Hi, I'm Sonya, a marriage celebrant in Wellington.

I'm a career public servant and practicing lawyer, who's called Wellington home for fourteen years. Most of my day job involves figuring out how things work and what matters to people, and then using that insight to tell compelling stories. So the celebrant thing is a pretty natural fit.

Outside of work, I'm involved with a couple of charities, and I play a lot of music - if you live in Wellington city and enjoy a street festival, chances are you've seen me on my trombone at least a handful of times. I'm also a classical pianist, and I've got friends who play just about every instrument under the sun - so if you're stuck on what to do for music, I may know someone who knows someone who's right for you.

The people who know me best describe me as upbeat and adaptable - I'm pragmatic, relaxed, and approach everything with a can-do attitude. I became a celebrant because I want to give back to my community in Wellington, but also because happy people in love are simply awesome to be around - the joy is infectious and there's really nothing more satisfying than helping people have the best day of their lives.

Everyone's ceremony is different, and therefore so is every invoice. But there are a few basic guidelines that might help you to know whether working with me is in your budget.

1. Our initial consult is free of charge. I want us to get to know each other a little, so that we both know whether working together is going to be a good fit. If it's not, no worries.

2. Before I do any work for you, I'll send you a personalised fee proposal. It won't be a detailed invoice, but it will give you a rough figure to work with based on what scale of ceremony we've discussed.

3. As a ballpark figure, for a short and simple ceremony you can probably expect to pay $300-$600. This will vary according to how much work's required, but my style of ceremony is clean, structured, and above all, simple - so will never be a lot more expensive.

4. I'll require a 50% deposit at the time we agree a ceremony plan and fee proposal. Payment for the rest will be due after the wedding itself, based on actual hours and disbursements. I'm pretty conservative when it comes to budgeting, so unless there are changes of plans, you shouldn't expect any blowouts.