Lately I’ve found myself in a few situations where the topics of wedding themes have come up and those around me have been super judgey about couples doing something “tacky” “nerdy” or “weird” for their wedding. I really don’t understand why people feel the need to judge someone else’s wedding. It’s not your wedding – so it really doesn’t matter what you think. I’ve always taken the mindset that as long as the couple is making meaningful decisions (and not decisions based soley on ‘how can I get my wedding on a blog?!?!?!’), then really, that’s all that matters.

It’s YOUR wedding day. Do what makes you and your partner happy – and that’s exactly what Chuck and Marcia did. Thanks to Douglas Pettway for sharing his images of this offbeat Maryland wedding ceremony to us!

Chuck & Marcia’s Handfasting Ceremony at a Maryland Renaissance Fair

maryland renaissance fair handfasting ceremony

We met through match.com. At the time my dad’s health was declining, and I had decided to sign off for a while since most guys I was meeting didn’t understand. The night I was going to sign off, I was sent some new matches for the week and he was among them. His profile included some photos of him at Renaissance events. I had been attending Renaissance fairs for a few years and really loved them, so I figured I would go ahead and email him. He emailed back and the rest is history!

In addition to our common interest in Renaissance festivals, we discovered a shared love of the outdoors, camping, family, and interest in our Celtic heritages.

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Click inside for the rest of Marcia & Chuck’s Maryland Renaissance Fair handfasting ceremony!

Once we got engaged and began planning our wedding, we were faced with a myriad of decisions about what kind of day we wanted. We decided on a traditional wedding and the timing worked out best for the spring. However, we love the autumn and wished we could do something in that season to celebrate our engagement (and where Chuck could wear his Buchanan tartan kilt).

maryland renaissance fair handfasting ceremony maryland renaissance fair handfasting ceremony

Our friend Kathleen is an officiant, so we asked her if she would conduct a handfasting ceremony for us at the Maryland Renaissance Festival. Handfasting involves gently wrapping a cord around the couple’s hands and tying a knot, symbolizing unity (hence the expression “tying the knot”). Since this promised to be a joyous and very colorful event, we thought it would be perfect as our engagement photo shoot. It poured rain the entire week before the ceremony, so we held our breath about the weather. About the time we arrived, the rain finally cleared, leaving a fine mist in the air which lent an aura of enchantment to the grounds and made the colors even more vibrant. It was truly a magical day.

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Congratulations Marcia & Chuck! Thank you for sharing your super awesome love story & Maryland Renaissance Festival handfasting ceremony with us. A special thanks again to Douglas Pettway for sharing his images with us!

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