Weddings, Naming ceremonies and other special occasions

Weddings, Civil Partnerships and other special occasions

Weddings and Civil partnerships

One of the most exciting life events you can plan is your wedding.

You are unique and your wedding or civil partnership should be a reflection on you as a couple and embrace what you believe in. A celebrant led wedding gives you the freedom to be as creative as you want and I am able to offer guidance on poems, music, readings and spiritual rituals including handfasting, lighting a unity candle, sand ceremonies, time capsules and planting a family tree. If you have another family ritual you would be keen to hold as part of your ceremony please let me know and I can include this for you.

You can hold your ceremony anywhere you want, whether that be in in a marquee, in a field, at your chosen wedding venue, your favourite restaurant or bar, or even in your back garden, on a beach, or anywhere special to you.

(Please note that current UK law does not allow a celebrant to register your marriage. If you are looking for your marriage to be registered you will have to do this with a registrar or church representative in front of 2 witnesses. A registrar will perform the legal ceremony, following a standard script).

The beauty of my ceremony is that it is written especially for you and so you can have the ceremony you want with the words and vows you want in order to make your day unique and memorable.

If you are looking for something unique why not bring a traditional or modern ritual into your special day. The phrase ‘tie the knot’ originates from the Celtic tradition of handfasting. You can incorporate handfasting or tying gods knot into your ceremony.

Other wedding rituals can be jumping the broom, sand or spice ceremonies, planting a tree, lighting a unity candle or drinking from a lovers cup or Quaich. I have lots of information on these rituals which I will share with you during our first meeting!

I love getting to know my couples. Let's meet up so I can get to know you both and what's important to you. In our first meeting I would ask you both questions not only about what you both want from your day but also about you, how you met, what makes you special, and why you have chosen each other.

During this initial visit we can discuss what you want from your day. Whether it be an extravagant day filled with loads of people and lots of fun, or whether you are looking for something intimate and small. I am able to offer advice on how to write your own vows, how to structure your ceremony, examples of readings, poems and music and I can incorporate any ideas you have.

After our meeting I will send you both a questionnaire about your relationship and personal questions about yourself and each other. I will use this and all the information gathered from this and our meeting to build your wedding day script.

If you have any spiritual or religious beliefs and wish to incorporate these into your day I would love to hear about them. I want to ensure that different cultures, beliefs and cultures are respected and celebrated.

Vow renewal

If you and your partner want to reaffirm your love, having a vow renewal ceremony can be the perfect way to do so. You can have your vow renewal ceremony in front of your family and friends and you can hold these anywhere you wish. You can include new and personalised vows to each other, you could exchange new rings, and you can include any of the rituals I have mentioned, and bring your own unique family traditions to your ceremony.

Other special occasions include but are not limited too;

Naming ceremonies

These can be ceremonies to welcome your newborn into the world, to celebrate a change of name, changing your name, (this includes via deed poll). You can ask friends or family to be guardians to your child if you are looking at alternatives to god parents. These ceremonies can be personalised and include readings, music, poems or any traditional or modern rituals you wish.

Blessings

I can perform blessings including belly blessing (these can be common replacement for a baby shower or part of a baby shower), for gender transitioning, adoption of a child or welcoming step children into the family. All of these ceremonies can include a rituals, poems, readings and music.

Rites of passage

These ceremonies can be for a special birthday or to celebrate something memorable you have achieved (such as getting a Degree or starting a new chapter in your life). You can mark these occasions by holding a ceremony to celebrate with your family and friends.

Please contact me should you wish to discuss any of these ceremony ideas in greater detail. I am also happy to hear of any ceremonies you may wish to hold and give advice and ideas on how I can help you make them special.