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
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!
Beautiful and very well made handfasting cords which are perfect for my business as a celebrant by the sea. Cant wait to use them. Thank you, they are everything I hoped they would be. Delighted with them!x
Perfectly put together and packaged so nicely. Delivery was quick too.
Tasha was just amazing from start to finish eve saying she would put me some chains on so that the couple could add their own personalised charms - no extra charge which was so kind of her - arrived packaged so beautifully in tissue and with lots of dried flower petals which smelt amazing and a very lovely touch. Would highly recommend Intertwined and Tasha xxxxx
I ordered two handfasting cords and they are so beautiful. The packing was lovely and the scent in the box was a nice little touch too. Really pleased with them. Highly recommend. Thank you 😊
These are lovely, just what I was looking for. I was sent a preview picture too which was helpful, and delivery was very fast! Perfect!
I was happy to find these cords, as I was having a heck of a time finding handmade cords that were affordable but high in quality. I love the complimentary satchel included for safe storage. Can’t wait to utilise this during my wedding ceremony!
I purchased the pride handfasting cord on the recommendation of someone we spoke to, who highly recommended Intertwined.
From the heart I can safely say that I was not disappointed in the slightest!
The ordering process was very straight forward, plenty to choose from and the charms provided online fitted with my particular requirements. Not to mention reasonably priced.
The pictures online do not demonstrate how beautiful these cords actually are!
Upon delivery I opened my parcel straight away, I couldn’t wait to see the real thing. Upon opening I was presented with a personalised box with the companies branding, the product wrapped with care in nice tissue paper, and more notably a beautiful fragrance emanating from the box.
Setting the standards high at this level has certainly made it evident that this person knows how to impress and importantly knows how to demonstrate their care for clientele.
I opened the tissue paper up and was presented with a delicate sheen style organza bag for storing the cords in, scattered below the bag were, what I believe, some lovely dried out flower petals.
I then took the cords out of the box, unwrapped the carefully tied satin ribbon that bound them together and viewed the cords themselves.
As I held the cords in my hand I could feel the quality of this product, they were pleated in such perfect symmetry and not one pleat seen to be bigger than the other.
The cords have the perfect flexibility and durability and the colours chosen just “pop”. The charms were also attached as requested and with some excess ribbon at the end to add the finishing touch.
This purchase is one of my weddings top ten purchases and will be cherished for life as a memento to our special day.
Thank you so very much for delivering top quality products with such care and compassion.
