Hello you wonderful lot, I do hope you've had a chance to catch up with our latest Lovettes post this morning. It's so lovely to finally be able to start building our little blogging bride community – we'd love to hear from you, and how you met your fiance today – pop by and leave a comment on Rosie's post here.
So, time to turn our attention to today's real wedding feature, which is a sweet, summertime affair. Teacher Cat married Pete, a Doctor, on Saturday 20th July last year with a ceremony at Glamis Kirk in Perthshire, followed by a reception at the nearby Drumkilbo House.
"We had a garden party which included a coconut shy, various family and friends playing music (including Pete and I!), cricket and croquet, a games box and afternoon tea. We also had an ‘art tent’ that was a tepee we borrowed from friends. Inside the tepee we set up a variety of art materials we found at home and some blank postcards – guests were encouraged to draw a postcard for us and write a message. They then pegged them on a line outside in the sun. It was so fun looking through them all at the end!"
Photography Copyright (c) 2014, Mirrorbox Photography
“Pete and I met at a friend’s 21st birthday a couple of weeks before starting our second year of University in Edinburgh. The party was held in a marquee on a beautiful day in the summer. Pete proposed (much to my surprise!) on a walk in the Cairngorms, after we had been together for just over 5 years, and we were engaged for roughly 9 months before our wedding.”
“We both wanted the day to be a celebration of the varied things we like and the people we know who are talented: things like live music, art and crafts, afternoon tea, outdoor activities, local products etc, instead of a single theme or focus. That said, the main feel was that of a summer garden party/fete theme and everything was built into that.
The amazing weather certainly helped to create that feel! We did have a bit of a jokey slogon ‘the cat caught the sammon’ (a play on our names) that ran through our website/invitations/order of service etc.”
“My dress is an ex-sample by Lyn Ashworth, that I had tailored to fit, and had some adjustments to make it a sweetheart neckline. I also had a bespoke bolero made for the ceremony/garden party (made by Gemma Sargent, Edinburgh). It is made from vintage style lace and has a deep blue raw silk waste band.
I went for this dress because in the most part it was affordable, which allowed me to get a bespoke alterations/bolero so that it was unique. It ended up being exactly what I had imagined it to be.”
"Our florist was Amanda from The Country Graden Company, who runs the small business local-ish to our venue (Cupar) and grows organic, Scottish wildflowers. We weren’t keen on ‘themed’ flowers and really love wild flowers in random arrangements. We just ordered a few buckets of a variety of different flowers and greenery, and my wonderful bridesmaids and I did all the arranging (including the bouquets and button holes)."
Cat's bridemaids wore different dresses within a certain pallet of colours – grey/blue.
"I gave each bridesmaid a bracelet (from Hannah Zakari, Candlemaker Row, Edinburgh) before the wedding to say thank you, and they all wore them on the day."
"Inside the marquee we had homemade bunting hanging throughout. Each table had a different colour/patterned circular fabric in the centre of the white table cloth and all of the items on the table matched each of the particular fabric (ie flowers, favour’s ribbons, home-made jam jar lanterns, cocktail umbrellas etc.
The fabric for the bunting and tables was a mix of stuff we had at home anyway, and a few select pieces we found in a fabric shop in York – randomly."
"All our cakes were homemade by Pete! They were all vegetable based and gluten-free (chocolate/beetroot, parsnip, pecan and golden syrup, lime and courgette). They were delicious."
“Our photographers were Sam and Neil from Mirrorbox, who were fantastic – they were more like friends really, and they took some brilliant photos too. Thanks guys.”
“Pete’s Macnaughton kilt was his 21st birthday present, made by Geoffrey Kilts (Royal Mile, Edinburgh) a few years back. Jacket and waistcoat were harris brown weed, tailored again by Geoffrey Kilts, but bought especially for the wedding. The sporran was a special commission from Jen Cantwell (Sporran Nation), lined with the same material as the kilt. His shoes were Poste.
Pete’s best man (his brother) wore his Douglas tartan, one of the ushers wore his Davidson tartan, and the other wore his 'rustic summer chic' outfit!”
"We put together our own vows using parts of previously used vows suggested by our minister. Pete’s dad read 1 Corinthians, and my dad read a version of “Oh, the places you’ll go” by Dr Seuss, which we edited quite a lot."
“Every moment was such fun. Especially the ceilidh. My bridesmaids wrote a parody of the owl and the pussy cat (‘the sammon and the pussy cat’) which they read at the reception which was hilarious, and, just brilliant! But if I have to choose it would be the marriage ceremony – it was the only part of the day that I was absolutely sure would go to plan. After all, it was marrying Pete that was the easiest and most exciting thing of all. As cheesy as that must sound.
My brother’s band, Rhinoceros, played a set after dinner, then we had a ceilidh band, Blaze in the Bothy, who were amazing and we had such fun!"
Words of Wedded Wisdom…
“Do as much DIY as possible. Get your family and friends involved as they will appreciate/have fun playing a part in the big day. They may also have lots of talents that you can put to good use! Don’t be afraid to do things differently or choose the cheap, homemade option. People just want to be there with you and your family/friends, anything else is a bonus!
I would have had an affordable, knee-length dress for the evening reception as I felt my dress hindered my dancing ability slightly! I actually badly ripped it during the ceilidh.”
Huge thanks Pete and Cat for sharing your lovely day, and thank you so much to Mirrorbox for sharing these photographs too.
Have a lovely day everyone,
Love Annabel
Photographer - Mirrorbox
Venue - Drumkilbo House, Scotland
Wedding Dress - Lyn Ashworth
Brides Shoes - Dune
Groom - Macnaughton kilt + Poste shoes
Bridesmaids – various in shades of grey and blue
Florist - The Country Garden Company
Cake – All homemade by the groom
Entertainment - Blaze in the Bothy (ceilidh band)
Transport - Scooby Campers
Rings – Make Wedding Rings
Catering – the bride and groom + hog roast supplied by Highland Spit Roasts
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Annabel View all Annabel's articles
Founder of Love My Dress. Passionate Podcaster and Editor. Annabel lives in rural North Yorkshire with her husband and business partner Philip, their two daughters and menagerie of furry hounds. She loves photography, meditation, walking, being outdoors and star gazing. She is fierce when it comes to championing talent within the wedding industry and when she's not working on Love My Dress, she supports her husband Philip in the running of the family's sustainable flower farm and floral design business, Moonwind Flowers. In 2013, she became a published author.
What beautiful photos – the light is amazing. This is such a pretty and bright celebration, so lovely!
Kate x
Loved the party. The picts seem too lively and full of colors. I love the way everything has been put up. The bride looks too cute. Congratulations to the couple.