Ring blessing in Maine?

[Laughinggravy0]

Hi all. Just got engaged and we're now beginning to think how to go about the wedding.

We really want something very low key and probably won't have our bands until after the ceremony. I know that sounds a little odd, but we'll be picking up our bands from James Meyer at the end of August. With both of us having been married before (we're both in our 40s) and neither of us being religious we are thinking of separating out the legal and the more emotional side.

So the idea might be to go to the town hall and then have a little family 'do' before we go to the States - this is a very rare chance for us to travel for two weeks so it feels like an ideal honeymoon. We'd go on our holiday to Maine, via James Meyer to pick up our bands. Then we'd hope to just have a very private little ceremony once there, to exchange rings and vows together, with an officiant and, perhaps, a photographer.

My question really is, how does one go about finding an officiant? Do you think it would be related to a church or is there a way of finding another type of officiant? This would be just a non-legal ceremony, the actual legal marriage would have happened in Belgium before hand.

Also, questions questions, does any one have an idea of where would be beautiful around Arcadia? I'm beginning to think everywhere is beautiful around Arcadia!! Another reason for the idea. And finally, any heads up for a photographer and any ideas of what we could expect to pay for around a 2 hour session?

This will be our first real trip to the US, apart from a four day visit to NY last year - which we loved - and we are really excited!!!

Thanks for any help or opinions you can give.

 

[aviastar]

I don't know how Maine does it (it is different in every state), but I just got married in VA and my county had a list of Civil Celebrants on the county government website who could perform legal marriages. They were only allowed to charge up to $50 and you just arranged in advance the time/place. I would start by just goggling "marriage in XX, county Maine" and see if there is a local tourist or government website with a list of resources.

Since you aren't really worried about the legal part, it can really be anyone; so I would just want to speak with several people and see if I could find one that was a good fit for us emotionally. You aren't religious, right? If you wanted someone associated with a church, but not very heavy on the religion see if there is a Unitarian Universalist church in the area- they may be able to point you in the right direction, too.

Congratulations!

 

[mogster]

Congratulations on your engagement! Wedding planning is hard and I imagine even more so from another country.

If you want a ceremony in the park, you may need a permit: http://www.nps.gov/acad/planyourvisit/weddings.htm..

Wedding planner that specializes in the area: http://www.katherinesevents.com/

I searched "wedding" on Yelp -- the results turn up mostly hotels, but some wedding vendors: http://www.yelp.com/search?find_desc=officiant&find_loc=Bar+Harbor%2C+ME&ns=1&ls=bcd126d1d93fb3a1#find_desc=wedding&show_filters=1

Hopefully, this helps to get you started.

 

[KA]

We got an officiant from the ethical society since we didn't want anyone religious either. They have some people who can perform legal ceremonies and some who do not perform legal ceremonies. In your case, I understand that either would work.

 

[Laughinggravy0]

Thank you everyone for taking the time to give helpful advice - much appreciated. it is hard from another country, not because of the paperwork (as mentioned, we'd already be legally married) but because of the ways of doing stuff - the cultural norms. That's also what makes visiting the US so exciting, of course. So terms like 'Civil Celebrants' and 'ethical society' are very helpful. Hard to research when you don't know the terms.

Does it seem weird to you guys for us to have a civil celebrant, us and a photog? That is really a very, super small ceremony! I can't work out if it would be artificial. At the same time, I really do want to do something to 'mark' the ring exchange and I don't really want to do the ring exchange at the town hall because its really not a very attractive space/location...

 

[vc10um]

Does it seem weird to you guys for us to have a civil celebrant, us and a photog? That is really a very, super small ceremony! I can't work out if it would be artificial. At the same time, I really do want to do something to 'mark' the ring exchange and I don't really want to do the ring exchange at the town hall because its really not a very attractive space/location...

I don't find it odd at all...in fact, I find it rather romantic! I'm hoping that when my DH and I decide to renew our vows, that's exactly how we'll do it: just the two of us, a celebrant of some sort, and a photographer.

Congratulations to you and your FI, LG! Your ring is stunning, and I can't wait to see the wedding bands after the ceremony! Very best of wishes to you!

 

[Laughinggravy0]

Thanks for the reassurance vc10um - and for all the right terms to all the others Maine, here we come!!!!

 

[Loves Vintage]

It doesn't seem odd to me at all, because that's what my husband and I did, only in Croatia! And, we did have it legalized there, which was the most difficult part, so it's good that you're skipping that.

I would search "Justice of the Peace". They would be able to perform a legal ceremony, but given that you don't need one, I don't see why they wouldn't just do a civil celebration if that is what you are requesting.

I googled Maine Justice of the Peace and these are just a few of the results:

http://www.maineseacoastweddings.com/default.aspx

http://www.southernmaineceremonies.com/index.html She has a photo album, which might give you some ideas re: locations and some photographers are listed as well: http://www.southernmaineceremonies.com/photo_album.html

Lots of resources listed here, not sure how close to where you want to have your ceremony, but fun to look anyway, right? http://www.newagenseasideinn.com/weddings/wedding-resources.php

I am sure that whoever you decide upon will be able to help you book a photographer as well; however, I would suggest searcing on-line yourself and booking independently so you don't have to worry that the person you are getting doesn't do the type of work that you like. There could really be a wide range re: how much a photographer costs here. In general, I would think in Maine, photographers are not charging top fees, like in NYC, but they will vary based on experience. Another thing to keep in mind re: photographers is -- what are you actually purchasing? Is it just a photographer fee, and then they will charge you for prints later? I would strongly suggest finding someone who charges a flat fee for his/her time taking the photos and all photos on a CD. Sometimes, photographers will not give you all of the images. If you want all of them, you have to pay for each of them as a printed photo, and the per photo fees can really vary!!

Hope you have a lovely time in the US, at your special ceremony (order yourself a lovely bouquet too!!) and hope you'll let us know how everything turned out complete with photos, of course!

 

[Laughinggravy0]

Thank you Lovesvintage, that was a really nice post
Well we are definitely tending that way. I think we'll end up having a court house (town hall) thing here, in Belgium with his three kids and parents and two couples that are pals of mine, followed by a nice meal in a restaurant. And we'll be doing that for them - partic for the my step kids who we both real, really want to be involved up until the point they wish - no less, no more. Its a tricky balance, they're 8, 13 and 16.
Then we come to beautiful Maine and have small ceremony just for us, after we pick up our rings from James Meyer.

So I will definitely be checking out your links, and thanks so much for those

Thinking of wearing the blue version of this - hope it works out and fits well....
http://www.boden.co.uk/en-GB/Womens-Dresses/Below-Knee-Dresses/BR013/Womens-Vintage-Silk-Dress.html?NavGroupID=4

 

[Christina...]

I'm not sure if your in Maine now, or if you are still heading this way, but I live in Maine, and thought you might find this useful!

http://www.maine.gov/portal/family/marriage.html

Hope that helps, and I hope you have an amazing time visiting our beautiful state!! Let me know if you'd like me to share some lesser known spots that us locals love!

 

[Christina...]

I just happened to think, I believe that in Maine the captain of a boat can still marry you....and in Bar Harbor there will be no shortage of boats and captains! They have a ton of cruises leaving throughout the day and into the evening. I'm picturing romantic sunset cruise

As far as where...wow! Acadia is stunning, you have the ocean, the mountains, lakes, beaches, there are so many different areas I can think of. When I was little I always wanted to get married on the top of caddilac mountain. My parents took us there every summer and it exceptionally beautiful!

 

[Lady_Disdain]

Since there won't be any legal requirements (since you will already be married), what kind of person do you admire and appreciate? A poet who might also be able to write a small verse for the occasion? A local artist? Someone who supports the local community (such as the president of a local charity or Rotarian, for example)? Or even the owner of a BB your are staying in. Think about what you want the officiant to represent and do a little research. I think many of these people would be happy to be your celebrant for a reasonable fee.

 

[Laughinggravy0]

Thanks so much for the ideas LadyD, Christina and all of you for taking the time out to answer

Well now we have a date, yessssss, 25th August at the town hall here with seven very close friends, and we catch the plane to come to the US for our honeymoon the very next day. Then a big party in Sept to involve my stepchildren and all our other friends. The great thing about going for a small group on the day we go to the town hall is that we can afford to really splash out on getting the best food and drink for them - I've been droooooling over a caterer's list (huge) of canapés. And oodles of champagne.

Not finding it easy to find a photog tho'. I've tried a couple but no one's answering

As for the exchanging of our rings, actually we are coming round to the idea of just doing that ourselves. So really now I think I'm just looking for a landscape photographer that would be prepared to take some portraits too. I would like a photographic record since the whole thing will be very low key - I'd like to have some pics to look back on. Anyone know of good photographers in the Arcadia area?

Once again, thanks to you all, and yes please, any inside knowledge of where would be good to go is always most welcome. We'll be staying near Arcadia.