A Wedding Celebrant is the most visible service-provider on your Wedding Day.
Their ability to impact your happiness on your Wedding day should not be underestimated.
Yet couples tend to overlook the role of a Celebrant when making their choice. Many make their decision based on price alone, which is risky.
There are heaps of valuable reasons to consider when choosing a Wedding Celebrant. Let me explain…
It comes down to 4 questions to help you clarify the purpose of your Wedding Ceremony and the Celebrant.
Your answers will help you and your partner direct your choice of Wedding Celebrant.
1. How important is your marriage ceremony?
The goal of your wedding ceremony is to end up married. The way you achieve that goal is your decision. The length, type, mood and content of your marriage ceremony is largely determined by the value you place on the marriage ceremony. Is your marriage ceremony…
- A thing done purely to comply with convention, regulations or customs?
- A legal necessity to get over as quick as possible before the party starts?
- A significant life event of great importance?
- A rite of passage when you exchange vows and life changes forever?
Your opinion greatly influences the style of Wedding Celebrant to use for the purpose.
Using the idea of a significant life event, a Celebrant will be required to create and write a ceremony that is an artful expression of who you are, as a couple and as individuals. You’ll need a Marriage Celebrant with creative skills – written and verbal – who can express your union and the importance of the event.
If you want a “no-frills” ceremony, the creation and presentation skills of the Wedding Celebrant won’t matter so much.
2. How do you want to feel on your wedding day?
Most people focus on how a wedding looks. But what’ll you’ll remember about your wedding day is how it felt.
Have you ever been to a wedding ceremony that felt like a ‘non-event’? Remember how you felt?
A ‘boring’ wedding ceremony lacks quality, meaning and personalisation. It results from the ceremony content or sometimes the presentation style of the Marriage Celebrant.
If you want bliss not boredom at your wedding ceremony, choose a Wedding Celebrant that
- Is motivated by a genuine passion for the art of ceremony creation and presentation
- Matches your personality and style.
- Demonstrates your best interests to ensure you and your guests feel happy and valued
3. What style of wedding ceremony do you want?
A civil marriage ceremony has ample scope for creativity. Apart from the legal inclusions, all the rest – content, location, décor, music, participation, apparel – is open to personal choice. The style and mood of your wedding ceremony reveal
- who you and your partner are as a couple
- what marriage means to you both
What is important to both of you? What sort of things do you want to acknowledge at your ceremony?
- Your love and relationship
- Family and friends
- Culture, traditions, beliefs
- Passions and interests
What kind of “vibe” do you want your wedding ceremony to have?
- Relaxed or formal
- Traditional or modern
- Surprising or predictable
Your answers will greatly influence your choice of Celebrant.
For example, if you want a traditional wedding ceremony that conveys a formal mood, look for a Marriage Celebrant that suits that style.
If you want an alternative wedding, or a themed wedding – Country and Western, Star Trek, Star Wars, Harry Potter, Disco, the 50s – look for a Wedding Celebrant with a propensity for fun and creativity, open and engaging.
If you need help to define, create and convey a mood for your ceremony, seek a Wedding Celebrant that provides information, samples, and ceremony ideas.
4. How much does a wedding celebrant cost?
Whatever we spend our money on tells us something about who we are, what we know and what matters to us.
Early on in your wedding planning, it is essential to pick the few things that matter to you, so you can identify where to allocate your budget.
If your Marriage Ceremony is really important to you and you understand the considerable contribution, a Celebrant can make to your happiness on your wedding day and beyond, set aside a realistic fee for your Celebrant. The fee for a skilled Marriage Celebrant in Sydney can cost up to $1800.
There are many factors that determine the expertise of a Wedding Celebrant, which I will write more about later.
Making Your Decision
Choosing a Marriage Celebrant is an incredibly personal choice. There are thousands of Celebrants to choose from, all with varying skills and personalities to suit your needs.
Whoever you choose and for whatever reason, it will be much easier to choose a Wedding Celebrant if your take into consideration what matters to you on your Wedding Day.
For a list of registered Marriage Celebrants in Australia who conduct civil ceremonies see the Attorney General’s Department
