What to Say (and Do) During a Love Lock Unity Ceremony

Celebrate your unbreakable marriage bond with a Love Lock ceremony!

 

 

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‘Love locks’ symbolize the commitment, dedication, and security of marriage. Like an exchange of wedding rings or a handfasting ritual, these locks provide a beautiful visual symbol of an unbreakable bond shared between partners.

 

 

 

 

 

 

What happens during a Love Lock Unity Ceremony? 

 

During a love lock ceremony, each partner is given a decorative padlock that represents them as an individual: their individual hopes and dreams, their plans and promises for the future, and their love for their partner. 

 

(Note: Specialty heart-shaped locks can be purchased for this ceremony, but many couples simply write their initials on a standard padlock… We love a DIY wedding with Sharpie flair!)

 

These locks can be placed on a table near the altar before the ceremony, or handed to each partner by a chosen guest during the ceremony.  

 

The wedding officiant will introduce the purpose of the love lock ritual and say a few words about what the locks symbolize, reflecting on the unwavering commitment and steadfast love of marriage. This brief introduction helps family members and friends who are unfamiliar with the ritual understand its meaning and follow along as the ceremony unfolds. 

 

Related: 5 Great Reasons to Ask a Friend to Officiate Your Wedding

 

As the officiant talks about the couple’s willingness to join their lives together in the loving bonds of marriage, the partners will link their open padlocks together and then click them shut… 

 

Joining the locks – and their hearts! – in matrimony.

 

 

Variations on a love lock wedding ceremony: 

 

Sometimes, a single lock is used to represent the couple’s marriage (sometimes with two matching keys), and can be locked to a decorative frame, sculpture, or fence. In this case, the officiant’s wording can be changed to reflect the meaning of the single lock. Other times, more than two locks are included to represent the couple and their children, or other members of a blended family.

 

We've provided modified scripts below for these special variations. 

 

 

 

 

Love locks make a sweet keepsake 

 

After the ceremony, many couples choose to display their joined love locks somewhere special in their home, as a frequent reminder of the promises they made to each other on their wedding day. 

 

Some couples leave the keys nearby, representing the daily choice to work together and remain married. Others throw the keys aways, to symbolize that their marriage bonds can never be broken. 

 

Related: Browse Unity Ceremony Ideas

 

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Love Lock Unity Ceremony Script 

 

Below is one example of what to say during your love lock ceremony, followed by variations for a single lock or multiple locks. This unity ceremony can be added to any of the simple Wedding Ceremony Scripts in our library.

 

• Simple Wedding Ceremony Scripts 

 

Usually, unity ceremonies like this one happen after the exchange of wedding vows and rings, but the exact order of your ceremony is up to you. In this example, the love lock ceremony happens at the end of the ceremony, followed by the Pronouncement and the couple’s exit (the Recession / Recessional). 

 

Remember! This wording is just a suggestion, feel free to change it to match your unique personality and style. 

Sample Script: Love Locks & Lip Locks 

 

Officiant to the Couple:

 

"(Partner A) and (Partner B), these simple locks represent all that you are as individuals. Your individual hopes and dreams, your plans and promises for the future, and your deep love for your partner. 
 
Today, you’ve pledged to share these hopes and dreams with each other, and to create plans and promises for the future together. 

 

You’ve promised to keep the joy and wellbeing of your partner in the forefront of your mind every day, and to treat each other with honesty, compassion and love. These are the keys to a secure and happy marriage, and the qualities that will keep you close during the many years ahead.

 

To symbolize this unbreakable bond, and to demonstrate that your individual paths are linked from this day forward, I invite you to pick up your locks and lock them together. 

(The couple picks up the locks and locks them together.)

May you remain whole within yourselves, may your marriage be secure and steadfast, and may you be made stronger in each other’s love! 

 

And now, by the power vested in me by American Marriage Ministries, I pronounce you married. 

 

Let’s see you lock lips now!  (Alternate: You may kiss!)"

 

 

 

Variation for a single love lock with two keys: 

 

Officiant to the Couple:

 

"(Partner A) and (Partner B), this simple lock represents the bond of your marriage, a symbol of the commitment, trust, and security you share with your partner. 

 

This bond is not to be taken lightly, and should never be taken for granted. Each of you holds a key to the lock, and a responsibility to protect and nurture the love you share. 

 

As you walk through life side by side as wife and husband (as partners / wife and wife / etc.), keep the joy and wellbeing of your partner in the forefront of your mind every day, and remember to treat each other with honesty, compassion, and love. 

 

These are the keys to a secure and happy marriage, and the qualities that will keep your union strong during the many years ahead.

 

To symbolize this unbreakable bond and your commitment to nurture and love one another, I invite you to secure your lock!

 

(The couple picks up the locks and locks them together.)

May you choose each other every day, may your marriage be secure and steadfast, and may you be made stronger in each other’s love! 

 

And now, by the power vested in me by American Marriage Ministries, I pronounce you married. 

 

Let’s see you lock lips now!  (Alternate: You may kiss!)”

 

 

 

Variation for multiple locks to honor children in a blended family: 

 

Officiant to Child/ Children: 

 

(Children), please join us up front!

 

Officiant to the Family: 

(Partner A), (Partner B), and (Children), these locks represent the love each of you brings to your family, and a promise to stick together through good days and bad days.

 

All of you are an important and irreplaceable part of this family. As (Partner A) and (Partner B) get married today, I ask each of you to promise to treat each other with kindness, to support each other, to laugh together, to explore and grow together as a family. These are the keys to a secure and happy marriage, and the qualities that will keep you close as a family during the many happy years ahead.

 

To symbolize your promises of love and support, I invite each of you to pick up your locks and lock them to the (frame).

 

(The couple and children pick up the locks and lock them to a decorative frame or display.)

 

May you grow beside each other as a family, may this marriage be secure and steadfast, and may you all be made stronger in each other’s love! 

 

And now, (Partner A) and (Partner B), by the power vested in me by American Marriage Ministries, I pronounce you married. 

 

Let’s see you lock lips now!  (Alternate: You may kiss!)”

 

 

 

See all Sample Wedding Ceremony Scripts

 

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You might also like: 

 

 

• Unique Unity Ceremony with Tarot Reading on Love & Marriage
   
• 5 Weird Unity Ceremony Ideas for Truly Unique Weddings
   

 

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