How to write your Ceremony & Vows
As your wedding approaches, it’s time to think about the ceremony itself. If you have already hired and/or been connected with your wedding celebrant – great! If not, it’s a good idea to connect with him or her about 1-2 months before your ceremony day.
Your celebrant needs some details about you as a couple to start writing your ceremony. Undoubtedly he or she already has many ceremonies written, and can offer you choices from bits and pieces of those, according to his or her knowledge about you and what you want included in your ceremony. He or she can also write a 100% original and new ceremony for you – the choice is yours.
There are some considerations from your side that are important to share with your celebrant. These include:
Would you like your ceremony to be “unplugged,” or free of guests’ cameras and phones? (This is your choice, but in our experience, your hired photographers appreciate having access to the best possible shots of you!)
Are there guests who can’t be present who you would like to acknowledge? How?
Children – do you have any of your own, or other special children who will be present? If so, how and when would like them to be included in your ceremony?
Do you want a religious or secular ceremony? More “formal” or “toes in the sand”? Short and sweet?
Are there special readings, blessings and/ or readers you would like to include?
Will you write your own vows; use “pre-written” or “repeat” vows; or do a blend of these traditions? "I Do's"?
Are there any personal details about you and your relationship that you would like your celebrant to share with your guests?
At My Bali Celebrant, we have a questionnaire for you to fill out that helps us with these details. Once we have received this from you, we will write a ceremony draft and share it with you via email. Please remember: the first ceremony you receive from us is merely a “draft.” It may contain places for you to make choices, and it might have specific questions within that we would like you to answer.
Most importantly: this is the time when we need your honest, even brutal feedback about the ceremony. If it’s not at all what you want, we need to know that. Our feelings will not be hurt; in fact, we will be relieved to have your input to know that we are on the right (or even wrong) track!
If you choose to write your own vows, My Bali Celebrant will also guide you through that process; we can even provide you with some “examples”. If you and your fiancée would like to surprise each other on the big day, you can send your vows to your celebrant separately for feedback. We will make sure that your vows are “balanced” without giving away any of the details that make them special to you. For example, if one of you has written a lot more than the other, we will ask one to write more, or to cut down a bit. If the tones of the vows are very different, your celebrant can also coach you on how to make them more similar. Once you finalize your vows, we can also have them for you on card-stock to hand to you to read on your wedding day. Once you write your vows, we take your worry out of this detail!
Once you have finalized your ceremony and vows, know that your celebrant has done many of these ceremonies and will proceed with professionalism and care. Your ceremony is as unique and important as you are – and we at My Bali Celebrant want to provide you with a ceremony you will cherish in your hearts forever!
For more information please contact us at admin@mybalicelebrant.com
We look forward to hearing from you, and planning the wedding ceremony of your dreams!
