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Weddings are a joyous occasion, but one of the most stressful parts is how to write wedding vows and make them truly yours. You want them to be funny, sweet, heartfelt, and unique, but you don’t know where to start. We’ve got some great tips for you!
Part 1: Writing Your Own Wedding Vows that Don’t Suck
Let’s get you started on writing wedding vows, unique wedding vows, or original wedding vows. These tips below will give you ideas and inspiration about the vows themself as well as tips on how to write.
Don’t Wait Until the Last Minute.
Your wedding vows are going to be spoken In front of your officiant, pastor, priest or rabbi, your entire family, and your circle of friends. The last thing you want to do is throw them together at the last minute.
We recommend getting started right away. That will give you time to write, revise, and even procrastinate a tiny bit.
Use keepsakes, letters, cards, and gifts for inspiration.
When writing anything you need inspiration. Writing wedding vows is the same, which is why you should surround yourself with keepsakes, cards, gifts, and anything else that you’ve gotten from your spouse-to-be.
These objects will remind you of special dates, events, and occurrences that can inspire your words of love and devotion.
Agree on a format beforehand.
If you’re like most couples you’ll probably want to keep your vows a little bit of a secret until the big day. However, agreeing on a specific format, length, and other ground rules, if you will, is a good idea. Things like humor, for example, might be OK with one of you but not the other.
The length of your vows should also be agreed on so that you both stick to the same amount of words, more or less. Of course, nothing says that you can’t write your vows together either, which some folks find extremely romantic.
Ask a trusted friend or family member to read your vows.
If writing comes naturally to you this might be a tip you can skip. If not, asking a trusted family member or friend to read your vows before you speak them on your special day is a great idea. Better yet, have them read the vows out loud to you so that you’ll hear the words, cadence, inflections.
Non-traditional wedding vows can break the mold but you don’t want to say anything that some might feel go overboard, especially your spouse-to-be.
Write. Stop. Write Again. Repeat.
This is a great tip for people who don’t write all the time; don’t try to write everything in one sitting. Some of the best writers on the planet take breaks from their writing. That way, they can come back to it with a fresh mind, clearer outlook, or new inspiration. You should do the same.
Take a couple of hours one day to write and then stop. Come back a day or two later, write some more and then stop again.
Do this until you perfect your wedding vows and feel like they’re as good as they’re going to get. You’ll be surprised how well this works, trust us.
Make a list of the things you love.
If you’re having trouble getting started putting words to paper (or to the computer screen) you might consider writing a list instead. List all of the things that you love about your special guy or special gal. Make another list of the things that you enjoy doing together or a list of the hopes and dreams you both have.
Write everything down that you can think of without worrying about how it sounds. When you’re done, you can then use your lists to inspire what you write and make your wedding vows unique.
Don’t get too personal or TMI.
Yes, your wedding vows are supposed to be romantic and talk about the deep personal feelings you have for each other. That being said, don’t go too far because, remember, all of your friends and family will be listening.
You probably want to skip any inside jokes that no one else would understand or anything about your sex life (obviously).
Then again, these are your vows and you can pretty much say whatever you want. As long as you both agree on it, go for it. (BIG TIP- Do NOT throw in a surprise personal reference that might embarrass your sweetheart. That could start your wedding day on a slightly sour note.)
Answer your own questions.
This is another tip for those of you who are having trouble writing. Make a list of questions and then answer them. This is a great way to inspire yourself based on facts that you already know. Here are a few good ones:
- Where did you meet?
- When was the first time he or she said: “I love you”?
- What do you have in common?
- What was your first impression when you met?
- What interesting things have you done together? (vacations, etc.)
- What do you love most about them?
- How have they inspired you?
- What activities do you enjoy together?
Get the idea? You can ask a million questions like these and then use the answers to write your vows! They can be about anything you wish when you’re writing original wedding vows. They can also be a great source when writing secular wedding vows.
Part 2- Step-By-Step Tips to Writing Your Unique Wedding Vows
In this section, we’ll give you step-by-step instructions that you can follow (like paint-by-numbers!) and write your non-traditional wedding vows. You can use them as-is or customize them to your particular style.
State who this wonderful person standing before you is.
Whether they’re your best friend, the love of your life, the yin to your yang, start with a statement that says just that.
Here’s an example:
“Jesse, you are the love of my life, my best friend, and partner-in-crime.”
Write down the things you love about your spouse-to-be.
This next part is focused on the traits you adore about your partner. Maybe the thing that first attracted you to them or the trait that you find the most endearing. It could be the thing you miss when they’re not around or the reason that you love them.
“Since the day I first saw you, I knew you were my soulmate. I love you for the way you make me feel when we’re together and miss you so much when we’re apart. We’ve grown so much together and you enrich my life and inspire me to be better.”
Tell a Story About How You Met or Fell In Love
Many couples like to add in an anecdote about how they met, where they first kissed, etc. This can make your vows more memorable and give your family and friends some insight into why you’ve decided to marry (and how deeply you care for each other).
Example:
“Since the day I watched you get yanked around on a rope on your skis by a horse named Peanut – (turn to guests) Jesse does skijoring for those attending who don’t know – I knew that I couldn’t picture my life without you ever again. On the ski lift at Sundance, you told me I was the partner you’d only dreamed about. That moment felt perfect because I felt the exact same way about you.”
Tell the promises you want to make to your partner.
This is the ‘vow’ part of unique wedding vows. It’s here where you promise, as they say in many traditional wedding vows, “to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, for richer for poorer’ etc.
These also vow to support your partner and demonstrate how you will do so. Adding your style and flair here is why you wanted to write these vows in the first place, so go for it!
Examples:
- “I promise to love you and always be by your side, through all of the ups and downs.”
- “I vow to always be faithful, and always be your best friend, no matter what the future might bring.”
- “I promise to always root for you, cheer you on, and be your biggest fan.”
- “I promise to love and support you.”
- “I promise to spend the rest of my days loving you madly.”
- “I promise to cherish you for the rest of your life.”
- “Before our family and friends, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health, for better or worse, I promise to love you and spend the rest of my days with you.”
Add some humor or romance. Why not both?
When writing secular wedding vows you’re allowed to add in anything you like, including humorous and romantic vows. These can add a lot of uniqueness and spice and make them even more memorable.
Examples:
- “I promise to love you until my dying breath and never leave your side.”
- “I promise to share my dreams, my secrets, and my innermost feelings with you always and forever.”
- “I promise to never leave the toilet seat up and always give you fair warning if my mother is coming for a visit.” (Be careful with that one!)
- “I vow to root for the Niners even if they’re playing the Raiders.”
Mention things you will do together.
On your wedding day, you and your partner will be merging into a couple, a team, or a lifelong partnership (choose whichever term you like best). For that reason, you should mention a few of the things that you will do when you’re growing together down the road.
Examples:
- “Together we’ll face the future without fear because we’ll always have each other to lean on.”
- “We’ll grow together, learn together, and change the world together.”
Remember to add the tough stuff.
We’re talking about rough times, of course, which all couples inevitably face. It won’t all be tea and crumpets in the future and you should be sure to attest to that in your vows.
Examples:
- “I promise to be faithful during the best of times, the worst of times, and everything in between.”
- “I promise to take care of you and prioritize your needs when you really need me.”
- “I promise to not get caught up in petty arguments, (even if you gave me the wrong directions!) Because our relationship is so much more meaningful than that.”
Wrap it up in a beautiful bow.
The last sentence in your original wedding vows should be one last promise to always be the one. It’s the big finish, so make sure you make this last sentence count.
Examples:
- You are the love of my life and I promise to adore you, cherish you and respect you for all the days of my life.”
- Today and forever, I give you my heart, my soul, and my trust, no matter what our future might bring.”
Part 3: Full Non-Traditional Unique Wedding Vow Examples
This blog post is about how to craft wedding vows that are original. There are many different styles of wedding vows, so there should be something for everyone! Wedding planning can be stressful – one way we try to help ease the process is by providing examples like these for your wedding ceremony!
Writing vows should come naturally because they are such an important part of the wedding ceremony, right? Wrong! For many of us, we stumble to find the right words to express our infinity of love for our partner.
Want to know how do you write a short wedding vow? View our examples below!
If you’re writing a short wedding vow, speak from your heart, and don’t be afraid to get emotional. It’s okay to ask for help as long as the person is someone who knows you well enough not to feel offended by it. We have some original examples below if you find them more helpful.
These are not your average “In sickness and in health.” Here are sample wedding vows with a bit of sentiment, empathy, humor, silliness, and heartfelt love. (Who cut the onions?).
We wrote these ourselves, don’t judge. So feel free to steal them, get inspiration, and make them yours – we won’t claim credit ;)
Short Sample Wedding Vows
- “I promise to be kind, patient, and forgiving. I promise to hold from this day in my heart, mind, and soul, and to take care of you for the rest of my life.”
- “In all my thoughts about how best to love you, it occurs to me that the best way is to keep showing up.”
- “I will always strive to do my best for you and to be the person that you need me to be.”
- “I vow never to take away any of myself but instead give more than ever before as I guide you through every part of my heart until eternity.”
- “I promise you my heart and with it, I’m forever yours. My wedding vows stand true; you have me completely. My love is never-ending.”
- “We will be best friends, partners, and lovers. We’ll share everything from our deepest secrets to the most intimate moments of passion.”
- “I promise you my heart and with it, I’m yours completely. My wedding vows stand true; you have me forever. My love for you is endless.”
- “I pledge you my love and devotion now, tomorrow, into eternity.”
- “Wherever life’s journey leads us, please know that my heart belongs with yours.”
- “It’s been a long time coming, but I want nothing more than to be your husband/wife.”
- “I promise to share everything from my deepest secrets to the most intimate moments of passion with you.”
- “I will never give up on us.” “No matter how many ups and downs we face, I will always love you.”
- “I promise to love you, to be your faithful partner in life, and live with gratitude for you daily.”
- “You are the most important person in the world to me. Together we will build a home of our own making where there is respect for each other’s feelings and ideas. I promise to love you for the rest of the days of my life.”
- “I vow to love you unconditionally for all of eternity.”
- “I give myself completely to you. I offer my love for your own happiness. I surrender all that is within me so we may grow old together.”
- “You are my best friend in the universe, my other half. You are the love of my life.”
Unique Sample Wedding Vows
- “Today and every day for the rest of my life, I promise to be your navigator and sidekick in all of life’s adventures. I’ll always keep you by my side so that we can experience this wonderful journey of life together. I promise to be your best friend, partner-in-crime; someone who will remind you how much they love you when life gets hard.”
- “Today and every day for the rest of my life, I promise to be there for you. Whether we’re exploring a new country or Netflix and chillin’, I am excited about our journey. Through good times or bad ones including those trying moments – and I am so grateful they happen because I love you so much more when we overcome adversity – at all points along our life path, just know that you have all of me through thick and thin.”
- “Today and every day for the rest of my life, I promise to be your (husband/wife), partner, and sidekick in all of life’s adventures. Together, we will have an adventure that is greater than any other! I promise you myself completely.”
- “I promise that I will love you for all the years of my life and remain open to your wishes, thoughts, feelings, and needs. I will always listen with empathy as we share our hopes for the future. Together we can work out any difficulties or challenges so long as we are willing to communicate in a meaningful way about them. No matter what may come our way, this commitment shall never falter from us.”
- “This relationship has given me opportunities to grow into myself and learn more about what I want out of life. Now that we have found each other again, there will be no holding back from exploring our future life together!”
- “I promise to stay by your side through sickness and in health as your husband/wife; even when difficult times come along. Your happiness shall forever be most important to me.”
- “I vow never, ever to hurt you or make you feel less than perfect in any way; both now and forevermore. I promise not only to love but also to respect and cherish our union from this day forward until death parts us apart again.”
- “The most important thing is that we grow together as a couple through shared experiences – good times or bad- so we can share with each other what life means on a deeper level. I want all of your dreams to come true, even if they aren’t mine too because it makes them no longer just yours alone… ours!”
- “I promise to love you endlessly for the rest of our days as your husband/wife. I will keep you safe and warm as I shelter us from the tribulations that may come our way. In lean times, we can rely on each other for comfort. Together, let’s make today a day of firsts by making memories to last a lifetime!”
- “Today and every day for the rest of my life, I promise as your (husband/wife) to always be by your side. We are one soul with two halves – our hearts beat in unison. From sunrise until sunset, dusk to dawn, through world pandemics and quarantines, from here on out it’s just me and you baby!”
- “When I am with you, the world fades away. All that matters is being there for every moment of your life and making sure to cherish it as best we can together. You are my greatest gift in this lifetime and I’m so lucky our paths crossed because if they didn’t then none of these wonderful moments would ever have happened, and it means so much more that we got to experience these together!”
- “I love you so much it almost hurts! You are my life. The joy I feel when we’re together is indescribable in words. All that matters to me now and always will be is our family together. I am for this gift called marriage and to call you my husband/wife.”
- “I cherish every second with you. You are my life and the heartbeat that keeps me going day after day. But from this day forward on as we stand before these witnesses here today, I vow to make each of our days count more than any other in existence because they’re all ours together-forever, to share and enjoy.”
- “It’s not about the rings that we wear. It’s all about us! And I vow to be your best friend, lover, and soul mate from this day forward for better or worse until death do us part.”
- “We are more than just two souls coming together; we’re a family united by love. We pledge to focus on our shared values which will guide both of our lives as one through happiness and sorrow, in sickness and in health till death parts us.”
- “I pledge myself to you today. I am yours now and forevermore.” “With this ring, I seal our promises together for all time. And with these hands, I offer my heart forevermore.”
- “You are my best friend in the world. We’ve had our share of hard times but they have only made me realize what a precious gift your companionship is to me. We are now committed together forever… as it should be.”
- “We are going into this life together. We will face the difficulties of today as well as tomorrow with courage born anew each day by our faithfulness to one another’s needs—physical, spiritual, emotional.”
- As your husband/wife, I promise to be your rock. I promise to uplift and encourage you. I promise to never give up on you. I will work hard every day to make sure that we both know how much I love and cherish you.”
- “I pledge myself, my life, my heart, and all that is within me, to be your one faithful husband/wife from this day forth for better or worse, in sickness and in health. All the days of our lives together are like a beautiful tapestry with threads coming together which create a perfect whole. With these wedding vows completed here today through making promises before our friends and family, it has been woven by two people who have decided they want their life together forevermore as one solid and cherished thread.”
- “For better or less than whatever may come our way…we stand fearless knowing nothing can stop our love or keep us from each other. You have been the most important person in my life. From this moment forward, I will be your husband/wife and you shall be my husband/wife.”
- “I take thee as my wedded spouse, to have and to hold from this day onward; for better or worse; forsaking all others that come before me. Do so with peace of mind knowing our lives intertwine together…and create a perfect whole called love.”
- “I promise to always be there for you, in good times and bad. I know that we can make it through anything together. Every day I fall more deeply in love with you and am so happy to have found someone who is willing to face all of life’s challenges with me.”
- Be my partner in life, we’re so much better together. I want to laugh with you when you are happy; to support you when you’re down, and to encourage you always. We’ll always be there for each other so we can see overcome whatever comes our way long after today has gone.
- Together, let’s build a lifetime of happiness on this foundation of love. We shall not give up hope or surrender to adversity but instead renew our faith in ourselves and one another again and again.”
- “As we walk down life’s path together hand in hand, you have my entire heart and soul.”
- “Oneness has been our destiny since first we met. This moment two became one on earth and now our souls have mated. My love for you grows ever stronger with each passing hour like the mountain’s roots that hold it.”
- You are my destiny. I promise always to remember how much you mean to me. That’s a vow I’ll make till the day we’re old and grey.”
Funny Wedding Vows
Want to see how many emotions you can bring up during your vows? Going from sweet to goofy is a great way to make your guests tear up then laugh! Here are some examples of funny wedding vows:
- “Give me your bad hair days, your long commutes, and burnt coffee. I’ll give you my love to make it all better!”
- “I’ll always be on your side as your (husband/wife), even when you’re wrong. I promise to never let the dirty dishes accumulate in the sink too long–even if it’s just for me! I promise to never keep score, even when I’m clearly winning.”
- “You’re the peanut butter to my jelly, the salt to my pepper shaker, and nacho cheese to my fries– we’re just better together.”
- “I promise to not watch a Netflix episode behind your back.”
- “I promise to always wear matching socks, and I’ll never ask you to wear any of my clothes.”
- “I solemnly swear that when we have kids together I will play with them every day and not just throw a ball at their head or tell them the same bedtime story over and over again.”
- “Thank you for loving me even though my hairline has receded since high school and it may never grow back in.”
- I promise to take better photos of you and always get your good side.
- “I promise to always remember your birthday and anniversary if you’ll forgive me for forgetting back in 2018!”
- “I promise to never leave your side, kind of like when we were stuck together during a pandemic.”
- “You are the mustard to my mayo, the salt to my pepper shaker and a one-of-a-kind spice I need in life.”
- “Every day we’ll make new mistakes together and learn from them faster than ever before. I promise to bring you Pedialyte and Advil when you’re hungover.”
Wedding Vow for a Passed Down Wedding Ring
- “This wedding ring has been passed down from generation after generation and has stood the test of time. It is a symbol of our love and commitment to each other.”
- “It represents the unbreakable bond you have given me today. As long as we wear it on our hands, it’s like a promise that no matter what life brings us – good or bad- nothing can break us apart because we are one soul joined together.”
- “Together with this ring, I will always be your partner in life; for all that we share together, both now and forevermore!”
Sample Wedding Vows for Him
When you’re writing wedding vows for your husband, you want to make him feel like a million bucks. Whether he’s a “macho man” or not, you need to make sure that your wedding vows are going to bring him tears of happiness and sentiment.
- “Nothing brings me more happiness than to call you my husband.”
- “You’ve provided me with a life of joy and laughter.”
- “I promise to love you, care for you, honor you, and cherish our marriage. I will never forget the day that I met my best friend in person! The first time I saw your face; it was like looking at the sun coming up over the horizon on a new day. It warmed my heart just knowing that now there’s someone who loves me as much as I love them. You make every bad thing seem better by being near me because nothing is more important than spending eternity with you.”
Hopefully, this provides inspiration for finding unique words when writing one’s own vows! After reading these examples it should be clear that a simple “you’re the best” or “we’ll never part” may not work as an effective marriage vow. Instead, think about what your loved one cares about and how you can best express your love.
Wedding vows are one of the most personal moments in a couple’s life, and they can be as simple or complex as you wish. There is no “right” way to write your own wedding vows.
A number of traditional elements have become popular additions to more modern weddings: exchanging rings, drinking wine from two glasses that represent both families, saying “I now pronounce you husband and wife” (or “…partners for eternity), giving away flowers after the ceremony etc.
Thanks for reading and we hope you’re inspired to write your own wedding vows!
P.S. If you’re looking for religious wedding vows or following a traditional wedding, check out The Most Romantic Religious Wedding Vows and Traditions from Different Cultures. Some of the religious wedding vows are traditional while others are modern. Either way, you’ll love our original religious wedding vows and the stories behind the traditional ones.
We hope you enjoyed this article and that it’s inspired you to start writing your unique vows today. We wish you the best of luck with your vows and, of course, with your wedding itself! Also, congratulations! And if you’re not keen on writing your own vows, you should try this wedding vows writing service that can take that stress off your plate.
