About 2000 Lovingly Officiated Weddings by Judie L. Guild. NY Registration #77862. JudieGuild@outlook.com.
L+B married in the fun Manhattan loft of RamScale. They opted for a standard ceremony, but requested I integrate two quotes they liked. I wove them into a new mini prelude, which is below. Every urbanite has witnessed lovers lost in themselves on a train. They gaze adoringly and kiss without care. Delightfully unaware of […]
MoreBetween couples looking to downsize larger scale weddings, the rising popularity of destination weddings in New York, the desire for great wedding photos, and the folks who want a low-key wedding or vow renewal or commitment ceremony, getting (re) married in Central Park seems to be evolving as “the” choice. I love Central Park, and […]
MoreWhy is the Brooklyn Bridge mostly devoid of crowds? It is not because the couple had a permit or due to rain or photoshop. D+D wisely decided to marry on a Thursday afternoon! I’d only recommend getting married on the Brooklyn Bridge on a weekday and only for true elopements. (Also, women who wear high […]
MoreIt is ethereal. Delicate. Travels easily. And, best of all, it fit this lovely bride perfectly. Dear Judie & Liam, Firstly, let me apologise for the lateness of this message; getting back to ‘everyday’ life has been a blur after such an incredible week. We would both like to thank you, Judie, for such an […]
MoreImages below were taken in the lovely “Secret Garden,” which is the English styled garden in gorgeous Conservatory Gardens. Remember that a permit is mandatory here! Convocation:A+S, you kindly invited us within your protective “bubble” to memorialize the past four years and celebrate the possibilities of your future together. This ceremony will not create your […]
MoreEXCERPT FROM THEIR CEREMONY: You have requested I read a special piece entitled “A Parable” by Maynard James Keenan, which best captures your love: “We barely remember who or what came before this precious moment. We are choosing to be here right now, hold on, stay inside this holy reality, this holy experience. Twirling round […]
MorePersonalized Prelude We gather here in the company of this witness, a few strangers, and the loving spirits of family and friends to celebrate the joining of Kenneth and Alexa into marriage. Alexa and Kenneth, not so long ago, you were strangers. Despite earning a degree in psychology, Alexa nonetheless felt intellectually unfulfilled: she took […]
MoreThe Snug Harbor Cultural Center is among the places I often recommend to my couples: it is perfect for elopements, intimate weddings, and large weddings alike. Why? Its diversity! When a couple invited me to officiate their ceremony in the Chinese Scholar Garden, I came early to snap a few shots (more are in the […]
MoreHi Judie- A BIG thank you to you and Liam for making our day fantastic! We appreciated your friendly professionalism and your ability to roll with the punches due to the weather-related changes. We were a bit frazzled upon our rushed entrance, not being able to hail a cab in our garb and having to […]
More” I would like to thank you from the bottom of mine and Jake’s heart for the amazing day you helped achieve on May 8th 2011. Our “special day” couldn’t have gone more perfect, and please let Liam know the photos are AMAZING! We absolutley adore them and are very happy. Your prelude and reading […]
MoreI believe the “prelude” expresses it all here… Today, we give thanks to Sean and Facebook for bringing together Clint and Bridget for nearly ten months before they had the courage to meet in person. While corresponding in writing first may stump our grandparents, it is actually an old-fashioned way to converse. Before transportation proliferated, […]
MoreIf you are self-described fun and adventurous couple (like Annette and Jim, featured below) who always dreamed of having a small wedding at the Rockefeller Tree, then please remember that the area becomes very, very congested on weekends and in the evenings. Consider having your guerrilla style wedding on the Rockefeller Plaza in the morning, […]
MoreBelow are some quotes collected that can create little rays of illumination by the “shoulders of giants” in your ceremony. Nisargadatta: In marriage you are neither the husband nor the wife; you are the love between the two. Rilke: Love consists in this: That two solitudes protect, and touch, and greet each other. Marcel Proust: […]
MoreThese fabulous Miami natives called me less than two weeks before their wedding. They flew into New York on Thursday night, got the license on Friday morning, went to court to get a waiver (which they said was very easy), and then got hitched in Central Park around 4 PM. Note: If you want an […]
MoreThank you both so much for everything. Our entire weekend was so much more than we could ever have hoped for! Judie, you were so patient and helpful and went above and beyond with the emails. And Liam…wow! What can I say? Nobody ever gets Ray to smile, and I’m usually the most uncooperative model […]
MoreIn our correspondence preceding their wedding, Chris sent a short poem and a few lines from a song lyric that he felt described his love for Amanda. He also let me know how they met. From there, I built a “sweet and simple” ceremony that I thought reflected their warmth and relaxed nature of their […]
MoreThat couples from elsewhere plan a small wedding or elopement when traveling to NYC makes perfect sense: coordinating schedules and finances for guests will prove difficult. When local couples express interest in my services as their officiant for elopements (fewer than a dozen or so guests) I am especially elated: they could plan a larger […]
MoreI feel as though each niche in Central Park belongs with a certain season. Rustic shelters, such as Wagner’s Cove and the Cop Cot, are definitely more popular in the Fall. (The Gapstow Bridge, which is very nearby, looks the most beautiful in the winter after snow.)
MoreWedding ceremony in Wagner’s Cove with post-ceremony images in the Ramble, Bow Bridge, Bethesda Terrace, and Mall area.
MoreWhen S + D married, it was barely eight o’clock on a lovely Monday morning in October. In an interesting twist, these Las Vegas natives celebrated with all their family and friends in a larger wedding in Vegas before their NYC elopement. The park was so exceptionally quiet that they were able to get married […]
MoreKim and Dustin were the third couple I married on XXX. Since their elopement plans unfolded with a few weeks to spare, they asked for wedding ceremony location ideas in Manhattan. Liam and I were delighted that they took our advice and picked a site other than Central Park, which was particularly overflowing with brides, […]
MoreCheck out these super cool images of a mid-afternoon elopement at Wagner’s Cove with glorious sun rays! And, no, folks, we neither planned for these nor would we ever guarantee them in the future… Nature is unpredictable.
MoreDearest Judie & Liam, Thank you again for such a wonderful and perfect wedding! I saw that some of our photos are up, and they are lovely. I tried to post a comment but it did not go through. Do feel free to write anything about us – should the urge strike you. Rick & […]
MoreSocially conscious Colleen and Brian married on a glorious autumn day with dozens of their family members and friends surrounding them at the Temperance Fountain in Tompkins Square Park. In addition to giving guests chocolates to reflect the sweetness and bitterness of life, integrating a Buddhist reading, and incorporating spilling wine to honor the tragic […]
MorePhiladelphia residents Nina and Richie contacted me with less than a week to spare before their elopement. They still managed to select their vows and pick a fantastic poem, which was a wonderful way to personalize their ceremony with such a limited time frame. You can read more about their elopement by visiting A Practical […]
MoreEloping in another city, especially one with only a twenty-four hour waiting period and no need to produce the birth certificate (a passport or US driver’s license is sufficient), is fairly easy! Unless your plane experiences a delay. With the winter weather soon emerging, please be sure to allow for two possible business days to […]
MoreTaken only about a week after the new Brooklyn Bridge Park opened by the dock area where the Bargemusic and Ice Cream Factory reside, this photos of a couple I married in the Spring. Yesterday, I had the pleasure of marrying another couple in the vicinity during the day — fortunately before the heavy winds […]
MoreI’ve professed love for the Queens Botanical Gardens before in warm weather with not a drop of rain. I’ll do so again today because raindrops plummeted from the sky on Sunday. At the QBG, couples have two choices in rainy weather. They can move the ceremony completely inside into the green auditorium. Or they can […]
MoreKatie and Shane’s intimacy as a couple glows saliently in their images. Mutual, warm, and affectionate glances and touches make their photos all the more real, animated, and earthy. That they’ve been together for years could not be more obvious! Furthermore, I cannot get over how sharp they looked. Nearly navy blue seems to suit […]
MoreThis is more of a review. The Ravel Hotel is a new “boutique” hotel in Long Island City, which is striving to make itself hip and trendy. It opened two or three years ago. Yesterday, I was fortunate enough to marrying a couple on the roof-deck this weekend, which the hotel is calling “Penthouse 808,” […]
MoreAfter almost fourteen months of digital correspondence, Helen and Diarmuid finally got hitched! Their destination wedding in New York was actually quite simple with a touch of tradition and a touch of the personal. Helen first contacted me in June 2009 to check availability and for general ideas. Over the next months, this fabulous couple […]
MoreI met Lucy and her youngest daughter a few months prior to her August wedding / vow renewal. She felt regret that she never go to say ‘I do’ at her first wedding to Wesley. She wanted a celebration to mark ten wonderful married years that would gather in her whole family, including her four […]
MoreI’ve officiated at weddings in the Queens Botanical Garden a number of times. I admit that the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens and the Snug Harbor Cultural Center are possibly more romantic and intriguing for photos. Yet the QBG is convenient, has a friendlier staff, and is more democratic when it comes to weddings. Yes, it is […]
MoreSummer is not over yet. It’s only over for small people and the college bound. The weather forecasts in September, October, and even early November are usually ideal for weddings… on a beach … in the middle of the day … during the week. With fewer bathers, especially school aged children, running about, the beach […]
MoreWeddings are not just for the young. Too often officiants and photographers feature youthful brides and grooms (or brides and brides // grooms and grooms). But we can learn much from more mature relationships. Karen and Steve of Ottawa met at the gym. A few short years later, they decided to plan a destination wedding […]
MoreLisaann and Wellinton married in the Snug Harbor Cultural Center, which some refer to as the Staten Island Botanical Gardens. For those who prefer an indoor site, Snug Harbor also offers lovely indoor sites, including a concert hall. Having received their marriage license in the Clerk’s Office, they realized that marrying in the office was […]
MoreFelice and Graeme married on the bow of the Lucille at East 23rd Street and FDR Drive as about forty or fifty guests watched and cheered from the pier and twenty or thirty family members surrounded them on the boat’s front deck. A writer and phycisist respectively, this intercultural couple thoughtfully placed phycisist textbooks in […]
MoreAbout half my couples marry in small weddings with fewer than a few dozen guests, another twenty-five percent have between forty and ninety guests or so, and the other twenty-five percent invite over a hundred. This decision has its origins in finances and personal preferences. I’ve married eloping couples who clearly had the means for […]
MoreThe Queens County Farm is a brilliant choice for any nature-loving, local couple. It is cozy, quaint, and affordable. Lindsay and Rick needed few decorations: they used fresh-cut flowers, including daisies, in classic jar bottles, some candles that will surely flicker beautifully against old-fashioned lead windows, and gave their guests hot sauce, which perfectly matched […]
MoreJennifer and Eddie were going to the Clerk’s Office in Kew Gardens, Queens to get married. Then they planned to invite a few dozen family and friends for an early afternoon celebration at Vetro on a Monday, which is a semi-new reception hall space associated with Russo’s on the Bay that is ideal for weddings […]
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Wedding Officiant in NYC and the Hudson Valley 