So you’re writing your own marriage vows.
But unlike picking the photographer, you can’t just let the experts handle it.
Well, you could. But you decided to do it yourself.
Where do you begin? How do you put it down on paper?
Use the following tips to unlock your inner vow-maker.
Study The Classics
Do you want completely new vows?
Or a more personalized version of an old favorite?
Using an existing format is much easier than starting from scratch. You can rewrite the words. Or add a few extra sentences.
Investigate vows from other cultures to get more ideas.
Writing your vows from scratch? Here are some suggestions.
Declare Your Love
This is a marriage. Be romantic.
Your vows don’t have to be poetry. Write a simple “John, you’re the most wonderful man I’ve ever met, and I love you.” It’s moving.
Or you could mention a defining moment in your history together:
“Ever since the time you [whatever it was] I knew you were the one for me.”
If you’re still drawing a blank, list your fiancée’s good points.
“John, you’re the kindest, most loving man I’ve ever met.”
Words of Commitment
You’ve declared your love in your vows. Now say how long you plan on sticking to the marriage.
Here are some examples:
“I promise to walk through life with you.”
“I promise to stick with you through the good times and bad.”
Special Circumstances
Are there step-children? Consider including them in your marriage vows.
“I promise to love your children as if they were my own.”
Draw up a list of values you share. Are you religious? Are you dedicated to a cause? Is there anything you would like to vow to do together?
Humor
Hey, it’s your wedding. Liven up your vows if you want.
Just don’t turn the marriage into a big joke.
One joke per person will make your wedding memorable yet dignified.
Don’t get too specific. There is such a thing as too much information.
And don’t promise anything you don’t want to do.
Your spouse might hold you to it!
Examples of marriage-safe vows:
“I promise to share the remote sometimes.”
“I promise to cook at least once every ten years.”
Remember: Hedge hedge hedge.
Keep It Short
In marriage it’s better to vow less and deliver more. Ditto for your wedding.
You might forget long vows during the ceremony. And who wants to go up there with a big sheet of paper?
Writing your own marriage vows is an intense experience. But it doesn’t have to make you crazy. Use these tips and you’ll cover your bases. And create beautiful, personal vows. Even if you aren’t Shakespeare.
Amy Lee Johnson is a freelance writer that often contributes to Wedding Vows 4U - a site that offers information on such topics as writing wedding vows and selecting wedding gowns.
Framing is an essential part of the art purchase. For works on
paper be they photographic prints, water colours, digital
prints, etchings et al framing under glass protects your
investment and increases its life.
It can also be a very expensive pastime. For my 2002 exhibition,
framing ate up half the total costs for the exhibition which
meant that the first third of my sales were for the framer and
that was after getting a volume discount from the framer. My DIY
skills weren’t up to the job of professional, customized
framing.
Framing is a craft requiring accurate measuring and cutting
skills of a variety of materials and specialized equipment and
tools to do the job. I am an average DIYer with enough knowledge
to know my limitations. I figured the wastage from mistakes and
the purchase of the essential tools and materials would at least
equal what the framer charged.
I have now become a little older and wiser and quite a bit
cleverer. Instead of making frames to fit the art work I now
make my art work to fit the frame. Producing my work on the
computer this is a very easy process, a couple of mouse clicks
and voila the print equals the available frame. Even for a more
traditional artist it isn’t that much of a change of mind set to
work at a size that will fit an available frame.
The good news is there is as many frame sizes out there as there
works of art to go in them. Check out your local second hand or
even better junk shop and there you will find a wide selection
of pre-loved frames in all shapes and sizes. Yes, you most
likely will have to remove the current resident, but that is not
a big job. A craft cutter and a pair of pliers and your on your
way. Obviously you will need to clean it up, but once done you
will have a very acceptable home for your work for just a few
bucks.
A friend of mine went this way for her last exhibition. Over the
6 months prior to her exhibition she haunted second hand stores
collecting frames that appealed to her and suited her works.
Some of which gave a new lease of life to with a coat of paint.
Her exhibition was not only an artistic success but also a
financial success with her framing costs coming in at just a
couple of hundred dollars.
An alternative to the second hand shops is department stores and
their stock of mass produced framed pictures or the DIY shops
with their frame kits. These are available in a variety of
finishes almost as wide as that available at your local framer.
They are available in plastic, wood and metal and the majority
of them include a mat and even a double mat. Obviously the mat
opening size needs to be just little bit smaller than your art
work.
These are not as cost effective as the second hand shops but
require less work to be made ready for your art work and are
still considerably a lot less than a custom made frame. The
quality of the materials is on a par with that used in custom
framing and as long as you use acid free tape to secure you work
to the mat longevity shouldn’t be a problem.
If you are purchasing art via the net buying unframed works is
the usual, mainly due to prohibitive shipping costs for framed
works. The cost of shipping a work framed under glass will cost
more than a custom frame job and depending upon your purchase it
may be more than total cost of art work and framing.
I am yet to find a web site that doesn’t offer a range of print
sizes many of which are very close to the available commercial
frame sizes and some sites like http://www.pissedpoet.com offer
a custom print size service.
For the artist contemplating an exhibition, the savings of using
recycled or kit frames can mean getting the work on the walls
for the public to see without maxing out the credit card. For
the casual purchase via the net, it can mean the difference
between an open or a limited edition.
