Ceremony by design

Choosing Jacqui Harding (Ceremony by Design) to perform our wedding ceremony was one of the best decisions we’ve ever made. Even though our initial meeting was over Zoom, we immediately felt that we had found a celebrant whose ability to ‘tune in to’ us as a couple would ensure the perfect ceremony and celebration on our wedding day. That first, online meeting took place just over a year before our big day and as the months passed, we had several face-to-face meetings with Jacqui, usually over coffee, and with an energetic exchange of ideas. Jacqui offered us and guided us through the many opportunities and choices available to make our wedding special and unique. She did this with enormous care and sensitivity and there was always a reassuring feeling of support from a celebrant who was confident in her own delivery but who also listened to our ideas and suggestions. The time from initial meeting to wedding day was like a journey through which we had Jacqui’s constant support. Occasions of uncertainty or anxiety ultimately faded away, dissolved by the supreme confidence we had in Jacqui that, whatever happened, all would be well. Our wedding was a small, intimate affair with just 25 guests. With such a manageable number, Jacqui had ideas that enabled us to make our guests an integral part of the ceremony; these included Ring Warming, Ribbon Hand-tying and, to conclude, a joyous Jumping of the Broom! Our wedding day was the most special day of our lives and we owe a great deal to the enormous skill, care, intuition and professionalism of Jacqui Harding of Ceremony by Design. We can’t recommend her highly enough.

There aren't enough words to express how we feel about Jacqui and what she did for us. At our very first meeting, it was clear she was the right celebrant for our civil partnership. She is warm, funny and a true wordsmith. We absolutely struck gold with her and cannot recommend her enough. Our ceremony was hilarious, emotional, heartfelt, silly, poignant and all the other adjectives. We had so many people approaching us afterwards saying it was the most "original", "memorable", "unique" and "extraordinary" ceremony they had ever been to. Jacqui is a beautiful soul and she gave us a gift we will treasure forever.

We had very specific requirements for an intimate civil ceremony (apparently know as a micro-wedding) and Jacqui created a wonderful service that involved us, our 3 guests and our dog! Although we couldn’t meet with Jacqui beforehand (we are many miles away from her!) we were able to hold zoom calls to discuss and review our plans. Jacqui was superb from the moment we made contact right through until the conclusion of the ceremony. She was professional, but fun with it! She made us feel special and offered many suggestions about how we could make our day meaningful and memorable taking onboard our thoughts and ideas and combining those with her experience and expertise to put together a wonderful ceremony. We would recommend Jacqui as a warm and caring celebrant who can capture the essence of the day perfectly whatever the occasion.

Where to even begin? From the moment we spoke with Jacqui about being our wedding celebrant we knew she would hold an incredible ceremony. She went above and beyond every chance she could and made the whole process special, fun, intriguing, and inclusive. By the time our ceremony came around it felt like having another family member there with us. She really made it feel like us in every way, and we received so many compliments on the ceremony - everybody absolutely loved it! Cannot recommend hiring Jacqui enough - thank you for being an incredible part of our special day.

She skilfully offered creative ways to weave symbolism into our ceremony, incorporating both our ideas and her own, so that we could create a meaningful ritual that represented our story. We loved that Jacqui really understood our 'untraditional' approach and values. The process of working with them was creative, open minded and filled with good humour! On the day, Jacqui was a warm and calming presence for both of us and their talents and years of experience really showed. She held the space powerfully and our friends and family said she helped them to relax into the ritual and come as they were. Jacqui's greatest gifts are her spellbinding storytelling skills, genuine warmth and wit, and gentle sensitivity to others. We couldn't have dreamt for more and are so thankful that she helped us create a sacred memory that will last a lifetime. Thank you, Jacqui!

Jacqui created the most touching ceremony for our wedding; the script she wrote encapsulated all the information she had meticulously gathered from both of us, and made it touching, inspiring, and even funny (at the right time :-))…it was an absolute pleasure for us and our guests! She was a major support, from our wedding preparation to the day itself without fail, especially with her communication, receptivity and dedication. I couldn’t recommend her enough….thank you Jacqui 🙏🏽

Jacqui did such a fantastic job on our wedding day, and created a ceremony that was so personal and perfectly tailored to our needs. We had many of our guests comment specifically on how good Jacqui was and how much they enjoyed the ceremony. Despite living overseas, working with Jacqui was really easy, she immediately gave us confidence that we were dealing with the right person, she coached us through the process and was really clear in communicating her ideas and any inputs required from us and when. We'd certainly recommend using Jacqui to others.

Jacqui is absolutely AMAZING! Of all the things at our wedding the most commented part was the ceremony and how moving it was, & that is all down to Jacqui. As a wedding photographer, I knew I wanted a celebrant. We wanted to write our own vows & make it more personal. Jacqui takes it to a whole new level! She was the 1 cost I'm not moaning about spending money on, haha! She helps with vows & she writes & speaks beautifully. Our guests were blown away by her and so were we.

Jacqui is very skillful in the way she/they constructs ceremonies, we honestly could not have asked for a better celebrant. Jacqui integrates inclusivity into her practice which really resonated with us as a queer and quirky couple. Jacqui has a very sound understanding of her clients needs, and is very open-minded to new ideas and new ways of conducting sacred union. We consider her an integral part of our magical day. Everyone said how amazing the ceremony was and how well J held the space.