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The delightful blending of the “Sand Ceremony“ is a popular and contemporary alternative to the Unity Candle Ceremony. The sand is used to symbolize the merging of two lives, the bride and groom and or their combined families’ with children. The pouring of two or more different colored sands into a larger vessel creates a beautiful work of art and memento to be treasured forever.
The “Unity Candle” is one of the most common rituals done at weddings. It’s done with at least two thin tapered candles and one larger center candle, also called a ‘unity’ candle. It is aptly named because it symbolizes the unity of the couple; the merging of their two lives.
This can be done a few different ways. The simplest way is that the minister lights the two tapered candles before the ceremony. When the ceremony calls for it, the minister moves aside, the couple steps up and each takes a tapered candle, lighting the center one together.
Note: This is not recommended for outdoor weddings.
Roses are a symbol of love, the giving of a single long stemmed rose is a clear and unmistakable way of saying the words “I love you.” For this reason it is fitting that the first gift a couple should exchange, as husband and wife be the gift of a single rose. This wonderful Intimate Wedding ceremony is inserted just before being pronounced husband and wife.
The hands are a connection to the heart, and a hand blessing symbolically brings two hearts together as one. This is a blessing of the bride and groom’s hands and their role in the past, present and future of the relationship. In any tradition, a hand blessing is a ritual that is meant to draw you closer to one another. It can be done at any point in your ceremony yet fits in perfectly right after the exchange of the rings.
The term comes from the custom of shaking hands over a contract. It is a custom steeped in tradition and the common term that many are familiar with, “tying the knot”, comes from this ancient Celtic custom. The hand fasting knot that is tied is a symbolic representation of oneness between the couple. In a show of unity, the bride and groom become “bound to each other”. This Intimate Wedding ceremony follows the ring exchange.
Throughout history, in nearly all cultures and traditions, the sharing of a cup of wine has been used as a universal and central moment of sharing. The Wine Ceremony or the “Cup of Life” includes the sharing of a glass of wine between the bride and groom at the end of the ring exchange. For many it symbolizes the celebration of the harvest and the changing seasons of life. So it is fitting that the couple take their first cup of wine as husband and wife, to not only celebrate all that has taken place in their lives to this point, but as an expression of hope and faith in the harvest of their lives and the commitment they make to one another.