Vow Writing tips

Loads of couples ask for help, as not many people are natural word smiths and don’t know where to start, so here are our tips!

LEGAL VOWS - WHAT ARE THEY EXACTLY?

So the legal vows are pretty traditional wording, a little old school, but they are a legal component, so you must say them word for word somewhere in the ceremony in front of your celebrant, wedding guests or your two witnesses or you won’t be legally married!

Some couples have chosen to intertwine these into their personal vows, some ask to say them first and then flow on with their personal vows. Most couples choose to end their personal vows by asking me to print their vow cards with the legal wording at the end, the choice is yours! What ever you choose, let me know and I will make that happen!

LEGAL VOWS - WORD FOR WORD

I ask the people here today,

to witness that I (Your full legal name),

take you (Your partners full legal name),

to be my lawful wedded Husband / Wife / Spouse / Partner in Marriage.

Below are some examples of vows past couples have written which will give you an idea on the different ways you can write your vows.

My biggest advice is: BE AUTHENTICALLY YOU! Talk to one another in your vows like there is no one else there. They are for your partner, not to entertain the guests. If you’d like to leave some things just for the two of you, write one another a more in depth version to exchange privately that morning or even the following morning.

If you’re full romantics, loved up and your friends call you ‘THE LOVERS’ then keep that tone in your vows. If you’re practical jokers, love a laugh and are ok if everyone has a giggle, throw some humour in. But here are some prompts to get your brain thinking and creative juices flowing:

  • How did you feel when yhou first met?

  • How did you know this was your forever person?

  • What you love about your partner (try and think of different things to what you answered in your questionnaire)

  • What does your partner love about you and how does that make you feel?

  • What makes you both Tick / Laugh / Perfectly you two?

  • What do you see for the future for you both?

  • How will you help get you there?

  • Make 3 -5 promises if you get stuck on the above. 1: Funny, 1: Heartfelt/Lovey/Romantic and 1: Cross your heart kind of promise to really drive home how serious these vows are and your commitment is.

ALSO - Keep them a secret, but discuss the tone and length because you don’t want to feel like a jerk who writes 2 heartfelt sentences but your love wrote 2 hilarious and romantic pages! Nikki’s vow cards are A5, so up to 230 + 250 words MAX will allow me to print them along with the legal wording onto the A5 card in size 12 font. If you go over, no stress, I’ll add pages to the vow cards for you, but please chat about word count so you both had the chance to add or subtract if needed.

EXAMPLE ONE

I never would have guessed that walking into the Subiaco house on Sunday, the 9th of February 2020, I would meet the love of my life and, one day, stand across from him at the altar, soon to call him my husband.

NAME, you are my best friend, my partner in crime, my rock, and my person. We are both so wonderfully weird, yet weirdly similar, and it just works. We finish each other’s sentences, think the same thoughts, and I simply adore you.

I count myself lucky every day that you came into my life—or that I came into your house wanting to rent a room—and I cannot imagine my life without you in it. Who would have thought that we’d end up here!

You are my soulmate and my everything. You let me dream all my crazy dreams, yet you still manage to calm me when I feel overwhelmed or anxious. I find myself instantly happier when you’re around—something about your presence, your silly jokes, or the way we can talk for hours about nothing and never run out of things to say.

I love that you call me on my way home from work every day so we can talk the whole way home. I love that you leave me notes around the house, just so I know you’re thinking about me. I love that I can be my full self around you and never question your love for me. I know we share a special kind of love—one borne out of friendship that has grown into something so rare and extraordinary.

I promise to always be your rock, to support you, and to be on your team.

I promise to try things that scare me, as long as you’re by my side, and to always encourage you to follow your dreams.

I promise to push you when you need to be pushed, to hold your hand when you need support, and to hand you a glass of wine when it’s just been one of those days.

One lifetime is not enough. So may we meet again in the next, and every one after that. I love you infinity times infinity, and I cannot wait to spend my life with you.

EXAMPLE TWO

Lover, Words are not enough to explain the love I have for you.

You know that I believe everything happens for a reason and you arrived in my life at the very moment I needed you most.

You saved my soul and my spirit and for this, on our wedding day I make these 10 promises to you to live our marriage by:

*I promise to love you unconditionally through the good times and the bad

*I promise to encourage you to be the best version of yourself

*I promise to be the best father I can be to our children and our future children

*I promise to always have my foot available at night so you can go to sleep

*I promise to always improve on communicating with you

*I promise to support you in all of your decisions in life

*I promise to give myself to you emotionally and physically

*I promise to be there to catch you if you stumble, and fall in love with you every day

*I promise to work as hard as I can to provide our beautiful family with the best life we can possibly imagine

And my final promise to you is this - I promise to be the person you’ve always deserved, to respect you, honour you, love you and to cherish every moment with you as we grow old together.

EXAMPLE THREE

Lover, words are not enough to explain the love I have for you.
Four years ago, when you walked in to the Botanica bar with your horrible baggy jeans but gorgeous smile, I would never have imagined that we would be standing here today.

Over the ensuing years we travelled on life’s journey with triumphs and challengers. We’ve renovated a house together, and survived, travelled, started our little family with our gorgeous fur babies, especially our Rufy boy, sold a house and are now about to embark on our new adventure down south in our new amazing home. We’ve grown so much together and I’m so excited for our future.

You are my bum squeezing, song singing, ridiculously competitive best friend and soul mate. And with this, because words cannot do it, I promise to show you, for the rest of my life, how much I love you.

As we continue to grow in our lives together:

I promise to encourage you to follow your dreams.
I promise to make you laugh when you are taking yourself too seriously.
I promise to hold your hand through the good times and through the bad times and to always know in the deepest part of my soul, that when challenges arise we will always find our way back to one another.
I promise to be loyal and faithful and to put you before all else.
I promise to adventure with you always, to say I love you before falling asleep each night, to be the best Mum I can be as we grow a family together,
And lastly, I promise to have the Adelaide Crows as my number one football team from this day forward.

Lover, you are my everything, I love you to the moon and back and this is my promise to you.

EXAMPLE FOUR

To my stunner (Lovers name),

From our first tinder date at the fine dining Botanica I knew you were special. How special and how lucky I was to of met you, I was about to find out.
4 years later and here we are in front of each other committing to doing life together.
I’m completely spell bound by how amazing you are and can’t imagine saying’ I do’ to anyone but you.
We have 2 amazing Dads who showed us how marriage works and how to love, 2 men I admire immensely and I promise from this day forward to love, treat, protect and care for you like they did our Mothers.

You are my stunner, my world, my everything, today I can 100% say I’m the luckiest person on this earth.
I can’t wait to smooch you, wiggle/squeeze ya bum, look into those blue eyes, try beat you at everything, pick you up when your down, support the Crows together, wipe away ya tears, make babies, give you foot massages and most of all keep falling in love with you for the rest of our lives xxxx

EXAMPLE FIVE

Lover, when I first met you, I could only dream of you being a part of my life, now I am marrying you and my dream has come true to be able to spend the rest of my life with such a beautiful caring soul. You will always be perfect in my eyes today, tomorrow and for eternity.

You bring me so much happiness and joy. With this in mind:

* I love the way you always make me smile by just looking at you.

* I love how kind hearted, selfless and considerate you are.

* I love your positive attitude towards everything in life.

* I love how you motivate and believe in me.

* I love how you inspire me and always bring out the best version of myself.

* I love how the simple things in life mean so much to you.

* I love how you support me in everything I do, without you I wouldn't be where I am today.

EXAMPLE SIX

Lover, Well here we are. We’ve seen each other standing up here over the past few years, being a part of our friends and families special days..and now its our turn.

You are the most amazing person I have ever met. You are beautiful, kind, thoughtful and would go above and beyond for anyone lucky enough to be a part of your life. Our relationship has always just felt right, and when we jumped head first into buying our house together after only 6 months some called us a little crazy. But here we are, still crazy and ready to take another big leap. 

So Im ready for more stupid jokes, more picking up your shit around the house, more coffees and walks with the dogs, and as many more days I can possibly get in our incredible lifetime together. 

So even though we are dressed up and looking fancy today, take my hand and just remember that this is us, this is our day, our family and friends all around us, and our moment for everyone to witness that 2020 can end with two people showing how much love they have for each other

...and lets get fucking married!!!!

EXAMPLE SEVEN - Short and simple - but says oh so much!

I promise to be there when you need me, to fill your days with sunshine,

to comfort you and encourage you, to help you reach your goals,

to be your best friend and to love you all my life, with all my heart.

THIS COUPLE both repeated this during their ceremony as they had given one another a letter the morning of the wedding with their deepest vows to one another as they didn’t want top declare such personal declarations in front of 150 people - YOU DO YOU!!!!!

EXAMPLE EIGHT

You are eternally captivating to me. I love everything I know about you now and I trust that as we grow and experience life's adventures, I will love you even more. 

You are the first person I think of when I open my eyes in the morning, and you are the only one I can imagine myself loving so unconditionally. 

In the chaos of life, you are the calm in my crazy mind. Your presence not only grounds me but also becomes the anchor that steadies my restless and nervous soul. 

You are my sanctuary where the business of life fades away and my truest self can be present and unguarded. Your unwavering belief in me is my source of inspiration, encouraging me to reach higher and become the person I aspire to be. I have absolutely no doubt that you will be the same for our family, which I cannot wait to start as I know you will be an incredible father. 

You feel like home and everywhere I haven’t been all at once. Your arms are my safe place, your touch is my warmth, and your heart has mine forever. I am always in constant awe of your boundless compassion for others, and your vibrant, energetic nature effortlessly draws people into your orbit.

Together we have already navigated so many of life's complexities and adventures, hand in hand. I vow to cherish and honour the calm you bring into my life and in turn, strive to be the calm in yours. 

As we embark on this journey together, I promise to be the steady ground beneath your feet, a source of support, comfort and understanding. In moments of chaos or joy, I will be there, right by your side. 

I promise to encourage you to reach for your dreams. To inspire you and motivate you. 

I promise to be there to catch you if you stumble and fall in love with you even more every day. 

I promise to adventure with you always, to snorkel, fish, hike or sit on the beach watching the sunset. 

I promise to say I love you before falling asleep each night. 

I promise to always fight for you, protect you, pursue you, and love you wholeheartedly and unconditionally for the rest of my life. 

I know there are no guarantees in this world, but whatever happens and whatever life throws at us I need you to know I want you by my side. And whether we are sick, healthy, rich or poor, my life will be complete as long as I have you. 

EXAMPLE NINE

NAME, from bullying you on the bus to and from work to standing by your side here today how we’ve come come so far.
From the moment you first met my families I was only told one thing, don’t screw it up Jacob, knowing full well what was meant by this and how you are  as a person I knew I couldn’t because you bring the best out in me, you’re the perfect addition to my families and we welcome you with open arms
Your bubbly, happy, loving and nurturing soul are just some of the reasons why I got on one knee for you, you’ve shown me what true love is and the right way to love somebody no matter what challenges have to be faced that day or any day, knowing that I have your upmost support with any plans or decisions that we have made wether it be work, lifestyle or how we’re going to spend the rest of our lives together you know how to put all the pieces together.       

I promise to care for you, always have your back, help you, be the best husband that I can be but most of all l promise to show you the love that you show me each and everyday.       
I love you, you’re my favourite person in the whole world, my partner for life
When death takes my hand I’ll hold you with the other and promise to find you in every lifetime.