A couple saying their vows to one another in front of their celebrant while exchanging rings

Writing vows

Many couples choose to include personal vows in their wedding ceremony in addition to any legal declarations required. Writing vows may feel daunting, but our celebrants can help.

Inspiration for vows

Your celebrant can share a selection of examples of personal vows which you can choose from, ‘mix and match’, or simply use as inspiration for writing your own.

They can be long or short, emotional or humorous – whatever feels right for you as a couple. Suddenly coming over all ‘hearts and flowers’ when you’re usually all ‘beer and mountain bikes’ might not feel authentic.

The more ‘you’ your personal vows are, the better they will feel.

As with readings, you can even look for inspiration from novels, songs or movies.

So, if there is a particular movie or TV show that means something to you both, you can read the script and see if you can find the right words. Popular sources of ‘alternative’ vows for example include Tim Burton’s Nightmare Before Christmas and Corpse Bride, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Game of Thrones.

Both of you can choose the same personal vows for each other, or you can each choose different vows.

Read or repeat

You can read them to each other or, if you’re nervous about speaking in front of your guests, your celebrant can recite them and you can either repeat line by line or say ‘I do’ or ‘we do’ at the end.

If you do choose to read them, there’s no need to add pressure by memorising them. Write them down and read them out!