Brides Wedding Planning and Relationships

Sun set wedding

Many couples choose to be married by a Civil Celebrant because of the freedom to have a ceremony that suits the bride and groom’s personalities and preferences.  Your celebrant will ensure that the necessary legal requirements are met but this only amounts to a few words of the ceremony.  The rest can be personalised to suit the two of you.

So where do you get the ideas for your ceremony?  Firstly of course, talk to your celebrant who should be able to help you with resources, ideas, examples and options gained from their training and experience.  Secondly, think about weddings you have attended – was there anything you really loved (or didn’t!).

Sit down and start to think about the type of ceremony you would like – where will it be and what sort of atmosphere are you hoping for.  Ideas such as “romantic at sunset”, “barefoot on the beach”, “on a mountain top at dawn”, “quiet and private”, “a big party”, will come to you.  Take a few minutes to think about this on your own first and then, when you are both ready, start sharing your thoughts.  As you discuss your ideas you will be able to work out the type of ceremony that suits you both and will be practical in your situation – the mountain top at dawn may become the local headland for a late morning wedding!!  Your discussion will help you to choose the venue, time and any equipment such as marquees or decorations that you might need. (more…)

What Celebrants Really Do

One of the first decisions that a couple needs to make, after they have set the date for their wedding, is to choose who will perform the marriage ceremony.  About 65% of marriages are performed by a Civil Celebrant, who has been fully trained, including undertaking professional development each year, and authorised by the Federal Attorney General. 

You may have been to weddings previously and seen Celebrants in action.  Now you are looking around for your own Celebrant.  It is a good idea to contact a few initially to get an idea of their fees and services.  You should preferably meet up with a “shortlist” of Celebrants and select the one who you are most comfortable with. 

Once you are happy with the Celebrant and have agreed their fee – probably one of the smaller items in your wedding budget – you may wonder what you will get for your hard-earned money.  For a start, I suggest you have a look at the Code of Practice that Celebrants must abide by – your Celebrant can show you a copy.  The Code gives you a good idea what you can expect from your Celebrant – and also what to do if you have any concerns or complaints. (more…)