Kate Niven & Scott Craig
27th August 2021
Venue | Enterkine Country House and Resort, AyrshirePhotography | Richard Campbell Photography
“Scott and I initially got together when we were 15, but went our separate ways on friendly terms three years later. We bumped into each other a few times over subsequent years and agreed to go for a coffee and a catch up at the end of 2019. We were ‘official’ again by Christmas!
Scott got down on one knee on the 14th anniversary of our high-school prom night. We’d decided to have a date night in our flat that evening, so had put our glad rags on. Little did I know there was an engagement ring stashed inside a pair of Scott’s slippers!
One of the best engagement presents we got was a slew of recommendations. A close friend suggested Enterkine Country House, so we quickly lined up a visit. It had everything we were after in a venue: a modern, barn-style space that was renovated to a high standard; gorgeous grounds and around an hour from our home. We reserved a date and didn’t bother viewing anywhere else.
Thankfully, Covid only caused one issue: the number of guests allowed. Scott and I both have large families, so it was going to be tough to select certain members to attend the wedding in order to meet restrictions. Instead, we decided to alter our date and hope for a better chance for more to be able to attend. Thankfully, we got lucky and all 100 guests were able to join us.
With pandemic rules still in place, we were thrilled that the hot sunny weather we got meant we could host our ceremony mask-free on the outside decking/balcony and our guests could soak up the countryside views.
We had a humanist ceremony and our celebrant was Thomas Slavin from Fuze Ceremonies. He was brilliant, setting the right balance between giggles and the odd tear as he told the story of our relationship.
Family and friends were at the heart of our day. Our nieces were our flower girls and our nephew had the task of passing the rings to the celebrant. We had our close friend Laura make our cake and personalised biscuits that we used as favours. My brother-in-law was the piper, so he knew exactly what to play.
We commemorated my mum with a performance of Sweet Caroline by the Singing Servers. She sadly passed away a few years ago, so it’s a song that will forever have a special place in my heart. The troupe were booked as a surprise from my sister and they got everyone in the party mood – even the grandparents were on their feet dancing!
One of our main priorities was for our guests to have a great time and band The Revel Sparks was a huge part of that. They kindly learned our first dance song and a small selection that we knew our guests would love. Everyone was up dancing all night!
Photographer Richard Campbell caught so many natural pictures and smiles. His personality and photographic style are relaxed, which suited us to a tee. Although he sneaked us away for some couple photos, we didn’t feel like we missed much of the day.
Although we have many favourite pics, the one of us simply walking, talking and having a giggle together on the road up to the venue (top) perfectly captures how we felt about the whole wedding.
Even though initially we weren’t going to bother with a video, we are so glad we booked Something New Bespoke Wedding Films to record our wedding film. He caught much that we’d otherwise have missed. His live stream for family/friends to watch that could not attend also went down a storm.
I had a fantastic dress-shopping experience at Sarah Louise Bridal in Glasgow. Its range of dresses is superb and the owner and store assistants offered honest advice that helped whittle styles down til I’d found The One.
The Highlandwear was hired from MacGregor and MacDuff. Luckily, Scott and I both agreed on his tartan choice, haha! The secondary tartan had pink/burgundy flashes through it, which perfectly picked out the other colours in the bridal party.
What surprised us most about getting married? How all the stress of planning and the nerves disappeared as soon as I walked down the aisle and stood next to Scott. We both loved every second and how natural it felt to be getting married to one another – as if it really was meant to be.”
Top tip: “Try not to get caught up in the stress of the wedding morning. Scott and I both wish we’d slowed down and made more of our getting-ready time and paused for ‘cheers’ with our bridesmaids and groomsmen. Instead, we both felt we were rushing around.”
Celebrant Thomas Slavin, Fuze CeremoniesBride’s dress Sarah Louise Bridal
Shoes New LookBridesmaids dresses ASOSFlower girl dresses Next
Flower girl pyjamas Kimmy’s Personal Gifts on Etsy
Makeup Zoe Brownlie, Fenty WestHair Ciara, No. 19 Hair
Groomswear MacGregor & MacDuffCake and favours Laura’s Kitchen Flowers Paperwhite Floral DesignInvites Sienna Mai
On-the-day stationery Ever After Designs
Venue décor Winton WeddingsBride’s rings ROXGroom’s ring GoldsmithsBagpiper Stephen Bright
Entertainment The Singing Servers
Reception music The Revel Sparks
Photobooth Ayrshire Magic Mirror Photo Booth
Filmmaker Something New Bespoke Wedding Films (scroll on to see)
