An Intimate Wedding at the lovely Glen Dye in Banchory, Scotland

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Laura & Chris planned an intimate wedding at the amazing Glen Dye Cabins & Estate. Glen Dye, surrounded by forests near Banchory in Aberdeenshire, offers a unique setting for couples looking to exchange vows in an intimate and secluded environment. Laura & Chris and their 32 guests were staying in the onsite accommodation for five nights which meant they could spend lots of time together and enjoy the area and the facilities at Glen Dye.

The wedding ceremony and meal were both scheduled to be in the woodshed which is a relatively small space so would need to be setup for the ceremony and then turned around later for the meal. Myself and the florist, Ange from Fauna Flower Folk, arrived onsite early morning on the day of the wedding to setup the ceremony. While Ange was decorating the arch I got busy removing anything from the woodshed that wasn’t required and laying out the chairs. I then created an aisle lined with Persian rugs and brass terrarium lanterns. The shelves and table were adorned with a mix of amber & stone tealights, stone vases and brass & beige candlesticks with dinner candles in taupe and a light peach. The vases were filled with the most gorgeous flowers from the super talented Ange! Once Ange had finished the arch I decorated around it with a selection of hurricanes with pillar candles.

I created a welcome area near the entrance so guests could leave any cards or gifts as soon as they came in, this was coupled with a handwritten welcome sign on an A frame just outside the venue entrance. It wasn’t long before the guests started to arrive!

The lovely part of being onsite for the day is getting to see the bride arrive. Laura looked absolutely beautiful, she couldn’t have looked happier arriving with her bridesmaids & mum and being accompanied down the aisle by her brother.

The ceremony was performed by the lovely Gary the Humanist who also happens to be a close family friend so was also a guest. While the ceremony was happening I sat in my van and had a quick snack break. Once the ceremony was over and photos were taken by the amazing Adam Luto the guests headed on down to the Glen Dye Arms which is a cute little bar where guests bring their own booze and serve each other from the behind the bar, I absolutely love it and think it makes a great addition to the day. Myself and Ange made a couple of additions to this space with a large floral display and some candlelight.

Then it was time to turn the room around before the guests arrived for dinner. I retrieved the tables from the storage room with the help of a few of the groomsmen and arranged them in one long row with chairs on both sides. Then the heavens opened! I had quite the time to trying to unload the van with the rain pouring into the van and venue through the open doors, but I got there. I laid out plates, glassware & cutlery all provided by the bride & groom. I then laid out candlesticks, brass terrariums, vases of flowers & tealights down the whole length of the table with the addition of place names & linen napkins for each guest. I decided to relocate the arch behind the couple as it would make a great focal point for photos.

The cake was brought in by the brides friend and bridesmaid who also happens to make cakes, Callie’s Cakes, this was positioned on a table at the front of the room surrounded by candlelight & flowers.

The food was catered by Lily’s Dough who served the guests pizza made in their horse box as well as a starter & dessert. Once everyone was back in the Woodshed I said my goodbyes and headed home while the couple enjoyed their meal with family and friends before partying into the night. It was a fantastic day and one of my favourites from this year and when I saw the stunning photos I knew it had to be a blog post. Congratulations Laura & Chris!

Photos: Adam Luto

Venue: Glen Dye

Props & Styling: Fifty Six Events

Flowers: Fauna Flower Folk

Cake: Callie’s Cakes

Humanist: Gary the Humanist

Catering: Lily’s Dough

A Styled Wedding Photoshoot with Disco Vibes!

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Organised by Tie The Knot Scotland Wedding Magazine

When I was first contacted by Beth from Tie the Knot magazine about collaborating on a photoshoot I was slightly hesitant as the week it was planned for was crazy busy for me but then she sent over the inspiration mood boards (below) and I was in! I love the clash of bright pink & orange and the complete disco vibes!

I was tasked with the venue styling & supply of all the props required to bring the look together. The venue was one of my favourites, the gorgeous Falside Mill in Fife, so it wasn’t difficult to start working out the look for the different areas. My props would be accented beautifully by flowers supplied by the lovely Helen at Greenshed Flowers.

I quickly made an inventory of all the items I would use from my collection and then worked out which additional items I would need to source. Beth had asked specifically for my pink Let’s Dance velvet banner which I actually had made by the amazing Tanya from Daydreamer Creative Studio and there were other items which were pretty obvious such as my pink Marry Me neon and all my disco balls.

We wanted a dramatic backdrop for the ceremony area which I thought painted backdrop boards would work really well for, I had some commissioned but they wouldn’t arrive on time so I borrowed one from my lovely neighbour Becci who runs a party rentals company called Balloons by Becci, which I painted in a vibrant orange and used alongside an existing one from my collection in a soft pink.

I knew the bar would be featured in the photos so I decided to use streamers to help add some drama and colour to it which then flowed into other areas of the design. The tables were decorated with brass candlesticks & tealights with an assortment of coloured candles and vases with Helen’s bright tropical flowers.

The day of the shoot was a great experience from working with Julie Howden, who does all kinds of fashion and commercial photography, and seeing how the Tie the Knot team worked behind the scene. Nicole from Tie the knot was co-ordinating all the fashion looks, Nic & Lisa from Honey & Violet were on makeup & hair and someone was catching behind the scenes shots. It was really interesting watching the team work out the best shots and watching how professional the models Alyona & Mram were. The dresses the models wore were absolutely stunning, all accessorised by the fantastic Nicole Connor from Tie the Knot. All in all a great day and here are the amazing images from the day.

Credits:

Reasons To Love A Micro Wedding

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Whether your wedding plans have had to change recently and you are trying to fall in love with your new wedding or you have always secretly wanted a small intimate wedding, here are some of the reasons to love micro weddings!

    • The cost! A small intimate wedding will cost a fraction of a traditional wedding, less guests equals less money. You can save on the cost of venue hire, catering, drinks reception, guest transport, entertainment and decor.
    • Your special day will be spent with just your closest family and friends. You will be able to spend time with each guest without worrying if you’ve spoken to all your guests.
    • This is also a great option for people who don’t look forward to saying their vows in front of a large crowd or have visions of themselves tripping down the aisle, that would be me!
    • When you have less people to please you have more opportunity to have the day you really want.
    • Your wedding venue can be somewhere unique such as a rooftop bar or restaurant, a botanical garden, a library, museum or gallery for example!
    • You can spend more money on the catering to provide your guests with a meal that is really special.
    • With only 4 or 5 tables to decorate instead of 12 to 15 you can elevate your table decor. Use gorgeous flowers, beautiful quality candles, crockery, cutlery and glassware. Providing individual menu’s and delicious edible favors for each guest is definitely more of an option.
    • Flowers and foliage can change the entire look of a wedding and a good florist is so worth the money. If you now have the extra budget you could think about large floral installations to decorate your venue.
    • If your venue doesn’t have sofa’s or soft seating then create a chillout area for your guests to relax together after your meal.

Wedding Decor – Money Saving & Sustainability Tips

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  • The most obvious tip is to hire any props instead of buying. Hiring props is a fraction of the cost of buying. This is not only cost effective but environmentally friendly as well, the props you hire get reused over and over again.
  • If you have decorative items at home that would work with your wedding decor consider using these too, think cushions, rugs, vases and candle holders for example.
  • Consider using coloured candles, such as these beauties from Ester & Erik, instead of flowers to add colour to your tables. This will not only reduce your florist bill but your candlelight becomes more of a style statement.
  • Instead of favours, which often get discarded at the dinner table, make your place names so beautiful guests will want to take them away.
  • We’ve all seen amazing flower and foliage installations but these can be really expensive as they require a lot of flowers and are time consuming for the florist to produce. A great alternative are potted trees and plants. Some florists hire these out or you may have plants at home you can use, they make a big impact at a fraction of the cost and are more sustainable.
  • If you want to try some DIY for your big day then making your own signs is a great place to start. You can buy calligraphy practice books online or print out practice sheets, once you have mastered it you can then apply this skill to chalkboards or even fabric banners.
  • Reuse your decor throughout your venue, for example, consider moving your ceremony decor to other parts of the venue after the ceremony. Get the groomsmen to do this!
  • If you want to have a menu for your guests then have either one per table or write it on a chalkboard somewhere your guests will see.

10 Tips to help you style your wedding venue

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Now I might be doing myself out of a job here but I am frequently asked for wedding styling tips or ideas for setting out the props you hire from me. I want your wedding venue to look as fab as you want it to, so here are a few of my tips to get maximum impact from your hired props.

1. Research

Research your venue, look at images of past weddings and find what they did that you like and didn’t like. What is the venue’s best feature’s? How can you make the most of them? What are the area’s that need decorating the most? What does the venue supply? Do they have furniture you can hire, for example.

2. Pick a Style

This is often something a lot my couples find the trickiest, picking a style! I understand, you like everything, so do I. Do what you love, the best weddings have a bit of the couples personality and taste all over it.  Let your imagination go and just do what you love. Once you know the feel and look, focus and try not to get distracted by all the inspiration on Instagram and Pinterest.

3. Suppliers

Research your suppliers and choose people whose ethos and style match yours. Don’t try and do everything yourself, a good florist and wedding stylist will save you time and stress!

4. Plan

Think about your venue, the different spaces and how you intend to use them. You may have a big open space in a barn, for example, and you want to zone it off with a seating area and photo backdrop. So, think what you will need to decorate these areas and make a list of items required for each area, this will save so much time on setup day. Mentally walk through your venue and think about what each area needs.

5. Focus

Money can be tight and sometimes decor can be an afterthought. To save money and focus your styling, decorate the functional areas. Make a feature of your table plan, welcome table, dinner tables and of course your ceremony area. If you focus on certain areas you will save money and time when decorating and planning.

6. Moodboard

Create a moodboard of your ideas, Pinterest is great for this.

7. DIY

Some of the best weddings have the couples personality stamped all over it and this often comes from items they have designed or made themselves. If you or a friend are crafty then this is definitely something to consider.

8. Delegate

I know you want a DIY wedding but on setup day it can be pretty stressful. You will have a list of things that need done and your focus will be pulling your whole look together so allocate jobs to everyone who has come along to help. This way they know exactly what they are in charge of and won’t disturb your creativity with questions.

9. Prepare

Anything you can do in the days running up to your wedding, do it. Whether its sign writing or organising your props into boxes and bags, anything to save time on the day. A bag with essentials is also a great idea, think string, push pins, sellotape, scissors etc

10. Don’t Panic

Sometimes plans need to change! The caterer needs more room, your setup is blocking a fire exit, but just go with it. Necessity is the mother of invention and it will all work out. Have fun but if you feel like maybe you do need some professional assistance just get in touch!

 

Taypark house wedding prop hire

Photo by Barry Robb Photography