Gillian and David are the loveliest of couples and we loved spending time with them. David and Mark particularly hit it off with lots of shared interests – in fact, planning meetings tended to involve more chat about travel and cycling than about the actual wedding!
Gillian and David met through friends while ice skating at the Time Capsule! They had actually been at quite a few of the same events but that was where they finally met. David proposed to Gill on Christmas day 2008 when they were together in their first flat. He bought a ‘To my Wife’ card and wrote the proposal inside. David had wanted to propose at the top of a mountain in Glencoe but he decided he didn’t want to wait until summer.
The couple chose Baldernock Church because Gill grew up in the parish. She went to the local school which she recalls “is so small that they had to have our services in the church as we didn’t have an assembly hall! Its the only church I have connections with and is also a very picturesque wee church (although not the easiest to photograph I’ve been told!)” Gill walked in to Caledonia (piped by the very talented John McSorland) and we were piped out to Mairi’s Wedding.
The wedding flowers were organised by a friend of the family. Gill chose the the flowers because she had a bit of a daisy theme going on. As she recalled “I told Carol the kind of thing I was after and was delighted with what she did in all the flowers – church, bouquets etc! I really wanted bright flowers for the girls. They were gorgeous!”
Gill wore a Suzanne Neville dress called ‘Fontaines’. She told us “I got my dress in the Perfect Bridal Rooms in Aberdeen (my mum lives there). I liked the dress mainly because it was simple and elegant. I tried on lots of different dresses and quickly decided that sparkles etc weren’t for me. I’m very much a jeans and t-shirt girl so I had to feel comfortable. The assistant, Fleur actually picked the dress out and I didn’t feel it had much hanger appeal but tried it on to be polite – I put it on and loved it!”
Gill also had a chapel length veil with lace trim and loved it! She said “My friend is using it as her something borrowed and I’m so proud! I got it in Perfect Bridal Rooms too but not sure of the make. I wore Emmy shoes (when I didn’t have my trainers on!) which were very comfy, a simple hair clasp and a single pearl necklace/earrings.” Gill’s good friend Nikki (Hair by Nicola) did her hair and another friend Victoria, who is a beautician, did her make up.
David’s kilt was from Slanj in Glasgow
Gill and David chose the stunning location of The Cruin because they wanted somewhere on Loch Lomond. Loch Lomond is somewhere David spent a lot of time growing up and they have spent much time together as a couple there too. Gill told us “The Cruin was perfect for us. They were so laid back, there was no agenda it was just as we wanted it. Loads of guests commented on how relaxed it was. It was perfect.”
And the cake supplier? Well, that was Gill’s mum. Gill told us “Mum used to do it professionally so was an obvious choice! She does wedding cupcakes now – My Sweet Memories.”
The couple felt they were really lucky with their suppliers, as they were all really good. Gill told us “The jewellers we used were great. My ring was made by Lava Jewellery, Dave’s ring was made by Rab Gordon and his cufflinks were made by Islay Spalding. All of them had beautiful and different stuff and their service was fantastic. Corrine Smith Design made the bridesmaids hair accessories – they were lovely and again the service was excellent.”
Gill said she chose Archibald Photography because she liked Mark! She said “There were lots of good photographers and I spoke to three that really caught my eye (one being Mark). I just thought Mark was nice and laid back and I thought Dave would get on well with him which would make him more comfortable. I looked on his website and saw that he had been to some countries Dave had been to and thought his photos were interesting and original. Additionally, my friend told me she had been at a wedding mark had photographed and said that he worked really quickly and her friends album was gorgeous. That really appealed to me – I didn’t want to spend hours being photographed, I wanted to spend the time with our guests!”
I asked Gill what her favourite image taken on the day was but she hated the question! She told me “I love so many! I love the photo of me with Rupert (Gill’s horse), the ones of Dave and I at the end of the pier (especially the one with my veil blowing) and the one just as we were going into the church and Kirsty, Pamela and I are looking up at Mark – I love the colours in that one. My mum likes the one of me through the back window of the car. I love the confetti ones too. I’m ranting now – next question!!”
House Band were the couple’s evening entertainment and as Gill said “as far as I know they went down a storm! Dance floor seemed busy anyway!”. The couple’s first dance was ‘Baby I’m Yours’ by the Arctic Monkeys. Gill told us “We chose this cos we liked it and it was short (Dave has 2 left feet), although it backfired cos the band did an extended version!”
There is usually something on a wedding day that doesn’t go 100% to plan and on Gill and Dave’s day, something pretty funny happened. The hotel they were booked to stay at on their wedding night allocated them a twin room! Gill laughed and recalled “They were pretty mortified and put us in the most beautiful suite the following night! It wasn’t their fault – just a misunderstanding because there were so many rooms booked! I thought it was hilarious!”
Dave and Gill told us that the best thing about their day was having all their friends and family together but also according to Gill “doing things our way, wearing my trainers when I wanted, taking the dog out and getting 5 mins time out in the morning to contemplate the day, and obviously getting married.” They would sum up the day as “fun, fun, fun!”
