FAQs

Of course I am! If I wasn’t already married, I’d do the same! You want to make sure the person who is leading your marriage ceremony is a good fit for you and your vision for the day. Let’s get together for a cuppa or a video call and get to know each other a bit. You can ask any questions you like, and get back to me! The only pressure I’ll ever put on you is if I’ve got two or more couples barking up my tree for the same date and you need to be aware so that you can secure the date. Otherwise, it’s a safe place with no pressure! You’ve got to gel with me! 

Absolutely! The ceremony should reflect you as a couple and how you see your married lives together. We can make your ceremony truly unique and far from traditional! The Marriage Act 1961 just requires that the celebrant makes a brief statement called the Monitum, the couple states some very short legal vows and the marriage documents are signed as required. However, these legal requirements just take a few minutes and then we can change things up. The more the better from my perspective!

I would also be honoured to incorporate special cultural and family traditions, and/or workshop lots of ideas if you’re not actually sure where to start to begin with.

It is your day, so let’s do it your way!

Of course! I have a compendium of resources full of tips and inspiration, but firstly we will discuss the vibe you’re after! Some people want really deep and poetic, romantic prose, with lengthy descriptions of their love stories. For other couples, they want to keep things really light and amusing and cut to the chase!

I encourage people to think about their own interests and personalities and the ways we can inject those elements into the ceremony. For example, tequila aficionados may want to sneak in a cheeky shot to seal the deal, while competitive couples might like to Rock Paper Scissors for who goes first in the vows.

We can discuss some of the many fab possibilities when we get together. 

For marriages to be solemnised and fully legal in Australia, two witnesses over the age of 18 need to be present at the ceremony. The witnesses need to sign the marriage certificates and provide their full names. It is preferred, but not essential, that the witnesses know you just in case they are asked later to verify the details of the wedding ceremony.

For anyone seeking to have an elopement that does not include any known witnesses (to you), I can arrange to bring a few witnesses for you for $50 each. Your photographer/videographer can also be a witness.

Yes. I am required to both establish each party’s identity, plus where and when they were born.

There are different forms of identification that can be used to satisfy the above requirements, but most simply you can provide:

·  your passport (it may be expired but not cancelled) or;

·  your original birth certificate or an official extract of birth and some photo ID such as your driver licence, proof of age card or an official photo ID card.

Photo identification is required so that I, as your celebrant, can see that the person before me is the person listed on the ID.

Birth certificates and passports both contain the date and place of your birth. 

If the name on your birth certificate does not match your other documentation, you will need to provide a trail of documents to prove relevant changes. Such documents may include a divorce certificate, driver licence, passport and/or an official change of name certificate from a state office of Births Deaths and Marriages.

I will guide you through which documents are required for your individual situation.

I will step you through the legal paperwork to getting married to make it as simple as possible for you.

There are four main forms that you will need to complete:

The Notice of Intended Marriage (NOIM). It must be completed and signed both parties to the marriage between 18 months and 1 month before the expected wedding date.  If one couple is not available to sign the NOIM initially, they can sign it at a later stage prior to the wedding. The couple will also need to provide ID when completing the NOIM and show evidence of the divorce, annulment, or death of a previous spouse if applicable.

Declaration of No Legal Impediment to Marriage (DNLIM). This form is completed shortly before a couple gets married. For example, at the rehearsal, or even just before the ceremony. It is a formalised check to ensure that you are both willing and able to go ahead with the marriage.

Official Certificate of Marriage, which is actually duplicated. One copy is on the reverse of the DNLIM and they are both submitted to the BDM by me after the ceremony. The other duplicate is kept by me.

Form 15 Certificate of Marriage, which is the ornate or decorative certificate of marriage that you keep. Please keep this certificate in safe keeping as once it is signed on the wedding day, it cannot be replaced under any circumstances! (Think about which friend or relative is best placed to look after it on the day when you are busy being the couple of honour!)

The Official Certificates of Marriage and the Form 15 Certificate of Marriage are signed on the wedding day, during or immediately after the ceremony. If an interpreter is required, there will also be documents that they need to sign.

After the wedding, I as your celebrant will lodge the wedding documents with the Births Deaths and Marriages in the state where you married. This must be done within 14 days by the celebrant.

Yes, your celebrant needs to sight your divorce order before you can be married to another person. If you were divorced in Australia last year, your divorce order will have been issued to you electronically, with a certification that the divorce order took effect on the date indicated. The celebrant can rely on this order. The divorce certificates have varied over the years, and also vary in different countries. If you have any further queries about this, please just let me know.

The main issue that a celebrant is establishing here is that both parties are not already married to someone else, and they are free to marry their new partner.

Yes, I will bring my high quality Bose PA and Sennheiser microphone(s), and any additional cables I need. I am passionate about great sound!

Please notify me of the ceremony venue setup so that I can plan accordingly for adequate power supply.

As for ceremony audio tracks, we can discuss the logistics around this; I am certainly happy to facilitate where possible (I often bring my music and technology loving husband along and he does a brilliant job), but we need to be highly organised as we cannot always count on phone signal, wifi, etc.  I also can’t always guarantee Kon’s availability to join me, so please aim to discuss this with me in advance.

I take a $250 non-refundable booking fee on all of my wedding packages, so that at the very least, I can reclaim administration costs if the wedding is moved or cancelled. This is especially important during the busy wedding season, where I’d likely be at another wedding if I’d not locked it in with you.

I appreciate that changed or cancelled plans to an event such as a wedding are distressing, and I aim to be as supportive and kind as possible with regards to changes. I do reserve the right (as the date gets closer and closer) to invoice hourly for work I’ve completed to prepare your ceremony, but I would tend to this on a case-by-case basis.

Of course I do! I was thrilled and relieved when the Marriage Act was amended in 2017 to allow same sex couples to marry. So long as there are two consenting, willing, and legal adults seeking marriage, I am there! Please let me know if there are any adjustments we need to make to your wedding in order to be accessible and inclusive, and I will make every effort to enact this.

I also want to be across the language of inclusion in your wedding; this may mean that we are using terms like wedding party over bridal party, groomswomen, best gal, besties, folks, whatever! There may also be some less rainbow and more run-of-the-mill considerations like blended families, step-siblings, dearly departed, challenging relationships/trauma etc, and I want to get it right for you. Words are important and really set the tone for the feel of the day.

Yes of course! I love to travel and get out and about in Victoria and interstate for weddings and other ceremonies! I will request reasonable travel and accomodation expenses to be covered.

In Victoria: no travel costs for the first 60km and then $1.00/km thereafter. Any accommodation, parking or other fees will be discussed case-by-case when we are planning!

It’s definitely a black Earl Grey or some kind of sav blanc/white wine situation if it is wine o’clock! But give me a chai latte, hot choc, ginger tea or G&T and I’ll be a happy camper!

Weirdly for a Melbourne gal, I’m not a coffee person! (Except the coffee shot is in a tiramisu!)

Honestly, it depends on the day. But usually I am a big fan of both!

And I especially love dogs and other beloved pets being involved in weddings - in whatever capacity works for the animals, people and venue.

At the very least, I am going to want to know all about your pets!

Fun fact: I was once an official bunny wrangler at a wedding! Just ask me about it! Thankfully, the bunny stayed put with me and didn’t bound off into the gardens!