How to include children in your wedding day
One of the questions I’m often asked by couples is “what options are there for including children in your wedding day?” Of course, your wedding day should centre around your love and commitment. When children play an important role in your life, though, many couples wish to involve them as part of their big day. Your children in your wedding What you choose to do will depend, in part, on the age of your children. If you have a baby, you may like to walk down the aisle holding them in your arms. Then, either you or your partner could hold them during the ceremony (except for the...
Read MoreBeach wedding tips for your big day!
Living on the Northern Rivers of NSW, I am often booked for ceremonies on the beach. Some of my favourites include Byron Bay, Lennox Head, Ballina, Brunswick Heads, Yamba and Evans Head. Here are my top beach wedding tips for a fabulous day: ♥ Timing Choose wisely the time of year or at least the time of day for your ceremony. You, your family and friends won’t want to be standing on hot sand in the glaring sun for an extended period. While most wedding ceremonies take place in the mid afternoon, you could choose any time for yours. Perhaps a sunrise wedding (like the one pictured...
Read MoreExchanging vows during your wedding ceremony
Exchanging vows When exchanging vows during your wedding ceremony, most couples opt to include two kinds … their legal vows (which must be said by both parties), followed by their personal vows. ♥ Legal vows For a marriage to be considered legal in Australia, one of the things each couple must do is state the following minimum words, taken from subsection 45(2) of the Marriage Act 1961, during their wedding ceremony: “I call upon the persons here present to witness that I (insert name of Party 1 – in full if not mentioned in full elsewhere) take thee (insert name of...
Read MoreEthical wedding ideas for your big day
Ethical wedding ideas Arranging a wedding, no matter how simple or lavish it is, requires planning. From the moment you and your partner decide to tie the knot, certain decisions will need to be made. What date? Which venue? How to incorporate my style? How many guests? Sustainable or not? These days, more focus is being paid to ethical wedding ideas so as to make less of an impact on the environment. Some things to consider are: ♥ Flowers If you love the idea of fresh flowers, sourcing them from a provider which uses companion planting, rather than pesticides, to create healthy flower...
Read MoreBeing drunk in love … but not intoxicated
Drunk in love We all love a celebration and, for many people, alcohol plays a big part in having fun. There is, however, one occasion when being drunk in love may cause you more of a headache than you bargained on! ♥ Guidelines on the Marriage Act The current Guidelines are based on the Marriage Act 1961. They apply to all authorised celebrants who solemnise marriages in Australia, unless otherwise stated. 8.6.4 Concerns about consent On p. 90, the Guidelines specifically refer to the fact that a celebrant must be satisfied that both parties genuinely consent to the marriage. If at...
Read MoreWhen is it too early to book my celebrant?
When should I book my celebrant? In the lead up to any wedding, there will almost always be a range of suppliers to contact and arrangements to be made. Everything from your venue, photographer, wedding attire, cake maker, florist, decorator, music and transport options right down to distributing your invitations. But … when you consider that there is one person essential to any wedding (other than the couple and their two witnesses), many question “when is it too early to book my celebrant?” My answer to this question is “soon after you have set your date.” The reason for this is that,...
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