To ask about your registry office weddings

[B3ck89]

Hi so, Few questions after booking our ceremony
It’s took months for us to decide if we are going to save our arses off for a fairly biggish wedding, or go for small so we can still live comfortable.
We have both been married before too, both had fairly big wedding.
I have quite a few family (aunties, uncles, cousins etc) where as my partner don’t .
We have decided on a beautiful registry office (an hour away), and was going to take everyone for a meal after, then drinks in our town in the evening. weddings at 12 which is the latest time they had on a Saturday.

Questions are

Did you arrive together? Or separate like at traditional wedding?

Did you have the room made up? I’ve seen photos of the registry office and some of the photos, it looks like chair covers and bows were hired/bought

What did you do after?

Did you have just the 1 bridesmaid, or more?

Would love to hear of other people’s experience of their day 😁

We got married in the medium room at our registry office. There was 14 people including DH and I. I added flowers to the room but that's only because I already had them (we had a big wedding booked but cancelled 3 months before and went to the registry office instead ), I kept my bouquet and DH wore his button hole. We arrived separately and I walked in with my dad, no bridesmaid or best men. We wrote and read our own vows. We had our own music. One song for me to walk in to, one for signing the certificate and one that played while we took some pictures. We went to our favourite restaurant with everyone for a meal after and then me and DH went to a hotel in the city centre. It was lovely and I wouldn't change any of it if I could do it again. Still so pleased we scrapped the big wedding.

We arrived separately but walked in together. Room was not decorated apart from flowers on the table, which the registry office put there. We used the standard music cd the registry office had.

Went to hotel next door afterwards as my parents insisted we needed a reception, for cuppa tea/coffee, scones, light sandwiches - buffet affair. Cake was cupcakes made by sister.

No bridesmaids as didn't want them. Our two small children (3 and 1) were present though. They didn't play a part in the ceremony.

We chose plain and simple. We wanted to be married. I didn't want the fuss and hassle of 'the big, white wedding'. Dh had been married before. If it weren't for my parents insistence, we'd have walked down the road to the nearest pub after, had a couple of drinks and be done. As it was, we already had plans to be out that night which had been booked long before the wedding.

I had no bouquet but did go and get my hair done before the ceremony at a local hairdresser. Wedding dress was not a wedding dress at all but a strapless knee length dress in ivory with pewter flower pattern to front. I've worn it a couple of times since for summer garden events.

all in all I wouldn't change a thing about our day expect would have liked my best friend there. Her baby was barely a couple of weeks old though so her absence was understandable.

I think it we had the most basic. Just our parents (and 8week old ds) was about 10 minutes long. Then we had people over for food and champagne. We'd been engaged for years but after DS was born, we just decided to go ahead and do it. The actual wedding became much less important to us.

Did you arrive together? Or separate like at traditional wedding?

Arrived together in the same vintage campervan

Did you have the room made up? I’ve seen photos of the registry office and some of the photos, it looks like chair covers and bows were hired/bought

No, beautiful little room already

What did you do after?

Drinks, photos, wedding breakfast with everyone who attended the wedding and then alcohol and cake with friends in a hotel locally

Did you have just the 1 bridesmaid, or more?

Just my daughter as 'bridesmaid'

I arrived on the bus with the rest of the guests, he was in our car. We walked down the 'aisle' together and left in our car. Three little bridesmaids (family) and 26 people altogether. We went to a local attraction and then to a good pub, everyone home on the bus but us. It was lovely. No extra decorations etc but the room was nice anyway. Good luck.

We had 50 people at ours, I didn’t have bridesmaids, we arrived together and walked down the aisle together. We had the choice to decorate and bring in our own flowers, but luckily the venue is beautiful anyway being a former starry home so we didn’t.

We were able to choose our vows from a list and provided music for them to use. I wore a wedding dress, but mine was knee length.

*stately home. Stupid phone

Arrived separate I wanted to go to the hairdressers by my Mams.

No bridesmaids or anything. Each had a sibling as witness.

Took everyone for dinner after.

No decorations in the room, it was pretty nice anyway and honestly didn't occur to us. We didn't even see the room until we got there😂

How basic is a basic ceremony? We literally want the least frills option there is!

@celebelly we’re having a registry office wedding in a couple of weeks, and had to put in our ceremony preferences online. We’ve gone for the most basic available to us - we’re only saying the stuff you have to say (they ask us both if we’re legally free to marry, we say “I am”, then we say the “I x take you y to be my husband/wife”, then we exchange rings with no vows). Im a bit worried about just how short it will be, but we really didn’t want long vows, music, readings etc.

I had a big wedding but at a register office - 80 people.

I wore an ivory dress, walked myself down the aisle, had one bridesmaid.

We chose our own music and had personal flowers, but no extras at the ceremony. The register office itself is a beautiful Georgian house so looked beautiful in pictures and they keep the rooms looking lovely.

We had a reception afterwards with sit down meal and we provided all drinks free of charge.

It was an absolutely fantastic day and we still love to think about it together.

We had 16 guests. DH stayed at his best man's house the night before and they arrived together. I arrived with my dad. Room was pretty but plain, in a very drab officey building. We gave them a CD of our music - there was a form we had filled in a few weeks before where we had said our song choices. No bridesmaids or flowers or anything like that. Whole thing took about 40 mins.

Afterwards we all went for dinner at the pub and DH and I left for our hotel by 8.30.

Loved it, really low key, least fuss we could gave gotten away with whilst keeping parents happy too.

We arrived together, duh and me, our children and my parents, so seven of us. We we went on the bus. Smallest room. I wore a cream knee length dress, not a wedding dress, I’d found in a vintage shop. Dh wore a suit. Children wore their normal clothes. I did think about taking a posy of flowers but didn’t. There were flowers provided on the table. You could have music if you wanted as long as it wasn’t religious. We didn’t. Had photos inside building - very striking interior - which my parents took. Went home, had champagne and went out for a meal at local restaurant. We booked ours for midweek during half term so the children could come.

Got married last Friday.

Room was nice anyway and we didn't bother decorating it. We wanted the register office part to be over quickly. Neither of us like attention or speaking in front of people.
Had the most basic no frills version of the ceremony that you can have. I think we said probably 15 words each maximum. Some of which are the ones you legally have to say.
We came in separately.

I had two bridesmaids.
Went to local golf club for big party afterwards.

Wouldn't change anything about it. It was great.

Did you arrive together? Or separate like at traditional wedding?

• Separately

Did you have the room made up? I’ve seen photos of the registry office and some of the photos, it looks like chair covers and bows were hired/bought

• No. The room was tastefully decorated with flowers out and looked fine in pictures.

What did you do after?

• A sit down meal for our 20 guests

Did you have just the 1 bridesmaid, or more?

• No bridesmaids as such, just witnesses.

Did you arrive together? Or separate like at traditional wedding?

Arrived separately (I had a friend over to do hair and make up- DH went off to get ready with his brother), walked up the aisle together to get married. I bought a posy of roses on the way as decided I wanted a bouquet last minute!

Did you have the room made up? I’ve seen photos of the registry office and some of the photos, it looks like chair covers and bows were hired/bought

Our room was very ornate and already had fresh flowers so nothing to do.

What did you do after?
Lunch with family in the private room of a local restaurant. Party with friends in the evening after an outfit change and a nap!

Did you have just the 1 bridesmaid, or more?
No bridesmaids. My sister and DH’s brother were the witnesses.

Was a brilliant day, wish we could do it all again.

Do I have flowers for myself?

• I had my own bouquet and wore a traditional style wedding dress.

Did anyone have any music?

• Yes, we just gave them a CD to play with a song we both liked. There is a stipulation (or was when we got married) that the music can't have any religious content, so bear that in mind when choosing. I think they asked to see the lyrics to OK them first (it wasn't a well-known song).

I arrived separately and had one bridesmaid. My dad walked me to the front of the room. DH had been married before and I hadn't. I wore a wedding meringue and had a traditional bouquet with bottles for the men.

It was small, approximately 25-30 guests at the ceremony, and I didn't hire chair covers etc. or decorate the room, but the registry office has silk flowers and the room is beautiful (it's a Tudor mansion).

We already lived together, but arrived at the venue separately then, one of my favourite parts, met up outside the room and walked in together, hand in hand. We had agreed to get married together and i did not want to be [shudder] given away.

No bridesmaids, but flowers (bouquet, buttonholes, end of row creme roses, lavender and interesting greens) which were lovely. Most of the arrangements involved lots of discussions, from invitations onwards. The flowers i did all by myself, exactly how i wanted them.

Wanted a small jazz band, but they were all booked up so a friendly harpist did her stuff.

Champagne and sit down meal.

Oh and photographer who promised to be unobtrusive, was DH s only non negotiable point. I hated the idea of photos but am very glad. Only a few of us, but lovely ones and also pictures of everyone arriving so i got to see everyone's outfits which i was much too busy to notice on the day.

Lovely to have things exactly how you want then, so long as you know things will not be exactly as you think but still all perfect.

You've both had the traditional, childhood fantasy wedding. If it was me I would take the opportunity to come in together to symbolise that you are coming in to this new marriage as true partners.

Love all these small weddings and glad everyone had a lovely day

I’m so glad it’s not like a traditional wedding of being walked down, and we can walk in together and the hassle of all the bridesmaid and groomsmen isn’t needed.
Our budget is tight and I’m so pleased we have come to agreement on it

We arrived together. Beautiful room, no need to decorate. Immediate family only. No bridesmaids. Meal at Zizzi's after. Perfect! You have a tight budget and have done the big wedding before, so just keep it simple and small. Don't understand spunking money on another big/biggish wedding when you've done it all before anyhow, personally (I was divorced before myself).

My registry office was just me and dh. We arrived together, left together, had a kip in the park after a few cocktails then went for a lovely meal

My first marriage was at a registry office.

We arrived together,
We didn’t pay for any flowers or chair covers etc so it looked grim!
Afterwards we held a tiny reception at our home for the 11 guests, plus us (should have realised then it was doomed)
No bridesmaids.

I’m sure it could have been much nicer but that irrelevant now.

Have a lovely day and a long happy marriage. 👰 🤵

I have had 2
One with 11 guests, one just the 2 of us.
No decorations, flowers, we arrived together and definitely no bridesmaids.
2nd one was New York which was bloody great. Random guy off the street for witness and the shortest ceremony ever. Then Grand Central for champagne and burgers.

Arrived together, lovely room with nice floral arrangement. Had a CD with us with 3 songs, when we were signing the register the song chosen was "Our love is here to stay" then the 12 of us went to a gastro pub for a buffet lunch.