Wedding inspiration you can taste and see
San Diego, california | jan. 16, 2020 7PM
This is not your typical bridal show!
This is a bridal show alternative complete with a meaningful vow renewal ceremony, light bites, and a dance-party reception.
Yep, we host big, fake weddings to connect brides and grooms to the best local vendors.
At the Big Fake Wedding you’ll get wedding inspiration you can taste and see. Think of it as Pinterest in real life. Unlike your typical bridal show or wedding website, you’ll experience the vendor’s work in an actual wedding setting.
You’ll finally get answers to the questions floating around in the back of your mind, like:
- How does the food look and taste when served to a large crowd?
- Will the table decor turn out just like I envisioned?
- How does the photographer do navigating all the moving parts of a live event?
- Will the cake look as good as the picture I was shown?
- Can this DJ get people out on the dance floor?
- What will the photo booth look like in my reception space?
- What does a real wedding look like in this venue space?
Ticket Price: $50 $27/person
As seen on…
Experience local wedding vendors in action.
We hand-select the very best vendors from your area and bring them together for a night of wedding planning bliss. The environment is fun, relaxed, and gimmick-free. You’ll receive a vendor guide when you arrive so you can easily identify who did what at the event. Following the ceremony, you can make your way into the “Tunnel of Love” where you can meet the vendors who produced the event and get a feel for their personalities. You’ll also get a swag bag so you can collect freebies and marketing info from our vendors.
Join us for our next event in
San Diego, California on Jan. 16, 2020 at 7PM
Ticket Price: $50 $27/person
Calm your wedding planning anxieties with inspiration and reflection.
We remove the classic hustle and bustle of wedding planning by providing a space for you to be inspired for your big day as well as prepare for the years to come by reflecting on the beauty of marriage. The ceremony you’ll witness is a vow renewal of a real-life couple (so not everything is fake!). Every detail of the night is curated with you in mind. Whether you’re getting started in your planning process or just need to finalize some last minute touches, we ensure you’ll experience a night to remember.
We turn wedding planning into a night of fun!
Take some time to tear up the dance floor after you enter the Tunnel of Love. Once we open it up, it will be available for the remainder of the night, so don’t feel rushed to head over there. We provide cocktail-style dinner, a complimentary drink, and a few surprises so you get to sample lots of options for your big day. Come expecting a party, not a performance.
What to expect
Doors open at 6:30 PM
Drinks / Ceremony
7 PM Real couple renewing vows
Tunnel of Love
Meet & greet best vendors from the city
DJ / Dancing, Food, Desserts
Bridal Bundle Giveaway
9 PM – Staged exit
Pricing
Register today and get
50% off your ticket!
$50 $27/person
What’s included with each ticket:
- Access to The Big Fake Wedding Inspiration board for the event’s look and feel
- Swag bag with your vendor guide and $500+ in discounts (you’ll also have a chance to fill it with freebies from the Tunnel of Love!)
- Complimentary alcoholic drink
- Cocktail style dinner
- Access to 35+ of the best wedding vendors in your city
- A chance to win one of our ‘Bridal Bundles’ at the end of the night. This is a package with hundreds of dollars of goodies and gift cards from our vendors!
Inspiration for this event:
Attendee Feedback
“It just felt like we were at a friend’s party!”
The Big Fake Wedding is an amazing opportunity to see potential vendors in their element! I really enjoyed seeing the vendors display their talents as it made it way easier to know what you might actually get on your big day. Not to mention, it just felt like we were at a friend’s party! So you could speak to vendors if you wanted to, but it didn’t feel forced or salesy. Lastly, I love, love, love that the event supports local businesses and really catered to a more unique, but trendy aesthetic. I’d highly recommend The Big Fake Wedding to any bride! By far, the best bridal experience out there! | Samantha, San Diego bride
“…amazed at the amount of awesome options…”
This was one of my favorite events of wedding planning so far! It was really cool to sample local vendors and talk to everyone without pressure. I’m amazed at the amount of awesome options I have as a bride and I have The Big Fake Wedding to thank for showing me that! | Caitlin, Atlanta bride
“…it gave me a chance to get new ideas for my big day.”
The Big Fake Wedding was a wonderful event and it was a great idea to have it in the Burgh! As an upcoming bride, it gave me a chance to get new ideas for my big day. The vendors were all very kind and had a wealth of information to share. I would definitely recommend this event to friends and family and I hope it returns in the future to the area. Thank you for a fun night! | Ashley, Pittsburgh bride
“…inspired me to incorporate things into my wedding that I hadn’t thought about before.”
The Big Fake Wedding was so inspirational! I got so many ideas from the decor – the bridesmaid florals were amazing, the signage, the table settings and even the ribbon send off inspired me to incorporate things into my wedding that I hadn’t thought about before. It was awesome to see a real couple renew their vows for each other and made the experience so authentic. Loved the Big Fake Wedding! | Kelci, San Antonio bride
“…I had no idea where to start…it took such a load off.”
I loved The Big Fake Wedding. I was just beginning the planning process and I had no idea where to start. Brought my MOH with me and we had so much fun drinking champagne, eating yummy food and cake. The vendors were so sweet and gave me advice. I’ve already booked a bunch of them and it took such a load off. | Erin, Greenville bride
“This was honestly the best wedding show I have ever been to (and I have been to many!).”
This was honestly the best wedding show I have ever been to (and I have been to many!). The main things we loved? For one, the vendors were so relatable. It didn’t feel like I was being sold to. It honestly felt like it was a big room of folks who were just regular people. Which we actually loved! We feel so comfortable knowing that our hard earned money is going directly to someone’s self-owned business. Not a big “name brand” business. Everyone was incredibly kind, as well. They were all just so excited to share what they could do to make our day perfect and special. This was SUCH a great experience and we’re so thankful! | Stacey, Atlanta bride
As seen on…
“We’ve gone to 3 wedding shows/events and this blew the other two out of the water!”
My fiancé and I loved The Big Fake Wedding! We’ve gone to 3 wedding shows/events and this blew the other two out of the water! It was much more intimate, and we didn’t feel attacked by vendors like other shows. It was nice to hear the story of the bride and groom who had their vow renewal, and the ambiance was great. Best of all… We met an amazing photographer at The Big Fake Wedding and ended up booking her for our wedding! We are SO happy we went and would recommend this event to any engaged couple! | Danielle, Baltimore bride
Simply the best around. I’m a guy and I loved it. | Justin, Topsfield groom
The event brought great vendors in and showed everyone a good time. It was very helpful to see a lot of vendors at once and we got a photographer while there so it worked out great for us. | Mark, Dallas groom
“It would have helped make my planning and decision making process 100x easier!”
I had the privilege of being a part of the BFW Charlotte as one of the bridesmaids! Recently married, I wish I had known about the BFW prior to getting married only a few short months ago. It would have helped make my planning and decision making process 100x easier! Th BFW staff to vendors were all so helpful and amazing and you can’t help but gain something out of attending or being a part of one of these events. | Jennifer, Charlotte bridesmaid
“…it gave my fiancé and I a real and concrete idea of what the wedding day will look like for us.”
I really enjoyed the experience of The Big Fake Wedding, it gave my fiancé and I a real and concrete idea of what the wedding day will look like for us. I think it is something that all brides and grooms should try at least once for the sake of seeing an example of the wedding day and to see some really nice vendors as well! | Ryan, Lexington bride
“It was awesome to see the vendors in action…”
We really enjoyed attending the big fake wedding! It was awesome to see all the vendors in action and to be able to see what they’re capable of putting together. We definitely preferred this instead of an expo with booths. From food to drinks to desserts they had it all! Good thing we didn’t eat before we went! | Joseph, Boulder groom
Join us for our next event in
San Diego, California on Jan. 16, 2020 at 7PM
Ticket Price: $50 $27/person
Frequently Asked Questions
IS THERE ASSIGNED SEATING?
There is not assigned seating and most events will consist of a mixture of limited ceremony seating, reception tables, cocktail tables, lounge furniture and standing room. If you want to be guaranteed a seat and/or seats together at the ceremony, be sure to arrive right when doors open thirty minutes prior to the ceremony.
WHAT DO I WEAR?
It’s a wedding for the hippest people you (don’t actually) know, so take this opportunity to dress up a little! If you need more specifics, shoot for cocktail attire.
DO I NEED TO BRING ANYTHING?
Bring your ticket (printed or on your phone) to the event and we’ll hand you your real ticket – a wedding invitation! You may also wish to bring a little cash to cover parking or drinks, but that depends on the city, as drinks and/or parking are sometimes included.
WHAT SHOULD I EXPECT?
You can expect a ceremony (that’s actually a vow renewal for an already-married couple!), food and a dance-party reception, along with a chance to meet the participating vendors. Watch the “Top Ten” video above to learn how to get the most out of your experience!
HOW CAN I BE THE ONE RENEWING MY VOWS?
We accept nominations from local friends, vendors and media partners to find couples that are fun, relatable, photogenic and willing to participate for the good of the others involved. The couple serves as walking billboards for the vendors and reminders of the joys of marriage to our guests.
HOW WILL I KNOW WHICH VENDOR DID WHAT?
We share our vendors’ names and contact info with you on the website under each city’s event page, and then at the event you’ll receive a detailed vendor guide outlining each vendor and their work. You will also have a chance to hunt down your favorites in our Tunnel of Love, which is a meet-and-greet area during the reception where vendors hand out business cards and freebies to our guests.
I’M A WEDDING PLANNER. CAN I ATTEND THE BIG FAKE WEDDING AS A GUEST?
We encourage wedding planners interested in attending as a guest to bring one of their brides or grooms with them as a guest! We also ask that any wedding vendors who attend as guests refrain from handing out marketing collateral of any kind out of respect for our participating vendors.
CAN THE BIG FAKE WEDDING COME TO MY CITY?
Before we choose to head to a new city, we need a great venue, media partner (magazine, blog, etc) and a few solid vendor leads. It also helps to have some great Brand Ambassadors in place. If you think we should come to your city, please encourage your vendor friends to apply here!
HOW DO YOU CHOOSE THE VENDORS?
We choose the vendors through word-of-mouth referrals and through the vendor applications we receive from interested wedding professionals. We like to offer our brides a wide range of styles and price points, and we try to find vendors with character and quality that we can believe in.
CAN MY FIANCÉ COME?
Bring someone (or a posse of someones) who will let you have fun and will allow you the time and freedom to take it all in, and if that’s your fiancé, then yes, bring him! If this doesn’t sound like your fiancé’s cup of tea, then bring a bridesmaid or your momma.
I WON’T BE ABLE TO ATTEND ANYMORE. DO YOU OFFER REFUNDS?
We don’t offer refunds for the tickets, but you are welcome to give away your ticket so that someone else may go in your place.
CAN I BRING MY CAMERA?
We do ask that you leave your cameras at home since we will have some incredible photographers on hand to capture every detail for you. Taking photos with your phone is totally fine, but we’d prefer you leave the heavy duty photography to our professionals! You can see the photographers’ work after the event on our blog!
National Partners
