Planning a wedding comes with a lot of questions, especially if you’re considering a celebrant-led ceremony. I’ve pulled together answers to the things couples most often ask me – from how a celebrant wedding works to where you can have one in North Wales, Snowdonia, Anglesey, the Llyn Peninsula and Cheshire.
If you don’t see your question here, just get in touch – I’m always happy to chat.
A celebrant wedding ceremony is a completely personal, non-religious wedding ceremony created just for you. Instead of following a set script, I get to know you, your story, and what really matters to you, then write and deliver a ceremony that feels like you.
It can be formal or playful, traditional or modern, outdoors in the mountains or indoors at a stunning venue. The point is – it’s entirely your choice.
A registrar wedding follows a set script, with little flexibility in what can be said or included.
A celebrant wedding is completely personal – written from scratch to reflect your story, values, and personalities. You choose the vows, readings, music, rituals, and location, and I’ll bring it all together in a way that feels relaxed, inclusive, and totally you. Read more about the difference between the two here.
Not yet. Currently, celebrants don’t have legal powers. Most couples do the paperwork at the register office, then celebrate properly with a personalised ceremony that feels like their real wedding day.
Yes you can. That's exactly what Rod & Dan did. They popped into a room to sign the paperwork with the registrar, and then walked straight into their celebrant wedding ceremony with me.
Other couples sign the paperwork on a separate day before or after the wedding. The day you were born is your birthday. Then at some point, your parents registered your birth with the local registrar - it can work exactly the same for weddings.
Registry offices offer a "Statutory Ceremony". This usually costs around £54.
Yes - with a celebrant ceremony you can get married pretty much anywhere, and North Wales and Cheshire has loads of great places to tie the knot. A celebrant wedding isn’t tied to licensed spaces, so you can choose a mountain, woodland, barn, beach, or your own back garden. If it matters to you, it can be the backdrop to your ceremony.
Yes you can. I love it when couples choose this option because it makes for such a personal and relaxed day. Whether you're working with a wedding planner to have a marquee wedding, or dreaming of a microwedding in your house and garden, a celebrant ceremony gives you total freedom to plan the day as you wish.
This is exactly what Angela & George and Katie & Seb did in their North Wales Home Weddings.
If you're planning a small wedding, it's a great option to hire a venue that can sleep all your guests and use that as your wedding venue - just make sure you get permission from the owners first!
Chloe & Richard hired the beautiful Gwern Borter Manor in Rowen and Elena & Graham hired the Bodorgan Inn in Anglesey (which even has its own pub!).
I specialise in fun, relaxed and inclusive weddings. I want to make your guests belly laugh and cry happy tears and come away saying "I didn't know you could have weddings that great". I limit the number of couples I work with each year so I can spend time really getting to know them and creating something that feels completely right for them. Find out more about me.
Yes. I want to make it clear that I work hard – as a human being and as a celebrant – to be as inclusive as possible with the people I meet and work with. I continually strive to improve my allyship and to embody inclusivity, dedicating time to professional development so I can serve every couple with respect and understanding. That means using gender-neutral language as standard, investing in inclusivity training within the wedding industry, and making sure my marketing reflects all couples – not just brides and grooms.
I want your experience of working with me to feel safe, supported and celebrated, so you can enjoy every moment of getting married. I’m also happy to signpost you to other LGBTQ+ suppliers I know and trust.
Yes – in fact, I encourage it. There are loads of ways for them to be involved. Instead of bombarding you with ideas, I prefer to get to know you and your dreams for your wedding ceremony so I can suggest ideas that fit the brief.
I also LOVE to get to know your friends and family as part of the planning process - with your permission of course. This is an awesome way of getting to know how they see your love and happiness, and gives me some magic secret bits to share with you on the day.
Yes absolutely. Whether you're interested in a celtic handfasting, a ring warming, a singalong or something specific to your culture, we can look for ways to include that in your ceremony. It's worth noting though that I don't lead acts of worship.
Emily & David had a handfasting with cords laid by their friends and family. Elena & Graham finished their ceremony with a traditional Bulgarian ritual of kicking over a brass pot of water for good luck.
It starts with filling in my enquiry form so I can check availability for your wedding date. From there, I'll send you a link to book a relaxed video chat to find out a bit more about your plans and answer any questions you have. From there, I send you a proposal and contract pack with my T&Cs, insurance and accreditation details. You pay a deposit and fill out a booking form to confirm the booking. After that, I’ll send you my couple’s questionnaire and we’ll start shaping your celebrant ceremony together - either in person or online. I’ll then write a script that’s completely personal to you. We’ll meet again closer to the wedding to finalise the details. On the day, I’ll lead the ceremony so you can focus on the fun part – getting married.
Yes. There's no one-size-fits-all approach here. Some couples want me to ask the questions and they say "I do". Others want to write their own secret vows and share them for the first time on the day. We'll work out what feels right to you, and I'll send you prompts and inspiration to work out what's most important to you.
Most of my ceremonies take place within a two-hour radius of Conwy, covering North Wales, Snowdonia, Anglesey, the Llyn Peninsula and Cheshire, as well as Manchester and Liverpool. I do travel further on request – just get in touch to talk about the details.
Yes. I love creating intimate ceremonies just as much as big celebrations.
Whether it’s the two of you eloping in Snowdonia, a handful of guests at a micro wedding, or renewing your vows after years together, I’ll shape the ceremony around your story.
Most celebrant wedding ceremonies last around 25–35 minutes, depending on what’s important to you and how you’d like the day to flow. There’s no limit from my side – I believe a ceremony should find its own natural length, not be forced into a strict time slot. What matters is that you and your guests feel relaxed, engaged and genuinely enjoy every moment.
Living in North Wales means I'm used to unpredictable weather. For some weddings, like elopements and beach weddings, the unpredictability of the weather adds to the drama - embrace the elements and know that your photos will look incredible!
If that's not your bag, I’ll always help you plan a wet-weather back-up so the ceremony feels just as special indoors. I'm relaxed and flexible.
I’m part of a network of trusted celebrants across North Wales and Cheshire. In the very unlikely event that I can’t be there, one of them will step in using the ceremony script I’ve written for you – so your day goes ahead exactly as planned.
So far, touch wood, it's never happened, although I have stepped in to help other celebrants and - whilst I wasn't their Plan A, I was there to make sure Plan B was just as good.
There's only one of me, and I limit the number of weddings I take on in any month, so I advise couples to get in touch as soon as possible - ideally before they've even confirmed the venue if they're sure I'm the celebrant for them.
My diary is generally open around 12-18 months in advance, although I'm seeing a trend for couples having short engagements and planning a wedding in six months or less. If that's you, don't think you've left it too late, get in touch and we'll see if we can make something work.
My fees are transparent and reflect the time, care and creativity that go into every ceremony. The price includes my couple’s questionnaire, an indepth planning meeting, bespoke script writing, unlimited edits, an online rehearsal, and me leading your ceremony on the day. I’ll also be available for advice and support throughout your planning journey. Find out about my current celebrant ceremony pricing.
“"From the first meeting, Kate thought about what matters to us and why, to create a ceremony that was perfect. It was a pleasure working with her and we come away with beautiful memories from the ceremony and the process of creating it."
"Kate was just utterly fabulous throughout. Our guests couldn't believe how relaxed, personal and fun the ceremony was... completely different to a normal registrar"
“Kate is a lovely, warm and friendly person and from the moment that we met her she put us completely at ease. She drew up the most fabulous ceremony which managed to capture just what we were hoping to achieve.”
“Kate was really friendly throughout the process, professional, warm, enthusiastic, calm, clear, very well organized, and dedicated to creating a ceremony that 100% felt right for us. She delivered a ceremony that was fun, heartfelt and personal, that everyone loved. We fully recommend her!”
Modern and uplifting wedding celebrant and funeral celebrant based in North Wales and working across Eryri (Snowdonia), Conwy, Gwynedd, Flintshire, Denbighshire, Wrexham, Anglesey, Llŷn Peninsula, Cheshire, Knutsford, Liverpool, Manchester and the North West.