Goth, Viking, forest weddings latest trend Down Under

SYDNEY - An Australian celebrant has revealed the different types of weddings that she has conducted, and they include Goth weddings, marriage in the middle of forests, and even a Viking ceremony.

Victoria-based celebrant, Lynda Payne, revealed that there is no end to the weird and wonderful ways couples can tie the knot, and that she has even conducted surprise weddings.

“I have got a masquerade ball coming up,” the Sydney Morning Herald quoted her as saying.

“I am actually going to be part of the entertainment, people (will) think I am a hypnotist and I am going to ask for volunteers to come down to the front and they are actually going to be the witnesses.

“I did a wedding in a labyrinth, it was deep in a forest, these people were tree-huggers and the trees were all decorated, we did some pagan ceremonies in it as well,” she revealed.

She has conducted weddings on the back of a steam train, out in the middle of a remote 226,000-hectare property, and even during a cyclone.

Payne said that even though celebrants are not wedding planners, conducting a non-traditional wedding requires a lot of research.

She said when conducting a Viking wedding, where the couple followed the pre-Christian indigenous faith of the Norse peoples, Asatru, she had to do hours of research.

Head wedding planner at Staging Connections, Anthony Del Col, said there is a trend away from traditional weddings with couples opting for personalised civil ceremonies or themed nuptials.

“Halloween is a popular one that pops up every year (they may want) a gothic theme or black and orange, pumpkins in the middle of the table,” Del Col said.

“Some people will even go to the extent of doing a Star Wars theme wedding, it’s not for everyone obviously, it is for light-hearted characters.

“There is no limit to what people can do when it comes to their wedding day,” he added. (ANI)