Becky and Godfrey met each other 7 years ago. Becky had just started at GB Airways as cabin crew and Godfrey was First Officer on the day of her first flight. He proposed to her on one knee on the Bow Bridge in Central Park on a surprise trip to Manhattan.
The couple kept every detail of their wedding secret from their 7 guests. All they were told was they were flying into Glasgow. A coach met their guests and transported them to the exclusive Glenapp Castle – at which point the couple could hear their guests gasp. The day started with clay pigeon shooting before the couple got ready for their beautiful ceremony in the intimate Glenapp Church.
In choosing their venue, the couple felt as though they had visited every castle in Scotland and Glenapp Castle was the last venue for them to see before heading back to West Sussex. As Becky told us “It was superior in every respect. Unique in terms of the incredible location and stunning, sympathetic restoration by Graham and Fay it ticked all the boxes for us. It was also the most accessible which was important because one or two of our guests have mobility problems (there is a lift in one of the turrets!) We were very impressed by John Orr’s knowledge, confidence and expertise regarding exclusive use weddings at the castle, and the various options open to us when entertaining our guests. Because we had very few guests this meant we had more choice, we chose to have clay pigeon shooting in the morning (the ceremony was at 3pm) and an interactive falconry display after the ceremony whilst we were with Mark, our photographer. After a fabulous five course wedding breakfast, we finished our special day off with a spectacular fireworks display. All the activities were provided by companies that were recommended to us by John, who took care of all the arrangements. Glenapp only recommend suppliers/companies who’ve been to the castle many times before and consistently do a great job.”
Becky’s dress was by Vera Wang found in the Wedding Shop at Selfridges. It was an ivory v-neck bias cut sheath dress of satin back crepe, with picot edged drapes and jewelled straps. Becky saw it on the hanger and got very excited, when she tried it on she jumped up and down! As she told us “I ordered one there and then, who wouldn’t? Kiko, the very kind and warm gentleman who fitted my gown, made me feel ten feet tall. I knew it was the one, a vintage circa 1930s/40s design and not the typical princess cut. I was looking at dresses with a very specific idea of what I wanted, luckily found it after trying on only two dresses elsewhere.”
Becky also had a very long veil of ivory silk tulle which also came from Vera Wang. Becky said “I wanted to be quite old fashioned with the veil so I wore the blush over my face, which my dad then lifted at the altar. The length of the veil only added to the shape of the dress. I had a small crystal and pearl comb in my hair (which was in a low bun) that complimented the jewelled straps on the dress. My shoes were dove grey/ silver satin round toe court shoes from LK Bennett. I think the heels were approx three inches. Beautiful!”
Becky did her own makeup as she wanted to look like herself and her hairdresser Jeanna Hyslop (recommended by Glenapp Castle) did a beautiful job of her hair – a low bun with a little softness and body.
Becky travelled to the wedding ceremony in a vintage 1954 Riley which is owned and has been lovingly restored by Graham Cowan (one of the owners of Glenapp Castle)
Sam Murdoch is the florist for Glenapp Castle and he did all the couple’s floral arrangements. The couple had a theme of the same blooms in all the decorations, shades of purple/blue, small white roses and thistles. Becky’s bouquet also included some loops of Douglas Modern tartan ribbon interspersed among the blooms to match the groom’s kilt and plaid. The ladies all had corsages featuring a white rose and a purple spray flower. The men’s buttonholes featured a thistle, the purple spray and a little greenery. Godfrey and Becky had only seven guests so this was a nice touch.
Becky and her Dad were piped into Glenapp Church by a piper playing Highland Cathedral and according to Becky “there wasn’t a dry eye in the house. That piece of music always makes me feel quite emotional and hearing it on the bagpipes is just a little bit of magic.”
Godfrey looked incredibly handsome on the day and wore a gorgeous Douglas Modern tartan kilt and plaid with a navy blue Prince Charlie jacket, black dress sporran, finished with a decorative plaid brooch, kilt pin and a ‘sgian dubh’ (Scottish ceremonial knife). Godfrey’s best man wore the same kilt without the shoulder plaid.
We asked the couple why they chose Archibald Photography. “We felt that Mark’s work had a superior quality to it, we researched many other wedding photographers and their work but kept coming back to Archibald Photography. Mark was the only one we both agreed on. Godfrey and I both liked the inclusion of elements of architecture and the story-telling style of his work. Godfrey also had the opportunity to travel up to Scotland and meet Mark a few weeks beforehand, they got on very well. When I met him on the day of the wedding, he helped me to feel at ease very quickly and comfortable in front of the camera. I felt like a model for the day!”
Becky made the most stunning bride – elegant, serene and wholly beautiful. Her choice of this 1940s vintage inspired Vera Wang gown was perfect – how gorgeous does she look?
The best bit for Becky was that the day was “all about us, and a celebration of everything we’ve been through together in the seven years we’ve known each other. Aside from a couple of minor deviations from the plans, it was the most wonderful, emotional and fun day.” For Godfrey, it was when he saw Becky walking down the aisle.
The couple’s cake came from Sugar and Spice and according to Becky was “very delicious”. Becky chose their ‘Highland Dreams’ design consisting of two tiers, one fruit cake and the other vanilla sponge. They chose this design because the sugar craft was so delicate and intricate. The colours of the flowers can be changed to suit a theme. For favours, the couple chose small pearlised ivory boxes finished with ivory ribbon which were placed on the dinner table filled with the traditional five sugared almonds.
There’s always something unplanned that happens on a wedding day. As Becky recalled “We did some clay pigeon shooting on the morning of the wedding, when it came to my dad’s turn he managed to shoot the machine! Every single clay was broken and the machine had a rather large dent in it. We were all laughing so hard that no-one could speak for several minutes!”
Looking back, Becky would say “it was an incredible day that I will never forget. Plus I got to marry my best pal, how many people can say that.” And her advice to others would be “Take a few moments out to savour the experiences of the day. Just stop and appreciate all the hard work and organisation that has gone into your day because it will go past in a blur.”
Tags: ayrshire photographer, glenapp castle, glenapp castle photographer, LK Bennett, photography at glenapp castle, real life wedding, selfridges, sugar and spice, vera wang, wedding photographer, Wedding photographer ayrshire, wedding photography, wedding photography glenapp castle, weddings glenapp castle
Great & shots of a terrific looking venue & a stunning bride – ooh that dress! I think the shots capture the atmosphere of a Scottish castle wedding perfectly…..
Great, atmospheric shots of a stunning location & wonderful bride in a drop-dead gorgeous VW dress!
Beautiful photography. Every image is a piece of art. Becky and Godfrey must be delighted with these.
Hello, just browsing for information for my Vera Wang website. Truly more information than you can imagine on the web. Looking for something else, but cool site. Have a nice day.
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