How to Plan a Simple Wedding Ceremony
The ceremony is perhaps the most important aspect of the wedding ritual. Some reasons to have a simple ceremony involve religious beliefs, personal preference and a tight budget. The simplest wedding ceremony involves a trip to the courthouse with a witness for a civil ceremony. If this is not what you have in mind for your special day, read on for a guide to planning a meaningful and simple wedding ceremony.
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Instructions
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Decide which wedding traditions are important to you and implement them in your ceremony. For instance, if you want your ceremony to be a religious one, you will need to inquire with your church for open dates, the fee or donation required for a member of the clergy to perform the ceremony and the fee to rent out the church for an allotted amount of time. Keep in mind during your budget planning that there is also a fee for nondenominational, licensed officiants. Other traditional wedding details include music, scripture readings, flower girls and ring bearers.
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Inexpensive white folding chairs are simple to set up for the wedding ceremony. Reserve the venue. If you have decided on the religious service, the ceremony may have to be inside a church, depending on your faith. Otherwise, pick a site outdoors that holds special meaning for you and your fiance, like your favorite park, mountain overlook or your own backyard. Contact your local state or city park administrator or national park's concession management office to obtain park permits and information on availability, restrictions and additional fees to reserve park space. Rent chairs for your guests; white folding chairs are fairly inexpensive to rent.
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Research traditional and nontraditional wedding rituals and plan each detail of the ceremony. The typical wedding ceremony consists of the introduction by the officiant, an opening prayer and inspirational readings for religious services, a declaration of intention, vows, exchange of rings and an introduction and/or blessing of the union. Although a simple civil ceremony does not include the religious aspects, it does not have to lack personality; put yours into the ceremony and write your own vows.
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Hire an officiant for your ceremony, and discuss with him the simple wedding ceremony you want to create.
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Decide on the attire for you and your intended. If the reason for a simple wedding ceremony is cost, a simple sheath gown or elegant white evening gown is a good choice. The cost to rent a tuxedo is minimal, but note that a tuxedo is not a "must have" for your simple wedding; the groom can wear a nice suit he currently owns for the occasion.
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Make your own bridal bouquet for your simple wedding ceremony. Limit the flowers for the ceremony to the bride's bouquet and the groom's boutonnière. Make your own bridal bouquet from flowers purchased at your local florist, such as roses, or silk flowers from your local craft store. Decorative flowers for outdoor weddings are provided by nature's own beauty. If you choose your backyard for the ceremony, plant flowers from the local nursery to provide a floral backdrop.
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Tips & Warnings
Keep it simple, yet intimate and limit the wedding guest list to close personal friends and family.
When deciding on the traditional aspects of the ceremony, pick only those that appeal to you and your fiancé, not what pleases other family members. Each additional detail takes the "simple" out of the ceremony.
References
- Photo Credit wedding ring exchange image by Paul Retherford from Fotolia.com wedding chairs image by Kimberly Reinick from Fotolia.com bridal bouquet image by cherie from Fotolia.com
