Their story…
Nearly ten years ago, Adam messaged Laura after a night out and, with the clarity only a raging hangover can bring, Laura messaged back and the rest is history! After getting engaged at home during the pandemic with their sidekick cocker spaniel, Mozzie, at their side, they immediately started planning their unforgettable wedding at Crossbasket Castle…
A Christmas wedding in a Scottish castle is the dream, right?
We were both born and raised in Scotland so it was an obvious choice for us. A Scottish castle wedding meant we could have all of our friends and family there with us. Crossbasket Castle made our day extra special with the cosy atmosphere in the castle, the roaring fires and Christmas decorations. Everyone felt right at home.
We planned the wedding but in terms of venue organisation, Laura at Crossbasket Castle helped us a lot with this. Planning the wedding ourselves did feel like a second job but, it was all worth it in the end and as long as you have scheduled time to do things, it’s not so stressful. When we started planning, it was hard to know who to look for so we attended some of the Scottish wedding shows to get some ideas.
Did you plan everything yourself?
Our photographer, John Clark, was amazing from start to finish, going well beyond his photographer duties and keeping us all organised. John also had a second photographer with him, Ross Alexander, who was a big hit with Adam and his groomsmen. TLC Media Wedding Films provided us with a beautiful wedding video that captured our day perfectly.
Alcheme Beauty and Amy Johnston Hair understood the assignment and provided perfect winter wedding hair and make up. My bridal party and I had the most fun morning, no stresses or nerves, they kept everything going smoothly and made the effort to get to know everyone in the room.
Our humanist celebrant, Caroline Mortimer, was incredible. From our first meeting she made us feel at ease and provided us with the most perfect ceremony. She got to know us and told our story so well and made sure there were a lot of laughs along the way.
Whitehouse Weddings and Events provided our wedding decor and they were great to work with. Anything we asked for, they found a way to get us it and seeing everything set up on the day of the wedding was just magical.
We had the most perfect cake thanks to Cherry Blossom Designer Cakes. The design was beautiful, it matched our colours perfectly and Stephanie was lovely to work with – it also tasted amazing and was a big hit with our guests.
Posies and Pots captured exactly what I described and all flowers and buttonholes were perfect for a beautiful, winter wedding.
Adam and his groomsmen chose Kilts 4 U to provide their kilts for the day. From the onsite visit to pick the perfect outfit to getting everything ready for the day, the team were super helpful. Also a big shout out to them for when we took our three year old nephew in to get fitted for his kilt – they made it a great experience for him and us.
The team at La Novia in Edinburgh made choosing my dress simple and fun. For those who are looking for a smaller, intimate experience, this is the perfect place. Carriages and Castles gave us beautiful flower girl dresses that we were able to tailor to fit. They were also brilliant when the girls’ were in to try them on, letting them have fun and try on a few dresses.
We had a lot of music at our wedding! The Fairmont Trio played us out of our wedding ceremony and entertained our guests during the drinks reception. They were exceptional and created the perfect upbeat mood. They were also a massive hit with our flower girls who danced away while they played.
Our evening entertainment, Gordy is a DJ, kept the crowd and dancefloor going, as did Clanadonia. They were a surprise organised by the father of the groom and the best end to the evening with their traditional and upbeat performance who had everyone on their feet.
Your wedding day was full of very special moments, wasn’t it?
We had the perfect day at Crossbasket Castle. We were so lucky to wake up to crisp, winter sunshine even if it was a bit cold! We chose to have our wedding in December as it’s both of our favourite time of year and the added Christmas spirit definitely made a difference. We were both excited for our ceremony as we knew Caroline would capture our story perfectly and I (Laura) was very excited for Adam’s speech as he’d been working on it hard (only two days before the wedding!)
One of favourite memories was having our photos taken in the grounds of Crossbasket Castle. It gave us some time just the two of us and we also got to walk up a big hill thanks to John and TLC – good thing we brought wellies! All our guests still talk about Clanadonia performing later in the evening – everyone loved them, especially those from Canada who loves the traditional Scottish music.
Any advice for couples planning their dream Scottish wedding?
Enjoy every moment – try and take some time throughout your day just to experience what’s happening and process that you’re actually getting to finally have your wedding day. It all goes by in a flash so make sure to have a couple of times throughout your day just the two of you to take it all in!
Venue | Crossbasket Castle
Photographer | John Clark Photos with Ross Alexander
Video | TLC Wedding Films
Celebrant | Caroline Mortimer, Humanist Society Scotland
Hair | Amy Johnston
MUA | Donna & Louise at Alcheme Beauty
Florist | Posie and Pots
Cake | Cherry Blossom Designer Cakes
Decor | White House Weddings
Drinks Reception Entertainment | Fairmont Trio
Evening Entertainment | Gordy is a DJ and Clanadonia
Attire | Attire: La Novia, Kilts 4 U and Castle & Carriages
