"This weekend, possibly the hottest and sunniest day in March, I exhibited at a new wedding venue in Dorset. The wedding fair was organised by The Dorset Vintage Wedding Fair, who I exhibited with last Autumn, at a similarly exciting and successful event.
On Sunday, I was allocated a perfect space in the ceremony marquee with beautiful flowers provided on the table by the exhibiting florist. With over 500 visitors to the wedding fair, from the moment doors opened at 10am until they closed at 4pm, I was pretty much talking non-stop to brides who were at times queueing up to speak to me, and while waiting, watched the DVD running on my laptop of one of my outdoor ceremonies last year on the shores of Poole Harbour, http://www.youtube.com/user/DianaSaxby
Nearly every single person I spoke to was interested in having a celebrant conducted ceremony and understood the benefits. A few had already booked their venues and officiants, but the majority of brides came with open minds and the vision and courage to have a different style of wedding, and a bespoke, personal ceremony tailor made for them. It was an absolute joy to speak with them all and observe their interest and enthusiasm for my particular style of ceremony and the freedom it gives them.
As this was a new venue which I linked with a while ago, along with many other exhibitors, I offered a prize for the draw of a personally designed and bespoke wedding ceremony for one couple valued at £500+ and was surprised at how many people entered for this draw. Some entered on arrival, others entered after speaking with me personally.
The winning bride was the most delightful Gemma, who I had spoken to in the morning with her mother, and 2 bridesmaids. We'd spent time talking together, and she entered the draw afterwards. The Terms and Conditions of all prizes offered stipulated ticket holders must be present at the draw to claim their prize and when I popped my head around the packed marquee as the draw was being made, I spotted my bride-to-be, with her mother and 2 bridesmaids, sitting on the front row!
When I spoke to Gemma afterwards to congratulate her she told me she had already texted her fiancé to tell him she had just won a lady for their wedding! I spoke with her mother too who told me that after chatting to me in the morning, they had needed to be elsewhere so, with the permission of the organisers, they had gone away, and returned in the afternoon for the draw. She also said that after speaking with me in the morning they all came away with the hope that the winning ticket would go to Gemma............. and it did!
Gemma has since told me that the ceremony is the first thing she has obtained for her wedding and she is now excited about planning the rest of her wedding.
Donating a gift for a prize draw doesn't just benefit the winner. I feel especially lucky to have met such a lovely bride-to-be and have such a lovely couple to work with in the future plus I have the advantage of meeting the bride's mother and her bridesmaids.
So, I now look forward to working with Gemma and her fiancé Adam, to design and conduct a very, very beautiful and meaningful wedding ceremony to surpass all expectations!
Is it any wonder I love my work so much that I've dedicated myself to being a full-time wedding celebrant?"
Read Diana's diary in full at
Text and Images Copyright - Grace the Day © 2012
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