An Amanda Wakeley Gown for an Elegant Summer Garden Inspired Edinburgh Wedding

Good Afternoon, I hope that you are all taking a well deserved Christmas break and whatever your plans are for Christmas that it’s filled with joy and lots of chocolate! Today’s bride and groom Emma and Ross tied the knot on the 19^th of July this year and treated their guests to a feast for the senses with their garden themed wedding at the magnificent Mansfield Traquair in Edinburgh, Scotland. The venue is just breathtaking in itself but the abundance of beautiful flowers makes it even more so, Emma’s styling is impeccable too, I guarantee you will adore this beautiful wedding shot by the wonderfully talented Julie Tinton.

“The whole ‘theme’ of our wedding was a summer garden – bringing the outside in! We wanted to make Mansfield’s already stunning interior look as though our guests had just stepped into a secret garden. And with the great Scottish weather being so unpredictable, it was just as well because it rained from start to finish!”

Film Production Copyright (c) 2014, Little Love Films

“Scotland is home. Having the wedding anywhere else would have felt odd, not to mention that we live in one of the most beautiful cities in the world. When we set eyes on Mansfield Traquair, that was it, we had found our place.

Gemma and her incredibly talented team at Planet Flowers did an incredible job of bringing our vision to life. An 8ft wicker arch woven with flowers in greens and muted pink framed the top of the aisle and large silver birch trees lined the edges. We covered the entrance and famous Baldacchino in foliage and flickering candles to create a calm and romantic atmosphere. Dramatic lighting really set the tone for the more relaxed and informal evening reception.”

Photography Copyright (c) 2014,  Julie Tinton

I just adore Emma’s beautiful Amanda Wakeley wedding gown, which she perfectly styled with a bespoke jewelled headband and arm-cuff by Rachel Scott. Her loosely pinned up hair shows the dramatic back while the muted pastel bouquet keeps the look fresh.

“The simplicity and elegance of my dress gave me a blank canvas to work with and I knew that once I had ‘dressed it up’ with some jewellery, it would make quite a statement. For me, a dress doesn’t need to be detailed or complicated – I couldn’t have picked a more simple dress but I felt like it still made a massive statement. The long train, the heavy silk, the long blusher veil and the statement jewellery made a statement without being OTT, and the best thing was – I felt like me wearing the dress.”

“My four beautiful bridesmaids wore light green silk gowns that skimmed the floor, the flower girls wore soft gypsophila floral garlands around their heads.”

Vintage keys with a luggage tag led each guest to their table where their name was carved onto a wooden heart at their place.

“We met ten years ago in a nightclub in Edinburgh starting as a friendship and turning into a relationship over time. We aren’t very similar in a lot of ways, but ultimately we share very similar values on what’s important in life, we find the same things funny which also helps!

We really hadn’t even discussed marriage, so I was very shocked at Ross’s proposal! He took me (blindfolded!) to Gleneagles as a surprise. On an evening stroll around the beautiful grounds on a snowy February evening we walked to one of the little summer houses that looks onto the hotel and sat chatting on the bench. I noticed there were candles laid out all around it (still didn’t twig!) so Ross suggested we light them as there was a box of matches.”

“When I innocently said ‘I wonder why they are here? How lovely of the hotel to leave them out for people!’, Ross looked at me and said ‘I brought them…’ The next thing I knew, Ross was down on one knee in front of me with a red box in his hand. I was in such a state of shock that I didn’t speak for about ten minutes so he wasn’t sure if I had said yes or not!

It was the best proposal I could have asked for though and it makes me smile every time I think about it. The boy did good!”

Ross and the bridal party stuck with the Scottish tradition of wearing kilts. Emma’s mother gave Ross her grandfather’s hundred year old pocket watch to wear on the day. The boys look was finished off with a quirky cluster of flowers for button holes and silver wedding ties.

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“The ceremony was incredibly special and something we’ll never forget. I could just see Ross waiting for me at the top looking so proud and happy. I wanted that moment to last forever!

We had two readings, ‘An Apache Blessing’ and ‘The Promise’ by Eileen Rafter. We chose them as they are about looking after each other, treating each other well and remembering what brought us together when times get tough. My aunty Pam read ‘The Promise’ as it needed to be read by someone who could bring a bit of character and personality to the words.”

“Ross and I absolutely love ‘Les Miserables’, so as a little surprise to him I had arranged for the beautiful string quartet to play ‘The Love Montage’ as I walked down the aisle. It sounded so beautiful on strings and really filled the space perfectly. ‘For the Love of a Princess’ from ‘Braveheart’ was played as my mum walked in before my dad walked me down the aisle. It was a magical moment walking down the aisle at Mansfield as it’s so long so we had plenty of time to take it all in.”

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The elegant pastel cake was hiding all kinds of sweet goodness underneath its chic exterior. Each tier was a different flavour including toffee, carrot cake and vanilla sponge with ‘Oreo’ ganache.

“The speeches were a really brilliant part of the day and the one bit I didn’t have any involvement in! It’s not often your parents speak very honestly to a room full of people about you. Ross’s speech was the right balance between funny, genuine and sensitive, then his best man rounded up the speeches with a hilarious slide show from the stag!”

Words of Wedded Wisdom

“Try your best to enjoy the day because it flashes before your eyes quicker than you can imagine! All the planning takes up so much of your time, and it really is the most special day of your life, so just let all your worries and stresses go and just enjoy it!”

Congratulations to you both and beautiful words of wisdom, Emma was grinning from ear to ear all day so I think she took her own advice! More of Edinburgh based photographer Julie Tinton’s work can be found here. I’m off the browse the Amanda Wakeley website, research of course.

Love Caoimhe xx

 

Photographer – Julie Tinton + Videographer Little Love Films
Venue – Mansfield Traquair, Edinburgh, Scotland
Dress – Amanda Wakeley from Rachel Scott Couture, Edinburgh + Shoes LK Bennett
Headpiece, Veil + Cuff – Rachel Scott Couture
Bridesmaids Dresses – Ghost + Alterations Freja Designer Dressmaking
Flower Girls’ dresses – Monsoon
Groom and Usher’s Kilts – The Kilt Hire Co.
Hair – Keith Marshall Hairdressing + Make-up Elena Spinks
Florist – Planet Flowers
Planner – Helen Fleming, Heritage Portfolio
Catering – Heritage Portfolio
Cake – Heather’s Cakes
Stationery – FiMail
Rings – Laing the Jeweller + MacIntyres, Edinburgh
Entertainment – Erskine String Quartet + Callanish
Transport – Ecosse Classic Wedding Cars