Create Perfect Memories

Wedding Ceremonies

When it comes to your special day, our journey together starts with your vision. With more choices than ever before on how to celebrate your wedding day, your ceremony will be carefully crafted to include highly personal elements. My aim is to ensure that your celebrations fully express the love you have for each other by sharing your love story with your guests. Wherever you choose to hold your ceremony, every detail will be designed with your dream ceremony in mind.

“We loved how personalised the ceremony was made for us – the reading of our proposal was beautiful. The tying of the knot was wonderful, but the most wonderful part is Ali, and how lovely she is – she made us feel really comfortable from the start.”

Wedding Ceremony Design

It is important that you are choosing the right celebrant for your important day. My philosophy is about choice, so that is why, wherever possible, I offer a complimentary first meeting, either face to face or by Skype.

When our journey together continues, then I love nothing better than hearing you both talk about your love story, and your journey with each other so far. I want to learn all about you; I want to see your interactions with each other, so I can convey your passion through and into your personalised ceremony.

Whether you’ve chosen your venue, or you haven’t quite decided yet, it doesn’t matter. With less restrictions on wedding ceremonies both in the UK and overseas, the options are truly endless. I am able to recommend high-quality venues or work alongside your wedding planner – the choice is yours. I am happy, if possible, to visit your chosen place with you and talk about different options that you may never have considered before. We will discuss every aspect of what you would like to happen on the day to ensure that your ceremony is tailored exactly to your wishes.
Writing your own vows is a very special way of sharing your feelings for each other. If this thought terrifies you, I will be there to guide and help you. You can choose words that are passionate and emotional or flamboyant and fun – bringing your personalities to life.
Before your wedding day, I will help you finalise every detail of the service; all the timings, the seating logistics, liaising with your chosen venue staff and suppliers such as musicians and photographers. Typically, my ceremonies average around 45 minutes.
I am always available to answer your queries via email, telephone or Skype. I will meet you both again around two months before your big day to finalise the content and discuss the choreography of the ceremony. I will offer you a full run through of your entire event the day before – wherever in the world you might be. At this stage, you will both be excited and nervous, but you can rest assured, that through our journey together, I will have ensured that you are familiar with the content of the ceremony.
On your wedding day, I will be there to guide and support you, making sure that your day goes smoothly and as planned. I will be working alongside your guests, venue staff, and other chosen suppliers. My approach is always flexible to ensure that your special day is seamless from start to finish. I will be there with calming words for the partner waiting at the “aisle” and a calm, reassuring smile, as the other partner and bridal party reaches the entrance.

Cariad Personal Ceremonies will hold your hand throughout the entire process, so all you have to do is sit back, relax and look forward to your special day.

Respecting every faith and family tradition

One of the biggest concerns many couples raise is when they are trying to appease family members who wish to include certain religious aspects in their ceremony. Often people marry from a combination of religious backgrounds. Whether you’re non-religious, Christian, Catholic, Jewish, Hindu, Muslim, or any other faith, I will design a ceremony that respects the wishes of your family. Together we can include any faith elements to ensure that every family member is happy.

If you’re looking for a different way to celebrate your forthcoming union, you could consider the following:

Combine with a baby naming ceremony – if you have a new bundle of joy in your life, then why not consider combining your wedding with a baby naming ceremony? I can tailor your celebration to include more than one ceremony.
Handfasting – available as a separate ceremony, many couples can also choose to combine this with the wedding service. Binding your hands in symbolically coloured ribbons or cords is a very old ritual that can evoke many emotions.
Ring-warming – a simple yet heartfelt concept, which involves passing your rings around family, or every guest, to warm in their hands while thinking loving thoughts or giving a simple blessing. This is a wonderful way to involve your guests in your day and your future.
Tree of Life Ceremony – allow your family and friends to share their love for you by writing heartfelt messages onto wooden hearts, doves, stars or any shape of your choice. As part of the ceremony, your guests come forward and hang their messages on a stunning steel tree, creating a beautiful memento for you to cherish forever.
Sand Ceremony – Different coloured sands of your choice are poured into a glass vessel of any shape. A wonderful way of symbolising two families combining as one. This is a ceremony that can involve many of your loved ones with you. As the colours combine to make patterns, you’ll have a visible symbol of your special commitment to each other. If your ceremony will be taking place on a beach, why not use the sand from beneath your feet?
The ‘Harmony Experience’ – a beautifully spiritual ceremony that uses glass crystals instead of sand. After your ceremony, the crystals are sent to an expert glass artisan to create a unique and stunning work of art for your home. Cariad Personal Ceremonies is very excited to announce a new collaboration with talented local glassblower, Kayleigh Young. Please visit our Harmony Glass page for more details…
Memory Box or a special bottle of wine – a meaningful part of a ceremony, which includes creating a box containing a choice of content; this can be opened on a future date of the couples’ choice.

“Ali made our wedding day. Every single guest commented on how personal, emotional and outstandingly beautiful all the features that Ali recommended were. The attention to detail and time and effort she took to understand our family, our needs and hopes were second to none. I particularly appreciated how much care and concern she took into recognising the absence of my late father and the joining of our two families with two new step-children.”

Why not involve your child in your special day?

Children can play such an important, special part in your celebrations, so I always suggest to my clients to include their little ones in the ceremony. Asides from traditional roles as a bridesmaid or page boy, if you’re planning a handfasting ceremony, children can tie ribbons. If you’re having a Harmony Glass ceremony, why not give children their own coloured sand or glass? Let them introduce the proceedings or give a reading of their own with specially written words for you. By involving your little ones in your special day, you will be creating memories that you, your children and all your guests will remember for a lifetime.

Celebrating same-sex weddings

I love working with same sex couples. All of my clients are treated equally, regardless of their sexual orientation, and I have conducted many same-sex ceremonies over the years. My ethos is to always ensure that a couple’s love can be celebrated joyfully, free from any judgement and in a way that reflects their own personal story and journey.

Contact me if you would like to create special memories that will last a lifetime