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

David of Griffin Alliance (they're DJs, people..)

David of Griffin Alliance (they're DJs, people..)

Did you know that there is just one question you need to ask to help determine if someone is a trained, experienced and professional wedding DJ? 

It was during my interview with wedding photographer and nice guy, Luke Simon, when I first heard about this cool DJ/businessman that I have never crossed paths with before; David Bartholomeusz. David's level of commitment to client satisfaction and business excellence is inspiring. And even though David and I couldn't match our schedules for a face to face chat, he generously volunteered to record his answers to my hard-hitting questions for us.

I hope you enjoy his take on DJ trends, the science of holding a crowd and the difference between extroverted and introverted DJs as much as I did. One day, we may even get to have that face to face chat.

***READ ON TO FIND OUT HOW TO DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE 14-PAGE, 300+ SONG EBOOK: WEDDING CEREMONY MUSIC GUIDE!***

Over to you, David!

Luke Simon of Luke Simon Photography

Luke Simon of Luke Simon Photography

Luke is just one of those perennially 'up' kinda guys - always brimming with energy and enthusiasm whenever our paths cross. But the best part about working beside him is how inspiring and talented he is as a wedding photographer and businessman. From the outside at least, he seems to do a stellar job of balancing his family life with his ever-growing business interests, which include yearly trips to the Maldives for work (yeah, right..!)

I caught up with Luke in his Colonel Light Gardens studio for a chat about his process and why couples really need a wedding photographer who is always 3 steps ahead.

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 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.

Dan Evans of Dan Evans Photography

Dan Evans of Dan Evans Photography

Here's something to consider when you're hiring your wedding photographer; you may spend anywhere up to 10 hours of your big day with them and around 8 hours with your new husband or wife. Yep - crazy to think about, yes?

For me, Dan Evans of Dan Evans Photography is just a pleasure to be around - just like an old (or quite young!) friend. There is no pretence with him and he's also very passionate about what he does. We sat down for a coffee at The Edge Deli Brighton, just down the road from his studio, to chat about how to make the taking of your wedding photos fun and relaxed which in turn, translates into an awesome end result.

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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.

Brian Ruiz from The Shizzle

Brian Ruiz from The Shizzle

Nothing can match the celebratory nature and heightened sense of anticipation that live music can impart on a wedding ceremony. In my past life, I was a performance music degree graduate and although I try to stay out of the way of the musos while I’m doing weddings, I can’t help but notice when an artist gets it right; there is a big difference between ‘just playing a song’ and performing an original interpretation with energy and integrity.

Brian Ruiz is one of the most soulful musicians and fun guys that I have had the pleasure of working with at my Adelaide weddings. It was great to sit down with him at Patch Kitchen & Garden, Stirling and have a chat about what he does and why he believes (contrary to musician snob rhetoric) that performing at a wedding is the best gig in town.

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.

Sarina Jenkins of Golding Wines

Sarina Jenkins of Golding Wines

With sweeping vineyard views from the paved terrace bordered by landscaped gardens and the character sandstone barn, family owned and run Golding Wines boasts a wonderfully distinctive and rustic setting for celebrations or just a lazy Sunday afternoon sipping wine at the cellar door (accompanied by a slice or two of their crusty wood oven pizza, of course). 

And even though every wedding that I have been a part of there looks like it's been ripped from the pages of a magazine, they also run incredibly smoothly. Their Events Manager, Sarina Jenkins, is in the business of making dreams come true. Sarina and her team's attention to detail (like having a staff member ask the groomsmen to empty their pockets just before the ceremony starts so their mobile phones or keys are not unsightly distractions in the photos) and professionalism week after week is what really sets Golding Wines apart.