wedding planning, wedding advice
Camille Abbott
How to Change Your Name After Your Wedding in ...

If you’re looking to change your last name after your wedding, but don’t know where to start, you’re not alone.

In my experience as a marriage celebrant, up to 90% of newly-married brides (and a few pioneering grooms and spouses) choose to change their last or family name after marriage and are super confused about how to go about it.

It’s a real process that can take around 8 hours over several days or weeks to complete. This is because every company or institution has their own unique process and is not legally permitted to share your details with anyone else.

The good news is, I can help save you a lot of time and even some money too.

Let’s get started!

How to Change Your Name After Your Wedding in Australia
real wedding
Camille Abbott
Alana and Peter’s McLaren Vale Micro wedding

Alana and Peter's wedding plans (like so many engaged couples worldwide) were thrown into disarray in 2020.

Between the NSW border closures due to COVID-19 and their original venue in Byron Bay burning down (true story!) Peter and Alana tried for a 3rd and final time to have a super low-key, no stress day just for them and their immediate family.

Something simple, but beautiful, elegant, but without any pretence.

Alana and Peter’s McLaren Vale Micro wedding
real wedding
Camille Abbott
Emily and Sam's Romantic Adelaide Hills Wedding

Sam and Emily make time to see their families, to share special moments together, and they love talk on the phone often. They wanted to bring this warmth and appreciation, that had always been shown towards them, into their wedding ceremony too.

With COVID border closures, the tyranny of distance and for those who'd passed away, some of their family were not able to be with us in person, so we incorporated them and their interests as much as we could through readings, a memorial and with a big smoochy kiss right down Alex's lens. 😅

Emily and Sam's Romantic Adelaide Hills Wedding
wedding planning
Camille Abbott
EVEN MORE unique wedding ceremony readings

I’m not one for fluffy and OTT poetry and I think it’s fair to say that the majority of my couples aren’t massive fans either.

But I do recognise how the power of a well chosen wedding reading in a ceremony can be instrumental in bringing about a feeling of gratefulness, humanity, and hope.

And a great reader who takes the time to deliver a quote, reading or poem with poise and intention can really lift a modern wedding ceremony above and beyond the ordinary.

But first, you need a great wedding reading.

Hopefully this post, along with 5 Wedding Readings That Aren’t Too Soppy and More Unique & Beautiful Wedding Readings For Your Ceremony, will help you to narrow down the search.

EVEN MORE unique wedding ceremony readings
wedding advice
Camille Abbott
5 wedding readings that aren't too soppy

What are your options if you want to include a reading in your wedding ceremony, but aren't a fan of Shakespeare and don't want to have 1 Corinthians 13?

The great thing about civil ceremonies in Australia is, apart from 3 sentences that I have to say from The Marriage Act 1961 and 1 legal sentence you have to say in your vows, the rest is completely up to you. The sky's the limit.

And you can make your ceremony even more meaningful by finding a reading (or two) that you LOVE - rather than something you think is 'just okay'. Readings can come from anywhere; lyrics from songs, quotes from movies or the words from your team's victory song (God help us all..)

Here are five of my favourites..

5 wedding readings that aren't too soppy

wedding advice

2015 wedding stats in Australia: How to use them to your advantage

2015 wedding stats in Australia: How to use them to your advantage

Australia's big wedding website, Easy Weddings, released the results of their 2015 annual survey of around 2200 brides and grooms last week. And I'm not going to lie to you, there are some pretty scary figures in there. But if you look close, behind the stats, there is also some useful insider information that you could use to your advantage to get the very best result possible from your months (and months!) of wedding planning and your hard earned dollar. 

Here are my top-line takeaways from this year's survey.

6 things I have learned about beach weddings

6 things I have learned about beach weddings

One of the most romantic and naturally beautiful venues for a wedding ceremony in Australia is on one of our many stunning, sandy beaches. On a sunny day, there is an atmosphere of freedom and fun that is hard to replicate in any other setting.

That said, with the experience I’ve had conducting beach ceremonies over the last 7 years, I have learned a lot about the difference between a successful, enjoyable celebration and those that have proved to be challenging at best. With a little prior planning you can be sure to get the most from your beachside location while avoiding some common pitfalls.

How to look amazing in your wedding photos

How to look amazing in your wedding photos

I feel very fortunate to frequently work beside some of the most exceptional wedding photographers in South Australia. I can't help but admire their dedication to the craft and how talented they are. But the bonus for me, on top of their fun and friendly personalities, is their wealth of knowledge. They have shot hundreds of weddings in their time and know all the tips and tricks. So here are their little pearls of wisdom, their best ever advice, on how to look AMAZING in your wedding photos.

Give good mic - Part 2

Give good mic - Part 2

I can certainly understand how, if you don't use a mic in your line of work or on a regular basis, it can be a bit intimidating to have to use one on one of the biggest days of your life. 

In Giving good mic - Part 1  we learned that getting the attention of your guests (and keeping it) is as much about being heard as it is about a heartfelt and relevant ceremony. And now we can all (albeit begrudgingly) agree that mics are not evil and are in fact very helpful. 

So in the interests of keeping your stress levels low and your confidence high, here are my answers to the top 3 questions about mics that I am asked by my brides and grooms.

Give good mic - Part 1

Give good mic - Part 1

A good wedding photographer friend of mine once commented on how a handheld microphone (henceforth referred to as a 'mic') looks a little phallic in his ceremony photos. Some brides and grooms shriek with dismay when I let them know that, for their 100 guests to actually hear them, they will need to speak into a mic during their ceremony; "oh, I HATE the sound of my voice!"

Everyone wants to know why I (and every other registered marriage celebrant in Australia who is required by the Code of Practice to "make efforts to ensure that the marriage ceremony is audible to all those present, using audio equipment, if required")  believe that using a good quality mic properly is so important. Apart from having a mildly sadistic streak (haha!), there are several other excellent reasons why making the effort to use a mic will make your ceremony so much more enjoyable for everyone involved.

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No Ugly Crying

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No Ugly Crying

We've all seen the photos; black rivers of mascara streaming down the bride's cheeks and grooms gulping for air like a fish out of water. It's not an elegant look. It is also one of the most common concerns that my wedding couples have about their ceremony; "how do I stop myself from crying uncontrollably?"

The good news is that there are steps that you can take to minimise the 'damage' and prevent those embarrassing snotty snorts into the microphone as you're trying to say your vows.

9 new-world rules of wedding ceremonies

9 new-world rules of wedding ceremonies

Okay, so here’s the thing; civil wedding ceremonies (in Australia, at least) can be as wacky or subdued, formal or relaxed, modern or traditional as you and your fiancé want. All you need is an experienced and willing celebrant to guide and support you (call me) and the intent to make your marriage ceremony one that your guests won’t sleep through. So the truth of the matter is, there are no rules. But in the interests of giving you something to work with, here are my 9 new-world rules of wedding ceremonies.

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3 smart ways to include family in your ceremony

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3 smart ways to include family in your ceremony

Your mum and dad have stuck by you through all your awkward phases. Including your desperate pleas for a horse at 8 (of course I will feed it every day, Dad!), your emo phase at 14 (black was the new black) and your obsession with a really, really dodgy local band at 21 (don't deny it, you know it's true). And if your siblings are anything like mine, they would have mocked and teased you mercilessly through the aforementioned phases. 

But here you are, planning your wedding and you really want to acknowledge and include them in your big day. Sure, your dad can walk you down the aisle, but what are your other options?

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DIY vs Delegation - a cautionary tale

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DIY vs Delegation - a cautionary tale

Once upon a time there was a savvy, no nonsense bride. Let's call her Jackie* (*bride's name has been changed to protect the overly ambitious). Jackie was planning the wedding to the man of her dreams on a pretty tight budget, but she knew what she wanted and figured; "hey, I'm a pretty smart/creative/resourceful woman. Why should I pay an arm and a leg for some things if I can learn how to do them myself AND get the satisfaction of having worked hands-on on our decor/flowers/signage/invitations/midnight snack boxes/hot chocolate spoons/limoncello cocktail favours etc.?"