Khristianne + Glen at Longton Wood | June 2025
“Sarah has a natural gift to tell a couple’s story as if she was there the whole time and an ability to put you at ease and just enjoy every second of the ceremony. ”
My dad asked me this weekend “what’s been the most fun wedding you’ve had this year?”…and this is the one that sprang to mind.
Khristianne and Glen.
The One Where They Let Me Choose Their Surname.
More on that in a minute.
But it wasn’t just my involvement in picking their name. It was EVERYTHING.
It was their relationship. It was the fact they first met when they were five.
It was that, with a (fun) rehearsal and boozy BBQ the night before, I got to know everyone. And Khristianne is from a huge family. Sisters galore. It was such a lovely family affair.
It was also that I got to meet a friend-of-the-family fellow celebrant (Bridgid) and talk shop. And talking shop, in this line of work, is pure love and fancy and gossip, so we had a right good natter.
It was also (perhaps you’re starting to see why this wedding was top of my mind!) that I got to be reunited with Gayle and James, a couple I’d married in 2023 and close friends of the bride and groom. It was such a wonderful feeling to be at that BBQ and not feel like a hired supplier (although I rarely do), but feel like part of the party.
Photos by candid king Olly Knight Photography
Then, at the ceremony itself, it was one of my favourite ceremonies I’ve ever done because we all got to watch Khristianne’s mum walk her down the aisle as her sister Nadine sang her down the aisle (accompanied by Spotlight violin).
Not to mention the fact we were in the woods, a fairy-lit canopy, and it was utter magic.
For all the peaks it wasn’t without its pits: I really struggled with local taxis. Before the rehearsal one - prebooked - just didn’t show. So I was manic about checking the wedding morning taxi, and all was well in the end.
With the venue being the remote Longton Wood, deep in the Kent countryside, there was no bus or train. And it’s just strange being in a strange town with no car, solely reliant on taxis, and not being fully certain you’ll get to the wedding on time. Or at all.
Then - the main event. Tossing the specially designed coin (Greenhalgh on one side, Gowers on the other, both G names who sat next to each other in Reception class) to pick their shared married name. And it was muggins over here who was going to be throwing the coin so you better believe I practised. Which mainly consisted of launching it up in the air and it dropping three feet away. But my husband (laughing at the videos I sent) introduced me to the thumb flip in time for the ceremony and all was well.
I DIDN’T DROP IT IN THE CEREMONY.
Even when we went to best of three.
I got the crowd (sorry, I’m getting carried away - not the crowd, their friends and family) to vote for which name they wanted and the bride’s came out a resounding top. And it landed on hers!
But they’d already requested best of three and, as I looked at Khristianne (chuffed, but laughing) she nodded that she still wanted to go best of three.
The atmosphere was honestly electric as the second flip landed on the groom’s name.
And this is why I thought of this wedding when my dad asked me. The involvement of their loved ones. The cheering. The drama.
And, most importantly, the respectful, equitable LOVE. Their commitment, their willingness, their excitement, to take the other’s name.
I won’t leave you on a cliffhanger: the groom’s name won in the end. But, BOY oh BOY (oh patriarchal naming conventions), have they both won in the game of love.
“Sarah is one of a kind, she made our ceremony so unique, memorable, funny, and special.”