The wedding ceremony is an integral part of any wedding and its main semantic moment. The newlyweds have a choice – to confine themselves to a traditional civil ceremony in the registry office or to conduct another wedding ceremony, take their wedding to nature or lock it in the hall of the wedding palace. The choice of the type of wedding ceremony, in addition to the desires and taste of the newlyweds, is also strongly influenced by the wedding budget, the chosen style of the event, and the number of guests. But it is always easier to decide if you know exactly what you must deal with.

1. The three types of wedding ceremonies

The most common is the official ceremony in the registry office, allowing you to do everything in one day – get a marriage certificate, hold a festive banquet – and close the topic. The disadvantage of this option is the lack of an individual style. The ceremony is typical, debugged, the same for all couples. The feeling of a wedding assembly line can be enhanced by the presence of other couples who have a nearby ceremony time.

Note: a beautiful ceremony with candles will help to decorate a typical ceremony in the registry office. The bride and groom with the flame of their candles light the third joint, symbolizing the image of the marriage. Also, very touching is the bow to the parents, which is done by the young before leaving the registry office. And the spectacular gesture of releasing white doves into the sky will leave a beautiful memory in the photo.

An offsite official ceremony, which is conducted and organized by the registry office, will help to get away from the classic wedding scheme. The venue in this case is offered not by the customer, but by the performer. The choice is limited to several options that the registry office works with. As a rule, these are country estates, museums and park areas. This service costs more than the usual solemn registration, it is carried out at a strictly defined time, according to the schedule established by the registry office. The duration of the ceremony is limited. The presence of other married couples nearby is not excluded. A significant disadvantage of such a ceremony is that the newlyweds do not have the right to “dictate” their decor of the ceremony. They choose a ready-made package offer. The main advantage is the official status of the ceremony – with the issuance of a state marriage certificate.

Note: an outdoor ceremony is preferable when there are a lot of guests, and the registry office cannot accommodate everyone, as well as in cases where the ceremony is part of a staged action.

In the case of an outdoor informal ceremony, like the civil marriage on the beach, the marriage ceremony is symbolic, because it is not always carried out by a representative of the registry office (though, most of the time, it is), but by an invited wedding agency registrar, a close friend or a wedding host who has a sufficient gift of eloquence.

Important: this type of wedding ceremony does not exclude a trip to the registry office. As a rule, newlyweds receive a marriage certificate on a regular weekday, and on-site registration is carried out on the day of the event, which is arranged for guests. This option is full of freedom of choice. Young people decide for themselves where to register, how long it will take, what words they want to hear, in what surroundings, decor and to what music. There will be no strangers nearby.

2. How to diversify your type of wedding ceremony

You can start with your wedding vows. This option is often played up in Western films. The texts of the oaths are considered and prepared by the newlyweds in advance. As a rule, they include promises that young people make to each other when entering family life. The roots of this tradition come from the wedding ceremony and are guaranteed to give positive and touching emotions to everyone present.

Note: to enhance the effect, the newlyweds keep the texts of their vows secret from each other until the wedding.

The Hawaiian sand ceremony is suitable for beach weddings or weddings on the shore of some water. The registrar/priest pours white sand into a transparent vessel and reads the ritual text. The bride and groom make a marriage vow and add their sand to the vessel. After that, the vessel is sealed and kept as a symbol of unity, the creation of a married couple.

Tip: you can use colored sand. Then you get a unique colorful composition.

The Irish tradition of knot tying has ancient Celtic roots and is a tying of the newlyweds’ hands with a ribbon, just above the wrist, in the form of a figure eight – a symbol of infinity.

All in all, it is important to build your own tradition. It is not necessary to copy other people’s wedding traditions. You can create your own. For example, plant a tree together on your wedding day or put fish in an aquarium.

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