Chris proposed to Leigh in Venice, Italy.  Leigh said, “ He’d taken me there for my birthday. He proposed on a water taxi between Venice and Murano…I cried, then said yes”.

Leigh and Chris chose Cornhill House because they’d visited it during one of Chris’s visits to Scotland and felt that it “perfectly embodied what we were looking for in a ‘Scottish’ venue…beautiful scenery, and classic decor. We were so glad we chose Cornhill, Mae Fraoli (the owner) was absolutely wonderful, she took care of every detail and I never felt like I had to worry about anything-she totally had it under control.”

Leigh and her bridemaid’s make up was done by Alex from Healing Hands in Lanark. Peter from The Directors Box, also in Lanark did Leigh’s hair.

Leigh told us, “My dress was a Benjamin Roberts dress from Anne Priscilla in Glasgow which I’d seen in a magazine and knew was ‘the one’, I also got my shoes from there. My jewellery came from Mica, also in Glasgow. I wore my grandmothers pearl earrings which now belong to my mother as my something old and borrowed.”

The flowers were done by Floral n’ Hardy in Lanark and the cake was supplied by Special Days.

According to Leigh & Chris, “Our minister Melville Schofield was wonderful and everyone enjoyed our service along with the Cairn String Quartet who played during the ceremony and immediately after.”  Leigh told us, “I walked down the aisle to ‘Falling Slowly‘ from the movie ‘Once’ which the string quartet played beautifully…I believe quite a few people cried! We both have a huge love for movies and that one is particularly special to both of us. For our first dance we’d taken classes and had a whole choreographed routine which was so fun to do. I got to live out my ‘Strictly Come Dancing‘ fantasy.”

Chris and Leigh explained that, “We had a ‘modern’ ceilidh, provided by The Tatties. It was amazing! We were so impressed by how much our American guests really got into the spirit of it and gave everything a go. I even managed to dance in my dress…which I never thought I could have! Our favourite moment was probably during the final 12 minute ‘Strip the Willows’ (yes, that’s 12 minutes!) when the band worked in The White Stripes ‘Seven Nation Army’”.

For photography Leigh and Chris chose Archibald Photography because Leigh remembered meeting Mark at a wedding fair quite a few years before when she was working for her Dad. As she told us “his style was exactly what we were looking for, informal and modern but also very beautiful. We were thrilled with our photographs and we both cried when we saw them for the first time.”

“It’s so hard to choose a favourite image”, confessed Leigh, “I love the one of us laughing together in the line-up, to me it really sums up our relationship and how fun the day was but I also love the one of us in front on the Cornhill which we actually have blown up in our living room.”

The best bit of the wedding day for Leigh and Chris was, “having all the people we loved with us. Our relationship has been a crazy ride and the whole visa process for me to live in the US took so long, it was just wonderful to know that it was over and we were finally together for good”.

Chris and Leigh put it simply by telling us it was, “The best day of our lives! Totally cheesy…but absolutely true”.

When Pamela was a child she visited Dunblane and it held great memories for her. As they wanted a large venue where their guest could do their own thing, Dunblane Hydro was the perfect setting and as Pamela said “the tall ceilings and the gardens at the venue were a plus”.  Motherwell Cathedral provided the dramatic backdrop for their ceremony.

Pamela bought a Suzanne Neville dress from Eleganza Sponza in Glasgow, she worked with the seamstress and added her own details to make it the dress she always dreamed of, Pamela said, “it was simply and classy”. Pamela accompanied the dress with the most sparkly Jimmy Choos she could find, “they were stunning” Pamela said. “they were a great alternative to the usual satin wedding shoe”.

Floral and Hardy in Lanark supplied the orchids in Pamela’s feminine flower bouquet. Pamela confessed to us that “the flowers at the venue were a big expense but what an impact they made”. The following day at lunch Pamela gifted the flowers to all her Aunties. Not forgetting Paul’s button hole which was lovely against his black kilt jacket.

For Mark, Pamela and Paul’s wedding was great to photograph; the weather was stunning and the couple had booked two dramatic venues by choosing Dunblane Hydro and Motherwell Cathedral.  Probably the only challenge of the day was coping with just how bright and sunny it was!

Paul wore the Black Island Tartan Kilt, “he wasn’t too sure at first”, Pamela said “but as soon as he tried the whole outfit on he loved it”.

Paul and Pamela told us they chose Archibald Photography as Mark’s style was very relaxed.  The couple don’t like having their photographs taken but said “when we came for our preview we couldn’t even remember Mark taking some of the pictures”.

The cars; “I loved our cars”, said Pamela, “we had a Rolls Royce along with two Bentleys” provided by Sinclair Cars in Uddingston.  “The drivers were fantastic and kept me very calm”, said Pamela.

Pamela wanted a simple but classy cake, Special Days Cakes in Uddingston made the four tier cake decorated with orchids, “I loved it”, said Pamela and “it all tied in very well”.

The evening entertainment was supplied by Big Night Out Band. They were fantastic and did a mixture of music, “We were on our feet all night”, said Paul and Pamela.

Pamela said “The whole day was amazing from start to finish ……. I loved every minute!!”. Everything went as it should have ……”well actually”, Pamela told us, “Paul decided to tell me that his wedding ring didn’t fit and forgot he was all miked up for the video!”.

Simply put by Paul and Pamela “It was the best day of our lives we just smiled and laughed the whole day. Thanks to Archibald Photography for the memories you have captured from our wonderful day!”

Laura has a figure to die for and choose a gorgeous vintage style dress by Suzanne Neville.  Laura wore Mirabeau by Suzanne Neville, a designer at the forefront of British couture wedding design.  Her dresses are well known for their perfectly structured bodices and Laura’s choice of dress had an elegant style reminiscent of vintage French cafe society in the 1950s.

Laura had a vintage style headpiece made for her by William Chambers Millinery who have just been nominated as Accessory Designer of the Year in the Scottish Fashion Awards for the third year running.

Other suppliers worthy of note were:

Rings – Laings

Bridal Shoes – Irregular Choice

Bridal Accessories – Laura’s gloves were vintage, her earrings and garter were from Etsy and a feather shrug was purchased from Ebay

Hair – by Mark at Graeme Reid Hair

Groomswear – Slaters

Wedding Cake – Special Days Cakes

Flowers – Ruby Flowers

Bridesmaid dresses – Karen Millen

Evening Entertainment – Fat Sam’s Band who Laura said “were absolutely fantastic!” As Laura told us “my different groups of friends all bonded over dancing manically to the swing music”  Laura and James danced their first dance to ‘Kiss’  by Dean Martin because it “felt just right and had a classic old feel”.

Laura told us that she chose Archibald Photography because “the quality of photographs was very high, I really loved the reportage sort of style, and we both felt really comfortable with Mark and that we clicked with him.”

Laura had many favourite parts of the day.  As she told us “I really enjoyed getting ready with the girls in the hotel. My own speech was impromptu and I’m glad I did it. The band were absolutely fantastic and I really enjoyed seeing all my different groups of friends get on really well; here was a really laid back atmosphere all day. We weren’t allowed confetti at the church, but my family surprised us with it as we left the reception at night! I really enjoyed spending a short amount of time alone with James in the car after the ceremony, as it went down Kelvin Way on a sunny day with some champagne and my bridesmaids also surprised me with candles and rose petals in the hotel room at night. Walking down the aisle was so nerve-racking at the rehearsal, but lovely and exciting on the day.”

Laura and James’ day went very much as planned but amusingly, as the car was open topped and the couple had to go through the centre of Glasgow (down Argyle Street and up Queen Street), they got a lot of clapping and cheering.  As Laura recalled “one particularly memorable drunk shouted ‘quality’ at us.  Then on the way home, the car had to move up the street a bit whilst waiting for us because some drunks tried to get in it – I’d probably pick a more discreet car for going home if I was to change anything! My dress also was completely filthy at the end of the day, but that was OK. I lost my gloves, feather shrug, and one stocking by the end of the night!”

Laura would sum up the whole experience as “just exactly as I had imagined it would be. It was remarkably stress free, and I felt so comfortable leaving Mark alone to do his thing with the photos because I knew they’d be great, and they were. Really lovely and happy.”

Here are some of our favourite images of their day: