Handfasting is an ancient Celtic marriage tradition of the binding of the couple’s hands with cords, ribbons or cloth. You may have heard the term tying the Knot? The custom of Handfasting is shared by many cultures around the world. The term handfasting comes originally from the Old Norse word hand-festa meaning to strike a bargain by joining hands and Anglo Saxon word ‘handfaestung’. It was once commonplace throughout Scotland, allowing a couple to declare their intent at a simple formality that usually took place at the Lammas fair, then live together publically for one year. If all worked out well, they were married one year and one day after they had been handfasted.

Love Note Thea & Shynie Commitment Convention Centre O'Reilly's Rainforest Retreat
Marilyn was amazing and made sure our ceremony was perfect! Love Thea & Shynie xoxo

My original 7 Chakra Handfasting is very popular for couples who connect with their energy centres or eastern philosophies. For couples planning a themed Medieval or Viking or a Pagan/Wiccan Wedding a traditional Handfasting is a must. Handfastings can be full of fun and surprises like my original Dr Who, Rainbow or Fantasy Handfasting providing weddings with the WOW Factor!

Love Letter Mairi + Kristie Scottish Handfasting Wedding Mobile Barber Shop Bundall
Hi Marilyn, HOW EXCITING, OMG the day was absolutely fantastic! My parents were sooooooo impressed by your ceremony and my dad did mention you in your speech because he thought it was incredible. All our guests said it was the best ceremony ever and how they loved the Scottish Handfasting touch. Thank you so much! Love Kristie + Mairi xoxo

Love Letter Jody + Naomi Civil Partnership Old Petrie Town North Brisbane
MARILYN MADE OUR CIVIL PARTNERSHIP CEREMONY SO PERFECT! She helped us make the best decisions and engaged everyone attending in the ceremony. It was the very best day thanks in no small part to Marilyn. We will always be grateful to her for her help in the time before the ceremony and the way she directed us through the ceremony. I cannot think of anyone else I would want to do this for us. MARILYN IS AMAZING!! Love Jody & Naomi xoxo

Love Letter Penny + Angela's Handfasting Broadbeach Gold Coast Surf Life Saving Club
Marilyn, Thank you so much for making our commitment ceremony so memorable and filled with love, not only for us but for our 100+ guests. Your passion and belief for our future together was projected through every word. Your delivery and sound quality was perfect and hard to achieve on the beach, so well done! You were very warm and composed that we relaxed the instant you started speaking. Your continuous support and ideas throughout the planning process was priceless. You made us feel very comfortable and helped us combine traditional vows and practices with the Celtic tradition of hand fasting. You also incorporated our fathers with a ring blessing rather than the traditional giving away. Everyone who attended said they had never been to a ceremony like it and enjoyed every minute of it. We are two very happy brides and will recommend you to anyone we know who wants to get married. Thank you, thank you, thank you for making the start of our lives together unforgettable. Love Penny & Angela xoxo

Love Letter Jude + Barb Handfasting Commitment Pumicstone Passage Beach Bribie Island
Marilyn’s lovely, friendly approach made our commitment ceremony a very ’natural’ process for us; we were wanting something ‘elemental’ and she steered us to a place where we could articulate and make real, what we wanted to share with everyone joining us. We both felt ‘present’ on the day and that our day was unique, all due to Marilyn’s respectful and professional style as our Celebrant. Thank you Marilyn!!! The Girls xoxo

Love Letter Cassie + Saskia's Wedding Eco-Studio Fellini Mudgeeraba
Hi Marilyn, we just wanted to say thank you for making our special day extra special. The ceremony was perfect and everything we wanted it to be and more. We had a guest comment that it was the best ceremony she has ever seen - so we just had to pass on those compliments to you. Thank you so much. The rest of the day was filled with laughs, dancing, awesome speeches and delicious food. Thank you so much again for making our day so special, you did a fantastic job on the day! Love Cassie & Saskia xoxox

Handfasting ceremonies can be done within a traditional ceremony. Your wedding can be upbeat, romantic, fresh, funny and fabulous full of laughter and fun that includes a handfasting. These days most couples use the handfasting ritual as a highlight within their legal wedding ceremony or it can be used for commitments and renewal of vows. This combination of the ancient and modern lends itself well to creating ceremonies that are unique and personal to each individual couple. It is also a brilliant way to include family members and friends in your wedding.

Love Letter Zane + Julian’s Wedding Tamborine Gardens Wedding Resort Tamborine Mountain
Firstly, Marilyn is a superstar, from the first call, to our first meeting and rehearsal in her welcoming home, to the actual ceremony. There are no words that can describe how overjoyed we are that we choose our first choice (we just knew she was the one after speaking to her on the phone) of celebrant. After reading some of the reviews that others had posted you could only hope you day could be a half as good, but believe me when I say it was much better than any review posted. “this is one of the best ceremonies I have attended”, one guest offered up, and another saying “you took us on an emotional rollercoaster. One minute we were laughing and the next crying”. Not only did this give us comfort it was our wedding they were talking about but the tone was set by Marilyn’s amazingly written words throughout, interjecting such fabulous humour and sensitivity. She, also kept control throughout the ceremony and even when things didn’t go to plan, she professionally continued giving enough time for what we had planned ( our dog to howl and bark at a set point), and when it didn’t she continued on, with no-one even noticing (except those in the knowledge)! The vows booklets, ceremonial marriage certificate, the copy of the ceremony and the hand fasting ties were all handed over at the end of the ceremony at a respectable opportunity by Marilyn, and the genuine heartfelt excitement and enthusiasm about us officially married was overwhelming. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts, as this magical moment Marilyn promised us it would be, was everything we expected it to be and more, for not only Zane and I, but for each and every person that attended the wedding at Tamborine Gardens Wedding Resort. Love Jules & Zane x

The Celtic/Scottish Handfasting is definitely the most popular of all my Handfastings. It is often chosen by couples whose heritage includes handfasting as a marriage tradition or couples who are nature oriented or because it is beautiful, magical and moving.

Love Letter Sean + Lee Celtic Handfasting Wedding Tattersals Brisbane City
Thank you Marilyn so much for being our celebrant for our beautiful Handfasting Wedding you’re fantastic! Everyone absolutely loved our ceremony. We really enjoyed your help and guidance. You really helped both Lee and I relax and 'be in the moment'. Thanks again, it was the best day of our lives we can't believe it's all done. Sean and Lee xoxo

Love Letter Maria + Sally from Mackay had a Blessing of the Hands in their Commitment Ceremony at the Mt Ommaney Hotel Apartment's Gardens
Hi Marilyn, Well it’s hard to believe we are almost 3 weeks of married bliss.... we are both back at work now and it’s been tuff trying to get back into it. We just wanted to thank you so very much for making our day so wonderful and special. Everything was just as we pictured it and so many of our guests are still talking about what a wonderful ceremony it was. The Love Story was a huge hit as so many people did not really know where we began and they thought it was such a lovely touch.  Our day was emotional, loving, fun and very beautiful and that is all thanks to you Marilyn.  As I said to you from when we first met the ceremony for us had to be just right and to us was the most important part of our day.  Thank you so much for everything you did, and I have passed on your name to many of our friends both gay and straight who want to make that life commitment to soul mates.  Take care and we will talk soon. Kind regards Maria & Sally Fox - Photos Courtesy of John Bortolin Photography

Love Letter Lauren + Kim Civil Partnership Boulevard Gardens Indooroopilly Handfasting
From the moment we researched and then met Marilyn in person we knew we had made the right choice for our special day. The CEREMONY WAS PERFECT on the day and she also took time to dress to blend in with our colour scheme. She looked gorgeous! Marilyn’s words and our handfasting ceremony that incorporated our wedding party and family members will always be a cherished moment. Nothing was left up in the air, and we experienced the best day of our partnership. We couldn’t be happier to recommend her for any ceremony you may want to choose as Marilyn will believe in you! We were initially concerned that as we were a same sex couple that our decision to hold a Big Gay Wedding Day wouldn’t be met with as much enthusiasm as we felt towards it. We were wrong! Marilyn was amazing beyond words. She quickly explained that Queensland had recently passed a legal Civil Partnership option for couples like us that either couldn't legally marry, or for those that chose this option instead of marriage. We were so happy to find out that we would have some form of legal document to sign on the day that legitimised our union. Marilyn also helped us heaps with listening to and understanding what our families would like as far as participation on the day. Thank you Marilyn! Cheers, Kim Harman & Lauren Ely xxx

Love Letter Robyn + Lyndall Scottish Handfasting Wedding Mantra Zanzibar Mooloolaba
Our Wedding was Very Special and Marilyn made it so easy because she possesses a calming nature and we felt comfortable in her hands. WE WOULD HIGHLY RECOMMEND HER TO CONDUCT ANY WEDDING CEREMONY ESPECIALLY SAME SEX MARRIAGES. She also gave great advice and suggestions for our special day as we combined traditional wedding vows as well as our Scottish Family Tartan Handfasting Ceremony. After an evening discussing their same sex marriage with our neighbours and how highly they spoke of how wonderful Marilyn was as their celebrant we knew straight away Marilyn was for us. We immediately arranged for a phone link chat with her. After the initial discussion we felt like old friends and how amazing she is as a person and as a celebrant. So, after 33 years together we finally settled on a date and Marilyn did the rest. Marilyn made the whole process so easy and we felt very comfortable with her as she possesses a lovely demeanour, a very sweet personality and is extremely passionate, just what we needed to help us through the wedding preparations. Marilyn arranged all the legal paperwork and assisted us with the ceremony procedure we wanted. Lyndall and I will always be grateful to Marilyn for her help before the ceremony and the way in which she directed us through the ceremony on the day. All our Love Robyn & Lyndall 2018 xoxo

Handfasting can be conducted in a circle as it has no beginning and no end, it is eternal.The circle is a universal emblem of wholeness and completion. It symbolises continuity, eternity, completion and speechlessness. As it represents what is complete and unbroken, it also stands for everlasting love. The circle is often aligned with the cardinal points of the compass - north, south, east and west.