Christmas is my favourite time of year and today’s couple certainly thought so too.
WWW readers Stacey and Joe tied the knot on Saturday 28 December 2013, how perfect! Ekk. They envisioned a simple and warm day with plenty of food, drink and dancing.
They kept everything low key, with pretty Gypsophila blooms, soft tea lights and brown paper stationery. There was a hint of blue too, with the boys checked suits accessorised with fun ties and the bridesmaids in teal.
Stacey looked stunning her in Justin Alexander gown with sweet T Bar shoes. Romantic and festive, it doesn’t get better than that :-)
Thanks so very much to the wonderful Mack Photography for sharing such lovely photographs today.
THE PROPOSAL | At Edinburgh’s Glasshouse Hotel, exactly two years before the wedding date. A BIG surprise! Joe was so nervous, he wrote a note saying “Will You Marry Me?” at the last minute. It ended up in a puddle on the roof terrace! We celebrated by having a six course meal, lots of cocktails & dancing the night away with some Polish guys we met in a nightclub :)
THE VISION | Simple, fun and warm! Joe has a huge family and, although they’ve seen their fair share of weddings, there had never been a Winter wedding. We both love the festive season so it seemed apt to plan a Christmas time wedding. A religious service followed by a hotel reception (the only place we could fit & feed our huge families!) We wanted everybody to be well-watered, well-fed and ready for a dance!
THE PLANNING PROCESS | I’m a teacher so, despite saying I was going to be relaxed and informal, I couldn’t help but organise! I definitely made the most out of the build up; with lots of shopping trips and parties. We made decisions together and didn’t have any real disagreements! We asked a friend, Ashleigh at ‘My Own Design & Events’, to dress the room for us and she did a fantastic job!
THE VENUE | St Stephens RC Church in Clydebank (our parish) & The Buchanan Arms Hotel in Drymen. The church is very grand and the aisle felt really long! The hotel is beautiful and very cosy.
THE DRESS & ACCESSORIES | Justin Alexander Tea-length Lace dress (8555)
Birdcage veil, Rachel Simpson shoes and pearl accessories from Melle Cloche on Great Western Road, Glasgow. The dress was great as it didn’t trail on the ground (it was hailing!) and was very swishy for dancing!
FINDING THE DRESS | I tried on the full length version of my dress and, although my mum fell in love, I didn’t like that I kept tripping over (I’m very clumsy!) and that I couldn’t see my shoes! Any excuse to buy amazing shoes! I loved the high neck line (my gran would have approved!) and key hole back detail.
GROOM’S ATTIRE | Joe, his best man Michael & our son, Ryan, kept their attire a secret from me. Was nice to have a surprise at the church as I wasn’t even sure which colour they had chosen! I really love the blue and red in their ties; I think it looked fresh and festive! Their brown shoes looked great next to the bridesmaid’s browns and beige accessories. They opted for suits opposed to kilts as they felt much comfier, they could wear them again and it was freezing cold!
THE READINGS & MUSIC | Our son Ryan, my sister Jaynie & my friend Amy read our religious readings for us. The organ was played by our friend Pauline, who is a fantastic church organist! She was accompanied by Daniel, on violin. We chose our favourite hymns and also the Glasgow Love Song for walking down the aisle.
BEAUTIFUL BRIDESMAIDS | Originally started with 1 & ended up with 4! My three sisters and best friend. They opted for short 50s style dresses to tie in with mine, and the teal colour was very festive and suited all their different colourings. They chose their own shoes, fur stoles and shawls, and the mismatch effect was lovely. My little niece, Cassie, wore a lace & chiffon dress to match mine.
THE FLOWERS | We bought all our flowers from Memory Lane Florist in Lenzie. We opted for a simple white Baby’s Breath for the bridesmaids and buttonholes. I intended to get that too, but fell in love with a bouquet online which had amazing purple flowers and Scottish ferns. The florist made an even better job of mine, and I loved holding it all day! Ashleigh filled lots and lots of vintage jars and bottles with sprigs of baby’s breath and berries. We also had an illuminated baby’s breath wreath behind our table, and it looks lovely in the photos.
THE CAKE | We had a three tier, mixed sponge cake, completely covered in hundreds and thousands sprinkles. We had a Lego topper. We asked guests to bring home baking by way of a gift, so we ended up with a lovely cake buffet! Lots of tablet, cheesecakes, cake pops and sweeties!
YOUR PHOTOGRAPHER | Lindsey of Mack Photography photographed our wedding perfectly! From our engagement shoot to our photo booth, she captured so many funny moments and made us feel so comfortable. Even when it was hailing and muddy, Lindsey managed to get amazing photos. We travelled down the road to Balmaha in Loch Lomond to get some photos at the derelict blacksmiths there. I love the umbrella in the photos. The evening photo booth was also amazing; our family & friends really enjoyed it and the booth set-up was so different to others we have been to.
THE DETAILS & DÉCOR | We kept it simple, with vintage touches and LOTS of candles! We had little chalkboards for our table numbers and a large homemade chalkboard table plan (to represent the teacher bride!) We set up a ‘Weans Table’ for the couple of kids at the wedding; they loved the toys and activity books! We hired a lovely vintage Jag to chauffeur us on the day. Ryan loved riding in the front! Our band were ‘Franco’, who were great! My uncle sang an acoustic version of ‘Only You’, which is a song we both love but Yazoo’s version was much too fast to dance to. It was a nice surprise for my mum to hear her brother singing our first dance song.
THE HONEYMOON | We spent Hogmanay in The Couple’s Retreat at Portavadie Marina. It was gorgeous; three nights wasn’t long enough! I’m still waiting for my sunshine honeymoon!
MEMORABLE MOMENTS | It was a memorable day! I remember laughing a lot, and particularly enjoying the ‘getting ready’ with all the girls and my mum. Was so lovely to see the reception room set up for dinner, as Ashleigh had made the room look so pretty! My niece shouted our names throughout the ceremony and then tried to steal the show during the speeches :) I’m glad we didn’t opt for a videographer!
ADVICE FOR OTHER COUPLES | It’s worth waiting for (I waited 11 years!) Enjoy the build-up and celebrations, then try to relax and enjoy the day. Make some time to be together to have a chat & a drink. And dance!!
CREDIT WHERE CREDIT IS DUE |
Room decorations | Ashleigh @ MyOwnDesignandEvents
Flowers | Memory Lane Flowers
Photographer | Mack Photography
Accessories & shoes | Melle Cloche & Rachel Simpson
Dress | Justin Alexander
Bridesmaid dresses | Gowns and Crowns
Band | Glasgow Wedding Band
Suits | Slaters
Honeymoon | Port Vadie Marina
Ahh I am feeling really festive now. Soooo romantic :-)
Thanks so much to Stacey and Joe for sharing their amazing day with us here XOXO Lou