Behind The Scenes: A Day in the Life of a Wedding Celebrant

Monday 8th December 2025

8.15 am Alarm goes off, and it's time for a quick cup of decaf tea before taking my dog, Pickle, out for a walk with my husband, George. Send a text to the bride and groom, Georgia and Warren, all excited about their wedding today!

9.00 am Breakfast - fried eggs on toast with halloumi cheese and chill jam on sourdough bread. Made by George!

9.15 am Get ready for the elopement ceremony, which is being held at Brickhouse Vineyard near Dawlish. Curl hair, put makeup on and get into comfy clothes to drive to the venue in.

10.30 am Hang up a 'Soon to Be Mr & Mrs' gold banner in my car, add ice and prosecco to the ice bucket and put it in the car alongside my folder, gift box for the couple, water bottle, emergency kit, shoes and dress.

10.45 am Leave the house to go to the hair salon to pick up Georgia, who has just had her hair and makeup done. She looks gorgeous. As it was an elopement and they only had one car, I offered to take her so they wouldn't see each other all done up before the ceremony. I then drive us to Brickhouse Vineyard. She is a bit nervous, so I get out my calming essential oils from the emergency kit, and we do some deep breathing together. By the time we get there, she is feeling much better.

11.45 am We arrive at the venue and have an hour before the groom, Warren, arrives with their two boys. The chairs have already been set up to create an aisle, and a table is at the front. There is also a beautiful Christmas tree there. I set up my folder, glasses of water for myself and the couple, the Wedding Certificate and take a couple of photos of the ceremony space. Georgia sets up materials for the Wine Box Time Capsule and the Sand Ceremony.

12.15 pm The cake arrives, which is stunning and made by the wonderful Lisa of Boho Cakes, and Georgia goes to put her dress and jewellery on. I do up the buttons at the back and then have a little coffee and a catch up with Meg from Mimosa Photography.

12.45 pm Warren and their two sons arrive. Warren and I go through the music cues with the wedding coordinator, and I give her and the photographer a 'music cue script' to follow throughout the ceremony. I have a quick chat with Warren to see how his morning has been, and then go to see if Georgia is ready to go!

1.00 pm I take their sons to see Georgia, and they walk down the aisle together. The ceremony begins and is full of beautiful moments. I regale their love story and all the wonderful things they have told me about each other, including funny and special memories and their hopes and dreams for the future. We even have 'family vows' which included asking the boys if they will always promise to at least try their vegetables and to always do sit down wee wees! I stood to the side as they said their handwritten vows to each other. They then had the Sand Ceremony, Wine Box Time Capsule, and signed the Wedding Certificate as a family.

1.35 pm The ceremony is over, and it's time for a glass of fizz to celebrate the newlywed couple!

2.00 pm We went outside and threw confetti and they had photos taken

2.30 pm They cut the cake, and then I said my goodbyes. They gave me the most amazing box full of presents and a card.

3.00 pm I arrived home and picked up George to go to McDonald's. It was mentioned in the script, and they told me they had it the day before so it was firmly in my mind! I had a quarter pounder meal with a cup of tea.

3.30 pm We got home and brought all my bits in from the car.

3.45 pm Took Pickle for another walk.

4.15 pm Sat on the sofa, absolutely exhausted and watched TV. Might have dozed off ;)

6.15 pm Dinner - my favourite, lamb chops!

7.15 pm Replied to some emails and made an Instagram reel about the ceremony.

8.15 pm More TV, shower, night dog walk and bed!

Their words:

"Claire really is one of a kind with a heart of pure gold ✨

We very luckily bumped into Claire at an open day for the venue we had planned to elope at. Claire immediately made us both feel at ease, and we booked her on the spot. Thank goodness we did, because Claire became such a special part of our very intimate day.

From the moment we booked, communication was frequent and in-depth, and you could tell Claire really cared about our story and wanted to get every detail perfect when writing our ceremony script. Claire’s ‘love questionnaires’ felt particularly special, as they really made us think back over our relationship and talk about little moments we may have forgotten but that are such an important part of our story. From our answers, Claire created the most beautiful, detailed script — you’d have thought it was written by someone who had known us for years (rather than 12 weeks), and it’s something we will remember forever 💖

Claire was so much more than just a celebrant to us. With only myself, my husband, and our two sons sharing the day together, Claire became a wedding planner, chauffeur, nerve calmer, and bridal party all in one. It was so lovely to have someone who wasn’t only willing to go above and beyond, but who truly wanted to. Thank you so much for creating and sharing our special day with us, Claire ✨

An extra special thank you for driving me to the venue with prosecco and essential oils at the ready for my nerves, and for squeezing me into my dress — you really are the best 🩶"

Thank you so much for having me be a part of your special day, it really was an honour xxx