What are wedding vows? Everything you need to know
Arguably one of the most emotional, intimate and special moments of a wedding ceremony, wedding vows are the pinnacle moment in the big day. It’s your declaration of love and promise to one another for a lifetime! So what exactly are wedding vows? Here are all the answers to all your vow related queries…
What are wedding vows?
Wedding vows are the promises that two people make to each other during a wedding ceremony. Vows can be different across the globe, from different religions all the way through to the individual couple and how they want to have their vows. It is ultimately up to you and your partner and what you both want!
Your guests bear witness to your promise to each other, and the beauty of vows is that they can be as romantic and soppy or as humorous and silly as you’d like. It completely depends on the style of your wedding and your ceremony. Vows will take place after the officiant sermon by your marriage celebrant or any religious readings - if you choose to have any. You will exchange rings immediately following the vows and the consummation of marriage and the big kiss follow!
The most commonly heard wedding vows are the traditional catholic wedding vows:
“I, [name], take you, [partner’s name], for my lawful wife/husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and health, until death do us part.”
You can opt to have traditional vows, or you can write your own…
Why is it so important to have wedding vows?
Have you ever teared up when watching wedding scenes in movies? Watching two people confess their lifelong love and commitment to each other is emotional and beautiful. Wedding vows essentially encapsulate the whole feeling of the day and that’s why they’re so important. So just like in the movies, your wedding film is no different. The vows form the backbone of and tone of your wedding film and that one true moment where you declare lifelong promises and your commitment to each other is captured by your wedding photographer and videographer to rewatch forever.
Why it's so important to write your own wedding vows
Writing your own wedding vows is no mean feat, but it’s incredibly worth it and it’s something that more couples are opting to do. It’s the one chance to tell the story of you and your partner's journey and give guests a snapshot into your relationship, memories and precious moments.
Traditional wedding vows are very structured, but you don’t have to be so structured when writing your own. There are so many benefits to writing your own wedding vows:
Writing your own vows is a bonding experience and it’s special as they’ll be unique to you
You can share personal stories and memories to make it personal
You can make personal promises and focus on your values and beliefs
You can acknowledge family and friends and having your own vows to read will ensure guests are really listening as it’s something they won’t have heard before
You can say I love you and say exactly how you feel
So when you’re writing your vows, how do you know where to start? Here are some tips for planning and writing your vows:
Vows should be an even exchange, so make sure you have a discussion with your partner on your expectations and decide on:
The length of your vows. Wedding vows are usually around 1-2 minutes long.
Will you be generic or share special intimate moments and inside jokes
Will they be more humorous or sentimental?
Do you want to incorporate elements of traditional or religious vows into your own?
It’s great to be on the same wavelength as each other with how the vows will go, but then the creativity and story can be up to you both individually.
Remember that vows are different from love letters rather than talking about how you feel in the moment, talk about the history of your relationship, how you met and what you admire about each other. Vows are about making commitments to your significant other and talk about your feelings for each other! Make sure they're emotional and this will add a huge amount of value to your wedding film as well. Shutterfly has a great guide to writing wedding vows and inspiration for the structure and kind of things you can include.
So you’ve got all the vows sorted, make sure you’ve got everything checked off and planned using this ultimate wedding planning checklist.
