This Couple's Unexpected Wedding Idea Will Have You Rethinking the "Cake Smash"

Karen isn't afraid to admit that there were moments during the wedding planning process that she wished she and Clay were just eloping. This California bride considers herself nontraditional, and although the stress of what everyone told her she "needed" to have threatened to keep her from enjoying the actual day, Karen believes that their wedding turned out so special because they ignored the pressure and went with an abundance of personal touches.

"Someone once said to me, 'This is the only time all of your family and friends you care most about will be together in celebration,'" she wrote on her blog, Honestly Yum. "And that alone was worth everything — the weekend was filled with so much love, tons of laughter, and a few tears (OK, maybe a lot of tears)."

Karen and Clay knew from the beginning that they wanted their California wedding to feel like an intimate house party with a focus on food and drinks. However, this couple aren't fans of cake, so instead of going with an expected tiered confection, they ditched any fondant or buttercream and went for churros instead. "While it's a tradition to have cake, we felt a bit rebellious and decided on an alternative cake at our wedding: a piñata cake!" Karen wrote.

The eclectic couple worked with Amazing Piñatas to create a custom piñata cake and their "cake smash" was unlike any guests had seen. "Since we had decided early on that we didn't want to do a lot of traditional aspects of a wedding, like having bridal parties or a cake cutting, we thought why not smash a wedding cake piñata instead of a cake cutting?" Karen told POPSUGAR. "We sent them photos of us and they even made traditional cake toppers to look like us!"

Part of the fun in planning this surprise for the bride and groom was finding what they were going to stuff the show-stopping piñata with. "It was a blast to have at our wedding and all guests, kids, and grandparents alike loved the piñata bashing equally, if not more than the goodies," Karen wrote. "We filled it with party toys and snacks, traditional Mexican treats, bubble blowers, party poppers, and of course, little bottles of booze-filled chocolates for the adults." Check out the rest of their vibrant details ahead!