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Treasured Ceremonies
reviews (24) - leave a review
Available for
Countries Covered
I travel Nationally & Internationally
Specialisms
Wedding, Funerals, Naming Ceremonies, Anniversaries
Affiliations
Institute of Civil Funerals
Languages
English, can include French in my ceremony (and a greeting in Welsh!)
Hi, I'm Helen
Maya Angelou said, “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel”. How do you want to feel during your wedding ceremony? Loved, loving, safe, warm, cherished, joyful, sincere, hopeful, confident….? How will your friends and family feel? Loved, loving, happy, buoyant, cheering, comfortable, optimistic (!)….? So when I tell your story, I’m drawing on my resources as a storyteller to ensure that these are the emotions everyone will experience in those 30-60 minutes at the heart of your wedding day. The venue, photographer, florist and planner, all play important parts in the “story” of your day. But you will only entrust one person to tell the story of your life and create those treasured memories!
What's my ceremony style?
My couples, when asked to rate how personal they want their ceremony to be on a scale of 1-10 all write 8 or higher. After the ceremony, people talk about the warmth and sincerity they felt through the laughter and happy tears. How do I achieve that? I’m completely led by what you want, whilst bringing my own experience of “what works” to help guide your decisions. This same experience means I can tailor my style to your dream wedding ceremony. Here’s what two of my couples from 2024 wrote in their testimonials.
“Helen made everyone feel so involved. It was like she was another member of the family”
“Helen, thank you for being the perfect mix of funny, entertaining and sincere”
So, although the song says, “It ain’t what you say it’s the way that you say it”, I reckon it’s a combination of what I say and how I say it that makes the perfect ceremony.
Prices From
450€ - 1,050€
Why choose Helen?
You, and your tribe of family and friends will remember how your ceremony “made you feel” long after the echoes of the words have died.
My ceremonies have “soul”. Humour when it’s needed, gravitas at just the right moments. Symbolism, if it’s required, to illustrate the message perfectly. I’ve got a good few years of “celebranting” under my belt now, so have collected some lovely testimonials. Take a look at those here or on my Treasured Ceremonies website, then call.
What do I offer?
Weddings
My super-power? It’s having the experience and confidence to use my hard-earned skills in your ceremony. “What skills are these, Helen?” I hear you ask! It’s using my wit, inventiveness, spontaneity, sincerity, imagination (and, ummm modesty?) to create and deliver your wedding ceremony. Whether you want a “simple” or a more elaborate event, it will reflect everything that’s important to you both. There’s no formula. Just a carefully created script, smiles, laughter and maybe (usually!) some happy tears. Ideally, you’ll bring some of your own ideas to the ceremony table, but if the ideas are missing, don’t worry; we’ll work together to make the ceremony perfect. After a recent ceremony near Montpelier, the bride wrote “Hi Helen, thank you for such an amazing ceremony, everyone told us how much they loved it and couldn’t believe how quickly it went. You even had Titi in tears which definitely isn’t a regular occurrence 😂 it was so personal and perfect xx”
I create intimate elopement ceremonies for two people and lavish ones for over two hundred. The wedding ceremonies can be scripted to the last word or more organic with scope for improvisation and spontaneity. Having said that, I’ve yet to conduct a ceremony without some sort of spontaneity from me, the couple or all of us! Either way, you have full approval of the script before the day, with as many changes as may be necessary.
Many of my couples know what symbolism they’d like (if any) but I’ve plenty of suggestions to make if this is a new idea to you. I don’t tend to send out a symbolism “menu”, I’d rather discuss what may work for you. Similarly, many people choose readings from a favourite author, which is great, but I still send everyone a selection of readings to get some ideas in case it’s needed.
Prices From
800 - 1,050€
Why choose Helen for your wedding?
I’m told that my ceremonies are warm, from the heart and will capture you precisely. Whether you want a “simple” or a more elaborate event, you’ll want it to reflect everything that’s important to you both. This can be “your story”, your values, or a reflection of where we are. There’s no formula. That’s the point. After a 2023 ceremony the couple wrote a beautiful testimonial, including Helen put in a huge amount of effort to …. truly shape a beautifully heartfelt, relaxed and at times hilarious ceremony – which is exactly what we had asked for. Helen’s very witty, which put us at ease straight away in the lead up to the wedding. When we finally got to meet her in person on the day it felt like the ceremony was in the safe pair of hands of an old friend. We would highly recommend anyone getting married in France in booking Helen as their celebrant – she’s fantastic!
Naming Ceremonies
Baby Namings are ceremonies that we see few of here in West Wales, but I’ve adored those that I have done! Had they been “a thing” when I had my children, I’m sure we’d have had them.
If you want the naming ceremony to be gender non-specific, that’s no problem.
I truly feel it’s important that families mark the introduction of a youngster into the family in a formal way. I’ll put out a plea to you here – have a naming rather than a “shower”! In the absence of a christening, a naming is the perfect way of saying “welcome, you’re in our tribe”, and your baby will see photos of the event later in life and know it was just for them, not for an idea yet to be born!
I’ll meet with you online or face-to-face then create something completely personal to your child and your family. As ever, let’s find the right symbolism for you rather than through a list of “what’s available”.
There will be a presentation copy of the ceremony for you to keep and show your little one as they get older. Be aware, the promises made by you and your “god/odd/guide parents” will be in print for all to see forever!
Prices From
Prices on request
Why choose Helen for your naming ceremony?
It’s about the ceremony and the flexibility! The ceremony must be “right” because this an important day and everyone needs to understand what it’s about. Flexibility? There will be children there, relax, enjoy the day and roll with whatever happens!
Naming ceremonies are so very personal I won’t write too much here. Just get in touch and we’ll have a chat about what you’re looking for.
Renewal of Vows
Tell your story, bask in its glory, smile at the memories and shed happy tears as the riches life has brought you resonate around you.
Then have a party!
Prices From
850€
Why choose Helen for your renewal of vows?
Hello! Do you want to celebrate your anniversary with something really memorable? Would you like to celebrate your time together in all its glory (and glorious failings?)
That’s where a vow renewal comes in. Imagine a wedding without the ceremony – it’s just a party.
So bring the warmth of ceremony – of having your story told to everyone you love – to your special wedding anniversary celebration.
I’ll bring my humour, story-telling skills, warmth and enthusiasm to the party.
You just tell me your story.
Funerals
Losing your loved one here in France can be even more bewildering than if you were in the UK (or wherever your “home” country is). I created funeral ceremonies for eight years in West Wales before moving here to France, so whilst the timescales may be different here, I have enough experience in funeral ritual to guide you towards a ceremony meaningful for you. We’ll tell the story of your loved one, bringing smiles through the tears, saying goodbye with respect and dignity. This could be in a crematorium, but maybe you’d prefer to say your final farewell in your garden or home, possibly your Mairie will allow you to use the Salle des Fêtes. The important point is for you to know that finding me means finding someone to hold your hand in this saddest of times – and make your path a little easier. Contact me at the shortest of notice, or to plan a funeral ahead.
I offer end of life ceremonies (funerals) in crematoria as well as burials in graveyards, natural burial grounds and private land.
I have also written a number of funerals ahead of the ceremony with the person whose funeral it will be to give them peace of mind that they’ve got everything covered for their loved ones.
I don’t mind whether we have any religious content, I’m a “civil” rather than a” humanist” celebrant. With or without religion, all of my ceremonies are skilfully created to deliver an intensely personal, meaningful and supportive emotional experience to the families involved.
I generally write the tribute (or eulogy) but if the family or friends are doing this, I still want to know all about the person who has died in order to create a suitable ceremony. I can suggest music and readings, both religious or non-religious. Together, we create the perfect farewell.
Prices From
450€
Why choose Helen for your funeral?
I’ve ended so many funerals with “Thank you for introducing me to…” Because together we’ve told the story of the one who has gone, and I’ve felt as though I’d really known them. Together, we’ve painted their picture and held it up to the world, remembering and celebrating all that was loved about them.
My commitment to you in France is to help you find the best way for you to say farewell, and to create a ceremony that will leave you able to grieve knowing you completed this step of your farewell process positively and with dignity.
Reviews for Treasured Ceremonies
Total Reviews: 24
Average Rating: 5
reviews (24)
The perfect ceremony
We had our wedding near Perpignan in the South of France. We found Helen from the website “get hitched in France”. We had been speaking with Helen for less than 5 minutes over a Zoom call and we already knew we wanted her to be our celebrant. Helen is such a personable, kind, and interesting person. After we had chosen Helen she spent many hours speaking to our closest friends and family so that she could write an amazingly detailed wedding speech about us that matched the day perfectly, and she delivered it impeccably, it was very relaxed (which is how we had asked her to deliver it), humorous and very emotional at the same time, it was a good job we had put tissues for people’s “tears of joy” on the seats as every single person needed them.
Helen’s sensitivity and willingness to make everything in the ceremony perfect made our special day that bit more special.
We couldn’t thank Helen enough for helping to make our day such an incredible moment.
We wouldn’t only recommend that you choose Helen as your celebrant, we would recommend that after reading this you call her straight away and don’t even bother speaking to any others.
Hanlie & Paul Stridgeon
Wedding
5 stars is not enough to describe Helen and the service she provides.
Helen was our celebrant for our ceremony in the sound of France. I was always very adamant that we wanted a basic and traditional ceremony. Helen obliged based on our brief, but also still did get take the time to get to know us and learnt about our relationship. She produced the most beautiful script, while it still remained traditional, it really did provide the perfect summary of who we are. Helen was the talk of the wedding and to this day, we are still get compliments of her beautiful and clever words. Thank you so much for making our day more perfect then we dreamed!
Merci
We had our wedding in Provence in May 2022. Helen served as our celebrant/officiant and we couldn’t have been happier. Although brief, she was able to spend time with us before our wedding day to get to know us. Using this information, she curated a lovely ceremony. We, and our guests, specifically enjoyed the ring warming ceremony in which each of our guests was able to hold our rings and impart a blessing, prayer, wisdom to help kickstart our marriage with some positive energy! If you are in search of a professional, English speaking, officiant in the South of France, then look no further than Treasured Ceremonies. Cheers!
