5th November 2016
Venue | Craigellachie Church and Craigellachie Hotel, Speyside
Photography | Emma Lawson Photography
“Gavin and I both work in design, so we have a very strong sense of what we love (and more so of what we don’t). We started planning our day with a ‘no list’, detailing everything we knew we didn’t want! The list consisted of anything too saccharine, too fussy or anything that was a pastiche of vintage. We like to keep things simple, low-key and laid-back – without being the wrong side of shabby.
Craigellachie is one of our favourite locations in Scotland. Nestled in the heart of whisky country, it is surrounded by the most spectacular big trees, which in autumn are on fire.
The hotel there is such a special place to us. We visit as often as we can and are always treated like family. It’s the perfect spot to sit by the fire with a dram and relax in good company. It also happens to be an incredibly cool venue with great attention to detail (which, being passionate about design, pleases us both greatly). It also serves the best local food and drink and the service is always warm and generous…so we couldn’t go wrong.
Initially, we planned to marry in the hotel but on randomly discovering that a friend’s mum was the local minister, we decided to have the service at The Craigellachie Church. When we met Rev. Shuna Dicks she was so relaxed and easy-going we knew we were in safe hands. Having someone we had a connection with marry us meant a lot.
As it was 5th November, we had to have fireworks! The team at the hotel organised the most spectacular display and it was really fun.
We didn’t focus on details. Our favourite aspect was that all our family and friends were able to celebrate with us. Gavin’s best friend, Matthew, wrote a poem for us which he read during the service; it was beautiful and a real highlight. The speeches were also very special: my dad surprised us all as he’d written a limerick about Gavin.
My requirements for a dress were long sleeves, a filled-in back and no fuss or frills. Stewart Parvin designed the perfect dress for me: simple, clean and focused on the perfect cut. It fitted like a glove and I was so comfortable I didn’t want to take it off.”
Top tip: “Don’t try too hard or fixate on unimportant details. Guests will remember the warmth of your day, the words, your smiles and the happiness – that’s what’s really important.”
Dress Stewart Parvin
Hair accessories ASOS
Groomswear Millsom and Main
Rings Christina Rose Leon
Favours Retro sweets for the girls, Aberlour whisky miniatures for the boys
Entertainment Footerin’ Aboot
Pre-wedding makeup lesson Rae Mathieson
