Welcome to my second blog of 2024 and one of which I am sooooooooooooo excited to share the platform with my good friend, a wedding supplier and the most incredible Wedding Celebrant I know - the stunning Kelly Hawes!
Kelly is an award winning, Hertfordshire based wedding Celebrant that I have known for a number of years now, and I have been truly fortunate to 'share the floor' with her at a number of events and weddings, and when I thought about doing visitor blogs on my website, I knew straight away that Kelly was someone I wanted to ask. We share a lot of the same beliefs and principals when it comes to the wedding world, and I thought this blog would be a perfect chance to share them and the ball of laughter and light that is Kelly, with all my friends, followers and potential couples embarking on their wedding journey.
One of the things that Kelly and I are both equally passionate about is the fair and equal representation for all couples - inclusivity shouldn't be a buzz word - it should be an everyday word! And when I asked Kelly if she would like to share some thoughts on this subject for my new website - she was 100% onboard!
Grab a cuppa, cop' a squat and take a read ....
Pride Ceremonies with Amy Murphy Photography by Kelly Hawes Wedding Celebrant
I first worked with Amy on a styled shoot – that’s where lots of wedding suppliers pool their skills and products together to create a pretend wedding. These are a great source for us creatives to showcase our skills and produce professional photos to use in marketing.
Amy invited me to take part in her shoot and sent me lots of details including a mood board for the style she was looking for. At a time when the majority of shoots and wedding magazines were only showing the stereotypical heterosexual couples in their products, Amy told me she wanted to show case two couples in one day – to produce two separate same sex weddings. I was delighted to accept – in the online world of marketing it is so important to show your potential couples that you can indeed offer them what they are looking for. But it’s a catch 22 situation – how can I show pictures of me officiating same sex weddings if they don’t book me in the first place.
On the day Amy welcomed me with her huge, beautiful smile, kind personality and a big hug. We had already discussed some ideas of what to add to the ceremony and photos that would be useful to me, all the while matching her “brief” of the art deco styling.
You might have noticed that I managed to coordinate with the flower colours beautifully (this is something I will discuss with you so that I will compliment your day, rather than clash with your scheme).
As an Independent Celebrant I work with each and every couple to write something that is meaningful to them; I entwine their unique story within their ceremony and honour their personalities and their love language - by that I mean I will use the same language that they do to describe each other and their love – some of us show love with big public displays of affection, and others with actions such as cooking favourite meals, or sending texts through the day.
Amy allowed me to suggest a couple of symbolic elements to the ceremonies; for our male couple I handmade a handfasting ribbon, a plait made of the six pride rainbow colours. This was used to bind the wrists of Sam and Samuel together meaning that they exchanged their wedding vows with their pulses touching. Once the vows are exchanged, the couple pull the end of the ribbon to show that they have indeed “tied the knot”. A great photo opportunity as well as a beautiful symbolism of joining in marriage.
For our female couple, we had them perform a sand ceremony. Charlotte and Sarah took it in turns to pour layers of coloured sand, and each colour represented a trait that we would wish their marriage to carry for eternity, such as love, trust and longevity. As you can see the results are stunning, and a beautiful reminder of the ceremony, however the vase also becomes very symbolic of the partnership and those lovely qualities that an everlasting marriage surely needs to survive. The reason we chose the rainbow colours of the Pride flag also becomes a celebration of equality in love, for all.
Amy and I share a real passion for couples to have the day of their dreams ...
--- without having to compromise and without having to please other people. We want them to be authentically themselves, our combined mindset produces a beautiful, relaxed and fun wedding day with every moment beautifully captured; keeping the memories alive forever.
And the final word from Kelly ...
Amy is a wonderfully friendly and relaxed photographer with a superb attention to the details. I’m sure you will agree that the results speak for themselves.
For me personally, it’s how she makes you feel whilst on the other side of the camera that really makes me rave about the smiley, friendly face that has become a friend.
Whatever your skin colour, whatever your gender, whatever your religion, whomever you love, you will always be warmly welcomed by me and all of my partners.
Love knows no boundaries or limits, neither do we!
The amazing wedding industry suppliers and experts who helped me bring this shoot and this message to life:- Venue: Barrington Hall
Models: Sam & Samuel Futcher-Adams, and Sarah & Charlotte
Grooms Suits: Chimney Formal Menswear
Florals & Styling: Bloom In Gorgeous (Flowers by Kim)
Brides Dresses: Burr Bridal Ltd
Hair Stylist: Bliss Hair & Beauty
Makeup Artist: Fabulook Brides
Wedding Cake: Mooreish Cakes
Wedding Stationery and Signage: Little Button Nose Weddings
Celebrant: Kelly Hawes Celebrant
On the day Assistant: Vikki Richman – Your Wedding Friend
Musicians: Kyle Charter, and Myke Clifford on Sax
Videographer & Drone Operator: Gecko Films
Top Table Accessories: Kindly loaned from Beth at Miss Carlysle & Co
Glassware for Champagne Tower: Bitter Sweet Bartenders
Confetti: Your Confetti
Model Mum’s: Lisa & Karen
Photography Team: Will Hilton Photography and Amy Murphy Photography (Concept, Organisation & Planning)
Wonderful read Amy and Kelly, the ceremony ideas with the string and sand are great!