Megan Duncan & Stephen Jamieson
28th September 2018
Venue | Carlowrie Castle, West Lothian
Photography | ABM Photography
“I’d always imagined getting married at a castle. As soon as we drove up the long driveway and got a glimpse of Carlowrie through the trees, we both knew instantly – it had the exact vibe we wanted.
Neither of us are particularly religious, and we liked the freedom a humanist ceremony could offer. It allowed us to have a service completely personalised by us. I discovered Tim Maguire of Caledonian Humanist Association online and, after meeting him, we could tell that he loved his job, so booked him right away.
We aimed for a day that was fun and relaxed. My mum and I leafed through plenty of Tie the Knot Scotland magazines for inspiration, marking off pieces of advice and ideas. Tim’s blog also gave us lots of useful tips, and I can’t discuss planning without mentioning Pinterest.
Both of us agreed that we wouldn’t do anything on the day just because it was ‘tradition’. Being a lover of ’90s dance music, I walked down the aisle to an acoustic version of N-Trance’s Set You Free. My 92-year-old gran liked it so much she asked me where she could listen to it.
Stephen can come across as quite quiet, but his speech surprised a lot of people. It was fantastic and very funny – he did brilliantly. My mum also made a beautiful speech that was very touching and meant a lot, as she is not much of a public speaker.
My dad offered us a contribution in the early stages of planning, before he suddenly passed away six weeks ahead of the wedding. My parents had hosted fireworks parties when I was younger, so a display seemed like the right way to use the money in his memory. It definitely had the wow factor, and our guests loved it.
Seeing all of our loved ones in the same room and knowing that all of our hard work put the smiles on their faces was really special. That feeling has really bonded us, and given Stephen and I memories to cherish on our journey through married life.”
Top tip: “In hindsight, I think we did overthink things as we wanted it to be perfect. But on the day itself I woke up and calmness washed over me – I just enjoyed getting ready. Things did go wrong, but we became husband and wife and that’s all that really matters!”
Brides’ dress Gwenne Wedding Services
Bridesmaids’ dresses Kudos Bridal Boutiques
Flowergirl’s dress Marsha Marshal
Groomswear Eight Yards
Mother of the bride outfit Catwalk
Celebrant Tim Maguire at Caledonian Humanist Association
Stationery Polina Perri
Flowers Trudi Todd Flowers
Venue decor Beautifully Covered
Entertainment The Paisley Pipers and Empire
Fireworks 21CC
Filmmaker Ultimate Moments Videography
Makeup Nikki Marshall and Eve Learmonth
Hair Rosheen Warnock