I’m Julie and I live in rural Lanarkshire, near Carluke. Having been born and brought up on a council estate in the Burnbank area of Hamilton and attended Uni in Glasgow, I know the West of Scotland well. However, I have worked in and around West Lothian and Edinburgh and am enjoying continuing to expand my knowledge of this area too!
My life experiences so far have been pretty varied – my background is in education, teaching English and creative writing, but I successfully set up and ran my own equestrian business before deciding to commit to Celebrancy on a full time basis.
I joined the Humanist Society Scotland a number of years ago after the funeral of my Grandfather – a lifelong atheist for whom a humanist ceremony was not only entirely fitting but much more meaningful than any ceremony I had previously attended. A few years later I successfully applied to become a celebrant myself and since then have conducted hundreds of ceremonies – every one unique and personal. Outwith Celebrancy I am kept busy looking after my family – including the four legged kind- but I enjoy travel, reading and the occasional night out.
I joined the Humanist Society Scotland a number of years ago after the funeral of my Grandfather – a lifelong atheist for whom a humanist ceremony was not only entirely fitting but much more meaningful than any ceremony I had previously attended.
The nature of the ceremony is dependent entirely on what you feel comfortable including. It can be short and simple, or it can be more expansive. It can be formal or informal, or a mixture of both; for example the light-hearted telling of the story of how you both came to be standing there on the day, contrasting with the solemnity of the vows.
What will be apparent no matter what, is your love for each other; the affection and friendship that you share and the deep and the binding commitment that you are making to each other, in the company of those you love the most; your family and close friends.
If you are considering asking me to conduct your ceremony, you may find it useful to have an appreciation of how I would work with you from first contact right up until the big day itself.
The first stage is contacting me to confirm availability, having a chat on the telephone then, if you are happy to proceed, confirming your booking.
Once we have done that, I would send you some ideas for the content of the ceremony, in order that you can begin the process of personalising the ceremony to your requirements.
When you have had the opportunity to decide on the content (some brides to be even include their partner in this stage!), even if it is only rough ideas, we can then meet up and discuss how the ceremony will unfold. This would normally be 2 to 3 months before the date (this timescale can be adapted to suit the circumstances).
Approximately 2 to 3 weeks before the big day, I would send you a draft ceremony and you can advise of any changes. Once we have the final draft, all you then need to do is:
- Turn up on the day.
- Enjoy the occasion.
- Live happily ever after.
