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Stephanie and Margaret chose the Shafer Baillie Mansion on Capital Hill for their ceremony and reception.  Located in the heart of one of Seattle’s oldest neighborhoods, the mansion is noted for it’s gracious atmosphere of a bygone era, and is surrounded by large trees and seasonal gardens.  Their ceremony and reception were held on the outdoor patio where the guests enjoyed food by Arista Catering and beautiful classical music.  I provided my own custom-made “marriage certificate” so they could enjoy this special moment after their ceremony.

But wait there’s more!

On December 6th 2012 same-sex couples were officially and legally allowed to apply for marriage licenses for the first time in state history (finally!).  Because state law mandates a three-day waiting period between when you get your license and when you get married couples wanting to make it legal could start holding ceremonies on December 9th.  Enter Stephanie and Margaret — again.  I heard through the grapevine (ok, it was Facebook) that they were heading down to the courthouse for a 3:00 a.m. (yes, a.m.) appointment with a judge to make their union legal.  In addition, they were inviting folks to join them.  I immediately called and said, “heck yes,” I want to be there so I can go full circle with you.  After all, we shared a milestone earlier in the year and I was hugely honored to be with them then — so I agreed to join them at the courthouse.   Not only did I join them at the courthouse — I got to be one of their witnesses.  I can’t tell you how great of a feeling it was to join them for not only their legal wedding, but this moment in Washington State’s history.

So here they are, my lovely couple Stephanie and Margaret formally and legally married in the state of Washington on December 9, 2012.  Congratulations my dear friends.

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The esteemed annual awards program recognizes the top five percent of wedding professionals in the WeddingWire Network who demonstrate excellence in quality, service responsiveness and professionalism.

Seattle Wedding Officiant’s selection as a Bride’s Choice Award 2013 winner was selected based on the positive experiences expressed by past clients on WeddingWire, the world’s largest wedding review site with over one million reviews.  While many industry awards are given by the host organization, the WeddingWire Bride’s Choice Awards winners are determined solely based on reviews from real newlyweds and their experiences working with Seattle Wedding Officiants.

The WeddingWire Bride’s Choice Awards 2013 are given to the top local wedding vendors in more than 20 service categories, from wedding venues to wedding photographers, based on professional achievements from the previous year.  Award-winning vendors are distinguished for the quality, quantity, consistency and timeliness of the reviews they have received from their past clients.  As a Bride’s Choice Awards winner, Seattle Wedding Officiants is highlighted within the WeddingWire network, which is comprised of over 200,000 wedding professionals throughout the United States, Canada and abroad.

“Each year, WeddingWire looks forward to celebrating the success of the top-rated wedding professionals within the WeddingWire Network,” said Timothy Chi, CEO, WeddingWire.  “Now in its fifth year, the Bride’s Choice Awards program continues to recognize the elite wedding professionals who exemplify a commitment to quality, service and professionalism.  These businesses were chosen by our bridal community for their responsiveness and dedication to their clients over the past year.  We are honored to recognize Seattle Wedding Officiants for their impressive achievements with the wedding industry.”

Seattle Wedding Officiants is thrilled to be one of the top Officiants in Seattle, Washington in the WeddingWire network of sites, which include leading wedding sites such as WeddingWire, Project Wedding, Brides.com, Martha Stewart Wedding, and Weddingbee.  We would like to than our past clients for taking the time to review our business on WeddingWire.  We value all of our clients and truly appreciate the positive feedback that helped us earn the WeddingWire Storefront today at http://www.weddingwire.com/biz/seattle-wedding-officiants-seattle/355963dc6eae85dc.html

About WeddingWire, Inc.

WeddingWire, the nation’s leading marketplace serving the $70 billion wedding industry, is the only online wedding planning resource designed to empower both engaged couples and wedding professionals.  For engaged couples, WeddingWire offers the ability to search, compare and book over 200,000 reviewed wedding vendors, from wedding venues to wedding photographers.  WeddingWire also offers a comprehensive suite of online planning  tools for weddings, including wedding websites and wedding checklists, all at no charge.

For wedding professionals, WeddingWire is the only all-in-one marketing platform for businesses online and on-the-go.  WeddingWire offers one simple solution to build a professional network, improve search visibility, manage social media and reach mobile consumers.  Businesses that advertise with WeddingWire appear on WeddingWire.com, Project Wedding.com and other leading sites, including MarthaStewarWeddings.com (NYSE: MSO), Brides, com and Weddingbee.com.

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I became a licensed notary in the state of Washington about a year ago.  What that has allowed me to do is fill out your marriage license application with you present and stamp it notarized.  It’s the same process you would go through either going to the courthouse yourselves or visiting with a licensed notary at your bank like I recommend in the earlier post.  My service of being your personal notary translates into: you don’t have to go to the courthouse – I’ll go for you with your $64 fee required by the county auditor and pick up your ceremony packet.  Then I’ll bring it to your wedding!

I only offered this service ala carte to couples up until January 1st when it became part of my regular services.  I now include this convenience to you so that everyone gets to enjoy the luxury of not having to take time off work to run around town getting your application filled out, spend time at the courthouse, etc.

An expanded list of my services can be found on my Fees Page.  My goal at Seattle Wedding Officiants is to continually provide useful information and services to couples that help make their experience with me helpful and seamless.

I will help you craft a perfect ceremony and assist with the details so you can focus on the joy and happiness on your special day. Call me at 206-406-7919 or use this easy contact form. I now also offer free video to video SKYPE consultations.

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Greg and Tammy’s passion for travel inspired a travel theme for their wedding.  Travel details included vintage suitcases and postcards on each table.  I read one of my favorite stories reflecting their love for each other titled, “Love Monkey”.  It’s about two monkeys that travel the world with their hearts in their hands, find each other and fall in love.  It was perfect for Greg and Tammy and brought on a few tears and lots of chuckles too.

Greg and Tammy added some details to their wedding that were unique and lovely.  They used mason jars planted with seasonal plants for their aisle markers.  They offered a selection of yummy cakes rather than one large wedding cake.  Tammy works at a dentist’s office and included a jar of toothbrushes on her candy table!

I had so much fun meeting and working with Greg and Tammy to plan a wedding ceremony that would suit them.  Congratulations to a fun-loving and passionate couple!

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This room is perfect for small gatherings and has tons of potential for decorating.  Elizabeth Hikida of Elizabeth Designs provided the flowers, which were lovely.

My favorite detail?  The cake!  It was lovely with it’s bling and finishing touch of sprinkles that resembled fresh snow.

Michael and Dana are on their way to Marrakesh, Morocco for their honeymoon.  Congratulations Michael and Dana….your journey has just begun!

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The wedding ring, that most famous and instantly recognizable symbol of the joining of a man and a woman as husband and wife in the institution of marriage, has a long, wide-spread and mysterious history.

The ring is of course a circle and this was the symbol of eternity for the Egyptians as well as many other ancient cultures.  It had no beginning and no end, like time.  It returned to itself, like life; and the  shape was worshipped in the form of the sun and the moon.  The hole in the center of the ring is not just space either; it is important in its own right as the symbol of the gateway, or door; leading to things and events both know and unknown.

It is not difficult therefore, to see how the ring and the  gift of a ring began to be associated with love, in the hope that this most worthy of emotions could take on the characteristics of the circle and capture eternity.

Why the left hand?

A wedding ring is often worn on the left ring finger, which is the fourth finger from the thumb of the left hand.  But in some countries like Bulgaria, Norway, Germany, Poland and Russia it is worn on the right ring finger.  The wedding ring is usually worn on the fourth left ring finger of the left hand because it is believed that the left ring finger contains the “vena amoris” or “vein of love”.  It is traditional belief that the “vein of love” directly ran from the heart to the fourth finger of the left hand.

How to wear the engagement ring on your wedding day

It’s up to you.  Most people move their engagement ring to their right hand so that the wedding band will not be “upstaged” and can be placed first on your finger, in its traditional position “closest to the heart.”  Later you can move your engagement ring to your ring finger as shown below.  You may also want to not wear your engagement ring that day — stow it somewhere safe — especially if you are wearing gloves.

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The first thing you need to know is that not all brides decide to change their last name. I would estimate that approximately 90% of my brides change their names to their husband’s last name. The choice to change your last name or keep it is entirely up to you and there is no law that says you have to change it. I had one bride tell me that she was the last one in her family with her father’s name and wanted to continue his legacy, and therefore decided to keep her maiden name.   You also have the option of hyphenating your last name with your husbands.  But again, you can keep your last name if you wish.

The form below is included in the marriage packet you will pick up at the courthouse.  It is very straightforward with the exception of a few things.  First take a look at the form and then read on below.

You will fill this form out and send it in 10 days after your wedding day.  By the way, you have up to a year to send this form in, so there is no rush.  For example, you can take care of  this after you return from your honeymoon. 

It’s important to know that the courthouse gets especially busy in the summer months and they need to receive your marriage license before they can process your certified copy request.  It’s up to your officiant to forward the marriage license to the courthouse after the wedding.  I take care of this either the same day or the very next business day after the wedding.  If you are in a hurry to get your certified copy you can go to the courthouse with your completed marriage license and pick up your certified copy in person.  Only one of you has to go.

Filling out the certified copy request is fairly straight forward:

1. Address:  Enter the address where you want your certified copies mailed.  It is acceptable to use your parent’s address if you are in the military and move around a lot or are in some other kind of transition.
2. E-mail: Either of your e-mails is acceptable.
3. License Application Number: This number is found on the back of your “pretty” copy called “Certificate of Marriage”.  As a courtesy, I usually write this information down for my couples because there is too much going on at the moment of signing the documents to try to remember where that little number is.
4. Groom’s Name: Groom, write your full legal name.
5. Bride’s Name:  THIS IS IMPORTANT-BRIDES, WRITE DOWN YOUR MAIDEN NAME OR THE NAME YOU USED WHEN YOU APPLIED FOR YOUR LICENSE.  In other words, don’t write down your new married name.
6. Date of Marriage:  I usually fill this in for the couple as well.
7. Number of Certified copies:  I recommend 3-5 copies.  They are only $3.00 per copy so you may as well stock up.
8. Finally, you will send a check that equals the number of copies you are ordering (5 copies = $15.00) to the address at the bottom of the form.

You will receive your certified copies in approximately two weeks; longer if it’s the middle of summer as the marriage licensing office gets swamped with paperwork this time of year.

Once you receive your certified copies of your marriage license, it’s time get started changing your name!  I hope this information was helpful.   I welcome your questions or comments!

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I am going to share with you just how easy the paperwork can be in two easy steps.  Let’s begin with the marriage license application.

Step 1:  Marriage License Application

Depending on which county you live in, both the bride and groom will need to go to the county courthouse in your area (Snohomish, King, Pierce) to fill out your marriage license application.  The reason both of you have to be there is because your signatures need to be notarized by the county clerk.  This will require providing proper identification (driver’s license, passport) to the clerk and then he/she will stamp the application notarized.  You can do this Monday through Friday 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.  Note: The application fee is $64.00 cash/money order/cashier’s check (personal checks are not accepted).

If for some reason both of you cannot get the time off from work to go to the courthouse, you can go to your local bank and get your application notarized.  The benefit of having your signatures notarized by your bank is that only one of you will have to go to the courthouse to pick up your marriage license packet. (Note: Your bank may charge a small fee for notarizing your document.)  This method will require downloading the form shown below from one of the county courthouse websites and bringing it with you to the bank.    The example below is from the King County Courthouse and can be downloaded at this link: King County Courthouse.

Step 2: Marriage License

After you fill out your marriage license application, have it notarized (either by the county clerk or your bank notary) and pay the county clerk the $64 at one of the county courthouses, you will be given your marriage license packet.   The marriage license packet includes these items:

• Marriage License (legal document)
• Marriage Certificate (what is sometimes referred to as the “pretty” copy and is not a legal document)
• A form that you will need to fill out if you are changing your name (I will address this process in another post

Here is what your marriage license will look like:

Now you are ready to get married!  On the day of your wedding the marriage license will be signed and then forwarded back to the county auditor that it came from and will be recorded.  My last bit of important advice:  DON’T FORGET TO BRING YOUR LICENSE TO YOUR WEDDING!

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