Gown: check. Cake: check. Banquet hall: check. Groom: eh, pending.
It sounds unusual to say the least, but some women are planning their weddings without being engaged, or even in a relationship.
Like Anita Chakra Burtty, who recently appeared on Australia's (ironically titled, if you think about it) News 9 show, "A Current Affair", and explained that not having met the man that she's going to marry hasn't stopped her from buying a dress, booking a venue, and setting a date. The 42-year-old Aussie is an astrologer, and she's convinced that she'll meet her future husband sometime in October or November -- but if he somehow fails to show, January's looking good, too. You know, based on the stars. Well, A+ for enthusiasm.
Anita may not be the most traditional bride-to-be, but she's not the first one to plan a wedding without having a groom. Pinterest, the photo-social-networking site, is a popular wedding planning tool for what might politely be called "aspiring fiancees."
“I’m getting good ideas, so when we do get engaged, I’ll be able to pull it up and say this is what I want,” 26-year-old Alicia Carlson told TODAY.com in March, when she had a long-term boyfriend and a pinboard full of white dresses, but no immediate plans to marry.
That may be a little more practical than actually putting down a deposit on a venue. But Anita is confident that the universe will get her to the church (or yurt, or city hall, whatever floats your boat) on time.
She realizes it's a little unconventional and joked, "Hopefully, once he meets me, he'll realize that I'm a very fun, very generous, very loving person, and he won't mind that I'm only a tiny bit insane."
Julieanne Smolinski is a TODAY.com contributor who can't even plan far ahead enough to defrost meat.
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