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MEET THE CREATORS
WE ARE CELESTE AND JESS BURNS.
We are so happy that you’re here. Our goal with this platform is to make a difference in the world and leave behind an impact on our community. We both have our own talents to contribute - C is the photographer/artist with a passion for activism and J is the organizational, type A workhorse, in charge of behind the scenes maintenance and assisting on wedding days. We both have years of coordinating, educating, and wedding experience that we can’t wait to share!
Our STORY
Jess proposed to me on Christmas Eve in 2018 amongst my closest family. It was a dream come true. I had always dreamed about getting married to the love of my life. We were on cloud nine and so excited to start planning our wedding! What started as excitement soon became disappointment. The more we dove into the wedding industry, the more we saw how sexist and homophobic it was. (I had been a wedding photographer for a couple years but was never quite aware how limited it was for a queer couple.) We would constantly receive intake forms with “Bride and Groom” as the only option. We were ghosted by vendors as soon as we brought our genders to their attention. We couldn’t find a single venue with gender neutral dressing rooms. We had trouble finding a photographer or videographer that showcased queer couples in their portfolio. We were often asked, "So which one is the groom?" We felt as thought we were an oddity.
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With the help of good friends and family, we were lucky to find accepting and wonderful vendors by our wedding day, but so many other couples are unfortunately not so lucky. As I began to serve more and more of the queer community in my work, I was able to accompany them on their wedding planning journeys as well. Seeing the hurdles all of my LGBTQIA+ couples had to go through just inspired me more to make a difference.
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- Celeste
OUR MISSION
The wedding industry can be a fear inducing, toxic environment for LGBTQIA+ folx. The typical wedding planning process is filled with gendered language, sexist terminology, and archaic traditions. Even just the act of inquiring with vendors can be traumatic and daunting, as the couple has to “come out” all over again to each vendor just to make sure that they will accept them as clients. There are so many privileges and opportunities that cisgender and straight couples have while wedding planning that LGBTQIA+ couples do not have. Looking for gifts and favors as a queer couple is practically impossible, with the market saturated by traditional Mr. & Mrs. references. Many venues refer to their getting ready rooms as a “bridal suite” and a “groom’s suite” which can erase the validity of an LGBTQIA+ couple. Plenty of officiants and ceremony leaders choose not to conduct same-sex marriages, refuse marriage counseling, and some even discourage LGBTQIA+ folx from getting married in general. This only scratches the surface of the obstacles we go through as queer folx planning a wedding.
A wedding is meant to be a magical day filled with love, laughter, and beauty. A wedding is purely the celebration of hearts that chose each other. Why should a day like this contain any fear of bigotry, disapproval, or hatred? How could anyone deprive another of such a meaningful and beautiful moment? We have no idea, but it’s our mission to change that.
OUR PRIDE GUIDE IS MORE THAN
JUST A DIRECTORY.
We are here to help in any way we can. Ultimately, our goal is to create more representation for queer couples. We aim to educate the industry on the current injustices, terminology, and dialogue. No one should ever be misgendered, disrespected, or deliberately treated differently for being queer.
Peruse our website to explore what we have to offer, and reach out to us via the contact form with any questions or inquiries! We offer consultations for couples looking to plan their wedding but don't know where to start, inquiry management, and are working on our very own line of genderless wedding merchandise!
