Handmade, with love woven in
Welcome to Intertwined - Handfasting Cords! We're guessing you're here because you're getting married - congratulations! We hope you're enjoying the wedding planning. So, you're literally going to 'tie the knot' with a Handfasting Ceremony, and it's going to be amazing! We're getting excited just thinking about it!
Sure, you could use some scraps of tartan or ribbon...but, you and your fiancé are a stylish couple and you want to make this symbolic gesture extra special, right? We thought so!
Well, you've come to the right place - at Intertwined, every handfasting cord is handmade to order, each with love, care and positive vibes woven in. With our wide range of vibrantly coloured and luxuriously soft satin ribbon, our cords will provide a picture-perfect moment as you join hands during your Handfasting.
Read on to find out more about the Handfasting Ceremony, or go straight to our Shop and select your cords from our curated collection or have yours custom made to intertwine perfectly with your wedding’s unique colour scheme or theme. Your cords can be made with or without charms, and will make a stunning keepsake to remember your special day forever.
What is a Handfasting Ceremony?
The phrases ‘tying the knot’, and ‘giving one’s hand in marriage’ are synonymous with getting married, and with good reason! They originate from an ancient Celtic tradition going back as far as 7000 B.C., called the Handfasting Ceremony, where couples would give one hand to be bound with their future spouse’s, by braided cord or ribbon, marking their engagement.
This symbolic gesture has been incorporated into wedding ceremonies and practised by many different cultures all over the world, religious and non-religious, signifying the binding of two lives. It is a simple yet moving symbol of two people joining together in marriage.
Since handfasting cords can be personalised with different colours and charms, the Handfasting ceremony is a wonderful combination of tradition and modernism.
How does the Handfasting Ceremony work?
Handfasting ceremonies can be incorporated into Weddings, Affirmation of Vows and Vow Renewals. It works best before, during, or after vows are taken.
Your celebrant/officiant will wrap the cords around yours and your partner’s joined hands and say some meaningful words about what the symbolic gesture represents. Then you can incorporate your vows and exchange of rings if you wish. You and your partner will then tie the knot - a great picture moment!
The cords can be tied around a bouquet or laid on the top table for the remainder of the day. They make a wonderful keepsake to remember your wedding day by and can even be framed in a shadow box.
How many cords do we need?
The ceremony can be done with as few or as many cords as you like, though they are most commonly done with 2 cords, with the idea that one cord represents you and another represents your partner, and you are tying your lives together.
However, handfasting ceremonies can use 3 or even up to 6 cords - since multiple cords can be wrapped by close friends or family members, with each cord representing their love and support for you, it is a great way to involve them in your big day and works especially well for blended families.
Our standard cord length is 1.5m, which is a great fit across the various tying methods, though different lengths can be made on request by email.
How do we tie the knot?
There are a variety of ways to tie handfasting cords. Your celebrant/officiant probably has one or two go-to methods, but if you have a preference, make sure you discuss this with them so that they can prepare accordingly.
Here are a few of my personal favourites in which the celebrant/officiant does the trickier part of wrapping
the cords and you get to tie the knot yourselves:
The Infinity Knot
Any number of cords can be used for this method. You and your partner join one hand, leaving the other hand free. The cords are wrapped around them by your celebrant/officiant, then you slip your hands away and use your other hand to tie the knot in such a way that you are left with an infinity knot, as the name suggests. A lovely way to symbolise ever-lasting love between you and your partner. And a wee nod to the nautical!
The Kiss/Saltire
Works best with two cords. You and your partner face each other, with one pair of wrists resting on the other’s forearms. One cord is laid over your wrists, and the second cord is laid over your partner’s. You each take hold of the cord ends and pull away to tie the knot in such a way that the cords form a ‘kiss’ or ‘saltire’ shape. This looks really good in pictures and can be a wee nod to Scottish heritage.
The Loop
Any number of cords can be used for this method. You and your partner hold each other’s forearm, leaving one hand free. Each cord is wrapped across your joined hands in loops, then you each take a hold of the cord ends and slip your hands out of said loops, tying the knot. The ‘kiss’ or ‘saltire’ shape can be achieved by separating the ends of the cords, with the knot in the centre. The loops also look lovely in pictures.
Can we personalise our cords?
Absolutely! Have a look at our curated collection of handfasting cords – you can swap the charms for others or choose to have no charms at all.
You can also order custom made cords, picking from a wide range of colours and charms. You can select matching cords or choose to have a different style for each cord.
If you would like a particular charm that is not displayed, please email us, and we will try to source it for you. If you have any questions at all, please do not hesitate to contact us at info@intertwinedhandfastingcords.com!
About Us
Intertwined Handfasting Cords was created by Tasha the Celebrant (Tasha Leung), a Wedding Celebrant who conducts bespoke ceremonies in Scotland, bringing couples together in meaningful and personalised way.
The Handfasting Ceremony is among her favourite symbolic gestures, and she hand weaves all our cords with love and positive energy.
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You can also check out Tasha's accounts on Facebook and Instagram.
Visit us and say hi! Don't forget to leave us a review if you love your Handfasting Cords :)
Let customers speak for us
Absolutely beautiful, speedy delivery and amazing communication
Excellent item, beautifully made, delivered on time and great care taken in the packaging to ensure it arrived in perfect condition
Ours have just arrived beautifully packaged and they are exactly like the photos. Such lovely colours.
Tasha was great to work with, discussed other options for a different charm to be added from the usual ones on the site and this wasn’t a problem to be sourced, especially with it being a Chinese double happiness symbol. The colours are great and we look forward to using them on the big day!
I received my thistle themed cord with charms it’s beautiful, so nicely packaged would highly recommend intertwined 5 stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Absolutely stunning. Well made feels so lovely to touch. Charms beautiful, fabulously packaged. Great price, communication and delivery excellent can’t wait for wedding to use it❤️😍. Highly recommend 😍⭐️👏
Well made, quality feel. Exactly as described. Communication and delivery excellent. Highly recommend and cat wait to use at my wedding.
It was a really easy process ordering custom cords from Tasha.
We were referred to her by our wedding celebrant when we said we wanted to include hand fasting in our ceremony.
My fiancé and I checked the website, considered the pre-made cords but decided to pay extra to get our custom colours and charms.
When we placed our order we were told that a photo of a mock up would be sent in a few days to allow us to check colours etc - Tasha sent this the next day!
Our actual cords came, beautifully packaged, about a week later. All in all an easy process.
Looking forward to these cords being part of our ceremony this Summer.
This was by far the best cord I found online and it does not disappoint in person. Beautifully made and an excellent length. Outstanding customer service as well. Would highly recommend.
Impressed with promptness of response, and attention to detail. Packages arrived within a couple of days, and the handfasting cords are lovely!
Gorgeous handfasting cords! We bought our cords in Celestial and Pink Sands. Both are beautiful and really well made. Delivery was super quick and they were beautifully packaged. We can’t wait to use them when we tie the knot in May!
Brilliant service, great communication and the product is just perfect, thank you so much again Tasha!
We LOVE our cords and appreciate Tasha so much! We had changed our mind on the colours chosen and Tasha came back so quickly with a picture for approval. Nothing is ever a nuisance to her! Also the way it was packaged so beautifully, we actually felt bad opening 🙈 x
Quick turnaround and gorgeous ribbons and charms. Just what I wanted.
The process was really easy and the owner was lovely! The tie we have is beautiful and came with lovely little touches. It arrived so quickly too! Would definitely recommend!