How to Plan a Same-Sex Wedding: A Guide for LGBTQ+ Couples

For many gay and lesbian couples, there is no plan for how to get married. A same-sex wedding usually starts with a sincere same-sex marriage proposal. If you have a million and one questions about how to propose to your boyfriend or how to propose to him as a girl, that's totally normal. Are you curious to know how to reinvent or reinterpret wedding traditions for your LGBTQ+ wedding? Introducing 12 Creative Ideas.

Planning a ceremony for a same-sex wedding may require thinking a little outside the box. This is a great time to exercise your creativity and improve on some of the charming wedding traditions that exist. From the procession to the recession, you can create a beautiful ceremony that truly reflects your values and the love you share with your fiancee. Another important part of the ceremony is the kiss.

At this point, you're officially married, so it's time to show your love. After the kiss, they will walk down the aisle together. Everyone will applaud and smile, and your photographer can capture some beautiful candid photos of you and your partner. Your ceremony is over and it's time to celebrate it at the reception.

This is a very strong tradition. A lot of women want to walk down an aisle when they get married. It's probably one of the three most attached wedding traditions, regardless of sexuality or gender identity. But, at the end of the day, there are no rules for LGBTIQ+ couples.

Meyer, who also advocates for L, G, B, T, Q. Community and identifies as a gay man, explained that labeling same-sex couples as different from any other wedding is the root of the cause. The qualifier to describe the wedding indicates that it is different from the wedding of a heterosexual couple. While the party may have non-traditional details, it is a legal marriage like any other between a man and a woman.

A same-sex couple and a heterosexual couple say the required vows and sign the same marriage license to be recognized as legally married. Marsh, who points out that 90 percent of the weddings he shoots are with same-sex couples, explained that he has never seen a heterosexual couple worry about how they look while holding hands, kissing or dancing. At weddings in later years, a Celtic tradition was introduced in which the couple tied a knot made of braided grass or leather. Many couples choose to have siblings, parents, or special friends read important passages at this point in the wedding.

If you are getting married in a place where ceremonies led by a celebrant are not legally recognized, you can have the legal part before, after or on the morning of your wedding day in a registry office and then a professional celebrant or even a friend can direct your service. The most important thing to remember when planning your gay marriage ceremony is that it should be a reflection of you and your fiancé. And, although it has now been less than two decades since the world's first country granted members of the LGBTIQ+ community the legal right to marry the one they love, time and again thousands of queer couples around the world have been offered the same rituals and traditions that heterosexual couples have used at their weddings for centuries. LGBTIQ+ couples love the idea of something akin to a direct wedding “reception”, with drinks and canapés served immediately after the ceremony, while taking pictures, followed by a rather formal seated dinner at tables of 8 or 10, in the center of which is an ornate floral arrangement or illuminated centerpiece with candles.

One of the best things about an LGBTQ+ wedding is that you can do away with conventional wedding roles and customs and make the day truly your own. The script for wedding day rituals may not be the same as that of other heterosexual couples; you may need to change the script and rethink them accordingly. Couples need to be mature enough to know how well a wedding can be done with effective and efficient budget planning. Traditionally, only one wedding ring was changed: the groom slid the ring onto the bride's finger.

It highlights nearly 40 wedding rituals and traditions that have become part of heterosexual weddings over centuries. You and your fiancee can choose to write your own vows, stick to traditional wedding vows, or do something in between. It was during World War II that men began wearing wedding rings as a way to remember their wives while serving their country.