5 Wedding Ceremony Ideas for Lavender Marriages: Small Signings to Big & Formal

Planning a lavender marriage ceremony? These unique partnerships are on the rise in the US, especially among younger people as conversations around identity, privacy, and non-traditional partnerships become more mainstream. Here’s a quick look at how to celebrate.

 

Some lavender marriages are arranged to keep certain relationship dynamics hidden from friends and family. Other lavender marriages are proudly and openly platonic, or “besties for life” partnerships. While still most prevalent in LGBTQ+ circles, straight friends of all genders are considering these unions too.

 

No matter what your reasons are, the legal process, including having an authorized officiant, stays the same. Every lavender marriage deserves a celebration that honors the people involved, whatever their reasons for marrying are!

 

With that in mind, here are five wedding ceremony ideas for lavender marriages of all colors. 

 

 

5 Wedding Ceremony Styles for Lavender Marriages

 

1. Marriage License Signing Ceremony 

 

You don’t need a big wedding to make your marriage legal. Many couples prefer a simple marriage license signing ceremony, where an authorized wedding officiant guides you through a simple script and then signs your marriage license. 

 

This is the easiest way to get married, and you can hold a signing ceremony almost anywhere, at any time. It’s even easier if you have a friend get ordained online to officiate and sign your paperwork! 

 

Getting ordained online with AMM only takes a few minutes, and it allows someone you trust to legally perform your ceremony.

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We’ve seen photos of friends signing their marriage paperwork over coffee, brunch, on a hike, at the zoo, during concerts, and so many other creative places. Pick a place that’s special to you both, have a friend perform the signing ceremony, and return your license.

 

• Related: How to Officiate a Sign & Go Marriage Ceremony

 

 

The easiest way to get lavender married? Meet your wedding officiant for coffee or brunch, and sign the marriage license with a few friends as your witnesses. Fun, affordable, and simple! Make it even easier by having a friend get ordained online free with AMM to officiate.  (Photo: Jovanmandic / iStock)

 

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2. Formal wedding with family and friends

 

If you love the look and feel of a formal ceremony, plan your own fairytale wedding celebration! Include all your favorite big wedding elements – the wedding attendants, the walk down the aisle, unity candle lighting or seven steps ritual, vibrant bouquets, and lively music. Whatever your personal arrangements are for marriage, this is a new chapter, a fresh beginning, and an important commitment to each other. 

 

For couples keeping the nuanced nature of their relationship private, this type of ceremony can follow every traditional expectation while still meeting your personal needs behind the scenes.

 

Ask a close friend or relative to get ordained online with AMM to officiate for an authentic, intimate experience; or hire a wedding officiant to write a custom wedding ceremony script. Choose wording that feels true to you, and include traditions that honor your friendship.

 

 

Can you have a formal wedding for a laveder marriage? Absolutely! Choose any ceremony elements or wording that feel true to you. For a more authetic experience, as a close friend or relative who understands your relatioship dynamic to get ordained online with AMM to perform the ceremony. (Photo:  Leonardo Miranda / Unsplash)

 

 

3. Destination Elopement 

 

Part vacation, part wedding, part honeymoon: it’s a destination elopement! Whether you travel out-of-state, or just to the town next door, a destination elopement is a good choice for people who want an intimate wedding experience with only a few special guests. Stay for a few extra days to make a fun vacation out of it! 

 

(In fact, if your wedding state doesn’t require witnesses, you’ll only need an officiant to elope – no guests required. Only invite loved ones if you want them there.)

 

Related: What Does It Mean to Elope & Is It Right for You?

 

Ask a friend to travel with you to officiate the ceremony, or hire a local professional officiant at your destination. Choose your officiant a few weeks ahead of time to make sure all the details are handled before you travel. 

 

If a friend is performing the ceremony, getting ordained online only takes a couple seconds. They might need to complete paperwork in your destination state, depending on where you go.

 

4. Proudly platonic wedding ceremony 

 

Any of the wedding ideas above will work for a lavender marriage that’s under the radar, or you can throw a proudly platonic wedding ceremony that celebrates friendship as the basis for your union. 

 

Plan a ceremony that’s proudly platonic! Ask your wedding officiant to include a section in the ceremony that talks about your friendship and connection, what you bring to each other as committed companions, and how you’ll continue to support each other in the future. Will you take turns going to school, or raise kids together? Will you buy a house, plan investments, or travel abroad together? Will you live together until you're old and gray, like the Golden Girls?

 

Embrace the moment as a chance to share what makes your marriage a true partnership with your guests, and exchange personal friendship vows, friendship bracelets or rings, and get your whole community involved in the celebration! 

 

• We have the perfect script for your officiant, too: Lavender Marriage Wedding Ceremony Script

 

 

(Photo:  Ellie Cooper  / Unsplash)

 

 

5. Get married at the courthouse or city hall

 

As a final choice, consider a civil ceremony at the courthouse or a city hall wedding. These secular ceremonies are simple, quick, and pretty straightforward. Like a private elopement ceremony, you will be limited to a few guests. Your ceremony will be performed by a judge or another authorized municipal official. 

 

Most officials use a standard courthouse wedding script, and you won’t be able to request personalized wording – although you might be able to exchange personal vows. Keep in mind that most courthouses require an appointment, and you may need to schedule several weeks in advance. 

 

If you want more flexibility or personalization, have a friend meet you on the courthouse steps to officiate instead! As soon as you pick up your marriage license, make it official with a quick and easy ceremony outside. 

 

Related: Quick & Simple Civil Wedding Ceremony Script

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Which option sounds best for you? 

 

No matter what ceremony style you choose, you’ll need an authorized wedding officiant to make the marriage legal and sign your license. 

 

Learn more with these helpful tips from AMM: 

 

• How to Tell if Your Officiant Can Perform a Legal Wedding
   
• How to Officiate a Wedding For the First Time
   
• ...So What Does a Wedding Officiant Really Do?

 

• What Does a Wedding Officiant Do After the Wedding Ceremony?
   

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