Chelsy and John Maxwell 2: On to the Honeymoon Somewhere Warm

[grammyj]

In retrospect the wedding was weird.  No decorations. Nada. Crazy talk sermons. Bride and groom running in and out. And I gotta say, from what I could see of the bridesmaids' dresses, the teal colour looked "sad" as in the old Puritan definition of "sad" colours for believers. maybe someone has more pics of bridesmaids?  Couldn't see them all that well in live feed. Maybe it  was lighting?

I guess after the sons' delightful weddings in the fall, this one way off. And Chelsy was the first Daughter to be married.  

But if she's happy, well then, OK but it was one of the weirdest weddings I've ever seen. And I'm old! 

ETA--someone thought the Max women raised the necklines on their dresses? Did they? Nothing like drawing attention to your piety, right?  Maxwells and hubris..........

[Ozlsn]

6 hours ago, JermajestyDuggar said:

I agree. I guess the Mennonite relatives may be used to how much the Bontragers blather on and on at weddings with self serving speeches (majorly prideful in my opinion) but I doubt they expected a speech about vasectomy reversal! 

No one expects a vasectomy reversal speech! 

 

6 hours ago, JermajestyDuggar said:

I think I also said it on the last page but Chelsy says she's a farm girl and prefers Togo barefoot. I guess it's how she's most comfortable. But I can't imagine it being comfortable in the middle of winter on tile floors...

I do not get that, honestly. I go barefoot most of the time at home but it just seems sensible (and polite) to wear shoes in a church with a tiled floor in the middle of winter. They could have held off on the wedding for 6 months and had it barefoot in a field if that's what she wanted. Just a strange choice to me - but maybe I just like having warm feet.

[meowfundiecatz]

7 hours ago, Tatar-tot said:

The bridesmaid dresses worked given all the different sizes of woman she needed to be dress and Steve’s bizarre modest standards. 

Let us remember that the Bontragers hold to very, very similar modesty standards. They may be able to wear more make up and more modern styles than the Maxwells, but they still have a skirts only, submit to all men (even brothers), wildly fundie beliefs. Ma Bontrager even wrote a post about children's books. No Berenstain bears books in the Bontrager house because they make fun of the dad in the stories.

[MamaJunebug]

2 hours ago, sparkles said:

I didn't watch the live stream but just reading about it here…so much WTFery. I would at least hope that Chelsy's dad cleared the whole reversal thing with Steve and didn't just blindside The Reversal spawn by hauling them up on stage without warning. Warning or not, though, it's just about the most inappropriate thing I've ever heard of at a wedding, even worse that Steve's death speech. 

I have to say that when I first saw that group shot with John in his gray suit, he totally reminded me of Steve Anderson. Oy. 

Are there pix somewhere other than the ones that were posted here? I couldn't get much of an idea of the bridesmaids dresses and what I see of Chelsy's dress isn't much to my liking. Of course, it's not my wedding and as long as she was happy that's all that matters, right? (I also made my own wedding dress, and the dresses for my three attendants, and was sewing mine right up to the day before our wedding.) I do see some flaws with Chelsy's, mainly with the gathering in the bodice. The lace, which looks like corded/alencon lace, is too heavy for that type of gathering so it doesn't lay down nicely. It probably would have been better if she had fitted the bodice or at least pleated or tucked, rather than gathered the lace. Also, it looks like she sewed the skirt as a unit, with the lace and underlayment as one. The two different weights of fabric will hang differently and you can see it in one of the photos where she's holding up the train and in the one above where you can see how the seam is pulling. Again, it would have been better if she'd treated the lace and fabric separately, with the lace overlaying the fabric skirt, so each moved separately. And finally, the lace hems looked very unfinished because they were simply cut and stitched. There are matching/coordinating lace trims that she could have used to give the hems and neckline a more finished, elegant look. And yeah, the band was way too wide and would have looked better in a contrasting fabric, rather than lace. But it's her dress so if she's happy… Not that I can't give it the hairy eyeball or anything.

Wow, @sparkles, you solved a mystery: why Chesty seemed to move so clumsily around the stages. I’d laid it to her bare feet and still believe that is part of it — but the way the skirts moved was another.  They weren’t swirly or fluid, but seemed to move against her, or separately from her. From your anslysis, I’m thinking that was because of her construction methods!!  Hi, and as was mentioned elsewhere: the skirts were too long.

Thank you fir the insight!  

[Jingerale]

6 minutes ago, MamaJunebug said:

Chesty seemed to move so clumsily

 

[usmcmom]

Sorry everybody; but when I see “Chesty” I think of the Marine Corps mascot, named for Lt. General Chesty Puller, the most decorated Marine in American history. Sixty minutes did a piece on Chesty the bulldog years ago. It is on youtube and really cute. 

Back to our regularly scheduled snarking. 

[Markie]

I'm at a resort in Mexico for the holidays. I'll keep an eye out for the happy couple but somehow doubt they'll be here! Happy New Year!! 

[lilith]

Re the bridesmaids dresses - someone mentioned that Chelsy ordered and returned 7 different dresses before settling on that one. I think it was very much a compromise - the only one that would work for various figures and stages of pregnancy, modesty requirements and the weather. She probably should have asked the bridesmaids to make their dresses if she wanted something specific - most of them sew (or claim to - not sure if the original  edition Maxwell girls skills go much beyond frumpers and a line skirts.

Yes, the Maxwell women usually wear light makeup for weddings.

On one of the Bontrager blogs (I forget which) they offered to send a recording of the wedding to a reader who couldn’t watch it live - anyone desperate to see it may want to email them. 

[sparkles]

When you’re dealing with a number of different body types, pregnant vs. not pregnant, levels of modesty and comfort and the like, I think the idea of picking a color and letting each attendant choose the dress that works for her is the best solution. There’s really no one style that will suit everyone and at least one person always ends up looking awkward. I was in one wedding party in my life and the empire waist dress the bride chose looked great on all of the other small breasted bridesmaids but was a horror show on well-endowed me. Nothing they could do made that style fit me and the empire waist seam ended up cutting right across my chest. It was quite a look. 

[LaLele]

Maybe they went to whatever mystery location John went to when he went on his big adventure a few years ago.   

[Hane]

32 minutes ago, sparkles said:

When you’re dealing with a number of different body types, pregnant vs. not pregnant, levels of modesty and comfort and the like, I think the idea of picking a color and letting each attendant choose the dress that works for her is the best solution. There’s really no one style that will suit everyone and at least one person always ends up looking awkward. I was in one wedding party in my life and the empire waist dress the bride chose looked great on all of the other small breasted bridesmaids but was a horror show on well-endowed me. Nothing they could do made that style fit me and the empire waist seam ended up cutting right across my chest. It was quite a look. 

When my daughter was planning her wedding, she had bridesmaids in Connecticut, New York, Massachusetts, and Virginia, so she chose a color and told the gals to go to their local David’s Bridal and pick whatever style they liked best, as long as it was floor length. Everyone except her maid of honor chose the same style, and it looked great.

[snowgirl]

2 hours ago, meowfundiecatz said:

Let us remember that the Bontragers hold to very, very similar modesty standards. They may be able to wear more make up and more modern styles than the Maxwells, but they still have a skirts only, submit to all men (even brothers), wildly fundie beliefs. Ma Bontrager even wrote a post about children's books. No Berenstain bears books in the Bontrager house because they make fun of the dad in the stories.

wait.

you have my full attention

submit to all men, even brothers?  How does THAT work in daily life?

[fundiefan]

My niece just got married in September & she had six bridesmaids. She chose the color & set them loose to choose what they wanted. All six were different & all were so perfectly the wearer; their individual style was vident in every one. They & the bride all looked amazing together.

[albanuadh_1]

Sarah said there will be A PICTURE of the wedding. A PICTURE!

[Elegant Mess]

32 minutes ago, albanuadh_1 said:

Sarah said there will be A PICTURE of the wedding. A PICTURE!

Here's hoping it won't be a picture of male reproductive anatomy!  

[mango_fandango]

The disgust reaction was purely at the idea of a photo of Steve’s... ahem... you knows, rather than at you btw.

[ViolaSebastian]

If I have to do it over again (and honestly, if I do, I'll probably not have more than one attendant, if at all), I'd just tell people to wear their favorite little black dress that they own.

[Elegant Mess]

40 minutes ago, mango_fandango said:

The disgust reaction was purely at the idea of a photo of Steve’s... ahem... you knows, rather than at you btw.

No worries!  Happy new year!  

[meowfundiecatz]

1 hour ago, snowgirl said:

wait.

you have my full attention

submit to all men, even brothers?  How does THAT work in daily life?

So here is the article referencing children's books, written by Mama B: http://bontragersingers.blogspot.com/2016/07/the-abcs-of-simplicity-part-3-in.html

 

And the article about brothers, It may be a stretch to actually use the word "submission" here but it's definitely a fundie idea to "nurture your brother's manhood." (Written by Chelsy's sister) https://www.fromallison.com/nurturing-brothers-manhood/

[Milly-Molly-Mandy]

12 hours ago, JermajestyDuggar said:

I think I also said it on the last page but Chelsy says she's a farm girl and prefers Togo barefoot. I guess it's how she's most comfortable. But I can't imagine it being comfortable in the middle of winter on tile floors...

I prefer to go barefoot. 

I wore shoes on my wedding day cos wtf who doesn’t unless it’s on the beach...I’d also think a farm girl would be wearing gumboots/wellies a lot and not be barefoot. 

[Themanda Duggar]

2 hours ago, ViolaSebastian said:

I'd just tell people to wear their favorite little black dress that they own.

That’s exactly what I did, though every one of them ended up deciding to buy a new dress, instead of wearing one they already had.  They all looked gorgeous, and all wore dresses that suited them perfectly.

My best bridesmaid dress is from the wedding where the bride bought a few bolts of fabric she liked (purple sandwashed silk, it was gorgeous), and had us each pick a dress pattern we liked, and we each had a different, but coordinated dress made.  I loved mine.

[PennySycamore]

@Milly-Molly-Mandy,  I'd think  that wellies would be prudent for a farm girl, too.  Animal waste is not only unpleasant to step in but would be hazardous to a person's health.  Even if someone were strictly a farmer growing organic vegetables, some of the plants might have parts that would hurt to step on.

[snowgirl]

whenever I am on a farm or ranch I'm doing farm or ranch stuff. . .and I am wearing boots because I don't want a horse to smash my foot

too many times I just slacked off and rode in tennis shoes and had horses step on my foot. . . ouch!

that said, stickers.. . .bark. . ..rocks. . .why would you not wear shoes?

of course if you are sitting in a field for a picnic, you kick off your sandals or your shoes

if you are wandering by the water and you know there isn't glass broken around where you are, you can kick them off too

so yeah, there are moments. . . but more moments should have shoes then not, when you are on a farm

. . . just my opinion

[Hane]

2 hours ago, Themanda Duggar said:

 

My best bridesmaid dress is from the wedding where the bride bought a few bolts of fabric she liked (purple sandwashed silk, it was gorgeous), and had us each pick a dress pattern we liked, and we each had a different, but coordinated dress made.  I loved mine.

One of my friends did this! She bought some peach shantung, and each of her bridesmaids chose the dress pattern that flattered her the most. Everyone looked lovely.

[FloraDoraDolly]

5 hours ago, albanuadh_1 said:

Sarah said there will be A PICTURE of the wedding. A PICTURE!

ONE picture???

They really aren't happy about this wedding.