The word handfasting comes from the wedding custom of tying the couple hands or wrists together.

The hands were bound with a cloth or specially designed cord as part of the ceremony or ritual. The term itself comes from an Angelo-Saxon word handfaestung, which was a custom of shaking hands over a contract.

It can be used as part of a wedding ceremony to symbolise the joining of the couple, or as part of an engagement ceremony to show the commitment made to one another.

The colours of the cord or ribbons used can have specific meaning, below are some examples:

• Red: Represents a passion for life, physical energy, health, strength, fertility and ties of blood and family. In some eastern cultures red is associated with luck.
• Pink: Tenderness, romance, happiness, sensual and unity.
• Orange:  Kindness, attraction, trust, creativity, compassion, healing and encouragement.
• Yellow: Harmony, respect, spontaneity, attraction and balance.
• Green: Unconditional love, balance, fertility, health, nature, prosperity.
• Light Blue: Contentedness, harmony, communication, honesty.
• Dark Blue: Wisdom, Intuition, intelligence, strength.
• Purple: Peace, selflessness, power, healing, progress
• White: Spiritual purity, safety, honesty, perfection, peace.
• Black: Strength, mystery, empowerment, wisdom, love.

The couple chose the ribbon or cord colours which they feel best represent them. This also makes it truly personal to them as a couple. The cord is then kept by the couple after the ceremony to remind them of the commitment they have made and as a beautiful reminder of their day.

Jumping the broom or besom is a time-honoured wedding tradition from West Africa, and can also be traced back to ancient British Pagans.

It has long been a symbol of fertility and Pagans would jump over it in their fields where they had planted crops. It was said that the crop would grow as high as the person could jump!

In modern ceremonies the besom is usually jumped at the end of the ceremony to symbolise a new beginning, jumping over the threshold to your new life together. You can involve your wedding party by following the tradition and having the best man and the maid of honour hold the besom a few inches from the ground whilst you jump together as a couple into your new married life.

The use of a Loving Cup, traditionally known as a ‘Quaich’, in a wedding ceremony can be traced back to an ancient Celtic tradition. It symbolises the joining of two families and reflects the rich and subtle backgrounds and natures each brings to the marriage.

A Loving Cup traditionally has two handles with a Celtic design. The couple pour wine for each other and present it to each other, taking their first drink as a married couple. The toast represents the appreciation of each others qualities as well as their commitment , love and devotion to each other.

This ceremony can be combined with a chocolate ceremony to represent the sweet and sour aspects of married life demonstrating that you will stand beside each other and support each other through whatever life may bring.

Traditionally it was believed that holding the stones during your ceremony would ‘cast the words into stone’.

During your ceremony, when you exchange your vows, you each take it in turn to hold onto the stone as you say your vows, thus casting your words into the stone.

The stone can be of any colour or contain any minerals that may have special significance to you, or it could simply come from somewhere special to you both.

The stone can also be engraved with your names and date of your wedding ceremony and serve as a lovely reminder of the vows you have made.

A Ring Warming ceremony consists of the wedding rings being passed between chosen guests or your entire guests to take it in turn to warm the rings in their hands with warm wishes and love for your marriage.

Who you chose to be part of this is entirely up to you and can be a lovely way to make guests feel actively involved in your wedding ceremony.

The rose is commonly associated with love and used in this ceremony it symbolises the love between the couple as well as the love for and of their family.

As part of the ceremony, the couple not only exchange roses with each other, but also with family members. This represents the love they have for each other as well as publicly acknowledging the love they have for their family.

The exchanged roses can be the same colour as the couples roses, or a different colour. Or perhaps each rose can be individually a different colour. It’s completely up to you.

A nice addition could be where the roses are placed in an engraved vase as part of the ceremony. The couple can then keep the vase and fill it with roses each anniversary to remind them of their vows and love for one another being renewed.

A Rose Petal Blessing is a beautiful ceremony for a Baby naming, Adoption or similar ceremony. It’s a great way to include all of your guests or chosen members to participate in the ceremony.

During the ritual, as the blessing is spoken, different colour rose petals are gently showered upon your baby / child, each with their own special blessing and love.

The sand ceremony symbolises the joining of a couple or a family and is a lovely way to incorporate family members, especially children into the ceremony.

It consists of each person holding a bottle of coloured sand and taking it in turns (or together) to pour their sand into a larger pretty glass vessel. This not only looks beautiful, but symbolises your lives coming together as one.

Each member can chose their colour sand for symbolic reasons or just because they preferred them.

It’s a beautiful way to create a symbolic visual representation of your family joining together as one, for you to keep.

The tea ritual originates from Chinese tradition where the offering of tea is intended as a symbolic and formal introduction of the couple to one another’s families, as well as a form of exchange.

The family members are invited to sit whilst the couple stand or kneel to serve tea to them in a particular order.

This mini ceremony can also be favoured by other cultures representative of you making it truly personal.

A tree planting ceremony can be used for almost any type of ceremony; Weddings, Naming Ceremonies & Funerals. It can be especially meaningful for people who feel a particular bond with nature.

It’s a great way to involve all of your family and guests by inviting everyone to pour some soil as the tree is planted. This symbolises their love and continued support in your lives together as you develop and flourish as a couple.

For weddings, a nice way to personalise it is for each couple to bring some soil from their respective native regions, symbolising their union as one.

Amongst other things, Trees are known for their strength and durability which makes them perfect symbols for ceremonies.

Here are some examples of meanings that can be associated with different species of tree. However the best way to pick a tree for your ceremony is to chose one you both love:

• Apple: Comfort and mystery. In folklore, mythology and religion, apples appear mystical or forbidden fruit.
• Fig: Prosperity and security. These trees are held sacred in India due to Buddha gaining enlightenment under the Bodhi tree.
• Maple: Love and children. The North American stork uses maple branches in their nest meaning it is now associated with love and a new child in the home.
• Oak: Strength and endurance. In Celtic mythology it represents doors and gateways between worlds.
• Olive: Abundance, glory and peace. In Roman times it was offered to Kings, deities and the victors of athletic games.
• Rose: Love and beauty. The Ancients Romans and Greeks associated the rose with love and beauty.

This ceremony is a lovely way to recognise and celebrate the realities of married life.

During the ceremony, the couple are presented with a bell and requested to ring it once together. They are then asked to focus on the sound. The couple are then given the bell to keep and told that should a dispute occur, one partner can choose to ring the bell, signalling a desire for truce and reconciliation.

The sound should take you both back to the moment you first rang the bell during your wedding ceremony. It will help you to recall your feelings of love, happiness and devotion towards one another at a time when those memories are needed most.

A Unity Candle ritual involves the lighting of one unity pillar candle from taper candles.

In a wedding the taper candles are usually lit by a member of each family to symbolise the contribution and guidance that the families have given to each of the wedding couple.

After the vows have been exchanged the couple will take the taper candles and together light the unity pillar candle to symbolise the light of their love and the welcome that they will always hold for each other.

This can also be used in a naming ceremony, adoption ceremony, family union etc and is a beautiful way to visually represent the joining of the family as one.