A Beautiful Sottero & Midgley Gown for a Laid Back Scottish Wedding

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It’s time to take a break lovely ones, so grab a cuppa (and a shortbread biscuit) as I’m about to transport you to Scotland for the delightful nuptials of Grant and Charlotte, who chose the grand Errol Park in Perthshire – complete with high ceilings, beautiful grounds, and quirky stables – for their laid back celebrations. Grant works as a contracts analyst, whilst Charlotte is a planner and they tied the knot on the 22nd of October 2016 on a rainy, and very romantic, autumn day.

“We decided to go for a rustic, laid back style for the day, as we felt this matched our venue and personalities perfectly. Errol Park had so much character that we didn’t feel the need to go over the top with the decorations and flowers, keeping things simple, personal, informal and a place for our guests to relax and enjoy themselves. We definitely wanted to have our wedding in Scotland but somewhere a little bit away from home, where few or none of our guests had been, and somewhere a bit different.”

Photography by Mirrorbox Photography

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The four gorgeous maids wore glamorous Coast gowns, which look just beautiful against their pretty bouquets. Their shoes were from No. 1 Jenny Peckham and Pink Paradox London, worn with a hair accessory from John Lewis, their own earrings, and a Pandora bracelet given by the bride on the day. Hair was by Bespoke Bridal Hair by Robyn Donald and make-up by Tracey Cepeda Makeup Artistry.

The couple chose Mirrorbox Photography – who are part of our curated bridal directory Little Book for Brides, you can read more about their services here – after a recommendation from friends.

Mirrorbox Photography had photographed our friend’s wedding and their pictures were stunning – they were really natural and they had captured so much detail, so we knew we couldn’t go wrong with them! They did an amazing job and the fact that you get two photographers for the day capturing everything really makes a difference; we have so many beautiful photographs to reminisce over.”

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“I knew I would go for a slim-line dress, as being quite small I felt like the fuller dresses drowned me. Initially I thought I wanted a lace dress but when I tried some on I just felt like something was missing. The beading detail on the ‘Beckett’ dress by Sottero & Midgley really caught my eye; it was just so pretty. I especially loved the detail on the illusion back and neckline and the belt, which completed the dress perfectly.”

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Charlotte’s divine gown was purchased via bridal boutique Avorio Bridal – and her pretty Richards Designs veil and hair accessory were also found here. The stunning bride added a sparkly pair of Vince Camuto via Debenhams heels, Peony & Blush Suede scent by Jo Malone and Swarovski earrings and bracelet.

“I had already purchased the bracelet and my mum surprised me on the morning of the wedding with the earrings to match.”

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“We met in 2012 and it was July 2015 that Grant proposed while we were away for a long weekend in the Isle of Mull celebrating his 30th Birthday. We went exploring the island one day and we stopped at a viewpoint overlooking Calgary Bay when Grant popped the question.”

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Charlotte arrived in style for the humanist ceremony – by walking down the grand staircase to the glorious sound of bagpipes.

“My dad walked me in to the ceremony. We had a bagpiper who piped me down the staircase. We decided to go for a humanist ceremony with simple vows, so we didn’t have to do too much talking! A humanist ceremony was perfect for us as neither of us are religious and we loved that we could tailor the detail. We included a story of how we met and some details of our relationship so far, which made the ceremony much more personal and gave our guests a brief insight into our lives together. My sister Emily did a reading – it was an extract from a Bruce Springsteen song ‘When you need me.'”

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“Grant wanted a ring which was a bit different so opted for one from Etsy made from blasted titanium and cocobolo wood. My ring was from Purely Diamonds.”

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It’s not a Scottish wedding without a kilt – and the handsome groom sported his own, with a tweed jacket and waistcoast hired from McCalls.

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“I came across Stucio & Waow via Facebook and thought their flowers were gorgeous. At the consultation they were lovely – we went into details of the dress styles and colours to help decide which arrangements would work best, as I didn’t have anything too specific in mind. I love the simplicity of gypsophila so had some in the bouquets as well as ordering a huge bunch to make our own ceremony arrangements (gypsophila bunches on the end of seat rows and in the hurricane candle jars).”

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“The stationery was made via Vista Print and we had toffee as favours which were kindly made by family and friends. We bagged it up in little brown bags and doubled it up as a name place with a little peg and name-tag on each.”

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The couple were able to decorate the venue and organise all the suppliers themselves to put a more personal stamp on their day.

“We had a beautiful flower-filled wooden crate and centrepiece flowers in lace trimmed jars which just added to the set up. Instead of canapés we went for a grazing table of antipasti which was influenced by our love of Italy, and we love to travel so all our tables were named after places we have been together.”

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A great idea I see popping up at weddings of late, and one that encourages guests to interact, is the carving up of big joints of meat to share on each table. Regis Banqueting provided this very option for everyone.

“The caterers were fantastic on the day. We spoke to them once in the morning just to confirm the days’ events and after that everything just happened as it was meant to. We chose a joint of beef for our main course and one person on each table put on a chef apron and did the carving. We thought this would be a great opportunity to get everyone talking to each other if they weren’t already.”

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A great idea I see popping up at weddings of late, and one that encourages guests to interact, is the carving up of big joints of meat to share on each table. Regis Banqueting provided this very option for everyone.

“The caterers were fantastic on the day. We spoke to them once in the morning just to confirm the days’ events and after that everything just happened as it was meant to. We chose a joint of beef for our main course and one person on each table put on a chef apron and did the carving. We thought this would be a great opportunity to get everyone talking to each other if they weren’t already.”

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“Grant and I have never really understood the fuss with cutting the cake (we didn’t bother with that part on the day) and therefore didn’t want to spend a fortune on one cake. Instead we went for a cake table with a selection of vanilla, chocolate, carrot and red velvet cakes from Costco. We had a sweet table too complete with marshmallows, which everyone loved toasting on the fire pits outside the stables.”

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Live band The Kicks played funky tunes to keep everyone entertained on the dance floor – and the couple chose Thin Lizzy’s ‘Dancing in the Moonlight’ as their first dance song.

“What was my favourite moment? This is such a difficult question! The whole day was amazing but, walking down the staircase with my dad to the sound of the bagpiper playing and seeing Grant smiling up at me, was definitely one of the many highlights. It was also so amazing having all of our friends and family in one place to celebrate the day with us.”

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Words of Wedded Wisdom

“I would say to be as organised as possible to avoid any last minute panic or stress. On the run up to the wedding day we had done everything we could in advance – the last few days were just a case of getting to the venue and setting up what we needed to. Also don’t feel pressurised into making your wedding too extravagant, you can have an amazing day on whatever your budget – it’s the thought and personal touches you put into the day which help make it special. It’s your wedding day so do things your way.”

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Thank you lovely Charlotte and Grant for allowing us a little peek into your big day. If you’ve been inspired by Charlotte’s exquisite dress, you can view more Sottero & Midgley loveliness here. And a big shout out also to Mirrorbox Photography for capturing all of the couple’s memorable moments so beautifully.

Be sure to enjoy the rest of your week – and if you’re anything like me, I’m now madly Googling all things Scottish and bookmarking in preparation for my next big trip over the seas 🙂

Love Jo -xo-

Credits & Thanks

Jo Singletary

Jo Singletary View all Jo's articles

Jo hails from and lives in sunny Australia, is currently working towards her dream of being a career coach and a few of her favourite things are watching the sunrise over the ocean, morning walks on the beach, butterflies, and supporting the guide dogs charity.

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