Weekend-long outdoor wedding at Harvest Moon in East Lothian

Caitlin and Andrew celebrated with a weekend-long outdoor celebration at Harvest Moon Weddings in East Lothian, complete with woodland vows, beach views and personalised DIY touches

bride and groom hold hands in the air in front of wedding guests in a woodland ceremony

Looking for a relaxed outdoor wedding venue in Scotland? Caitlin and Andrew found exactly that at Harvest Moon Weddings on the scenic East Lothian coast.

This blank-canvas venue offers woods, beach access, on-site accommodation, and the freedom to create a full weekend of personalised celebrations.

With guests travelling from across the UK and beyond, their nature-inspired wedding combined relaxed vibes, DIY styling, and unforgettable moments – like exchanging vows in the woods as a hawk flew overhead.

bride and groom hold hands as they run down a sand hill at harvest moon weddings

Wedding highlights at a glance

Read on for the full story...

close up of bride and groom embracing on their wedding day with sand and the beach in the background

The moment Caitlin and Andrew viewed Harvest Moon Weddings on the East Lothian coast, they knew it was a perfect fit for them.

“We wanted a DIY-style wedding with a venue we could completely take over for a full weekend of outdoor celebrations, and Harvest Moon ticked all the boxes,” recalls the bride.

Find out more about celebrating your special day at Harvest Moon Weddings here

“The diversity of the site was a real selling point; it’s rare to find somewhere that has it all – woods, beach, on-site accommodation.

"Being able to have an outdoor wedding in spring with no midges was a real bonus!”

Blank canvas wedding venues in Scotland near a beach

Just a month after they got engaged in Barcelona in 2022, the couple secured their special day and set about drawing up a 112-strong list of friends and family to join them. Most guests were based in Scotland or the UK, but some travelled far to be there – from Qatar, Australia, Ireland, Hong Kong, Holland, Sweden and France.

As this is a blank-canvas venue, Caitlin and Andrew were able to tailor their wedding weekend to their own tastes, completely personalising the celebrations.

“We already had a fairly good idea of how we wanted the day to run, and Clementine Weddings helped bring it to life,” says the bride. “Andrew and I wanted everything to be natural and earthy, with a palette of pastel colours."

Blank canvas weddings: What they include and how to make them your own

bride smiles during wedding ceremony while wearing a veil and holding colourful flowers as the groom is out of focus

groom smiles at bride as he clasps his hands while wearing a green and yellow tartan kilt

bride and bridesmaids wearing mismatched colourful dresses hold up bouquets towards the camera as they smile

close up of bride and groom hugging with harvest moon weddings woodland in the background

Transforming a blank canvas venue for a wedding

“Harvest Moon really gave us free rein to use the site as we wished (we put up a marquee and a stretch tent). It suited us as we weren’t tied into anything the way we might have been at other venues.

"Plus, Harvest Moon’s events manager, Leone, was always on call if we needed anything.”

Woodland wedding ceremony in Scotland

The big day itself went just as smoothly. “We wanted to make use of some the different locations here, so we hosted our ceremony in the woods.

"As the sunlight streamed through the trees, my dad spotted a hawk flying overhead just as we were saying our vows! We then moved to the marquee, closer to the beach, for our drinks reception and dinner.”

Check out this colourful DIY marquee wedding of two brides at Harvest Moon

bride leads groom through grassland with sand in the background at harvest moon holidays

Sharing-style dining with local flavours

Food was at the heart of the pair’s celebrations too, and they made the most of Harvest Moon’s dry-hire options.

“We booked all the accommodation (beach, cabins and treehouses) for the full weekend and most of our guests arrived on the Friday. We hosted a welcome quiz and had pizzas from The Big Blu,” says Caitlin.

“We wanted a sharing-style dinner for the wedding meal and for the food to be local, healthy and filling. Wild Rover provided exactly that. Our tables were set up banquet-style, which created a buzz around the room.

“Additionally, we didn’t want our guests paying for drinks, so we brought in wine from Majestic and beer for everyone to help themselves. We also had Splendid bartenders on hand.”

Discover some of Scotland's top food and drink wedding suppliers here

bride smiles during ceilidh dance during wedding at harvest moon holidays

A celebration surrounded by favourite people

After dinner, it was time to get into party mode. “Muzo-Matic was our band and we had a short ceilidh halfway through the evening. We then switched to our own playlist to keep the party going into the wee hours. It was so much fun.

"The real highlight for Andrew and me was realising that we were surrounded by all of our favourite people.”

bride and groom walk towards the camera holding hands while wearing wedding outfits

Caitlin and Andrew's wedding highlights, as captured by Dickiebow Films

Wedding suppliers

Venue and food Harvest Moon Weddings, Dunbar
Photography Jen Owens Images
Filmmaker Dickiebow Films
Celebrant Andrew D Scott Celebrant
Wedding coordinator Clementine Weddings
Marquee Myreton Marquee Hire
Stretch tent Present Tents
Catering Wild Rover Food
Night-before catering The Big Blu Pizza
Table and chair hire Vintage Gathering
Bar equipment Hopler Wood Co
Bar staff Splendid
Decor Daydreamer Creative Studio
Wedding dress Handmade by Elspeth Kerr
Shoes Accessorize
Bridesmaid dresses Omnes and River Island
Flowergirl dresses Next
Groomswear Crimson Kilts
Flowers Pixie Rose Flowers
Stationery Etsy
Wedding rings Ailsa Ritchie Jewellery
Ceremony and drinks reception music Korda String Quartet
Reception music Muzo-Matic
WC hire Bordaloo