New York-based bride Sydney wanted to pay tribute to her Scottish grandfather by marrying in his homeland. Her and Jeffrey’s fairytale castle celebration featured abundant flowers, fabulous fireworks, mesmerising magic and...axe throwing (yes, really!)

A bride makes a pointed finger gesture while a groom wearing a dark blue suit looks down at a silver quaich vessel in his hands, while standing against a large wooden door at Blairquhan Castle

Sydney Park and Jeffrey Cafarchio

8th August 2023

Venue | Blairquhan Castle, Ayrshire
Photography + film | New Chapter Creatives

"Jeffrey and I met online. From the minute he picked me up for our first date, I knew he was the only one for me. We started dating when I was in my last year of college, and have been together ever since. He took me to a beautiful waterside resort in upstate New York in August 2022 and after breakfast in bed, and a boat ride on the water, asked me to marry him on the dock overlooking the lake.

Scotland was our dream wedding location. My grandfather was Scottish, so we thought marrying there would be a great way to honour his memory. I also couldn’t think of anything more magical or romantic than getting married surrounded by our family in a castle in the Scottish countryside!

We settled upon Blairquhan Castle in Ayrshire. We wanted a location where all 40 of us could stay on-site and enjoy time together. We had all the rooms in the castle and cottages nearby on the estate at our disposal.

We ended up making a big family trip around the occasion. We started out in Edinburgh, and then took a bus over to Blairquhan, so it was a vacation as well as a wedding. I treasure the time we got to spend together.

Our budget was $40,000 and we had around a year to plan. I did most of the organising myself, but in hindsight, I would not recommend taking it all on without a Scottish wedding planner; it was tricky from the States.

We worked with Blairquhan’s superb coordinators to fit everything into place. I cannot praise the team at the castle enough – it’s a gorgeous venue with phenomenal staff and great food.

We had four bridesmaids and four groomsmen. I had my three sisters and sister-in-law, while Jeff had his three best friends and his brother-in-law.

My favourite memory from the morning of my wedding was my twin sister helping me with my hair and accidentally spraying lotion that ended up everywhere! Thankfully we were able to fix it and had a great big laugh about it.

Our blue and green colour scheme was based on the Flower of Scotland tartan.

Our florist Kirstie’s Flowers was amazing and really brought my vision to life – her work was stunning.

One of my favourite personal details was the red cardinal birds I placed at tables to stand for loved ones that couldn’t be with us on the big day. My family has always believed that when you see one of these birds, it’s a loved one saying hello, so it was really special to have those little reminders dotted around.

We sought out a photographer who was going to capture the emotion of the day. We didn’t want too many formal portraits or ‘typical’ bridal shots. Our photographers and filmmakers New Chapter Creatives were so great to work with and extremely receptive to my ideas. We had so much fun doing the video too – it makes me cry every time I see it!

The night before the wedding, we had dinner together in the castle. Then we had a storyteller recite some Scottish fairytales and legends. My mom and I split a bottle of wine, steamed my wedding dress and chilled out with my dad, which was really special.

The morning of the wedding was eventful. The boys all got to wear their custom velour tracksuits that had their names and roles printed on them. It was funny to watch them take pictures from the room we were all getting ready in.

Come mid-morning, our champagne truck arrived along with the archery and axe-throwing company. Our guests were able to try their hand at games before the ceremony. I threw an axe myself and hit a bullseye!

I walked down the aisle to the skirl of the bagpipes on the arm of my dad. I surprised everyone by having a piper play a version of Rick Astley’s ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’ as we walked out of the venue.

We had a humanist ceremony led by celebrant Andrew D. Scott. He was incredible and we had so much fun getting to know him and have him get to know us. He did a superb job of telling our story. I think my favourite moment from the ceremony was finally getting to kiss my new husband!

Magician Craig Roe did close-up magic during our drinks reception. He absolutely blew our minds.

The speeches were good. My sister cried the entire time. The DJ from Devotion Weddings brought out a “wet floor” sign as she gave her speech which we all laughed about.

I wanted to feel like a dancing queen on my big night, so I changed into an amazing silver Sherri Hill dress that sparkled like a disco ball.

Our first dance was to a song that my twin sister’s friend wrote, ‘The Village’ by Halle Payne. It had just been released in May so it was a privilege that we were the first couple who ever got to use it! My parents surprised us with a firework display to cap off the wonderful evening."

Venue and catering Blairquhan Castle
Photography and filmmaker 
New Chapter Creatives
Celebrant Andrew D. Scott Celebrant
Bride’s main dress Martina Liana from Alexandra’s Bridal Boutique Massachusetts
Bride’s evening dress Sherri Hill from The Clothes Tree Nashville
Bridesmaid dresses Revelry
Flower girl dress BHLDN
Makeup Heather May Makeup
Hair Megan Riddex Bridal Hair
Groomswear MacGregor and MacDuff
Rings and jewellery Christi Sothers
Cake Custom Cakes by Lyndsey
Flowers and decor Kirstie’s Flowers
Stationery DIY by the bride
Favours Hand-stamped ornaments made by the bride’s sisters, and luggage tags from Etsy
Piper Alistair Brown, Ayrshire Piper
Drinks reception and reception DJ Devotion Weddings
Other entertainment Axe throwing, archery, fire pit and fireworks by Adventure Carrick
Magician Craig Roe Magician
Champagne truck Albert & Charlies Mobile Bar 
Transport Rowe & Tudhope

A Bride Wearing An Off Shoulder Wedding Dress Looking Emotional While Holding A Handkerchief
An Emotional Bride Carrying A Large White Bouquet Walks Down A Red Carpet At Blairquhan Castle On The Arm Of A Person Wearing A Navy Blue Suit As Guests Watch On
An elated bride and groom tying the knot during a handfasting ritual while standing near a large warm wooden door that's flanked by an asymmetric abundant white and blue flower floor-standing decoration
a bride holding up a wedding ring to show it to a groom while standing against a large wooden door that's flanked by a blue, white and foliage flower arrangement
celebrant Andrew D Scott standing against a large wooden door thats surrounded by blue and white flower decorations leads a wedding ceremony as a bride and groom hold hands and look at him pensively
a smiling bride and groom pose outside Blairquhan Castle standing next to Andrew D Scott celebrant who is wearing a kilt while other guests walk in background
an emotional groom wraps an arm around a bride whose floral veil catches in the breeze while standing outside Blairquhan Castle
a group of wedding guests lined up and newlywed bride and groom pose outside the facade of Blairquhan Castle
a joyous bride and groom walk next to a stone wall while pink and lilac hydrangeas blossom in the foreground
a newlywed bride and groom walk on grass below an avenue of trees on left and pose on a wooden pier on right at Blairquhan Castle
a bride and groom kiss below trees on left and groom cuddles and kisses bride from behind while standing on a white wooden bridge structure at Blairquhan Castle on right
a bride and groom stand face to face with their eyes closed while holding hands on left and a groom kisses bride on cheek while standing in front of greenery and a wooden bench-like structure on right
a joyous bride wearing a silver sequin dress with split enters a room with dark red patterned carpet at Blairquhan Castle while holding the hand of a groom wearing a dark blue suit
an emotional bridesmaid wearing a pale blue dress wipes away tears while looking at bride and groom seated at a table. The bride is wearing a silver sequin dress and also appears to be emotional, covering her face with one of her hands, and is comforted by a person wearing a dark blue suit
people wave white napkins as a person wearing a silver glitter dress walks through a room at Blairquhan Castle with white tapered candles in foreground
a bride seated at a table wearing a silver sparkly dress sitting next to a person wearing a dark blue suit gasps in emotion while looking at a bridesmaid who is standing next to a microphone
a seated bride and groom look emotional as a bridesmaid in a pale blue dress stands and looks at a phone while standing next to a microphone stand. There are white tapered candles flickering in the foreground
a bride wearing a silver glittery dress hugs a bridesmaid wearing a pale blue silk dress. The groom stands up from table in background
an elated bride wearing a silver glitter dress and groom wearing dark blue suit cut a two-tier semi-naked buttercream wedding cake that's sitting on a table in front of an elegant marble fireplace. There is a staircase with dark red carpet in the background
an emotional looking bride wearing silver and groom wearing dark blue suit dance at Blairquhan as surrounding wedding guests look on
a bride wearing a silver sequin dress holds her arms wide while dancing with the groom during a wedding reception at Blairquhan Castle
a bride and groom performing a dance during a wedding reception at Blairquhan Castle
a firework display lights up the night sky outside Blairquhan Castle

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Castle wedding Blairquhan Castle Humanist ceremony New Chapter Creatives Classic wedding

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