Scotland has become a second home to me and a country that I love {almost} as much as my own. My husband is Scottish and not just the Canadian version “Oh yes, I’m scottish, my great grandparents were from Scotland.” He is born and bred Scot and when we fell in love, he immigrated to Canada and left behind his whole family. We travel to Scotland about once a year, sometimes more, and this year’s trip was for something very, very special. After almost 10 years together, Ross and Nicola set a date for December 1, 2012 at Dalhousie Castle, about 20 minutes outside of Edinburgh. I have photographed only one other Scotland wedding and so it was an amazing opportunity not to be missed. And also a really great way to show two people just how awesome they are and how important they are to our lives, even if they live thousands of miles away. I think if I write that one day, it is our goal to live in the same city as Ross and Nic, then I will have to make it happen right? When I heard that it was a December wedding, I prepared for the worst- the worst being torrential downpour. It is Scotland after all. But what we got on that beautiful winter’s day was something quite spectacular. A cool, crisp day and the most stunning of sunsets. I enjoyed learning about the slightly different traditions when it comes to the actual wedding ceremony- in particular the fact that the bridesmaids typically follow the bride and also the fact that the dinner is called a “wedding breakfast.” I can only imagine if anyone in Canada mentioned a wedding breakfast, their guests would be expecting sausages and eggs. The ceremony was beautiful, dotted with personal sentiments and a Winnie the Pooh reading. The ceremony room was filled with gorgeous light from the setting December sun. There were so many details that I loved, the biggest detail being Nicola’s bouquet. She and her twin sister Flick and their mother flew to Amsterdam to the flower markets especially for this exquisite flower, called a King Proteus. Now shall I back up? Are you wondering about the whole flying to Amsterdam to get a single flower? It actually worked out to be less expensive to fly to Amsterdam, spend the weekend, buy the flower and bring it back home, then it was for a florist to import them into Scotland. Amazing and something I feel is missing from Canadian travel! And I cannot forget to mention the owls. Ohmygoodness the owls. Dalhousie Castle has a falconry on its property and the owls can be integrated into the wedding day program. Ross fell in love with the snowy owl and I was so excited to be able to use him in the creatives. The day was filled with love and I was beside myself with stunning vistas, castles, grand rooms and a real honest-t0-goodness cheese cake. {See the pictures for what I mean by cheese. cake. !!!} I loved every single minute and I adored being surrounded by family and friends. I do hope you enjoy this little sneak peek. And just a little note- if you are planning a Scottish wedding, please do keep me in mind!!
