Bridal Tab 2026

Bridal Guide2026

Supplement to The Alpena News • Wednesday, February 25, 2026

Weddings and how they’ve changed

By SHELL HOFFMAN

Special to the News

In 2025, on a beautiful summer day in July, Samantha and Justin Timm exchanged vows at their wedding ceremony on their farm in Northeast Michigan. The Timm’s first met in the fall of 2019 at a friend’s Halloween party and never looked back. According to Samantha they clicked instantly and became inseparable. They soon moved in together and began their life as a couple. Marriage to

them seemed like the next logical step and in 2024 they became engaged and soon after, the Timm’s second child was on the way.

Originally, when the couple first purchased the property and barn that would become their wedding reception venue, the area was used to house cattle.

In December 2024, Justin Timm sold the cattle, completely gutted the barn and renovated the entire structure that is now available for future couples to use

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With fourteen bridesmaids and fourteen groomsmen, this enormous wedding party along with family and friends, looked on as the loving couple “showed our commitment to God and each other and that we’re together for the rest of our lives”. Said Samantha Timm describing what her marriage vows mean to her.

Every wedding planning involves some stressful situations and the Timm couple was no exception. All at the same time they were trying to perform their daily farming duties, renovate their barn to be used as a wedding venue and still plan their wedding. Thankfully it all came together in time for their beautiful ceremony.

were truly his heirs. Through marriage a woman became a man’ s property, as well as a way to transfer wealth and property from the wife’s family.

Originally marriage had little to do with love or religion. In the 8th century, Christian churches began performing weddings, thus making the ceremony a holy ritual or sacrament.

Eventually in the 18th century young people were starting to be urged to select the person they would marry by their emotions and feelings of love.

In the early 1920’s, The Women Suffrage Movement helped women to make numerous changes in their lives. Not only were women allowed to vote but also to have the right to choose their future husbands. At this time, marriage became a union of two people together by choice.

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Samantha was very thankful towards her “numerous vendors that worked together in the background on the day of the wedding. They didn’t necessarily know each other but they hammered it out, they all knew what they were doing”.

When asked how her life has changed since the wedding, Samantha Timm said, “It’s relatively similar to the way it was before. We’ve lived together basically since we met and obviously we already had one daughter and we just had our second daughter in October. We were pretty serious right off the bat”.

The first recorded wedding in history was over 4,350 years ago in Mesopotamia in 2350 B.C. This marked the beginning of formalized unions in history.

Initially weddings were considered a type of contract. Binding two parties together, to guarantee that a man’s children

By the 1960’s marriage was seen as a right, not a privilege and more and more couples began adding their personal touches to their ceremonies. Popular outdoor venues are now a common choice for many couples, moving away from the traditional church services.

Rice has been replaced by bird seed, bubbles and biodegradable confetti. Receptions can range from quaint elegant dinners to all night raves or anything in between. Each couple includes their vision for the perfect wedding.

Today most weddings are meant for the gathering of friends and family to come together and rejoice with the loved ones as the happy couple profess their love and commitment to each other for all the world to know.

It’s customary for a bride-to-be to make a grand entrance on her wedding day, and for many that involves the processional song “Bridal Chorus,” commonly referred to as “Here Comes the Bride.” The song is from the 1850 opera “Lohengrin,” which was composed by Richard Wagner. In the opera, the women in the wedding party sing the song as they escort the bride, Elsa, to her bridal chamber. The original lyrics included, “Faithfully, led, you go…” and re-

ferred to the joy of the couple’s new life together. After Princess Victoria, the daughter of Queen Victoria of England, used the song for her 1858 wedding procession, the music became a wedding staple across Europe and America. While the instrumental version is widely used for a bride’s walk down the aisle, some religious institutions prefer couples choose another song because of the music’s secular origins.

Here comes the bride A checklist of vendors to facilitate wedding planning

Planning a wedding is a significant undertaking. Though many tasks associated with wedding planning are enjoyable, the number of variables that must be coordinated can make the process feel a little overwhelming at times. Staying organized can make wedding planning a lot easier, and this checklist of vendors can be utilized by couples looking to stay calm as they plan their big day.

• Wedding venue

• Reception venue

• Caterer

• Bakery

• Photographer

• Videographer

• Florist

• Officiant

• Entertainment Jeweler

• Transportation

• Hotel

• Salon/hairdresser

• Makeup artist

• Wedding planner

• Bridal gown retailer

• Groom’s attire

• Favors vendor

Navigating wedding transportation

On a couple’s wedding day, some effort will be required to transport the bride and groom and wedding party participants and guests. Coordinating transportation is a task couples must add to their planning checklist.

Wedding transportation is perhaps best broken down into three categories: transportation for the couple and the wedding party, transportation for guests, and transportation for unique situations. These tips can make navigating wedding transportation needs go smoothly.

Transportation for the couple and wedding party

Ensuring that the couple and wedding party participants arrive to the ceremony (and later the reception venue) on time is essential. Couples and their attendants traditionally arrive in some sort of hired car, whether it’s a limousine or vintage/classic ride. It’s important to find a service that will pick up the couple (separately) and their bridesmaids and groomsmen as well as parents of the bride or groom and bring them to the ceremony site. Drivers usually wait for the ceremony to end before taking passengers to photography locations and eventually the reception venue. Vendors typically price for hourly service with a

minimal rental period. Larger vehicles will have a higher hourly rate.

Transportation for guests

Although it’s not customary to offer transportation for all guests to the ceremony or reception venue, in the event of circumstances like hotel room accommodations close to the reception, couples may want to offer shuttle service between the reception center and hotel. If the wedding reception will be non-traditional, and take place at various stop-off spots, like a bar crawl, party buses or trolley service could be considered to keep all guests together.

Unique situations

Couples may want to enhance their wedding festivities with some specialized details that might require unique transportation situations. For example, a wedding that takes place on an island would require a ferry service or water taxi.

Couples tying the knot during the picturesque winter season can go the extra mile and commission horse-drawn sleighs. Rustic weddings have grown in popularity. A charming hayride

can complete the picture for a wedding reception held at a farm or in a converted barn.

After the festivities

The couple also may need to consider transportation once the wedding has ended. Those going directly to a honeymoon may need a hired car to take them to the airport. Transportation also will be needed for any wed-

ding party participants who did not take their own vehicles to the wedding, but rode in party buses or limousines.

Wedding transportation may not be the most glamorous aspect of wedding planning, but well-coordinated transportation is a necessity that couples, their friends and family will appreciate.