Weddings
The most important thing to understand is that unlike traditional ceremonies undertaken by a priest or a registrar, a Celebrant led ceremony is not legally binding. The legal signing with a registrar can be done either before or after your ceremony, in some cases it is possible to have a registrar attend the ceremony along with your Celebrant, but you would need to confirm this with the registrar first.
Why would I choose a Wedding Celebrant over a Registrar?
In the UK, Registrars are bound by a legal format and there are limitations to the content of the service they can provide. They have restrictions on what they can and cannot say or do.
One of the most treasured things about a Celebrant led ceremony is that it is tailored specifically to you. You will get to know your Celebrant over the course of planning your wedding and It can be exactly to your requirements, it can be humorous, light hearted, formal, as simple or detailed as you wish and will include what are to you the most significant aspects of your day.
The process starts with a meeting to help the Celebrant get to know you and to understand the important details of your relationship such as how you met, memories, the proposal, future plans etc.
This paves the way to a more meaningful wedding that highlights what matters to you most.
A Celebrant led ceremony also means that you can involve loved ones in the ceremony itself through readings, speeches or poems all of which will be incorporated into the ceremony by you and your Celebrant.
Having a Celebrant led wedding means that you have complete flexibility over your venue. Venues can be licensed or unlicensed, outdoor locations, at home, in your garden, the choice is yours entirely.
Unlike traditional wedding ceremonies that will follow a general structure such as exchange of vows, couples kiss, you don’t have to abide by set expectations.
Ultimately, what happens during a Celebrant led ceremony is entirely up to you.
A Celebrant led ceremony is flexible and will give you the freedom to structure your ceremony to be relevant, meaningful and unique to you.
Your Celebrant will personalise your ceremony. It can be completely non-religious, however If you are religious but feel that traditional ceremonies do not accurately reflect your belief your Celebrant can incorporate a religious element however you wish it to be included.
Renewal of Vows Ceremony
You may be celebrating a milestone wedding anniversary, 10, 20 or 50 years or simply want to say “I do“ once more. A Renewal of Vows is the perfect occasion to do this. A time to celebrate and look forward to your future together as partners for life or husband and wife.
Renewal of Vows ceremonies are not legally binding. It’s a blessing of the vows you took previously, and a celebration and recognition of your love for each other.
A Celebrant led Renewal of Vows Ceremony means that your ceremony will be personalised to you. It can include special memories, the reasons why you are renewing your vows, original and new commitments to each other. Music and readings can also be incorporated into your ceremony, we will work together to make the day entirely your own, your ceremony, your way.
You have complete freedom to choose your venue, be it a hotel, hall, a location with special meaning to you both or even at home. Often couples want to recreate their original wedding day, but others choose to have something completely different. The choice of venue and content of the ceremony is yours.
You could re-exchange your original rings or you may choose to have new ones, couples often give each other a new piece of jewellery to mark the occasion or just the renewing of your original vows or promises is enough, it’s about what suits you as a couple.
Including families into the ceremony is a lovely way to celebrate your love as a family and their place in your marriage. There are so many options to involve family and friends in the ceremony such as lighting candles together, planting a tree or taking part in a sand ceremony to mention a few.
Planning your ceremony starts with a meeting to help the Celebrant get to know you both as a couple and as a family and to gain an insight into the important aspects of your relationship such as how you met, memories, family members and future plans.
A completely bespoke way of reaffirming your commitment to each other and your family.
Naming Ceremony
A Naming Ceremony is the chance to welcome and celebrate your new addition to the family. It could be that you want to celebrate the birth of your child or children, to officially name them and share your dreams and aspirations for their future. It may also be that you wish to welcome new step-children or an adoption into your family.
Naming ceremonies have the option to include or not include religious content. They differ from a Christening in that a Christening is usually about the beginning of a journey of faith and often requires the family to belong to their local church. Celebrant led ceremonies are tailored to your wishes, the content is entirely your choice. If your child is very young you will decide the ceremony content but if your child is older why not get them involved.
This is a celebration of your family and your new addition joining that family. Siblings can write and or say a reading or poem, they may wish to make a promise to help look after the child and be involved in their life.
Siblings and other family members can be involved by including elements such as sand ceremonies, a memory box or time capsule which can be buried and opened on a significant occasion such as an 18th or 21st birthday. You have the freedom to be as creative as you wish.
You can appoint Godparents/Guideparents or Mentors who will be asked to make a commitment during the ceremony. There are no restrictions as to how many people or who they are, there are no prerequisites such as needing to be christened themselves.
When and where you hold your ceremony is your choice. Your decision will need to take into consideration how many people you wish to invite either to be involved or to attend the celebration.
You may wish to hold the ceremony in a hall or at home, soon after the child is a born or you may wish to wait until they are older and can understand what is happening.
Planning your ceremony starts with a meeting to help the Celebrant get to know your family. Together we will create a bespoke ceremony to welcome your new addition/s into your family unit.
Hand Fasting
Handfasting is traditionally used in pagan ceremonies but today the handfasting is more literal, a couple will bind their hands together during a wedding ceremony ( before, after or during their vows ) often to symbolize their unity and devotion to each other.