Anji and Elton renewed their wedding vows after 20 years of marriage in the most romantic ceremony ever! They write: “Thank you for such a lovely ceremony enjoyed by all, with everything going exactly as planned. We all agreed that it has been an absolute pleasure to work with such a professional, warm and insightful  person as yourself. Thank you again for leading our day – you were wonderful!”

Thank you both for your kind words and fabulous photo! It was a pleasure to celebrate with you!

Tiff and Rob exchange rings with words of love

Tiff and Rob had a beautiful and dramatic wedding day, which they will always remember. As Tiff says “Many thanks again for all of your help with our wedding – I often think back to it and am so thrilled with how our ceremony turned out. It was truly perfect.”

Thank you Tiff and Rob for sharing some of your photos with me, and to Aga Tomaszek Photography for taking the photos.

Surprise evening wedding ceremony a great success!

When you have been together for ever – now is the time to do as Tracy and Paul did, and turn your 50th evening birthday party into a secret wedding ceremony! As Tracy wrote “Many thanks for all your help on Saturday, the surprise worked perfectly. It was exactly as we wanted and more, & we are thrilled you could help us!”

Where are you planning to take your honeymoon after your personal humanist wedding ceremony? As an active member of Trip Advisor I would recommend:

1. Hawaii – this is where my husband and I went – it is honeymoon central! All of the shows (Elvis, Polynesian) have special gifts for honeymoon couples – though some are little baby toys, perhaps not appropriate for slightly older couples! And the weather is perfect, highly recommended.

2. The Italian Lakes – this is also a very romantic area, with lots of walks in the hills around the lakes where you can be alone! Also the food is excellent.

3. Thailand – some friends of mine honeymooned here, and liked the combination of cities and culture, with good food and beaches.

4. Champagne (Reims) – easy to reach by train or car (this is best – to bring home the bottles), this is a really romantic city with a huge cathedral and free tasting at many Champagne houses, lovely!

5. Miami – romantic for both heterosexual and same sex couples, there is nothing nicer in the winter in the UK to get up at 8.30 am, walk along the beachfront to a waffle breakfast, wearing only a t-shirt and shorts and it is sunny!

Please do email to me if you have any queries, happy to answer them 🙂

I am very happy to travel to Paris on the Eurostar with your guests and you, to help you hold a beautiful ceremony at your own Parisien location. Full details are on the new “Amour List” of Wedding Suppliers who cover France:

http://www.weddingbookfrance.com/wedding_suppliers_france/6359/hilary_leighter_wedding_celebrant/

Hilary Leighter – Best Celebrant – England and London

This month I have been awarded Best Celebrant England in the International Wedding Expert Awards, following votes from clients, peers and friends. You will see that I earned 115 votes, the highest in Europe! http://www.weddingindustryexperts.com/

I am planning to answer your wedding questions on their international website, but if you have any questions here in London and the UK, please do email to me personally.

Each of my non-religious humanist wedding ceremonies is unique and personal to the people concerned.

Here is what Phil the photographer has posted about Reena and Dannys’ ceremony:

“Reena & Danny’s marriage ceremony has left a deep and lasting impression on me. I’ve heard tell of Humanist wedding ceremonies, in passing, from colleagues in the field of wedding photography. In each case it’s been via Twitter come to think of it, which explains why my knowledge of the specifics was scant but my awareness of their ability to profoundly move was already in mind. It’s not something that can be explained in 140 characters. It’s not something I’m sure I can explain here, with no limit to word count.

I can say that it was a ceremony far more about the couple at its centre than any other ceremony I’ve witnessed. I’ve witnessed a great many ceremonies where there was already a profound sense of it being about the couple though in those cases I suspect it was the sheer personalities of those individuals breaking through a ritualistic structure prone to seeming to be more about itself than about the people at its centre. In essence this ceremony wasn’t about itself, about Humanism I suppose, but it was about humanity and two people and their commitment to each other shared by those around them. I can’t explain it really. Not fully.

It was an intensely personal experience. I also loved how it embraced aspects of Hindu, Jewish and other cultures with an exchange of garlands, an exchange of rings, of personal vows, of sweets, the smashing of glass underfoot to cries of mazel tov, the lighting of shared candles and the circling around those candles to a Hindu recital. None of these were set aspects of a Humanist wedding ceremony; they were aspects of Reena & Danny. I can highly recommend taking this approach to sealing a marriage! Reena & Danny’s celebrant was Hilary Leighter and she conducted an enriching experience for all concerned.”

Thank you very much Phil, and thank you again Reena and Danny.

News from BBC Scotland:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-16816512

Of course humanist wedding ceremonies are already legal there.   Let’s hope this additional legislation passes during 2012.