Mick McGlone - celebrant at Michael McGlone Celebrant Services

Your wedding day is a special one. But the preparation can be a nightmare.

A venue, food and drink, wedding dress, make-up and hair, flowers, photographer, cake and the list goes on.

But the one person who can really make sure your day special is often overlooked – your celebrant. So, how do you decide which celebrant to use?

Word of mouth and social testimonials are a good start.

This region is blessed with many fine celebrants, so shop around until you find the one who you can have real empathy with.

That includes you being satisfied your celebrant is well qualified, experienced, professional, well-versed in the laws governing marriage in Australia and creative.

There are many views as to how many meetings you should have with your celebrant. But a minimum of three and a full rehearsal would be close to the mark, with the first meeting to be at least an hour long.

And it comes to distance considerations don’t forget the options provided by technology, such as Skype.

Which is why you should leave at least six months to work with your celebrant.

And don’t forget your celebrant is likely to have contacts within the wedding  industry and able to assist you if you do run into trouble – free of charge.

Your ceremony should be unique and your celebrant must be able to provide you with plenty of options when it comes to choreography, readings, music and rituals.

You might also have cultural considerations and recognition of deceased relatives to think about.

At the end of the day, it is about teamwork between the couple and their celebrant whether that be a minister of religion, an authorised marriage celebrant or religious marriage celebrant.

So don’t put your special day in jeopardy by not hiring a top class celebrant.