FAQ + Tips
You’ve probably got a stack of questions about everything to do with getting hitched, so browse through the articles below for some answers that will help you make the right decision in creating your perfect day.
You can search for any topic you need info on or hit any of the words in the tag cloud below to see all the articles on that subject.
FAQs
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Simple answer - No. You need to have completed, signed and had witnessed a Notice Of Intended Marriage at least one month before you can get married.
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If you have a passport, you’re sorted. If not, you will need to have a copy of your birth certificate and a drivers licence. Your ID must be seen by the celebrant before they can marry you.
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Simple answer - Yes - If it’s within Australia. We are a representative of the Australian Government so we are not authorised to marry people in other countries.
However, if you want to get married in Bali for example, we can marry you here in a very simple signing ceremony with you and two witnesses before you leave and then follow you to Bali for your big celebration.
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Simple answer - Yes I will. Some celebrants do and some don’t so make sure you check with them if you want to play your music through their speaker on the day. Also check whether they will personally play the music or whether you’ll need to have someone else play it through their speaker. If you choose me, I will play it all.
What to wear to a wedding
If the invite says "cocktail attire” this is slightly less formal than black tie and black tie optional, which means no tux required for men and no floor-length gown required for women (unless you'd like to wear a long dress, which is popular for winter wedding attire).
What is a hand fasting ritual?
Beautiful words are spoken by the celebrant during the ceremony which adds real romance and significance, making it very special! Hands can be joined by crossing them or side by side and the ceremony is used by all types of couples as a lovely addition to their modern wedding ceremony, irrespective of religious belief or cultural traditions.
Opening Lines For Wedding Speeches
Father Of The Groom Speech
This is the moment that you can tell the world how proud you are of your son. Talk about how he was as a son growing up, any achievements, personal traits or notable stories. While it is ok to have some funny stories and be humorous, please remember that he is your son. While you can consider him your friend at the end of the day you are his father and a respectful speech is more appropriate. Leave the mild roasting to the best man speech.
Love Wins In 2020
We worked out this year that many things are actually possible. A President can totally let his country down, just as much as a Prime Minister can protect and support his. We worked out how important health care workers actually are in our community and how hard they work and how little the majority of them get paid. We also worked out how hard a job teachers have (and they're not overly paid as well). All of a sudden the people crucial to our society, who had received little thanks and appreciation over the years became our heroes. We even stood outside and clapped them! Who would have thought?
Awkward Questions You May Have For A Same Sex Wedding
While the basic structure of the wedding won’t likely differ too much from the weddings you’ve been to in the past — a short ceremony, cocktail hour and then a reception — there will probably be some other gender-related differences you might be curious about. Make sure you’re not asking any of these absolute no-no same-sex wedding questions, then check out this list to get answers to all the questions that are way too awkward to ask!
Songs To Sign your Marriage Certificate To
Writing your own personalised wedding vows can be a daunting task, but it's not quite as hard as it looks. Here are six easy steps that you can follow to write your own wedding vows. Make sure that everyone is on the same page. Talk to your future spouse and your celebrant and make sure everyone is okay with personalised wedding vows. Some religions require that you use the traditional wording, while others will allow you to write your own, as long as you include certain phrases. You'll also want to make sure that your sweetheart also wants to do it. While you're at it, decide together whether you want to write one wedding vow that you will both say, or whether you want to write individually.
Overcoming Wedding Speech Nerves
Don’t Try Too Hard to Be Funny
You may feel under pressure to make your speech funny but joke-telling doesn’t come naturally to everyone and jokes that were funny on the stag do , may not translate in a room full of family friends and relatives. Alan recommends keeping it sincere: “Get some ideas from the internet by all means, but steer clear of the jokes. You will be loved and appreciated if you share your thoughts and your stories about the people you care about.”
Ultimate Wedding Planning Podcast
Planning a wedding, but not sure where to start? It can be a bit overwhelming. There is literally so much to do. This podcast series called "Getting Hitched" has 36 episodes all broken down into bite size chunks so that you can tackle one subject at a time.
Wedding dates to avoid in 2021 & 2022
First thing to think about is important family dates. To avoid any family politics, you may want to check your personal diary for milestone birthdays, upcoming weddings of family members or friends, big anniversaries and any other significant days involving your family or close circle of friends.
Wedding Day Emergency Kit
You can be prepared for all possible situations by making a wedding day emergency kit that you can bring along with you – this is a perfect project for the Mother of the Bride, the Maid of Honour, or bridesmaids can do. All you need is one kit to cover the whole bridal party. A prepared bride is a stress free bride – and the last thing you want to do on your wedding day is stress. This emergency wedding kit does not have to be a huge box, but a small kit with travel sized items should do the trick. A tote bag or backpack can easily hold all these items!
The Do’s And Dont’s Of Engagement Ring Shopping
It pays to study up on the basics—namely, the 4Cs of diamond shopping, carat, cut, clarity and colour and how to differentiate the most common diamond shapes before engagement ring shopping. That's a pretty easy one for Dr. Google - just delete your history if you have a shared computer if you’re keeping it a surprise. Remember: cover your tracks.
Same Sex Wedding Guide
A same-sex wedding usually starts with a heartfelt same-sex wedding proposal. For many gay and lesbian couples, there isn't a blueprint for how to propose, since you may be the first same-sex couple you know to get married. If you have a million and one questions about how to propose to a guy if you're a guy or how to propose to a girl if you're a girl, that's totally normal.
Wedding Day Timing Tips
Having had your trials, your hair and makeup peeps are likely to have told you how much time to allow for your prep and that of the rest of your bridal party. If not, ask them in the days leading up to the wedding - or even sooner at the trial. The larger your bridal party and the earlier your ceremony, the more likely you are to have a rudely early start time! If you’ve got separate hairdressers and make-up artists, ask them to coordinate their timings to maximise the efficiency of your wedding day. The running order of your bridesmaids and Mum’s preparation as well as your own will be key. Don't go last though as the final hour leading up to the wedding is when the chaos is likely to occur and you don't want to be hassled under the hair dryer or while someone is putting your eyelashes on.
When Things Go Pear Shaped
There are some amazing pear shaped engagement and wedding rings around these days. Here is a collection of some the best I’ve seen over the last few years.
Wedding Costs Nobody Told You About
f you cannot bear to part with your gown after the wedding, you will need to have it cleaned and preserved. While this can be done at the local dry cleaners, you might like to invest a little more to send your dress to a dedicated bridal wear business that could also box it up to keep it safe. This can cost anywhere between $300 and $600 depending on the style of dress and the amount of beading and other embellishments.
Bridal Shoe Heaven
OMG how awesome are all the shoes out there for brides to choose from for their wedding. There were so many beautiful, elegant, stylish (and expensive) #weddingshoes out there that I just decided to create my own "bridal shoe heaven" on my Pinterest page.
Wedding Table Decorations For Your Reception
How Much To Pay For A Wedding Dress
Get some help with someone who knows how to dress to your body shape. Someone you can trust to tell you the truth, no matter how hard it hurts. The most important thing on the day is that people say "oh my God, you look so gorgeous in that dress - it suits you perfectly", not "that dress is beautiful - and looks so expensive”.
It's not about what they will say to you. It's about what they're going to say to their friends the moment they set eyes on you.
Love songs for same sex couples
While we love a good opportunity to belt out “I’m Coming Out,” there’s more to the LGBTQ community than just dancing. Thanks to out-and-proud singers (and allies), gay love songs are in abundance and perfect for same-sex weddings. As you’re preparing a playlist for your LGBTQ wedding, you’ll definitely want to steal some of these gay love songs for your ceremony processional, first dance or just to insert a slow jam or three into your wedding reception. Adding songs by your favorite queer singers is also a subtle way to add a dose of pride to your wedding.