Tara + Tom | July 2024
“It is hard to describe how incredible Sarah was as our celebrant! She created a wonderful ceremony tailored to suit us perfectly as a couple, taking on board feedback along the way and getting to know us as individuals. ”
I really love Northumberland’s 18th century stone venue Healey Barn; I’ve done three ceremonies there now and there’s something so cosy about it, no matter what the season.
Tara and Tom’s wedding was a gorgeous blend of three of the best accents - Aussie and Geordie and Scottish - with friends and family visiting Northumberland from over the Scottish borders and Down Under. Not to mention all the KILTS. The flowers, too, had a nod to Australia (with eucalyptus) and Scotland (with thistles), creating a calmimg, dreamy blend of green-blue hues.
And, of course, it’s nae Scottish party without bagpipes; I’ve worked with Stevie Bagpipes before, so when the bride and groom were searching for a piper I recommended him. It’s a great atmosphere to have music playing as guests arrive, all excited in their finery.
The mother of the groom was unable to be there in person so Tom’s brother and I made sure before the celebrations kicked off that she had the best possible view over zoom, marking out where I should stand so as not to block the happy couple. I’m always thinking, as the celebrant front and centre, how I can find moments to slip to one side and make sure the couple are the main focus. I’m well aware that they need wedding photos - greeting each other at the top of the aisle, making their vows, first kiss - that don’t have my head bobbing around, forever captured on their mantlepiece. The more ceremonies I do, the more I think about where best to position myself for different parts of the ceremony.
Photography by the sweetheart that is Rosie Davison Photography
It was a beautiful gathering as friends and family beamed up at university sweethearts, Tara and Tom. Friend of the couple, Shona, came forward to read a modern poem that has gained popularity and weddings since it went viral on poet Whitney Hanson’s instagram. I love spending time researching poems, lyrics, passages - anything at all - that I think might suit my couples. It’s funny though, isn’t it? Sometimes the popular ones are popular for a reason. This one always moves me.
They say that sometimes love starts with a spark
And that might be true
But if I were to wish you a love,
I wouldn’t wish fire for you.
You see fire is powerful,
It burns bright then it’s gone
It’s beautiful and warm,
But it doesn’t last long.
So instead of wishing you a love that burns,
I wish you love like a river that twists and turns.
It changes and flows,
It is powerful and free
But it consistently finds its way back to the sea.
And so, like the water,
I hope your love is ever-growing, ever-changing,
I hope your love is powerful and free
And may you always find each other,
Like the river finds the sea.
There was a lovely gentleness to Tara and Tom’s ceremony, with their lilting accents and the powder blue hydrangeas, and with the bride referring to her groom as “a wee sweetheart”. The wedding was infused with a warmth and serenity. Although, of course, there was humour woven through too: from Tom saying he loved “the slight snort she [Tara] lets out when she finds something extremely funny” to the story of Tara first meeting his family and being unexpectedly interrogated about the Treaty of Versailles by Tom's dad.
It might have been a grey sky day, but the bridesmaids were in sky blue. And there might have been drizzle, but the Geordie/Scottish/Aussie contigent brought nothing but good-natured warmth.
Canny far out wee day, pet.
“We had many comments both on the day and afterwards about how fantastic the ceremony was, how it felt like Sarah knew us as a couple, and we feel so lucky to have had such a special experience. ”