It’s time to tackle a difficult topic for some people so let’s get it over with shall we?
Justine feels that when choosing vendors I need to specifically ask if they are gay friendly. I completely understand the need to know whether we will receive the same service as heterosexual couples, but the difficulty I have is accepting the fact that some vendors might just say, “No.” We are spending our money just like any other couple so we should be able to choose any vendor without the awkward moment when I ask if they are down with the gays.
So far every vendor I have asked at bridal shows or over the phone has been gay friendly, but I am a little nervous for the day when I go to ask and they reply no. I’m afraid I might just lose my cool and go off on them. I am very passionate about gay rights and to listen to ignorance is upsetting. I understand that it is a personal preference to choose to be discriminatory but still upsetting in this day and age.
Another issue I’m having is that there is a lack of representation of gay friendly venues and vendors in the Sacramento/Northern California area. When you search “Sacramento Weddings” there is a plethora of websites and blogs that discuss and advertise wedding venues and vendors for traditional heterosexual couples. The websites that do exist and show same-sex accepting vendors are extremely outdated and for lack of a better word, shitty in general. There are two websites that I have found beneficial to our search, one that is more traditional and the other that is gay oriented.
The Knot has been a go to website for me when looking up available venues and wedding ideas. This website does cater more towards heterosexual couples, but offers some same-sex wedding topics. I like that it is helpful in finding vendors in general but then it leaves me having to ask whether they are gay friendly or not.
Gay Weddings is the other website I used to find gay friendly vendors because just look at the name. That’s all they have on their website. The only thing is their website is not nearly as “cool” or fun to be on as The Knot is and so they are lacking in that area.
Either way I feel there needs to be a better representation of gay friendly vendors and venues in the Sacramento/Northern California area that would help me so much more.
Cheers,
EA
Erika Ashley 