Amy and Stuart fell head over heels for the Edinburgh venue and made the most of every nook and cranny for their heartfelt, sunshine-filled celebration
Amy Curran & Stuart Ardis
24th August 2019
Venue | Norton House Hotel, Ingliston
Photography | Weir Photography
(Photo: Weir Photography)
“Stuart and I met when we were just teenagers. He proposed at his Royal Navy pass out parade after we hadn’t seen each other for 10 weeks!
We took our time with our planning, with two years between the engagement and wedding. The first decision we made was our venue.
Norton House Hotel’s Garden Suite was just perfect – we loved it as soon as we viewed it. It was ideal for a summer wedding, and luckily we had amazing weather on the day. I’ll never forget seeing our nearest and dearest having fun in the sun. We opened up the bi-folding doors and let our singer Shaun Philp perform for all our guests, both inside and out. He really made our day.
We wanted a laidback ceremony and our humanist celebrant Neil Anderson nailed it. Stuart was surprised how emotional he was when I was walking down the aisle! It was my favourite part of the day, wearing my gown, making my entrance, knowing we were about to become husband and wife.
I always wanted quite a neutral look for our wedding. I looked to magazines and social media for inspiration and visited wedding fairs. We had personalised wedding favours in the form of chocolate lollipops for all of our guests, which featured our wedding date and were also used as place names on each table. Two birds, one stone.
The one tradition I didn’t do as the bride was throw the bouquet!
We were really to-ing and fro-ing about hiring a videographer, but in the end, I’m so glad we did. The film captured all the little moments of our incredible day, even the parts that we missed, like us both getting ready and the guests arriving. We still love to watch it back. Our filmmaker, from Abbey Wedding Productions, was out of this world. (Scroll down to see the highlights on Instagram TV.)
Our star supplier was our photographers, Weir Photography. Martin and Elaine were outstanding and their attention to detail was second to none. And our wedding album is unbelievable. We just adore their candid shots of the day and of our loved ones enjoying themselves.
Book your suppliers early to make sure you get what you want. It’s crazy how quickly and how far they book up in advance. I tended to go for recommendations, as it made me feel more at ease.
Enjoy the planning and try to not stress. Sometimes I felt myself getting worked up more about our guests when I wish I hadn’t and instead had just focused on myself and my husband – at the end of the day, it’s your big day, not the guests’!”
Top tip: "Our biggest bargain was our cake! We went for a buttercream bake and were shocked with the price, even when we added another tier! Be open to ideas."
Venue Norton House Hotel, Ingliston
Photography Weir Photography
Celebrant Neil Anderson, Humanist Society Scotland
Bride’s dress Demetrios gown from June Brides
Bride’s shoes Rainbow Club
Bridesmaids’ dresses ASOS
Mothers’ outfits Frox of Falkirk
Groomswear Hunting Manx kilts from Slanj Kilts
Cake Truly Scrumptious Designer Cakes
Flowers Something Special
Decor Classic Events and Ambience Edinburgh
Stationery Elizabeth M Designs for invitations, table plan made by the bride
Favours Caledonian Designer Cakes
Rings Fraser Hart
Music Dean Saunders Piper, Shaun Philp and The Dirty Martinis
Entertainment Cameron Young Magic
Photobooth and LED dancefloor Booths4U
Candy cart Candee Man
Filmmaker Abbey Wedding Productions
Hair Pouts & Pinups for bridal party, Lauren at The Loft for the bride
Makeup Becca Brown and Jennifer McLachlan
