There’s always a new and different way for you to make your wedding ceremony yours.
I would hope that every ceremony I perform would scream the bride’s and groom’s passions and characters. So, let’s find some unique ways to make the ceremony all about you and your partner.
Here’s 16 things I thought of this morning
- Have your closest friends and family marry you, make it a community event. That is, involve all of them in the ceremony, not just as groomsmen or bridesmaids, but ask them to perform a ceremonial aspect of the ceremony or sing a song, perhaps even a poem or a scripture reading. It’s a creative way of honouring their commitment to the commitment that the bride and groom are making.
- Turn the celebrant around and face the guests instead of facing away from the guests.
- Have a man of honour or a best girl.
- Have your guests sit or stand in a circle around you as you are married.
- Go without an official bridal party and tell everyone invited that they are your bridal party.
- Write your own vows, Britt and I did!
- Have a ring warming. (What’s a ring warming you ask? There are different versions of this, but generally the rings are placed in a small bag and are passed around to each guest prior to the ring exchange. Each guest blesses the rings or says a prayer.)
- Bridesmaids could carry something other than flowers, if flowers aren’t a special object in your life. Perhaps candles, or a book, or a ceremonial symbol.
- Choose a processional song that is very special to both of you.
- Honour your cultures with a prayer, poem or song from your heritage.
- Hire a professional to sing a song of your choosing.
- Exit the ceremony to spend a few moments in private together, instead of walking into the crowd of guests. It’s based off a jewish tradition, but you could make it yours.
- Hold the ceremony in a place that’s special to you both, perhaps underwater or in a certain restaurant.
- Don’t say I do. You don’t have to, in fact there are only a few things you have to say.
- Ask the celebrant to identify guests subtly or secretly in the message. It might be a nice way of subtly honouring them.
- Sit all of the guests on hay bales. Or choose other odd or special seats.
If you’d like to hire an awesome celebrant that has a bucketload of unique wedding ceremony ideas … give me a call! And if you’d like to meet the photographer that took the photo in this post, see Paul Bamford.
