As the opening act, the ceremony is no longer seen as the chore of the wedding day, but rather a chance to showcase the passion of the two soon-to-be newlyweds. While it’s important to keep any traditions you feel are required, your ceremony should be a completely bespoke affair. By surrounding yourself with everything that describes who you are as a couple, from the song accompanying you down the aisle to the one who walks alongside you, you can rest assured it’ll be the perfect beginning to the rest of your lives.

The Perfect Guide

Finding the ideal way to celebrate your love for each other can be confusing at the best of times, especially when you have differing ideas as to what you’d like to include in your big day. “Make it about you,” says Williamson. “This is your day, so it’s important you have it the way you want it.” By spending time discussing your ceremony with your celebrant, they’ll be able to offer advice and options you may not have considered. “It’s vital for the couple to know and trust their celebrant, which is why I offer unlimited meetings and 24- hour contact,” Williamson says.

Walk With Me 

While your ceremony is most importantly about the love you share with your significant other, it’s also about including those closest to you. As such, many couples break from convention and update the standard service to suit them. “I’ve had the bride-to-be walk down the aisle with only her mother, and another walk with a family friend, while a same-sex couple opted to walk down the outer sides of the aisle opposite each other with their respective parents,” Williamson says.

For animal lovers, leaving your companions at home instead of bringing them along to one of the most important days of your life can often feel amiss. 

“My favourite ceremony is one of the first that I officiated, which included the couple’s two huge dogs,” Williamson says. “They were everything to the couple and featured throughout the entire ceremony.”

Williamson is one of few celebrants in Victoria who specialise in including your furry friends in the processional, and has the experience to guide you in the best way to do so. She will even take them home for you after the ceremony, so that no one has to miss part of the reception!

More Than ‘I Love You’ 

There’s nothing more personal than writing about the reasons you love each other, but for many couples this can be the hardest thing to accomplish. “I usually encourage the couple to sit together and agree on the style of vows they want to write, whether it be more traditional or conversational,” Williamson says. “I have written a user-friendly guide on how to write vows, which includes some examples, that all my couples are given.”

To personalise your vows, it’s important to note what you love about the individual you’re about to marry. Should your other half have a multicultural background try incorporating a greeting in another language or include some traditional ceremony customs from both of your religions. Otherwise, if you and your close friends and family have a lot of inside jokes, make sure to incorporate them as part of your declaration of love.

If you or your betrothed aren’t great at public speaking, it would be wise to provide your celebrant with a copy of your vows so that they can prompt you if you get tongue-tied. To avoid unnecessary anxiety, you can even opt to have a private session with nobody but you, your celebrant and your significant other before heading to the reception.