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.
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Sign in to add your ownSuravi 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!
304 days ago
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.
304 days ago
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!
304 days ago
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!
302 days ago
Emma Shepard from SewWonderfullyMade6 says:
So cute!
302 days ago
Danielle Yve from GardenofYve says:
I got my husband an 8 bit tie for our wedding :)
301 days ago
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!!
301 days ago
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
299 days ago
Hillary from FabricFaerie says:
I love minecraft! I also have a wedding coming up and this definitely inspired me! :)
298 days ago
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.
298 days ago
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 :)
298 days ago
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!!
298 days ago
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!!
298 days ago
Trixie Weddig from trixieweddig says:
I think this is great! I want to do this only with Runescape!!
298 days ago
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 :)
298 days ago
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 !!
298 days ago
meowadays from meowadays says:
So amazing!! The future Mr and I love video games too so this was very inspirational!
298 days ago
Roberta from falibe says:
So cute! Love it!
298 days ago
NICOLE Dotto from DOTTO says:
oh my god ADORABLE, you two. congratulations!
298 days ago
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!!!
298 days ago
Bethany Coulombe from SweetSincerity says:
I love this! It's a unapologetic celebration of who you really are.
297 days ago
Gina Riggins from allforloveLOVE 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!
295 days ago
Yuen Wong from TwistedSilverDesign says:
LOVE IT! 100% unique wedding. One of the most fun and creative wedding I've ever read. Congrats!
295 days ago
Amanda Brown from BarkingMadBoutique says:
WOW!! :) I am in love with Matt's pixel tie.
290 days ago
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!
284 days ago
Jennifer Beaudet from JBeaudetStudios says:
So cute and creative! Her dress is beautiful!
284 days ago
JeweledAmbrosia from JeweledAmbrosia says:
What an awesome wedding! My boys are always playing minecraft :)
284 days ago
Kari McNew from KariCreates says:
Nice! Congrats, Matt & Asia!
284 days ago
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 :)
284 days ago
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!
284 days ago
Emma from tweekedbycard says:
Hands up Nerd and Proud! love this wedding totally unique, Congrats to the happy couple !
284 days ago
Allison DeStefano says:
My 12 year old son is now dreaming of the Minecraft wedding he'll have one day! :)
284 days ago
Jess from volkerwandering says:
What a great story! Congrats!
284 days ago
Elisabeth from inflict says:
This is a lovely story and such an awesome wedding. Congrats! :)
284 days ago
Chi V. says:
Congrats, indeed! The detail is absolutely delightful.
284 days ago
Chez Violette from chezviolette says:
lovely !
284 days ago
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!
284 days ago
bedouin from bedouin 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
284 days ago
Mr. Brian and Mrs. Mico Tabor from TGMRandom says:
I love it, and congrats on such a awesome wedding!
284 days ago
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.
284 days ago
Jason and Andie from andiespecialtysweets says:
Love the socks, ties, jewelry -all the details -really neat! Enjoy your new life together : )
284 days ago
Mark from ArtByMark says:
That's a very nice wedding you have there..ssssss lol What a great idea! beautiful wedding.
284 days ago
Stephanie from StringBeardCraftery says:
AWESOME! totally jealous of your wedding. If it was anything like playing Minecraft, time went by way too quickly. Congrats!
284 days ago
Martha Miliziano from KandiRose says:
That's so sweet! Your wedding seemed so fun!! Congratulations, I hope you two live a happy life together!
284 days ago
FawningInLove 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!!!
284 days ago
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!!
283 days ago
MaJentaDesigns from MaJentaDesigns says:
Such a creative and unique idea for a wedding! :) congrats!!
283 days ago
Sarah from perebags says:
What a fun wedding!! Congrats!!
283 days ago
Molly B says:
So sweet-- congratulations!
283 days ago
Jana from bhangtiez says:
omg, so awesome! Thanks for sharing & Congratulations!
283 days ago
Emily from EmSewCrazy says:
SO FUN!! What a neat wedding! Love how you guys pulled it all together!
283 days ago
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
283 days ago
tatiana m says:
You guys are awesome! Thank you for sharing such a wonderful wedding that was creative and personal.
283 days ago
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.
282 days ago
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!
282 days ago
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!
282 days ago
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!
282 days ago
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 !
282 days ago
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
282 days ago
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! :-)
282 days ago
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?
282 days ago
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!
281 days ago
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!
281 days ago
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!
280 days ago
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 :-)
280 days ago
Holly Zarski from ZCreateDesign says:
This is such a fun wedding! I LOVE the soda labels - that is such a great touch!
279 days ago
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!
277 days ago
Spring Montes from springmontes says:
Very cute, I love minecraft too, but my husband would never have been down with this kind of wedding.
263 days ago
Michelle from FoamyFactory says:
Love your pictures! they are so original and colorful!
261 days ago
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...
259 days ago
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!
258 days ago
Sarah LaRaine from LaRaineJewelry says:
So cute, we loved this!
218 days ago
J.K. Ramirez from HudsonBlueArtisans says:
Great Ideas. Congratulations.
139 days ago
MuraskiDucky says:
The power of (nerd) love! So awesome!
71 days ago
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)
64 days ago
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)
64 days ago
Morgan Brianna Jones from solsticebakery says:
I am in love with this wedding. I am adding it to my favorites as we speak.
53 days ago