Wedding Ceremonies
The Celebrant by Your Side
Congratulations to you both!
You have decided to get married, what’s next is really up to you. Planning your perfect day can take many forms. You may want a small intimate ceremony with family only, or a big celebration with family and friends.
You may want elements that are spiritual, traditional, or religious included or you may opt for something totally different, reflecting you and your love story. Maybe it was your love of a particular hobby that brought you together. You might want to walk in together rocking to your favourite band, or include words of a song filled with meaning to you both as one of your readings. Choosing a Holistic Celebrant provides you with such freedom!
“Marriage is more than a promise to love you on the good days.
It’s a vow to love you always, no matter how hard, because love takes commitment, and I choose to love you every single day for the rest of our lives.”
The Celebrant by Your Side™
Based in Co. Tipperary, I am an Independent Holistic Family and Funeral Celebrant and Legal Wedding Solemniser. I travel the country offering a wide range of alternative ceremonies, which typically are non-religious and are written and performed according to your specific requests and wishes. One such alternative ceremony is Weddings.
What I cherish about Alternative Weddings is how the list of what we can do together to personalise your day is endless.
With a Holistic Wedding, you can write your own vows, exchange rings in non-traditional ways, include symbols that reflect you, poems you love, or add enhancements like hand fasting or sand pouring. Or why not have a Ceremony Signing ‘keep sake’ to mark your special day? These are just some of the options which both wedding and commitment ceremony couples can choose to include on their special day.
When you choose to have an Independent Celebrant-led Wedding, you are giving yourselves a blank canvas. I purposely chose to be an Independent Ethical, All-Inclusive Celebrant, trained by 'Entheos Ireland' so that I would be able to offer you complete freedom in planning, crafting, writing and performing your perfect ceremony, and include what feels right for you. This can of course be a legal wedding or a commitment ceremony - the choice is always yours.
hen we meet, you will discover that, although I provide the structure, it's all about you from the start. No two Ceremonies will ever be the same. My aim is to support you every step of the way. I am there to answer questions and I always have ‘My Ceremony Suggestion and Idea kit' on hand to help get the creative juices flowing!
Let’s create together a ceremony you will both cherish for years to come, allowing you to look back and say, 'We loved that day, we loved how Our ceremony was a celebration and reflection of Our love'.
I am the Celebrant By Your Side, and as a Legal Wedding Solemniser, I can legally solemnise marriages in the Republic of Ireland, 7 days a week, and I am here with you every step of the way. Please feel free to give me a call and let's plan your perfect Wedding Ceremony.
Words of a newly married couple
“Help us always remember how strong our love is today.
Help us to remember to be kind in what we say.
Help us to remember the power of words 'I love you'
and to remember to say them to each other every single day.”
What is the difference between a Legal Wedding & a Commitment Ceremony?
Some couples wish only to make a commitment to each other, while others wish to have their marriage recognised by the state. And so, to answer a question I am often asked, what is the difference?
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With a Wedding Ceremony, as a couple you have decided to include the 'Legal Signing of the Register' as part of your ceremony, which as a Legal Wedding Solemniser I am honoured to officiate for you. Once you have completed steps one and two directly with the HSE as per their directions (which you will find here on their website), we can organise the rest together!
Please note your chosen venue must meet certain requirements which you will see mentioned in more details below.
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While with a Commitment Ceremony, you have no wish to legally register your marriage or may have this done previously and now wish to celebrate your commitment in the presence of family and friends, with some couples choosing to include commitment Words in place of Vows.
As this is not a legal ceremony, your commitment ceremony can take place in any venue of your choosing: your back Garden, your favourite Pub, the Restaurant where you first met, on the beach at sunset, with just the two of you, or surrounded by family and friends. Also, your wedding can be themed, relaxed, formal, include spiritual, semi-religious, or non-denominational and tradition free as you both wish. It is your ceremony after all, and the choices are endless.
An Important Note
Legal marriage in Ireland
Everyone getting married in Ireland must register their Intent to Marry, no less than three months prior to their intended wedding date. Full details of the registration process are available on the HSE Website at this link.
here are several documents of Identity required to be submitted for this registration. Every couple must attend in person with the Registrar before the wedding. The Registrar will arrange this appointment with you when they are satisfied that your paperwork is in order.
At this meeting you will be given your Marriage Registration Form (MRF - the green folder), which you bring with you on your wedding day. We will either chat on the phone as soon as you have the MRF to check the details are correct (though I always suggest checking this while on-site the day you collect it) and/or arrange to have the MRF delivered to me before your wedding ceremony day to confirm all the details are correct.
During the ceremony, your Marriage Registration Form will be signed by myself, both of you the couple and your two witnesses.
Please note - it is your responsibility to return it to the HSE Registrar’s office within 30 days of your ceremony to obtain your marriage certificate. When choosing your wedding venue, it must have a clearly identifiable address with Eircode and must be either a building that is open to the public or a courtyard, garden, field or piece of ground that is open to the public and is near to and usually shared with the building.
As an ‘Entheos Ireland’ trained Celebrant and member, I am committed to being the change in the world I wish to see. I believe in the Divine Spark within each person including myself, and I embrace the absolute equality of all people, regardless of age, race, gender, sexual orientation, financial status, or any other possible hierarchy of worth.
As your chosen Wedding Solemniser, Family, and Funeral Celebrant, my focus is in being present for you, to the best of my ability, for those of every walk of life, of every faith and no faith, know that I am honoured to write, deliver and hold your, love filled, meaningful ceremony for your specific life event.
Testimonial
“My husband and I were so lucky to be married by Sue Anne, even after numerous delays due to Covid! We could not be more grateful for the incredibly beautiful ceremony that she created for us. Every step of the way, Sue Anne guided, supported and centred us in the planning of our special day. [...]
She is a complete natural and was clearly born to celebrate people! She puts everyone at ease and created the most beautiful and comfortable environment for all of us. We felt truly blessed for the special day that Sue Anne created for us.”
We want you as our Celebrant
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Contact me to secure your date
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Arrange our initial meeting
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Discuss and decide on the various aspects of your ceremony
Next Steps
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Arrange a ceremony planning meeting with you, where I gather all details required to craft your ceremony.
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Send the ceremony draft to you for approval, making any adjustments, or additions before completion.
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Check in with you 2 weeks prior to the wedding.
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Have a full spare print out of the ceremony on the day should any of the readers forget their copy.
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I will arrive one and half hours prior to your ceremony to be on hand for any questions.
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A pre wedding practice is available should you require for a nominal fee.
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Present you with a copy of your ceremony as a keepsake.
Call or email me now to save the date, book a face-to-face meeting, and let’s get started on creating your perfect ceremony today!