Wedding Ceremony with Jamaican And Celtic Rituals

I was asked to create a deeply personal wedding ceremony for Carl and Maxine that combined their Jamaican and Celtic heritages. They also wanted the ceremony to be romantic, lighthearted and involve their guests in various ways.   At our initial meeting they said they wanted the saxophone played at their wedding, and asked, is that possible? I let them know that at a celebrant-led wedding anything is possible. The other element they definitely wanted was a reading from a cherished book that Maxine had bought as a child and which was apparently banned in the US in the 1950s for supposedly promoting inter-racial marriage. Thankfully we have come a long way since then.   Aside from that, nothing was set in stone, and as I got to know the couple we explored the various wedding ceremony rituals and looked at how we might be able to tailor them to reflect their heritage. 

Carl is Jamaican and Maxine is of Scottish and Irish descent, and so there were a lot of directions we could go in. We researched Jamaican wedding rituals and decided upon a rum punch cocktail that the couple made themselves in front of everyone, both adding different elements, with Carl supplying the warm, dark Jamaican rum. And then they sipped the cocktail from a ‘quaich’ which is a two handled silver Scottish cup, a nod to Maxine’s Scottish roots. I had to practice saying quaich quite a lot (it is pronounced kwake but the ‘ke’ is like the ‘ch’ in loch!). I may be a Sussex wedding celebrant but I am also half Scottish, so luckily I know how to do a Scottish ‘ch” sound. 

The ceremony also included a handfasting, which is a Celtic tradition from Ireland, in honour of Maxine’s Irish side of the family. The couple said their vows during the handfasting, each tying a knot after they had said their vows. 

And the saxophonist did indeed make an appearance - more than one in fact! He serenaded the guests as they took their seats, delivered a solo performance during the ceremony and later played while Maxine and Carl hammered nails during their ‘wine in a box’ ritual to drown out the noise. 

I involved their guests in a couple of different ways. While they waited for the bride to arrive they all took selfies of themselves and everyone in their row and sent the photos to Maxine with a message of support, giving her and Carl something fun and touching to ponder over after all the fun of the day. And towards the end of the ceremony their guests all joined in the chorus during the final blessing, proclaiming their ongoing love and support for the couple in their married life together.  

What an absolute joy of a ceremony to work on and lead. 

“It was a wonderful day …a wedding that will be talked about in family history (both sides). You did an astounding job” 

Their wedding took place in late December 2025 at Woldingham Golf Club in Surrey.