Ceremonies for every chapter
Weddings are where it started, but life has many moments worth marking. Here is what I offer and what each one involves.
Weddings
From $1000
Your wedding ceremony should sound like you. We start with a relaxed meeting, then I write a ceremony from your story, your words and the tone you want, whether that is traditional, modern, light hearted or quiet. You see every draft and nothing is final until you are happy.
On the legal side, Australian law requires a Notice of Intended Marriage to be lodged with your celebrant at least one month before the wedding, and no more than eighteen months before. I walk you through the forms, check your identity documents, prepare the certificates and register the marriage with NSW Births, Deaths and Marriages afterwards. You do not need to decode any of it alone.
Included: planning meetings, unlimited contact, a rehearsal where it helps, and travel within Greater Sydney.
Elopements and small weddings
From $1000
Sometimes the right wedding is a small one. An elopement needs only the two of you, two witnesses over eighteen and me. It is every bit as legal as a wedding with two hundred guests, and often more relaxed.
The same legal timing applies: the Notice of Intended Marriage must be lodged at least one month ahead. If your plans are moving quickly, contact me early and we will work out what is possible.
Commitment ceremonies
From $500
A commitment ceremony is a public promise without the legal paperwork. Couples choose it for all sorts of reasons: a celebration in Australia after a legal marriage overseas, a renewal of a relationship, or simply because a legal marriage is not what you want right now.
Because there are no legal requirements, the ceremony can be anything at all. Rings, readings, music, children and pets all welcome.
Vow renewals
From $500
An anniversary, a recovery, a new home, or just the feeling that it is time to say it all again. A vow renewal lets you look back at the years you have shared and forward to the ones ahead, in front of the people who have been part of it.
I can help you write new vows, revisit your original ones, or do a bit of both.
Naming ceremonies
From $500
A naming ceremony welcomes a child into your family and your community. It can include the story of their name, promises from parents and guide parents or mentors, readings, candles, a tree planting, or anything else that feels right for your family.
Naming ceremonies suit babies, older children and adopted children alike, and work beautifully alongside a birthday or family gathering.
Funerals and memorials
From $500
A farewell deserves time, care and honesty. I will meet with you and your family, listen to the stories, and write a service that reflects the person you have lost: who they were, what they loved and what they meant to the people in the room.
I work alongside your funeral director, or directly with you for a memorial or celebration of life held at a later date. Religious elements can be included or left out entirely, whatever is right for your family.
If you need to speak to me urgently about a funeral, please call rather than email. 0438 459 524.
Pet ceremonies
From $500
For many of us, animals are family, and the moments in their lives deserve marking too.
Adoption celebrations welcome a new companion into the household. Pet namings give the newest member of the family a proper introduction. Pet farewells offer a gentle, respectful goodbye to a much loved animal, with space for the grief that comes with it.
These ceremonies can be held at home, in a park or garden, or anywhere that was special to you and your pet.
Not sure which ceremony fits?
That is what the first conversation is for. Tell me what you are hoping to mark and we will work out the shape of it together.