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Weddings can be incredibly special, but planning them is a stressful venture for any engaged couple. There are so many things to think about before saying the magical "I do", from searching for the perfect dress to selecting a beautiful venue. But even when you check every box on the list, one challenge can quickly turn your big day into a trainwreck — accommodating every single person invited.

Nuptials are often as memorable as the guests who attend them. Ideally, friends and family will be on their best behavior and make sure the bride and groom have an absolute blast. But minor mishaps are unavoidable, and there’s always a handful of people who manage to do something so inappropriate, rude, and annoying that it leaves everyone shaking their heads in disbelief.

We at Bored Panda have scoured the web and rounded up some of the worst behaviors guests need to stop doing at weddings. Scroll down for some real-life stories, upvote the ones you agree with, and let us know what you think about them in the comments!

#1

35 People Share What They Hate Seeing At Weddings No-show, after you've RSVP'd.
At my wedding, we had a very tight budget, and had asked everyone to RSVP, so we could get an accurate catering count. The morning of the wedding, some friends of my wife IM'd her to let her know that they've decided to go camping instead of attend the wedding. I mean, even the money thing aside, that's a shitty thing to do to your *friend*. We had only invited 100 people total. Close friends & family only. What kind of friend decides last minute to skip your wedding and go *camping*?

That was the last time we talked to them. Ever.

schattenteufel , Tara Winstead Report

#2

35 People Share What They Hate Seeing At Weddings A proposal. I've heard about people proposing at other people's wedding ceremonies or receptions. If you don't have permission from the bride/groom, DON'T DO IT because it's THEIR day, not yours.

WeirdWorkaholic Report

We managed to get in touch with a Redditor, black_flag_4ever, who started up a thread on the Ask Reddit online group when they posed a question: "What should you absolutely not do at a wedding?" The user invited fellow members to post the most absurd answers in the thread, and boy did they deliver. At the time of writing, the post has amassed over 15K comments full of ridiculous and impolite stunts guests ever pulled at a wedding.

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When asked how they came up with the idea to post this on Ask Reddit, black_flag_4ever revealed their sibling had recently gotten married and this question was on their mind. "You never know what gets people talking on Reddit," the user told Bored Panda. "This may have been the first of my posts that got to the front page. I remember feeling a bit overwhelmed because I tried to upvote and read everything and take the time to write in response to a post, but I eventually just turned off inbox reply notifications. If you’re on Reddit long enough, you will get the occasional front page hit and it becomes a routine thing," they said.

#3

35 People Share What They Hate Seeing At Weddings Telling embarrassing stories about the bride/groom when you were told not to.

ButterscotchFog , Manny Moreno Report

#4

35 People Share What They Hate Seeing At Weddings If there is a professional photographer there get the hell out of the way. Put up your sh**ty cell phone with it's awful flash. Good money was paid so that they could capture quality images of the event and people constantly jump in front of the photographer and screw up the lighting.

ExistentialThreat , Kenny Eliason Report

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#5

35 People Share What They Hate Seeing At Weddings Letting your 9 year old throw a tantrum because he's not the center of attention.

I've seen that at not only a wedding, but at a funeral as well. Same kid.

roh8880 , Anna Shvets Report

Black_flag_4ever believes that weddings are a natural source of comedy and figured there would be some great responses. "There’s few times in life where everyone in your family is stuck in the same room with a whole other family, plus random friends of the newlyweds. On top of this, everyone has to pretend to get along while being bored out of their minds during the ceremony."

"This creates a situation where minor things can balloon into the most annoying things imaginable," the user added. "You start noticing who won’t stop chewing their nails or tapping their foot or checking their texts every five seconds. And then, when people are finally done acting their best for a few hours, they get to go to the reception where things always get weird."

#6

35 People Share What They Hate Seeing At Weddings Bringing a child to a child-free wedding. We had a child-free wedding this year, all the guests knew and then a couple (who we had told personally to not bring their child) turned up with their baby. Really put me in a sour mood with them and caused issues with people asking why their child was allowed but not their own.

mossybunny , Lisa5201 / istockphoto Report

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#7

35 People Share What They Hate Seeing At Weddings Spelling out "help me" in tape on the groom's shoes so when he kneels everyone sees it.

onetimerone Report

#8

35 People Share What They Hate Seeing At Weddings Telling the bride about any hitches in the wedding. At my cousin's wedding, one of the guests told her (the bride) that the buffet was out of roast beef. She's stressed out enough and she doesn't need to know. Somebody else should take care of it. Tell the wedding coordinator or the maid of honor.

riaredfern , Anna Alexes Report

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Receiving a wedding invitation should be an honor — the bride and the groom want you to witness them reach one of the most important milestones in their lives and hope to feel your support along the way. That should be considered pretty special, right? Well, as you’re reading through these stories, you’ll notice that most of these occasions are notorious for bringing out the worst in some people. Whether they drank the open bar dry, brought a disrespectful plus-one, popped up with an inappropriate surprise speech, or decided this is the perfect time to commit countless faux pas all over the place, they can make the big day memorable in all the wrong ways.

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#9

35 People Share What They Hate Seeing At Weddings My hair dresser was my really good friend's wife. As she was doing my hair, she insisted I had lice and I had to argue with her until she said I didn't but that I was just too calm on my wedding day, so she thought it was a good idea to freak me out a little.

Shy_Girl_2014 , Marvin Bellendorf Report

#10

During my wedding, my wife's cousin used the band's microphone to come out as gay... and then his boyfriend who nobody knew (and was definitely not invited) strolled in and together they announced their engagement.

I went straight to the bar.

Abetterway_thisway Report

#11

35 People Share What They Hate Seeing At Weddings True story: years ago, i was at a wedding reception at a big hotel that had two receptions going at once. I went to the mens' room and a guy in a tux was crying his eyes out while another guy comforted him. I took my time, nad learned that crying guy was the groom (from the other wedding), comforting guy was one of his groomsmen, and the cause of the drama was that groom walked in on his new bride having sex with his best man.

Nicetryatausername , Ekrulila Report

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When asked for black_flag_4ever’s opinion on the most annoying, rude, and cringey things that should immediately stop happening at weddings, they told us, "No one needs to hear the Electric Slide in 2022. But if you want to cringe, just wait for this jam." Moreover, the user said that guests should control themselves and avoid taking a billion pictures. "If you’re not the wedding photographer then you shouldn’t bother people constantly for photos. There’s going to be photos, don’t worry."

#12

35 People Share What They Hate Seeing At Weddings The most common issue I have seen IRL is being underdressed. People show up in boots, camo, t-shirts, etc. It's not the end of the world, but if you can't get dressed up for a wedding, what do you dress up for? It's one of the most formal events a normal person will attend.

ledfrisby , Polly Alexandra Report

#13

Doing anything that draws attention away from the happy couple and on to you. For example my cousin came out during his best man's speech during is brothers wedding...... Really you could not let someone have that one day in the spotlight?

BigHowski Report

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#14

35 People Share What They Hate Seeing At Weddings At my sister's (handsomely catered formal) wedding my no class cousin ordered himself a pizza. He had it delivered to the reception. I'd say that's pretty much out.

Anivair , Arantxa Aniorte Report

After all, nearly every wedding has that one person who manages to somewhat wreck the event, whether on purpose or not. To be sure that’s not you, pay attention to some helpful tips Carley Joy, owner of wedding planning company Carley Jeanne Events, in Springfield, Missouri, had to share.

According to her, the worst type of guests would be "guestzillas", people who are not considerate of the bride and groom and their special day. "Guests can avoid being 'guestzillas' by being respectful, patient, and gracious towards the couple, the venue and the vendors," she told Urbo. One thing that proves you’re being mindful of everyone’s efforts is punctuality. "The biggest pet peeve of most wedding planners is when the wedding party or family does not show up on time or has wandered off and no one can find them. This can push back the entire wedding timeline which can make it difficult for vendors to adjust," Joy said.

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#15

As a man the biggest thing I learned was this; Ladies, never-EVER show up the Bride. The only outfit/hair/jewellery anyone should be talking about is hers.

I feel like this should be rule #1

Ubuhio Report

#16

35 People Share What They Hate Seeing At Weddings Over-drinking. Unfortunately, I've seen too many mass brawls at the end because of drinking and drama.

nollaigkelly , engin akyurt Report

#17

As a wedding DJ I could give you a list a mile long. Don't b***h if your song is on the do not play list! No, you can't have the mic to sing along to this song. No you can't give a speech in the middle of the reception. Don't dance along to the couple's first dance/father daughter dance/mother son dance. Don't do a mic drop, those bastards are expensive. Don't follow the couple around all bloody night, there are others who want to wish them well. And for the love of c**p, give at least 5 minutes I'm between clinking your glassware to get the couple to kiss.

wyattj99 Report

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Next up, respect the RSVP. Joy stated that to make the couple’s day as calm and easy as possible, you should send in your responses on time and, most importantly, stick to them. "Do not show up unannounced or bring a guest if they are not included on the invitation envelope," the wedding coordinator noted. "This can affect seating charts and the amount of food and drinks available for guests."

#18

DON'T WEAR A WHITE DRESS MOM! YOU'RE 46 YOU KNOW THAT A SATIN CREAM FLOOR LENGTH DRESS IS INNAPROPIATE, I DONT CARE HOW MUCH WEIGHT YOU LOST.

AllJackedUpOnMtDew Report

#19

35 People Share What They Hate Seeing At Weddings Giving a speech when nobody asked you to

Panaran , Jeremy McGilvrey Report

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LeighAnne Brown-Pedersen
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I feel like begging this audience for a note of caution. You know you don’t have to invite everyone. Uncle Bob is guaranteed to get drunk. Aunt Susan is going to be the drama. BE selective and keep it small.

BigOrangeTractor
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

My husband's brother in law did this at our wedding, and used his speech to snark at my husband. The applause was... limited.

Lee Kerr
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I went to a Quaker wedding which was lovely; during the ceremony people stood up at random and said nice things about the bride and/or the groom most of those people weren’t Quakers themselves but picked up on the vibe easily. The bride worked with elderly people and one of her clients talked about how kind and understanding she was. Then the groom’s father stood up and rambled on for 10 minutes without saying anything (except that a well known early Quaker with the same name was no relative). The groom was not at all happy; he’d only invited his father because he wanted his mother, stepmothers and younger siblings there. We worked together and he’d told me that he could never fathom why his father attracted such lovely women;apparently he was on his third wife by this point.

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#20

35 People Share What They Hate Seeing At Weddings Letting everyone know during your speech that you're a divorce lawyer

Defgarden , banjo d Report

Lastly, show that you care and educate yourself on wedding etiquette. "Waiting for the couple, wedding party, and immediate family to eat first is always important and very respectful, rather than trying to be first in the buffet line," Joy suggested. "Thanking the couple for the invitation and thanking the couples’ parents for hosting the event before leaving is very gracious and will stick out in their minds after."

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#21

Do not disrupt the bride and grooms dinner. They've been up since 5 in the morning and taking pictures the entire day. Greeting and not having any time to themselves. Be conscious of what you do and let them be peaceful for twenty minutes.

deleted Report

#22

35 People Share What They Hate Seeing At Weddings Hitting on the groom while the bride is chatting with other guests. One of my exes did this to me at my own wedding. I just stared at her and said, "um....no." My wife and I had a good laugh about it after the reception.

ZappySnap , cottonbro Report

#23

If you are a bride, DON'T HOLD ANY BABIES.

They are going to s**t/piss/vomit/bleed/cry all over you.

Fish-and-chips Report

#24

I've only ever been to two weddings in my life. My cousins wedding when I was a kid (I don't even remember it), and my sisters wedding last year. And the amount of NO-NOS at my sisters wedding was unbelievable.

One of my aunts wore a white dress (even though her daughter practically begged her not to). My sister said she was fine with it, but she was probably just trying to not cause any arguments.

One of my cousins (who we're not even really close to) brought her new boyfriend to the reception, they both got absolutely s**t faced and had an argument in front of all the guests, and then he stormed off. What's worse, he showed up wearing a f*****g Nike tracksuit tucked into white socks with a pair of dirty trainers.

Oh and my other cousin (the cousin from aboves brother) had an argument with the photobooth guy. He got super drunk and jumped into a groups photo and tried to spit on them, and when the guy running the photobooth gave out to him for it he tried to headbutt him. My sister then came out and very sternly told my cousin to leave.

Gotta say, my sister was a champ for all the s**t she put up with that day.

amytrails Report

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#25

35 People Share What They Hate Seeing At Weddings Playing Single Ladies when it's time for the bouquet toss.

deleted Report

#26

I'm a divorce attorney. I've been told NOT to hand out business cards at weddings.

fendaar Report

#27

35 People Share What They Hate Seeing At Weddings Don't include the brides beloved Nana in every round of shots or she might pass out at her table and everyone might think she's dead and get hysterical.

itoadaso1 , Al Elmes Report

#28

Don't invite guests just because you want gifts. This usually ends up in having no gifts at all. (Had a bride invite 300 guests in hopes of getting gifts, she barely knew them and received 20 gifts)

deleted Report

#29

I worked in a catering company for awhile The worst things I saw -
-Bride and grooms opening envelopes to pay for the party ( even once while guest where still in the room )
- someone changed a baby on the table. I have no idea why she could just take the baby to the restroom. ( they did have changing tables there )

- also had a groom get drunk and pinch my backside everytime I walked past. ( he even left me his number ).

But I think my favorite was a bride who refuse to come out of the bathroom and do the first dance because she had changed her mind and didn't want to be married. The whole wedding was spent with the groom pacing back and fourth. And the bride and her bridesmaids in the bathroom crying. It was the quietest wedding every. They didn't even leave together.

pumpkin107 Report

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#30

35 People Share What They Hate Seeing At Weddings You're at a wedding don't be on you're phone 24/7. Why did you come?

deleted , Eve Report

#31

Expect to get laid if you're single. Wedding Crashers is a lie. Weddings are 99.9% couples and old people.

superking87 Report

#32

Don't have people that are not the bride and groom opening gifts at the gift table or opening cards. I s**t you not, I went to a wedding where the groom's sister and mother were manning the gift table and a side room, and they were actually opening every card, as soon as they were handed over to the table, and if there was cash or gift cards inside they were set aside, and they had a notepad with names and what the gift was, obviously for the thank you cards.

But, holy hell, how tacky can you be that you think it is ok to not be the bride and groom and open the presents on their behalf, right in front of the guests as they give them over. This pissed a lot of people off until the mother of the bride marched over to them and had a screaming fit at the groom's family to stop (There was a verbal disagreement when a first attempt at being civil to get them to stop did not work).

GeneticsGuy Report

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#33

35 People Share What They Hate Seeing At Weddings Clinking silverware on glasses to get the couple to kiss

BlueLilahLarry Report

#34

I'd say that throwing the best man out of a window would be off limits, but the groom actually did that at an event center I used to work at.

DrugsInYoSoup Report

#35

35 People Share What They Hate Seeing At Weddings Texting the best man "Make sure your phone is set to silent" during the vows.

JustADudeOfSomeSort , Jonas Leupe Report

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#36

I went to a wedding last year that had three of these:

1. When it came time for the father daughter dance the dad decided that dancing in front of everyone wasn't manly so he walked out leaving his daughter crying on the dance floor.
2. Ever heard of a dollar dance? It's basically an excuse to give the bride and groom cash. The DJ plays music and you pay some any amount of $ of your choosing to butt in and get to dance with either the bride or groom. Well, the bride's baby daddy decided it'd be a good idea to dance with her. I guess that leads to #3.
3. Don't invite your baby daddy to the wedding unless you're marrying them.

theg33k Report

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#37

35 People Share What They Hate Seeing At Weddings Asking your ex-GF, the bride, for a second chance

Shenko-wolf , Cássio Jardim Report

#38

This is for the bride and groom. Do not change anything during or the day before a wedding!!!

Generally for events, you made a decision for a reason, stick with it. Unless something major happens and thugs have to be changed then sure. But in general try to stick to the plan.

And if something goes wrong the day of, f**k it. Only one thing needs to happen for a wedding, you both need to say yes. If everything else goes to s**t, it doesn't matter because you're married.

Spe333 Report

#39

My mother, at my brother's wedding, decided it was a good idea to have a tequila drinking contest at the open bar... by herself. She then went on to hit on the father of the bride who is happily married, then my own father (divorced for over 30 years) and she then threw up down the front of her dress and passed out with her underwear around her ankles in a stall of the bathroom at the reception hall. The cherry on top is that to this day she still accuses the father of the bride of sexually assaulting her at the wedding when 70 witnesses, including her 3 children and all her relatives saw VERY MUCH to the contrary...

Daniel0909 Report

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#40

During the ceremony - in an ideal world you should keep your sh**ty cell phone in your pocket and not try to take pictures. But if you must take pictures, do NOT sit in the aisle seats, or worse - get out to the aisle and start snapping pictures. The bride and groom likely spent over a grand to have a photographer do this, and all you are doing is getting in the way of shots and ruining what would otherwise be fantastic pictures that professionals are trying to take.

Fizzle1982 Report

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#41

Had a friend wear all black with a black veil...we're not very good friends anymore.

onsan Report

#42

At the rehearsal dinner, don't give a toast and tell everyone to take a drink except the bride because she's secretly pregnant. That could upset certain family members.

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#43

Doing anything to make a scene.

RedEyedChile Report

#44

If the wedding is catered and everyone picks either "salmon or steak" on the invitation a month before the wedding DONT CHANGE YOUR GOD DAMN MIND. I work in catering. If people decide they want to sit at a different table or they want salmon instead of steak it f***s the whole kitchen up since parties are planned months in advanced and we only make enough food to cover what the guests selected on their invitations. I've seen Event Managers throw plates across the room in fury because of this.

hypertown Report

#45

Giving a speech about the most common causes of divorce in order to sound wise. Narcissistic grandpa of the bride did this at one wedding I attended and the cringe was palpable.

deleted Report

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#46

35 People Share What They Hate Seeing At Weddings Coming clean about cheating on your wife when you are guests at someone else's wedding.

muppetspunk , Samantha Gades Report

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#47

Announcing your own engagement

onlysane1 Report

#48

Tickling the person sat next to you when they say "Speak now or forever hold your peace" and everyone turns around.

VeryLazyLewis Report

#49

If you are a bride or groom, don't make a scene. It will be what nearly everyone remembers about your wedding if you do.

My wife and I had a small ceremony with just our parents and my sister and her husband. We were in a small dining room for the reception and the AC had broken earlier in the day. They had repaired it in time for dinner, but it was taking a while to cool down. The parents started getting ornery, but some strong drinks later we were all laughing, dancing, and sweating up a storm.

Talking with the family later, they were all surprised that my wife or I didn't pitch a huge fit about the temperature. They were pleased too, as it would have been the only hitch in an otherwise awesome day.

On the other hand, my sister and her husband were married and had a cousin announce her pregnancy over the microphone after dinner. My sister tried to ask her quietly to just leave, but she made a scene before doing so. Then the groom's best man got into a fight with his fiancee and she tried to drive off crying but backed into a tree (she was sober). The fiance was belligerently drunk and threatening to fight people to get him outside to cool off, so the groom tossed a bucket of ice water on him.

Despite that rest of the wedding, reception, and day being fine, that is all people remember!

ExcitedForNothing Report

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#50

I work the soundboard at weddings, please dont harass the staff.

Some drunk dude comes up during the reception

"Hey... hey... hey... *hey*... can you play the cha-cha slide?"

Im sorry man, the bride gave me a *very* detailed playlist that didnt include that for a reason. Stop annoying me every five minutes. Im being polite and noncomittal because I have to.

Oh, and also pull up a family tree of the family you arent familiar with and go over it. Pretty much a tenth of the time someone gets a name wrong on mic, and thats easily avoidable

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#51

I got married a couple of weeks ago and the main thing that sticks out to me is that no one considered leaving us a parking spot at the reception. So we came from the ceremony after taking pictures and had to park in the dirt lot about 600 feet from the door of the venue. Best part? Rainyest day of the month. The most expensive thing my wife has ever bought to wear, now has mud stains all over the bottom of the dress.

Dizzy_one13 Report

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#52

Leave your phone on loud.

Dracula_Bus Report

#53

If you requests a song and the DJ doesn't play it. Chances are it's in the Bride and Grooms DO NOT PLAY list.

deleted Report

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#54

Getting hammered because of insecurity. One of my wife's friends wasn't chosen to be a bridesmaid because they just weren't that close, but for some reason the girl took it very personally. She had drink after drink until at one point while we were all dancing she came up to me to dance and tried to pull my face in for a kiss. I pushed her back and went to the bartender to cut her off from more drinks. A minute or two later she tripped over herself dancing and gave a table full of guests a complete up shot of her dress. It was humiliating and aggravating for both her and myself, haven't spoken to her since

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#55

Getting stupidly drunk and lifting up the bride's skirt while the groom is going for the garter thing on her leg. Puking all over the DJ's soundboard and in his bag. Almost starting a fist fight with childhood friends.

My friend Jorge did all this at my buddy's wedding. It's all on tape.

sickofallofyou Report

#56

Ugh, the tired, boring lame best man and maid of honer speeches.

"We've known each other since grade school when we were playing cars/barbies. Now this great person has come to take you away from me. But I can see from how you look at each other, this is meant to be. cry"

Even worse is when they try to insert some inside joke that only they'll understand in a room fucking full of people there to celebrate together.

I do enjoy when one of the people giving the speeches is trashed and makes for an amazing train wreck. Went to one where the best man got so wasted, puked all over the bathroom before the reception started, came up to the table to give his speech in only pants and his vest, and was escorted out by the bride's father. Classy.

1900grs Report

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#57

Don't have your wedding on a f*****g holiday! For that matter, don't have it near a major holiday (Thanksgiving, Christmas) either. It doesn't matter than the Fourth of July is special to you as a couple, or that you had your first kiss on Valentine's Day. People make their own plans with their own families, and they don't want to be stuck at your crappy wedding wasting their day off.

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#58

35 People Share What They Hate Seeing At Weddings If you're a cariacture artist, drawing the bride in absolutely any unflattering way. Exaggerate the size of her ring, length of her train, number of tiers on the cake, groom, parents, relatives.. but never herself.

JooplaDev , Graeme Maclean Report

#59

35 People Share What They Hate Seeing At Weddings The chicken dance.

pickledpunk21 , Craig Pokorny Report

#60

The cool/cute/creative/generally unusual first dance. It's lame ass. No one but the couple is entertained by it.

deleted Report

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#61

-Posting pics of the ceremony/couple before they've had their fame w**re moment of 160 likes.
-Drinking far to much causing you to heckle the said speech give.
-Drinking far to much, causing omnipresent sweaty dances moves that consist of you grinding like a r******d Britney Spears.
-Treating the Bouquet throwing like its ( Super Bowl ) the AFL grand final with out any rules. B***h catching a bunch of flowers isn't going magically make you get married. In fact from the way you elbowed and scratched women, including the groom's disable sister out of the way, has really killed the groom's cousin Eddie's half boner he had for you grinding on the dark, smoked filled dance floor.

Katemaree Report