Lindsay Fleming Couture

Grace Lindsay is the creator of these beautiful Celtic, Medieval and Vintage Bridal Designs.

The Dark Angel Design Co Ltd

Fairytale, Gothic, Bohemian and historically inspired bridalwear for men, women and children.

The Sage Arts

Beautifil handmade creations, to adorn the body and home; using a delightful array of colours yet still appealing to the gothic and pagans within us all.

Gothic Wedding Flowers

These good folk offer a complete design service for your gothic or alternative wedding.

Claire Ogden Designs

Beautiful handmade jewellery and tiaras with a distinct celtic, bohemian feel.

Gothic Cruises

I couldn’t believe my eyes when I came across this site – yes, my Luvlies, our very own gothic caribbean cruise.  Get your shades out, find the factor 50, and get booking.

Getting Married in Northern Ireland

In Northern Ireland, preliminaries may vary according to the method of solemnisation.  The basics are:

  • minimum age is 16, for both parties, but parental consent must be given for people under 18.
  • the parties must arrange for two witnesses to be present at the marriage to sign the marriage register.

Documentation required:

  • if birth certificates of the people getting married are available it is helpful to the Registrar if they can be produced when the notice of marriage is given.
  • if either party is from abroad an official travel identity document for that person should be produced.
  • parties who have been previously married should produce documentation or evidence of the death of the former spouse, or the dissolution or annulment of the marriage.

If getting married at the Registrar’s Office:

A Registrar of Marriages is legally authorised to perform civil marriages.  The marriages must take place by Registrar’s licence or Registrar’s certificate.

Registrar’s Licence

  • A Registrar’s licence may authorise a marriage in his office or church or other building registered for marriages in the registration district, provided that a t least one of the parties lives in that district.
  • If both parties live in the same Registrar’s district, one party must have lived there for at least fifteen days and the other for at least seven days immediately before notice is given to the Registrar of that district.  Notice may be given by either party.
  • If the parties live in different districts the 1) notice must be given to the Registrar of each district, 2) both parties must have lived in their respective districts for fifteen days immediately before giving notice, and £) the Registrar within whose district the marriage is to take place must have received the certificate from the Registrar of the other district before he issues his licence.
  • The Registrar, seven clear days after the giving of the notice, and after administering an oath or declaration to one of the parties, may issue the licence.

Registrar’s Certificate

  • A Registrar’s certificate may authorise a marriage in his office or in a church or other building registered for marriages in the registration district, provided that a t least one of the parties lives in that district.
  • If both parties live in the same Registrar’s district, they must have lived there for at least seven days immediately before notice is given to the Registrar of that district.  Notice may be given by either party.
  • If the parties live in different districts the 1) notice must be given to the Registrar of each district, 2) both parties must have lived in their respective districts for seven days immediately beforehand.
  • After twenty-one clear days from the date that the notice was given, the Registrar may issue his certificate.  Where notice was given in different districts a certificate must be issued by each Registrar.

The above information is not complete law and is given as a guideline only.  To find out more about getting married in Northern Ireland within the different churches, please refer to www.weddings.co.uk

Getting Married in Scotland

Current Laws

  • prior residence in Scotland is not a pre-requisite to marriage
  • minimum age is sixteen
  • the marriage would be regarded as valid in any foreign country to which either party belongs

There are 2 types of wedding ceremony:

  • A civil marriage – which is performed by a Registrar, and can only be performed in a registry office, and
  • A religious ceremony – which is performed by a minister.  Theoretically, these can take place anywhere, either in or outdoors, however it should be pointed out that different churches and individual ministers have their own views on marrying couples who are from outside of their parish, and performing ceremonies in locations other than their church.  The only way to find out where  the church or minister stand is to ask.

Before a couple can get married in Scotland both parties must submit a marriage notice along with the appropriate fee to the registrar for the district in which the marriage id to take place.  The marriage notice forms are available from any registrar (whose address can be found in telephone directories or online) or from the Registrar Central in Edinburgh.  Normally these should be submitted a minimum of fifteen days and a maximum of three months before the ceremony, however four weeks is the recommended period (or six weeks if either party has been married before). Along with the forms the registrar must also be supplied with:

  • birth certificates
  • divorce certificates (where relevant) – please note that a decree of divorce granted outside Scotland must be absolute or final – a decree nisi is not acceptable.
  • certificate issued by a competent authority of the country of residence (usually the civil authority) if either party is a national of a country other than the UK to the effect that there is no impediment to the proposed marriage certified translation of the certificate if the certificate is in a language other than English – phew!  This certificate is not necessary if the party is now resident in the UK and has been for two years.

The registrar will be able to make checks and then will prepare the marriage schedule.  The whole process normally takes about fourteen days.  In the case of a civil wedding the Registrar retains the schedule until the date of the wedding, however, if a religious marriage is intended the schedule is issued to the parties one or other of whom must collect it in person not more than seven days before the wedding.  The schedule must be produced before the ceremony for the person performing the marriage who is then required to sign it, along with two witnesses over the age of sixteen.  The Registrar then retains, or must have the schedule returned to him within three days so that he can register the marriage.  Where one of the parties lives in England or Wales and the other in Scotland, the former if he or she wishes, may apply to the English or Welsh Superintendent Registrar for a certificate which the Scottish Registrar will accept in lieu of notice – this certificate should then be forwarded to him as soon as possible.

The above details are not a representation of the complete law and are a guideline only.  For more detailed information please try www.weddings.co.uk

Getting Married in England and Wales

Unless you are marrying in the Church of England or Church of Wales by Banns or Common Licence, notice of marriage has to be given personally to your local superintendent registrar at the Register Office in the district where you both live.  A notice of marriage states the names of the parties to the marriage, age, marital status, occupation, nationality and the intended venue for the wedding.

Both of you must have lived in a registration district in England or Wales for at least seven days immediately before giving notice.  If you both live in the same district, you should both attend your local register office together to give notices of marriage.  If you live in different registration districts then each of you will need to give notice separately in your respective district.  After giving notice you must wait a further sixteen days before the marriage can take place.  A notice lasts for a period of twelve months, but if there is a change of venue then a new notice must be given.  If you are planning to get married in a different district to the one you live in, you must contact the registrar at that district before giving notice, to ensure that they are available for the wedding.

Your marriage cannot go ahead unless the legal formalities have been completed.

Notices off marriage must be given in person by you and your partner – no one else can do it for you on your behalf.  When giving notice of marriage, proof of identity is required in the form of a passport or birth certificate.  Those who have been previously married will have to produce documentary evidence of the death of their former spouse or the dissolution of the marriage, in the form of a death certificate or divorce decree.

Under the Marriage Act 1994, a marriage may take place in a place of religious worship, register office or public premises officially registered for marriages.  Civil marriages may now therefore, occur in places such as stately homes, civic buildings or hotels, (but not open air venues – it is the rooms that are licenced, not the grounds).

There are nationally set fees for giving notice to the superintendent registrar and the registrar’s attendance at the marriage at a registrar office or religious building.  However, the fee for the attendance of the superintendent registrar and registrar at a marriage in an approved premises (e.g. at a hotel) is set by the local authority.  The superintendent registrar of the district where you wish to marry will be able to provide you with details of the fees payable.

On the day of your wedding you will need to take two people with you who are happy to witness your wedding and sign the marriage register.

In Short

  1. Select a few dates you are happy to get married on.
  2. Find a venue that suits your requirements (for the marriage ceremony itself – not necessarily the party venue afterwards)
  3. If the venue is in a different district to where you live, contact the registrar in that district to book them for the wedding ceremony.
  4. Collect together any necessary documentation and give notice of you intention to marry to the registrar in the district(s) that you live in.
  5. Continue to plan your wedding however you see fit

For more in-depth in formation please consult www.wedding-service.demon.co.uk

Also, for more advice if you think that immigration issues could apply to your situation please go to www.direct.gov.uk

We Just Got Engaged!! Erm, What Do We Do Now?

Right then, congratulations are in order so it seems.  Well done, you’ve got the scary bit out of the way and now have butterflies in you stomachs.  So?  Where do you begin?

What date?  What venue? Can we really have Auntie Jean and Stella in the same room after last Christmas?

Well first things first, heh?  We’ll leave family spats out of it for now; things will be governed in the short term by the rules and regulations of our Motherland, the UK.

The next three articles form a  small series outlining the laws that rule where and when you can get married, within England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.  They concentrate of non-religious ceremonies.  Articles covering religious ceremonies may follow at a later date.

The majority of the information in the articles has been provided by the website www.wedding-services.demon.co.uk.  This is a UK wedding site that I must say I find rather confusing to navigate around, but there is some good advice and information to be had for those that persevere.  Another comprehensive site that I have used in this info gathering is http://www.weddings.co.uk/info/legal.htm

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