Writing Your Own Vows

 I always say to the couples that I work with, in my view, the most important part of the wedding ceremony is the point where they exchange vows. These are not mere words, these are so much more than that, they are promises, committments made from the very bottom of your heart, declared in front of family and friends to unite your life with that of your beloved. In short, these are the words that will take you across the threshold from being engaged to being married.

I encourage couples to think long and hard about what they want to say to each other during their vows. There are hundreds of vows available online for you to choose from and if you find ones that you both like then you are ready to rock BUT if you can't find ones that encapsulate everything you want to say then don't be afraid to write your own.

At their core, wedding vows summarise what you promise to do for this person for the rest of your lives - love them, support them, encourage them and be there for them. I bet that if you actually sit down with a pen and a pice of paper and begin with this statement 'In our married life together I promise to...then the rest will flow pretty easily.

Remeber vows do not have to rhyme and they do not have to be the same - each partner can declare different vows. If you would like some help in writing your vows please fo get in touch.

Love Letter and Wine Box Ritual

One of the most increasingly popular rituals in wedding ceremonies is called a 'Love Letter and Wine Box Ritual'. In essesnce it is the creation of a romantic time capsule. In the days leading up to the wedding ceremony the couple write love letters to each other and sela them in envelopes.

Then, during the ceremony these letters are placed into wooden box which contains a bottle of your favourite tipple and two glasses. The couple seal or lock the box and make a promise not to open it for 5, 10, 15 or 20 years. A way of enriching this ritual may be to ask parents, bridesmaids, groomsmen to add letters too. It will surely add to the nostalgia in years to come!

What is a Ring Warming Ceremony?

Do you know what a ring ceremony is? It is not as strange as it sounds and it can serve as a fantastic way of including all of your family and friends in your wedding ceremony.

If a couple decide to have a ring warming ceremony as part of their wedding it usually takes place near the beginning. The celebrant will inform the guests that the wedding rings will be passed around to everybody to take in their hands and hold for a moment. As the rings are held the person holding them is asked to make a wish for the newly married couple and then pass them on to the next person. The rings are passed around to all of the guests as the ceremony progresses and then when we come to the part where the rings are exchanged between the couple, the celebrant will ask that they be given to the best man (or woman!) and brought to the top of the room.

The feeling behind this ceremony is that when the rings are presented to the couple they are not only made of precocious metal but that they hold now something altogether more precious - the love, hopes and good wishes of their dearest family and friends. 

There is a practicality to remember here though - if you plan on having a ring warming ceremony it is always a good idea to have the rings ties together using a ribbon or placed on a small cushion. The last thing we want is for them to roll away and fall between the floorboards.

Ring warming ceremonies are not for everbody but I have found that those couples who have used them have found it to be very meaningful.