You’re looking to get married, but don’t want a traditional religious church ceremony, nor do you want a registry office ceremony.
Perhaps you want something different from everybody else. Maybe you want to make your Vows and your day about you both as a Couple. But how do you get the Wedding Ceremony you want?
HUMANIST AND INDEPENDENT CEREMONIES
These are not legally recognised in England (yet!). You would still need to go to the Registry Office to make your Marriage official. However, the beauty of an Independent Ceremony is that there is no set format. You can write your own Vows making your Ceremony personal. Humanism is defined as “A non-religious view that promotes the use of reason and compassion to make sense of life” (Humanist UK)
With an Independent Ceremony there are no constraints about religion, spiritualism, or culture.
Think about adding readings, quotes or poems to your Independent Ceremony as well as songs that are special to you.
OTHER IDEAS HOW TO GET THE WEDDING CEREMONY YOU WANT
“JUMP THE BROOM”
This is popular in Pagan Ceremonies. It is a ritual which represents you sweeping away your single life and starting your new life together.
(For more information on pagan Ceremonies, have a look at my recent blog Summer Solstice and Pagan Weddings https://lmsweddings.co.uk/blog/summer-solstice-and-pagan-weddings/ )
You’ve heard the saying “tying the knot”, well handfasting is where this has come from. Your hands are tied together with ribbons and the knot remains a strong bond between you going into married life.
FLOWER EXCHANGE
Do some research on the meaning and symbol of your favourite flowers for this one. Have these flowers as part of your Ceremony and exchange with each other as the first gift exchanged as newlyweds.
SAND CEREMONY
This is perfect for getting your Family members involved, particularly children. Each person has a different coloured tube of sand, which is then all mixed into a Vase.
The idea of a sand ceremony is that once the coloured sands have been mixed together, it can’t be separated again. The Vase would also make a lovely keepsake of your Wedding Day.
LOVE LETTER BOX
This is the perfect reminder of your Wedding Day for your first anniversary.
Have a decorative box and place a bottle of your favourite drink for you to open together on your anniversary.
You could also encourage your Guests to join in, by writing messages of advice or good wishes for you to open and read while you are having that anniversary drink.
For more information on Independent Weddings, have a look at a recent Guest Blog by Penny Thompson of Hibiscus Ceremonies Place, Time, Content, It’s your Wedding It Should Be Your Choice https://lmsweddings.co.uk/blog/place-time-content-its-your-wedding-it-should-be-your-choice/
Photo Credits: Pixabay and Unsplash
This content was originally published here.