in full support of gamer love. ;) Congratulations to you both!

    11 years ago

  • bedouin

    Nicole from KarmaCodeOne says:

    haaa you guys are great and adorable. I married a nerd and Twenty six years later he is as nerdy as the day I met him. https://www.etsy.com/listing/104950483/computer-love-vintage-fabric-flower

    11 years ago

  • TheGreatMico

    Mr. Brian and Mrs. Mico Tabor from TGMRandom says:

    I love it, and congrats on such a awesome wedding!

    11 years ago

  • kgpaintings

    Kirsten Gilmore from PaintingsByKEGilmore says:

    I wish we had done this last year. :) But, we did get the lego minecraft kit recently. I recommend it.

    11 years ago

  • andiespecialtysweets

    Jason and Andie from andiespecialtysweets says:

    Love the socks, ties, jewelry -all the details -really neat! Enjoy your new life together : )

    11 years ago

  • ArtByMark

    Mark from ArtByMark says:

    That's a very nice wedding you have there..ssssss lol What a great idea! beautiful wedding.

    11 years ago

  • StringBeardCraftery

    Stephanie from StringBeardCraftery says:

    AWESOME! totally jealous of your wedding. If it was anything like playing Minecraft, time went by way too quickly. Congrats!

    11 years ago

  • rosewilder1

    Martha Miliziano from KandiRose says:

    That's so sweet! Your wedding seemed so fun!! Congratulations, I hope you two live a happy life together!

    11 years ago

  • FawningInLove

    Fawning Inlove from FawningInLove says:

    I absolutely love this article and minecraft. This reminds me of my husband and I who host 3 mine craft servers and manage them for our son. Thank you for sharing your beautiful wedding day! Congratulations to you both! Happy mining! :] P.s Thatsssssss a nice necklace you got there!!!

    11 years ago

  • kadydesigns

    Denise Vining from kadydesigns says:

    What a great idea! I love that you chose to make your special day all about the two of you and not the same traditional flowers and cake cookie cutter wedding. Congratulations!!

    11 years ago

  • MaJentaDesigns

    MaJentaDesigns from MaJentaDesigns says:

    Such a creative and unique idea for a wedding! :) congrats!!

    11 years ago

  • perebags

    Sarah from perebags says:

    What a fun wedding!! Congrats!!

    11 years ago

  • mbrignall

    Molly B from BabyGusLinens says:

    So sweet-- congratulations!

    11 years ago

  • bhangtiez

    Jana from bhangtiez says:

    omg, so awesome! Thanks for sharing & Congratulations!

    11 years ago

  • EmSewCrazy

    Emily from EmSewCrazy says:

    SO FUN!! What a neat wedding! Love how you guys pulled it all together!

    11 years ago

  • mattisdunn

    Matt Dunn says:

    wow lots of comments since i last checked this! thanks for the love and encouragement everyone! i love that our wedding is inspiring little kids to think about their weddings. :P

    11 years ago

  • tatianaishere

    tatiana m says:

    You guys are awesome! Thank you for sharing such a wonderful wedding that was creative and personal.

    11 years ago

  • kingfamily2000

    RoseMary King from PaperFabricJournals says:

    You both are just the BEST. Loved all the photos showing that a wedding can be fun and loving. Shared your page with my friends.

    11 years ago

  • greenspringstudio

    Misha from greenspringstudio says:

    I can't wait for my son to get up this morning, he loves Minecraft and will get such a kick out of your wedding story and photo's! Too cool! Thanks for sharing!

    11 years ago

  • Teakenna

    Tami from Teakenna says:

    That is so awesome! People have no idea how many girls/women play video games too! So cool that you both decided to settle on a wedding theme that you love and enjoy together :) If I get married again, it's definitely going to be a game theme. Best of everything to you!

    11 years ago

  • scal12

    Payson A from SecondStarDesignCo says:

    This is such a cool wedding! My favorite touches were the fun ties and the drink bottles :) Thanks so much for sharing!

    11 years ago

  • Joliejye

    Julie Duchesne from Joliejye says:

    This is AMAZING !! I am huge fan of Minecraft too, my husband and i are big geeks, we would have loved a wedding like yours... Congratulations, you are such a lovely couple !

    11 years ago

  • nothingbutknits

    Cathy from NothingButKnits says:

    That is so awesome! We're a family of geeks and we all love Minecraft. I love that you guys made your wedding so about you

    11 years ago

  • Earendil7

    Shiloh Lenz from EarendilCollectibles says:

    Neat idea for gamelovers. My little brothers LOVE that game, so maybe when they get married they'll do what you did! :-)

    11 years ago

  • klinqueen

    klinqueen says:

    Love it! My husband and I met dressed as Klingons, so of course, we had to tie it into the wedding somehow. Bob O'Reilly (Gowron) set me up for the proposal (by trying to woo me away from my future husband in front of about 1000 people at a Trek convention!). While we opted not to do it in costume, we did a celestial-themed wedding (lots of stars, suns, and moons in the decor and invites), and our cake was the Klingon Great Hall (complete with two Birds of Prey attacking Troi and Riker action figures -- their shuttle crashed into a plate of cream puffs after all!) I LOVE geeky weddings! BTW, is there a pic of your cake? Was it in Minecraft style too?

    11 years ago

  • PyaliaPixie

    aubrini thompkins from PersonalityEvolution says:

    My boyfriend introduced me to the amazing world of Minecraft and i am sooo in love with it now! This is one of the best wedding themes i've ever seen in my life! Congrats to the both of you, you two look amazing together!

    11 years ago

  • Vicisstude

    Morgan Sugg says:

    My boyfriend and I were there when you proposed! I thought it was the cutest thing ever. (The first thing he bought me was the game) I think your wedding is down right darling and I've considered something along those lines myself. Congrats!

    11 years ago

  • papersouls

    Jules Royce from papersouls says:

    this is awesome! my boya nd i are videogame folk too, he owning and me working for D-Pad Studios in Norway! I showed him this and we both think its one of the coolest ideas weve seen! you pulled it off wonderfully!

    11 years ago

  • cartamodello

    Laura Munro from cartamodello says:

    So right (that the groom should be just as much a part of the organising of the wedding as the bride). You're both going into a partnership, after all, so working together is a HUGE part of that. I LOVE all the 8-bit/pixel love going on... oh my, those ties! And that necklace! Absolutely amazing. What a lovely post; and what a wonderful couple. All the best to you both :-)

    11 years ago

  • hchildress12

    Holly and John from ZCreateDesign says:

    This is such a fun wedding! I LOVE the soda labels - that is such a great touch!

    11 years ago

  • SheetaDesign

    Sheeta tam from SheetaDesign says:

    Amazing Wedding! To have a life partner who also loves what you love is the best thing in the world!

    11 years ago

  • springmontes

    Spring Montes from springmontes says:

    Very cute, I love minecraft too, but my husband would never have been down with this kind of wedding.

    11 years ago

  • nicolanis

    Michelle from FoamyFactory says:

    Love your pictures! they are so original and colorful!

    11 years ago

  • missclinepress

    Ana Karina Luna Vasconcellos from missclinepress says:

    Everything is beautiful, but, sorry, weddings now look like a marketing campaign. Is spontaneity gone? Maybe it was never here...

    11 years ago

  • lovelyfeverboutique

    Jessica from LovelyFever says:

    So wonderful to see that the bride and groom took something that they both love (video games in this case) and made it the theme of the wedding! Those hand-stenciled blocks are a great idea!

    11 years ago

  • poochnqt

    Sarah LaRaine from LaRaineJewelry says:

    So cute, we loved this!

    11 years ago

  • StayArtisan

    J.K. Ramirez from HudsonBlueArtisans says:

    Great Ideas. Congratulations.

    11 years ago

  • MuraskiDucky

    MuraskiDucky says:

    The power of (nerd) love! So awesome!

    11 years ago

  • ArtsLux

    ArtsLux from ArtsLux says:

    very bright and оригинально. of course, I think not every couple agree to such a style, but for a couple who is not afraid of experiments and wants to look not like the others this is the ideal variant)

    11 years ago

  • ArtsLux

    ArtsLux from ArtsLux says:

    very bright and original. of course, I think not every couple agree to such a style, but for a couple who is not afraid of experiments and wants to look not like the others this is the ideal variant)

    11 years ago

  • morganbriannajones

    Morgan Brianna Jones from solsticebakery says:

    I am in love with this wedding. I am adding it to my favorites as we speak.

    11 years ago

  • petalalley

    Laura from PetalAlley says:

    This wedding is so cute. Love how much their personalities shine through!

    9 years ago