Writing your vows can be hard, so make writing yours fun with all the right steps to perfect them so you are ready when the time comes!

As somebody about to tie the knot with your significant other, it is only natural for you to be a little bit nervous and wondering where to start at the thought of writing your vows. Lucky for me as a celebrant who has conducted many weddings where couples have shared their hearts for all to see, I know a few tips and tricks to help you out when it comes to this!

First of all, I have to say that there is an option to not write personal vows to each other. Legally, there is wording that you need to say in order to get legally married. This wording is to the effect of 'I call upon the people here present to witness that I, person 1, take you, person 2, to be my lawfully wedding husband/wife/partner.' Some people stop at this as it fits with what they want for their wedding, but with others, they need to have that personal touch with their vows that this statement alone just does not deliver. So, this is where I come in!

One of my first and probably most important tips for starting to write your vows is please don't use Google! Whilst it may be fun to go to Google and type in 'wedding vows for a hopeless romantic who was in the right place at the right time', this will not be true to your story, and is less likely to get that emotional and heartfelt reaction you would expect from your partner or your guests. Definitely make sure it all comes from the heart!

I do also recommend writing down everything you love about your partner. Their beautiful smile, how they always make you laugh, and what you love doing together. This will help you in crafting those perfect vows. I always like to think of a structure for your vows, think about promises you want to make to each other, think about how your story started, and how it brought you here to this very day, and think about what you want for your future with each other. Then, all of a sudden, you are on a roll and the writing comes naturally to you!

I would also recommend to keep at it. Keep perfecting it, if there is something else you want to add, make sure you do, and don't settle for anything less until they are absolutely the perfect version of what you want to say on the big day. But in saying this, don't add things like cliches, which we have all heard a thousand times before, make if fun and unique, make it unexpected and something where the crowd and your partner is absolutely blown away!

Once you have got it all down, and written the most beautiful vows imaginable, it is then time for the big day. You are nervous, you are excited, you are worried that maybe a joke is not going to land or that you might break down and cry during your vows. All of this is completely normal, and I would suggest that you embrace everything about the day. Each layer of the day is special in its own way, and your vows are a huge part of it!

I like to print your vows onto an A5 card holder, and give them to you on the day, just in case you are not able to remember them. I have only married 2 couples who have memorised their vows off by heart, and I was very impressed at how they did this! I would have been way too nervous for it, but my couples always continue to impress me. I also give you a cute gift with a copy of your vows in it as well, so that you can frame it and have it with you as a memento of what beautiful words you exchanged to each other on the day.

As a final word of advice, vows can be hard to write, but they can also be so rewarding to write when you know that the person you are saying them to is the person who you want to be with for the rest of your life. If you need further advice, I would love to help you out, we can hop on a call and discuss this further as I am always keen to help my couples on all steps of their journey to married bliss.

Happy vow writing!