Gloria and Peter were married on 13th August 2016 in a beautiful outdoor wedding ceremony blessing at Hedsor House, Buckinghamshire.
I’m absolutely delighted to share with you their full wedding ceremony story, courtesy of professional photographer Liam Collard (LiamCollard.com) who captured each moment as it happened…
Everything is ready to begin under the pretty floral arch over looking the Chiltern Valley in the distance.
I stand with Peter and his guests, excitedly waiting for the bride to arrive. We’re given the thumbs up that she’s ready, so now I ask everyone to be upstanding as the harpist plays the entrance music….
The bride has arrived on her father’s arm ready to be given away. Peter and Gloria wished to incorporate this Western tradition into their ceremony in honour of her father.
This is a lovely moment, when I formally ask her father “who gives this woman to be married to this man…?”
The service begins, and after a warm welcome to everyone (some guests have flown in from Singpore, Hong Kong, The USA and Beijing!) we start by sharing Gloria and Peter’s love story.
The tale of how they met is a very sweet one and full of giggles! We share this story with their guests, and also tell everyone about Peter’s romantic marriage proposal.
Gloria and Peter’s relationship has spanned oceans in the past, with thousands of miles separating them for periods lasting several months.
We decided to incorporate the symbolic ceremony of the ‘Fisherman’s Knot’ into their service, to symbolise that their love only ever grows stronger, even in the face of a challenge…
It didn’t go quite right first time… or even the second time… but with a little bit of patience the knot was finally tied, third time lucky!
It provided a lot of laughs getting there though!
Gloria and Peter had written their own wedding vows, which brought out a few tears when spoken out loud to one another…
We also included a Wedding Band Blessing or ‘Ring Warming’ ceremony.
The wedding rings were passed around the whole congregation whilst the harpist played some music, and every guests was invited to impart their personal blessings or good wishes onto the wedding bands before they reached the couple’s hands.
How lovely to be able to involve your wedding guests in your ceremony with this beautiful gesture!
…and that was that! When all the ‘I dos’ were said and done, the guests erupted into a round of cheering and applause. Peter and Gloria sealed their marriage with a kiss and headed back down the aisle to begin celebrating with champagne!
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Thank you to Liam Collard for sharing these photos. Also a big well done to wedding planner Rebecca Buckingham of Heart Shaped Weddings for her planning and coordination of a gorgeous day.
Congratulations Gloria and Peter! x
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To discuss the plans for your own celebrant wedding ceremony, email Samantha today! [email protected]