Wedding Ceremony Chair Options and Ideas

Wedding Ceremony Chair Options and Ideas

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Recently, a bride asked me about providing chairs for her with her wedding ceremony setup. I asked her what type of chair she wanted and she didn’t really know what I meant. I told her about all the different wedding ceremony chair options and ideas. She was surprised and didn’t realize that there were so many different types of chairs to select from. She thought a chair was just a chair!

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There are a lot of different types of ceremony chairs. When doing a beach wedding ceremony simple white fan back chairs look very pretty…and are very affordable. This is a pretty Tarpon Springs vow renewal ceremony setup with our bamboo arbor and white fan back chairs. Charmaine and George Sr. setup the ceremony and officiated the ceremony and took pictures.

For a wedding a chair isn’t just a chair it’s part of your décor. There are ceremony chairs and reception chairs. Some couples will use the ceremony chairs for the reception and others will have 2 different types of chairs. Depending on your wedding and your budget you’ll need decide what works best for your wedding.

Wedding ceremony setup with our white fan back chairs  in St Petersburg

St Petersburg wedding ceremony setup with our white fan back chairs and rose pedal heart Officiated by Charmaine.

When it comes to wedding chairs there are a tons of options! You can get a standard white fan back chair folding chairs, wooden chairs, chairs with cloth coverings, chiavari chairs, and most of these chairs come in different colors. Once you decide on the chairs then you can then decide if you want to decorate the chairs. Chairs can be decorated with ribbons, bows, flowers, mason jars, seashells, etc. These are just a few options used to decorate chairs.

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This is a beautiful ceremony setup we put together with decorated chairs.

A chair isn’t just a chair when it comes to a wedding so if you don’t know where to start check out Pinterest. You’ll find tons of wedding ceremony chair options and ideas. There are so many decisions to be made in planning your wedding, we encourage you to keep your chair decision simple and not get overwhelmed with it. We have seen all sorts of wedding ceremony chair, and non-chair, setups. We are glad to help you come up with a wedding ceremony chair option that makes you happy and fits in your budget. We have chairs for rent and if we don’t have what you want we can get it for you! We work with some amazing local vendors that can provide us with endless ceremony chair options.

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Dunedin Honeymoon Island wedding ceremony setup with our bamboo arbor and white fan back chairs. This sweet and simple wedding ceremony was setup and Officiated by Charmaine.

Did you have a neat wedding ceremony chair setup?  We are always looking for new wedding ceremony chair options and ideas. If you’ve done something beautiful and unique we’d love for you to share with us!

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A Clearwater wedding ceremony setup we put together with wooden resign folding chairs.

 

Chilly Clearwater Beach Wedding!!

Chilly Clearwater Beach Wedding!!

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Geralyn (Brittany’s Mother) had been corresponding with me for over a year in planning her daughter Brittany & now son-in law Kyle’s Clearwater Beach wedding.  Geralyn hired us to handle the ceremony setup including bamboo poles with decorations, sand ceremony and setup, photographer, and officiant.

Clearwater beach wedding ceremony setup. Photos by George Sr.

Clearwater beach wedding ceremony setup. Photos by George Sr.

The wedding was this past Saturday. They rented a beach house on Clearwater Beach. Geralyn corresponded with me about the wedding setup, photos, where to get flowers, hair done, where to go to dinner etc…She was paying great attention to details and I could tell by her messages just how excited and how much this meant to her.  In some of her messages, I could pick up tearful sentiment as she was corresponding about her daughter’s wedding. I let her know that I had a daughter recently get married and sent her my picture of me balling my eyes out at my daughter’s wedding. She laughed, and we continued with Mother-to-Mother correspondence in planning her daughter’s wedding. We enjoyed corresponding and planning her daughter’s wedding. On the day of the wedding it was so nice to finally meet her!

Brittany and Kyle were married this past Saturday at sunset on Clearwater Beach. It was a rather chilly evening. Brittany and Kyle and family are from Illinois so the cold didn’t bother them. They were jumping for joy!!

jumping for joy at their Clearwater Beach wedding. Photos by George Sr.

Brittany and Kyle jumping for joy at their Clearwater Beach wedding. Photos by George Sr.

A multi-colored four post bamboo poles was setup. They performed sand ceremony blending sand into a photo frame.

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Brittany and Kyle’s wedding ceremony setup. A Beautiful Wedding In Florida provide bamboo setup with decorations, photographer, sand ceremony, and officiant. Photos by George Sr.

George Sr did the photographs and video. It was a beautiful sunset. He had them strolling on the beach and got a lot of shots of them having fun together.

A perfect sunset for a Clearwater beach wedding,

A perfect sunset for a Clearwater beach wedding. Photos by George Sr.

Family and friends were going to The Beachcomber for reception dinner. Brittany and Kyle were staying in Clearwater Beach until Monday when they were going to begin their honeymoon bye taking a cruise before returning to Illinois.

Geralyn thanked me so much for everything. She couldn’t believe that it came and went so fast. She looked forward to a relaxing Sunday on Clearwater beach. She sent me an email saying “I want to thank you and George again for all that you did.  It’s kind of sad that our brief relationship is over.  I enjoyed our correspondence.  You must get great satisfaction on the positive way you touch the lives of so many people.  I wish you and your family the best.” It’s always nice to know that our hard work is appreciated and enjoyed.

Congratulations, Brittany and Kyle.

Congratulations, Brittany and Kyle! We had a wonderful time being a part of your beautiful Clearwater beach wedding! Photos by George Sr.

Wedding Officiant Advises Only Professional Pictures During Ceremony

Wedding Officiant Advises Only Professional Pictures During Ceremony

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As a Tallahassee & Tampa Wedding Officiant and Photography company, we see many weddings- small, large, organized, unorganized, DIY, planners, venue, homes, beaches, and so much more. We love looking back at all the weddings we’ve been a part of and remembering the special times.

When we have the opportunity to be your Tallahassee & Tampa Wedding Officiant and Photography company we get to see all your pictures– which is great! With that being said, we see your ceremony from the Officiant side and the Photography side. Recently, the Huffington Post published an article, “Why You Might Want to Consider an Unplugged Wedding” about how guests taking pictures can sometimes ruin the professional photographers pictures….check out the images they shared in the article. We couldn’t agree more with this article. From the Photography side, we have noticed that guests taking pictures do sometimes ruin what would have been a wonderful picture– and from the Officiant side, we notice that guests are so absorbed in taking pictures or video recording they are not actually paying attention to the ceremony and enjoying the moment.

We know guests LOVE to take their own pictures, even if you have hired a professional photographer. We’ve attended weddings as guests and totally want to take pictures too!!! It’s a tough situation to ask guests NOT to take pictures during the ceremony but it’s something to consider when planning your wedding.

One ceremony I officiated the couple asked me to kindly say the following before the ceremony:

““Good afternoon and welcome! As we will be beginning shortly I would ask that those of you with cell phones, tablets, and cameras to please turn them off and put them away.”

At first when the couple asked me to do this, I thought it might be a bit weird and not taken too kindly by the crowd. But, as soon as I said the words everyone was totally okay AND they all watched the ceremony with smiles and tears in their eyes. It was a great experience for all!!!

Here's a picture by Photos by George Sr. where you can see guest taking picture during ceremony ruined what would have been a nice ceremony shot.

Here’s a picture by Photos by George Sr. where you can see guest taking picture during ceremony ruined what would have been a nice ceremony shot.

Another idea would be to put a little sign up asking guests to refrain from taking pictures during the ceremony OR write it in your ceremony programs. I’m sure with the help of Pinterest you could find a crafty thoughtful way to ask your guests to refrain from taking pictures during the ceremony.

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The memories you and your guests have from your ceremony are what matter most…not who posts the first picture of the new Mr. and Mrs. on Facebook….so we hope you will consider our suggestions and the information from the Huffington Post article on having an “unplugged” wedding.

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Facebook & Your Wedding

Facebook & Your Wedding

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Nowadays a lot of couples are meeting one another through various match making websites, as well as, reconnecting old relationships through Facebook. I’ve been a Clearwater Wedding Officiant for a number of weddings where couples have reconnected after many years apart because they found one another on Facebook. The first thing after the ceremony that I hear guests and even the couples say is, “post a picture on Facebook” announcing the newly married couple. I often chuckle inside when I’m at a ceremony and see how important posting on Facebook has become to our society.

Here is a photo of Cheryl who just getting ready to walk down the aisle, and is still making calls, texting and probably even doing a last minute Facebook post. Photos by George Sr.

Here is a photo of Cheryl who just getting ready to walk down the aisle and is still making calls, texting and even doing a last minute Facebook post. Photos by George Sr.

I’ve even had a bride holding her cell phone under her bouquet and wanting a photo taken IMMEDIATELY after ceremony to post on Facebook. A number of weddings are shared through Facebook with so many friends that aren’t able to attend the wedding or may not even know the couple. I’ve often thought about ending the ceremony vows with, “it is now my pleasure to pronounce you as Mr & Mrs please kiss the bride & update your Facebook status.” Haha! What’s the world coming to?! married-on-facebookAll in all Facebook is a great source of social media, keeping in touch with friends, relatives, forming friendships, relationships, and getting a lot of great tips and information. As a Clearwater Wedding Officiant, I love seeing happy couples that have met through online dating sites or reconnected through Facebook. In the end it’s about being with the person you love and it doesn’t matter how you met it matters where you end up! Read this article on The Knot for more tips on Facebook, cell phone, and social media etiquette at your wedding: “5 ways Facebook can ruin your wedding.

Put your cell phone away while walking down the isle!! http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2055503/OMG-Bride-starts-texting-wedding-ceremony-lol.html

“Omg! I’m getting married! Bride takes out her phone and starts textin as she walks down the aisle (after hiding it down her dress)”. Click here to read full story.

 

Indian Rocks Beach Wedding Ceremony

Indian Rocks Beach Wedding Ceremony

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Megan contacted me about performing her Indian Rocks Beach wedding ceremony. She and her fiancé, Michael, would be traveling to Tampa, Florida from Tennessee and wanted a Florida beach wedding. We ‘saved the date’ for Friday, August 15th at 6:00 PM.

When their wedding day arrived it was pouring rain, all day. I contacted Megan at 3:00 PM and asked her about an alternate plan. She said she didn’t have one and was hopefully it was going to stop raining by 5:00 PM. Sure enough at 5:15pm it stopped raining and actually turned out to be quite a nice evening on the beach.

Everyone was crossing their fingers that the ran would stop for Michael and Megan's Indian Rocks Beach wedding ceremony...and just 45 minutes before the ceremony start time the rain stopped!

Everyone was crossing their fingers that the ran would stop for Michael and Megan’s Indian Rocks Beach wedding ceremony…and just 45 minutes before the ceremony start time the rain stopped!

Megan met Michael four years ago on MySpace. Megan had a quote in her vows that she said fit her and Michael perfectly, “True love has a habit of coming back”. Megan said she and Michael had some down periods in their earlier days of their relationship and weren’t together for seven months. They had even dated other people. She & Michael came back to each other and even Michael when we spoke on Friday told me they just knew they couldn’t be without each other. They have a beautiful 20 month old son, who so cutely toddled down to the ceremony.

Congratulations, Michael and Megan. I had a wonderful time being a part of your Indian Rocks Beach wedding ceremony.

Congratulations, Michael and Megan. I had a wonderful time being a part of your Indian Rocks Beach wedding ceremony.

A simple wedding setup was done on the beach. Quilted blankets were laid out for guest to sit on and two post of bamboo like greenery were setup on each side where they would be standing.

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Megan and Michael’s Indian Rocks Beach wedding ceremony setup

They had a tray table for the sand ceremony and little candle lanterns alongside the blankets and it all looked simple and very nice.

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Sand ceremony

Megan and Michael were both tearful as they said their vows to each other. Everyone was so happy that the skies had cleared up and they could have their beautiful Indian Rocks Beach wedding ceremony.

 

Changing Your Last Name After Marriage

Changing Your Last Name After Marriage

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As a Tampa and Tallahassee wedding officiant service, we marry many wonderful couples. We are asked about how the bride changes her last name. I recently changed my last name (was Amanda Doumanian now Amanda Reeves) so I totally understand that it’s a confusing processes, as well as, a pain for the woman! Haha! So we are glad to help with all your marriage license and name change questions please do not hesitate to ask us!

This is an email I recently received from a groom, “We were a little curious how bride will sign her name on the marriage license. She intends to change her last name to mine, so should she sign the marriage license with my last name or her last name now.”

So to clear this up (because we are asked this often), the bride will change her last name AFTER the marriage. Just because you get married does not mean the woman’s last name automatically changes. Today, a lot of woman do not change their last names. When I changed my last name, I made my middle name my maiden name and last name my husband’s last name. There are all sorts of options and in our modern time the woman is free to chose to do what they want.

The bride doesn't have to change her name

The bride can change her last name after the marriage.

If the bride is changing her last name there are a few steps to take and they are all be done AFTER the marriage is legal.  In Florida, your marriage is legal after your Florida Marriage License is notarized by a Florida notary and returned back to the County Clerk’s office where you got the marriage license. After the County Clerk records your notarized marriage license you will receive a certified copy which you will use to get your name changed. Note– if your marriage license is returned via regular mail it’ll take 7-10 days to get the certified copy back OR if you bring it directly to the County Clerk’s Office you will get the certified copy back right then and there.

If you are going on a honeymoon right after the wedding you will use your current ID or Passport then when you return you can take the steps in getting your last name.

Here are the steps (do them in this order) to get your name changed after you are legally married:

1.  Marriage license – get your certified copy of your marriage license. One will be given back to you and if you need/want more you can pay to have extra copies

2. Social security card– you must change your name on your social security card before changing it on anything else. You cannot change your name on your social security card online. You must go to your local social security office to change your name- find yours here. There is no charge to change your name on your social security card. You will need to fill out an application for social security card and bring the required documents. Click here for more details on changing your name on your social security card.

3. Drivers license- contact your local DMV to find out what forms are required to change your name on your drivers license. There will be a fee to do this.

4. Passport- if you have a passport you should go ahead and update it with your new name. Click here for details on how to change your name on your passport.

5. Everything else– bank accounts, credit cards, doctors, insurance, voter registration card, etc.

6. Your signature 🙂 Now that you’re name is legally changed it’s time to practice your new signature!

Getting married is exciting and so is changing your last name so have fun with the process. I recommend making a list and going down the list as you get each one done changed. It’ll make it less overwhelming. You only have to change your last name one time so just do it and have fun with it. And of course, we are here to assist with any more questions your may have!! For more information on changing your license, sunset and sunrise times, and marriage license/County Clerks Office visit our Resources page.