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BREATHE EASY BLOG


 

How To's? Where To's? What's? & Why's... Thoughts from Breathe Easy's Celebrant Toni Elsley

 

 

31st Jan 2017

 

 

So here we go... my first blog on my website. I guess I'll answer the first question that is asked by couples when trying to choose a Celebrant... How do a choose a Celebrant? How do I know who is the right one for me?

 

The easy answer to these question is… Find someone you like! Someone you relate to, that you’re comfortable with, that has experience and knowledge, that can lead you through the seemingly daunting task of putting together your wedding ceremony.

How do you do this? Interview some celebrants, speak to your friends, get recommendations, go to bridal expos and speak to as many of the celebrants as you can.

Find someone who will take the time and the effort to get to know you, your likes and dislikes, even your quirks and idiosyncrasies. After all, we don’t live in a cookie-cutter world, no two couples are the same, so no two ceremonies should be the same.

I’ve heard from so many couples over the years of weddings they’ve been to where they didn’t like the ceremony for various reasons. The main reasons being – the celebrant couldn’t be heard, the celebrant made it all about themselves, the celebrant was too formal, and my pet peeve, the celebrant spent a huge amount of time lecturing everyone on the meaning of love, marriage and the pitfalls that might lie ahead for the couple.

My Biggest Tip…. Don’t assume that your ceremony has to be dead-serious!!! Please please please have fun with your ceremony, it is a HUGE part of your day, I would argue the most important part of your day, and shouldn’t be something that has to be “endured” so that you can get to the party of the reception. Bring the fun, excitement and joy into your ceremony too! This is where choosing the right celebrant who really “gets you” is vital.

 

Happy Planning, and Breathe Easy 

Toni Elsley - Celebrant

 

14th March 2017

 

 

How to make your ceremony FUN!!...

So I've talked about choosing the right celebrant, and having a fun wedding, but what does that mean??

First step, again, because it's so important… pick the right Celebrant! Find the person who understands your humour, someone who is willing to take the time to get to know you better.

Second… don’t assume that your ceremony space is a “stage” where you, your bridal party, and your celebrant are “performing” and your guests are simply the audience… get them involved, keep them interested… they’ll remember your ceremony and hopefully won’t fall asleep

Third… If you both have something that is just “You”, is it Golf? Dancing? Knock-Knock jokes? Your pets?... then use them in the ceremony. You’ll relate more, and your guests will have fun alongside you. I had a wonderful couple who were terrible at making decisions, apparently they had to do "paper, rock, scissors" just to work out who would be turning off the light at night, in fact, they used that method to make all of their decisions. So during their ceremony, paper, rock, scissors it was, to work out who was saying their vows first! Just a small example, but it was different for their guests, it was completely personal, it was their "thing" and they had a great laugh and it's something they will always remember.

Last but not least… Enjoy yourself! Sure, be nervous and excited and emotional, but don’t forget to have fun yourselves. The more fun you have, the more that joy will be passed on to your guests. Have a laugh, look at those wonderful people that have come to share your day and maybe giggle at a little in-joke or two.

 

Breathe Easy

Toni Elsley - Celebrant