Wedding Ceremony
Location
Many couples getting married choose to have the traditional church
wedding. Others prefer to have their wedding
ceremony in another location. Some of these less
traditional locations include the beach, a beautiful garden or
park, a community center, country club, hotel, hall, someone's
home, a historical museum, extravagant resort, vintage winery,
or even the local city hall. Today's weddings
are becoming more creative and are more a reflection of the characters
of the engaged couple. The locations available for wedding
ceremonies are endless. With the nontraditional
location usually these locations are used for other purposes and
can sometimes bring a few minor problems and obstacles to overcome.
Wherever you plan to have your wedding ceremony,
check out the location thoroughly and make sure you ask lots of
questions. The wedding ceremony
is a very important part of the wedding plans
and you don't need any surprises later. If the people at the location
are experienced in doing wedding ceremonies,
ask how other couples have planned their wedding
ceremony to help give you an idea on how to use
the facilities for your own wedding ceremony.
Your Type of Wedding Ceremony
Wedding ceremonies take on many different
looks with plenty of options available for couples. Discuss this
before selecting your wedding officiant. Not all officiants do
all types of ceremonies. The wedding ceremony should suit you
as a couple and should reflect your core believes. Some of the
wedding ceremony types include religious, spiritual, non-denominational,
inter-faith, traditional, contemporary and even wedding ceremonies
for uniquely themed weddings. The type of wedding you select will
depend on your belief system, traditions you want to follow, the
officiant you want to use and the style of wedding your planning.
The bottom line is, your wedding ceremony should be meaningful
to you as a couple, it should be the ultimate celebration of your
union of love.
Wedding Ceremony
Vows
More and more couples are choosing to write their own vows for
the wedding ceremony to reflect
their feelings or beliefs. Talk this over with your officiant
to see what portions of the wedding ceremony
you can write for yourselves if you wish to personalize your vows.
Some people want their personalized vows to come straight from
them, but if you do need a few ideas to get you going, the internet
is a great place to get some inspiring words.
The Family Wedding
Ceremony or Family Medallion Ceremony
Many second marriages today also involve the
integration of two families. Some couples who already have children
decide to include the 
children
in their wedding ceremony. They actually have a part of the
wedding ceremony dedicated to the uniting of the family.
This is an amazing way to help children feel accepted and a part
of this new and important change in life. If you wish to do something
like this, talk to your wedding officiant. You
can even write vows for each of the family members and light a
candle together. Another related ceremony is
the family medallion ceremony. It also expresses the importance
of family in a marriage. During the wedding ceremony,
after the ring exchange, the Bride and Groom give each of their
children a medal medallion symbolizing their love and the uniting
of the family as a whole. The medallions are usually made of sterling
silver or gold and come in the form of pendants, rings, lapel
pins, or charm bracelets. The design on the medallion is three
linked circles representing the uniting of the family with the
top two linked circles representing the Bride
and Groom and these two circles both linking
through the bottom link representing the child. What a wonderful
keepsake for children to help them remember your wedding
day.
Small
Children in Your Wedding Ceremony
If you are having small children in your wedding
party and they seem to be shy or a little uncertain of 
where
they should stand at
the front for the wedding ceremony here's a little
tip to help them out. At the wedding rehearsal
and on the wedding day, place a one or two dollar
coin on the floor where the children will be standing when they
reach the front. This gives them a definite landmark to look for.
Let the whole wedding party and all other involved in the wedding
know what you are doing so no one kicks or picks up the coin.
Then if the little ones get a little overwhelmed with all the
faces looking at them while they are making their way down the
aisle, they will know exactly where to stand at the front when
they get there. You can also tell them if they stay standing quietly
on it, they can keep it after the wedding ceremony
is completely over. This may keep them from roaming around in
the middle of the wedding ceremony. We have used
this trick at many of our weddings and it usually
works wonders. Always remember to tell them that there will be
lots of family and friends in the seats to prepare them for the
day. Remember, children are always unpredictable and when you
decide to include them in your wedding party
you have to go with the flow and be ready for some unexpected
behaviour. If you're having a receiving line, you may or may not
want small children standing in the line. If you would like them
to stand in the line be sure to ask their parents to stay close
by so if they get bored or tired of standing they can step out
of the wedding receiving line.
Unity Candles and
the Symbolic Use of Crystals and Wine Sharing
Loving words are very meaningful on your wedding
day, but using imagery in your wedding ceremony
to communicate your love for one another makes a powerful statement.
The most common is the use of a unity candle. Usually, the mothers
of the Bride and Groom light
the outside candles symbolizing the life they gave to their children.
Those two candles can also be lit before the wedding
ceremony begins. Then during the wedding ceremony
the Bride and Groom use their
lit candles to light the unity candle together symbolizing their
lives coming together as one as the two flames become one. The
couple can keep the unity candle as a keepsake and relight the
candle on those romantic anniversary dinners. Always use a candle
snuffer when putting candles out during the wedding ceremony.
Veils catch fire very easily, so you don't want the flame anywhere
near your face when trying to blow it out.
Wine Sharing
An alternative to the unity candle is the Wine Sharing ceremony.
Again, after the rings have been exchanged the Groom
pours a glass of wine or champagne for his Bride
and himself. They then drink together and share the celebration
of their new marriage with their wedding
guests looking on. They may then choose to turn to the wedding
guests and hand out a rose to each of their parents, grandparents
or other special guests.
Crystals and Sand
Another wonderful idea that is becoming more popular is the use
of crystals and sand. Each of the parents, 
grandparents
or special guests is seated in the front seat and is given a small
glass container of sand, coloured sand or salt. We would suggest
at least a couple colours of sand in your wedding
colours. Again, after the exchange of rings, the Bride
and Groom then visit each person with a small
vial of sand and collects the sand into a med size glass/crystal
vase. Then the Bride and Groom
come together with their glass or crystal vase of sand and together
pour the sand into another larger glass or crystal vase. They
should alternate pouring the sand so the colours are layered.
The two colours of sand make a wonderful visual message of their
lives mixing together. The vase of sand can be displayed as a
decorative piece in the home of the newlyweds
as a reminder of their wedding day. Look around
for vases with a unique shape and you can even have the largest
vase etched with your names and wedding date.
Wedding Guests Seating
In a Christian wedding ceremony the Bride's family and friends
sit on the left side of the church facing the alter and the Groom's
family and friends on the right. In a Jewish wedding this is usually
reversed with the Bride's family and friends being on the right
and the Groom's family and friends on the left. Usually the usher's
will ask the wedding guests as they arrive to the ceremony if
they are on the Bride or Groom's side if they don't already know.
They will take the arm of each of the women guest and escort them
to their seat. If they are accompanied by a man, the man should
follow. If a male guest arrives alone the usher shows them to
their seat. The Bride's mother is the last guest to be seated,
with the Groom's mother seated immediately before. Any guests
arriving after she is seated must wait until after the processional
to be seated. When the Bride's mother is seated it signals that
the music should start for the processional.
Bridal
Bouquet of Love and Mothers' Bouquet
A
change from the traditional Bride's bouquet of
flowers is to have a Bridal Bouquet of Love.
Before the wedding ceremony
begins you will arrange for the guests who have had a special
place in the Bride's life to sit in the pews
near the aisle. Each of them is given a long stem flower. It is
explained to them that the Bride will be collecting
the flower from them as she makes her way down the aisle. This
is a symbol of how these special people have contributed to her
life. As she receives her flower from each person, he or she can
express their best wishes to her. When she reaches the front,
her maid of honor will assist her in tying the flowers together
with a ribbon that she has with her or that the Bride
has been carrying. This is a great way of involving the special
people in your life and of making your wedding
ceremony more memorable to you and to them.
The Mother's Bouquet is a special bouquet
made up at the florists that is actually three bouquets in one:
your main bridal bouquet plus two smaller detachable
bouquets for your mothers. Without telling your mothers ahead
of time, have these made and give them to your mothers. You will
need to inform the person walking you down the aisle and the Groom
of your intentions and tell them how it will occur. There are
two ways you can have this take place. When you reach the end
of the aisle you can take a moment to untie your bouquet and give
one of the small bouquets to the Groom and you
take the other to give to your mother. The two of you can deliver
the bouquets to your respective mother with a kiss and a thank
you. Then return to the front for the wedding
ceremony to begin. The other way is to have the person who is
walking you down the aisle to wait a moment while you untie your
mother's bouquet only and give it to him to give to your mother
as he sits with her. After the wedding ceremony,
stop before leaving at the first pew and have your new husband
deliver the other small bouquet to his mother.
Wedding Ceremony
Music
Your wedding ceremony music
is important and is also a very personal choice. You can have
any style of music including classical, more modern or even religious
music. You will need to pick out songs for many parts of the wedding
ceremony. The prelude is before the wedding ceremony
while guests wait for the ceremony to start.
The processional is when family, the wedding party
and the Bride walk down the aisle. The interlude
is during the wedding ceremony, and the recessional
is when the new husband and wife walk down the aisle after the
ceremony. See our wedding
song list page for ideas of music. You may wish to have a
person to play the keyboard, have someone to sing, and/or have
someone to play a special instrument like a harp, for sections
of the wedding ceremony. You may need to buy
the sheet music for special songs you want played. Give it to
the person you hire to play the music to ensure they can play
it well. The sheet music also makes a nice keepsake of your wedding.
If you can find the sheet music fairly inexpensively you may wish
to buy a second backup copy incase your musician looses their
copy. If you don't get the sheet music back, you will still have
a copy as a memento.
Dove and Butterfly
Release
Some couples arrange to release doves or butterflies outdoors
immediately after their wedding ceremony. They
make for terrific photo opportunities. Doves are beautiful and
mate for life, making them a wonderful symbol of the marriage
for a couple. It is best to release doves during the day before
twilight. If you wish to release doves, talk to the company that
handles dove release to see how they operate. Usually the company
delivers and sets up outside the place of wedding
ceremony. Butterflies are usually kept in a cool place so they
can sleep until they are being used. Then they are brought into
the warmth for about an hour before the release so they wake up.
You can have just the Bride and Groom
release a dove or butterfly, or each member of the wedding
party can also so the releasing. Please be sure to make
sure everyone is well informed about handling instructions when
using live creatures.
Tip
Many people use gum to freshen
their breath. Please note that nothing looks less elegant than
someone chewing during the ceremony. If you can remember to dispose
of the gum before entering the place of ceremony, great. If you're
not sure you'll remember, maybe mints would be a better choice.
|
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Cheri-Ann
Ramberg |
"Contact
me to help you plan your
dream honeymoon." |
|
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HERITAGE
WEDDINGS
Where
History Begins a Future
Kitchener Wedding Chapel
Our
chapels and offsite locations add a mix of history
and romance to your wedding ceremony.
|
|
Address:
|
1222
Doon Village Road
Kitchener, Ontario N2P 1A5 |
| |
Phone
#: |
(519)
895-0061 |
| |
Email: |
info@heritageweddings.ca |
| |
Website: |
www.heritageweddings.ca |
|
|
HERITAGE
WEDDINGS
Where
History Begins a Future
Heritage Wedding Chapel
Our
chapels and offsite locations add a mix of history
and romance to your wedding ceremony.
|
|
Address:
|
Suite
105-100 Main St. E.
Hamilton, Ontario L8N 3W4 |
| |
Phone
#: |
(519)
528-3975 |
| |
Email: |
info@heritageweddings.ca |
| |
Website: |
www.heritageweddings.ca |
|
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Bluewater
Weddings Marriage Service
|
| Address: |
1371
Robin Lane Sarnia Ontario N7V 3E6 |
| Phone
#: |
(519)
332-4800 |
| Email: |
bluewed@cogeco.ca |
Licenced
professional pastors to perform the service of
your choice -- plain, fancy, garden, home, theme,
beach, or church setting. Who performs the ceremony
& how it is presented can make your wedding
that very special day of your life. |
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Newmarket
Wedding Ceremony Officiants
|
| Address: |
Suite
909 - 26 Lorne Ave. Newmarket Ontario L3Y 5G4 |
| Phone
#: |
(905)
852 - 6060 |
| Email: |
jonmkibn@rogers.com |
| Website: |
www.johnmckibbon.ca |
Versatile,
experienced, personable, professional and qualified
licensed Officiants based in Newmarket! Sample
ceremony available, reasonable fees, friendly
service. |
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Weddings
and More
Honeymoon Capital Niagara
|
|
Rev.
Malcolm MacQuarrie Sr. |
| Address: |
55 Lindergh Dr. Fort Erie Ontario |
| Phone
#: |
(
905 ) 329-5419 |
| Email: |
weddingsandmore_hcn@yahoo.ca |
| Website: |
www.weddingsandmore-hcn.com |
GETTING
MARRIED? NO MINISTER? NO PROBLEM? LET US SERVE
YOU BEST!
Weddings and More Honeymoon Capital provides traditional
non-denominational weddings services at your choice
of location in and around the Niagara Region and
Golden Horseshoe. We will customize services to
suit the desire of each couple. |
|
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3080
Hwy 11 R.R. 2
Bradford Ontario L3Z 2A5 |
905
- 775 - 4375 |
1
- 866 - 775 - 4375 |
|
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Joyful
Custom Ceremonies! Civil, Spiritual, Inter-faith,
and Traditional.
Your location or in our lovely Victorian home
& gardens. Short notice can be accommodated.
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Wedding
Ceremonies of Guelph / Kitchener / Cambridge /
Waterloo / Rockwood |
|
71
Mountford Drive
Guelph, Ontario N1E 6E7 |
|
Phone:
519-836-1143 |
Cell:
519-994-8799 |
| |
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Well
respected ordained Parson / wedding celebrant
serving southwestern Ontario.
Services to fit your personal needs, including
children-parents. |
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Wedding
Ceremonies by
Reverends David & Sandra
Caldwell
Phone:
519-833-9920 or 1-888-729-3032
www.CountryWeddingGardens.com
Email:david@CountryWeddingGardens.com
Our Country Wedding Gardens
is perfect for ceremonies, receptions &
photography.
Your personalized ceremony is the heart of your
wedding,
at your location or ours.
Non-denominational,
inter-faith, traditional or contemporary.
David and Sandra will also travel to your location.
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