Shona and Craig at King’s College Chapel, and Westhill Holiday Inn
We had our first trip of this year to the stunning King’s College Chapel in May to photograph the wedding of Shona and Craig.
Shona and Craig met at a friend’s house in 2005, and finally got together 3 months later at Chicago Rock in Aberdeen’s city centre. Shona tells us that Craig proposed down at Aberdeen Beach on 19th December 2006.
Shona and Craig asked the Rev. Ian Aitken from the Church of Scotland in Stockethill to conduct the wedding ceremony at King’s College Chapel. Shona feels that they made their wedding ceremony very personal by including a Candle Lighting Ceremony, a Handfasting and a toast from a Quaich.
Shona tells us that the best piece of advice received during the wedding planning was to enjoy their day from start to finish and to stop and take it all in. However, she admits that the day went past so quickly, that they are very pleased to have their wedding video from Mark Stuart to relive the memories. The best part of the wedding for Shona was walking down the aisle towards Craig.
In fact, the complete wedding ran very smoothly thanks to Shona’s wedding planning. Shona says that their ceremony was beautiful. The cars (Bentley and BMWs from Rainbow Prestige) were amazing, and the rain stopped at just the right times for their photographs.
Shona and Craig had a wonderful reception for their guests at the Westhill Holiday Inn, in the contemporary setting of the Balmoral Suite. After speeches from Shona’s father, Craig and their best man Neil, the hotel served up a lovely meal. Everyone thought that the reception at night was fantastic, with the band Splash adding that little something special. Shona and Craig would not change a thing.
We asked Shona to choose a favourite photograph, which she found difficult as she had many great moments to choose from. They decided the black and white photograph of Craig lifting Shona up in the garden was their favourite along with the one under the pink cherry blossom tree. They also really like the family photographs and those of the bridal party.
We asked if there was anything else they’d like to add to their wedding story. Shona tells us that unfortunately the day before their wedding their son Branden caught chicken pox. However, he was amazing throughout the whole day and made Shona and Craig very proud. They thought that Alyshia and Branden looked so beautiful (as did all of the other page boys and flower girls) and that they were all extremely well behaved.
Shona and Craig hope to head off on honeymoon with their children at the end of the year.
Finally, all of us here at Rubislaw Studio send our congratulations to the happy couple and wish Shona, Craig, Alyshia, and Branden all the very best for the future.
Style File
Bridal Dress: Berketex
Bridesmaids Dresses: Elmar Bridal Collection Peterhead
Hairdresser: Style Room
Make Up: Chicabelle
Menswear: Georgian Dress Hire
Rings: John Park the Jeweller
Flowers: Ann Drouettes
Cake: John Innes
Stationey: Joyce Gauld, a family friend
Table Decorations: Holiday Inn Aberdeen West and Shona herself.
Seat Covers: Holiday Inn Aberdeen West
Video: Mark Stuart Wedding Films
Band: Splash
Caricaturist: Deirdre Varley
Piper: David Kilgour
Wedding Transport: Rainbow Prestige
Favours: Pins in aid of Breast Cancer Research, and Shona made up party bags for all of the children
55 Chevy – Teri & Michael at Dyce Marriott Hotel
Teri and Michael were our final April couple and we were thrilled to join them, their daughter Lily,and family and friends to celebrate their marriage at The Marriott, Dyce.
Teri and Michael have been together for a number of years, having met on the bus from Yates to Amadeus on a night out! Teri tells us that it took them about 8 months to get together after numerous advances from Michael and a lot of family speculation!
We asked Teri to tell us about the proposal. The couple got engaged on 29th February 2008 which was a leap year. Teri had been threatening to propose if Michael didn’t! Michael, however, had other ideas and made Teri walk up to the top of Craigendarroch Hill in Ballater on a cold and windy day where he proposed. Teri admits it was a struggle, but well worth it when Michael popped the question. What a lovely memory to have.
David Pattullo, a Humanist Celebrant conducted the ceremony. Teri and Michael created their own vows, as they wanted to make the ceremony more personal and chose different vows to say to each other.
The best piece of advice received during the planning was to just enjoy every moment of the day. Teri and Michael did try, but found that the day passes so fast, leaving them feeling slightly dazed, and that was with little alcohol they admit!
We asked what the best part of their wedding was, and Teri says that it was the entire day and that they couldn’t pinpoint one particular thing. She thought that the ceremony was brilliant, the speeches funny and touching and that the evening was great fun. Teri loved the Chevy as their wedding car – we thought that was pretty cool too! Teri and Michael loved sharing the day with their friends and family. Teri thought that their daughter Lily looked beautiful, and we think so too!
Teri and Michael have just returned from a short honeymoon in a log cabin at Beech Hedge Park near Perth and Blairgowrie. They are very much looking forward to their ‘big honeymoon’ later on in the year when they head to Orlando, Florida for 3 weeks in September. We know that they’ll have a fabulous time.
We will be meeting Teri, Michael, and Lily again quite soon, as we are booked to photograph Teri’s sister Jacqui’s wedding in June!
All of us here at Rubislaw Studio wish Michael, Teri and Lily every happiness in the future.
Style File
Bridal Dress: Our Day
Bridesmaids Dresses: BHS
Flower Girl’s Dress: BHS
Hairdresser: Teri’s friend, Natalie
Make Up: Emma Jane Make Up
Menswear: McCalls
Flowers: Flowers with Flair
Cake: Pattie Cakes
Stationery: Ebay
Favours: Donation to Prostate Cancer and Bowel Cancer UK
Table Decorations: The Marriott Hotel
Table Plan, Table Names & Place Cards: Ebay
Seat Covers: Fairytale Events
Entertainment: Un1que Disco
Car: Roadstars
“Tale as Old as Time” – Alastair and Esther, King’s Community Church, and Ardoe House Hotel
Our first photo shoot with Esther and Alastair was back in July at the historical and dramatic location of Dunnottar Castle. We met there to take some photographs to celebrate their engagement. The location was very significant, as this is where Alastair and Esther went on their first date!
The couple met on the steps of the very church they were to be married in, King’s Community Church. Esther had been looking for a church to attend, having returned to Aberdeen after her university days in Edinburgh. Alastair just happened to be on the welcome team that day, and after coffee and a chat, the rest as the saying goes, is history!
Alastair’s proposal was the most romantic I had ever heard. He arranged to meet Esther at the church, and when she opened the doors she was met with the words “will you marry me” spelled out in pebbles. There were candles, as well as photographs of the couple and Esther’s favourite tune, “Tale as old as time” from Beauty and the beast, playing in the background. The couple went on to walk down the aisle to the same tune. It must have taken a great deal of love and imagination to plan all that!
We asked Esther and Alastair a few more questions.
Who conducted your ceremony? Dr Iain Duthie (Pastor of Kings Community Church, Aberdeen), and Brian Rapske (Pastor from Canada, and friend of the Bride’s family).
Did you choose your own vows? If so, what is the story behind them? We used the ones that the Bride’s parents did, which were taken from the Anglican version of the book of common prayer, and we each memorised them.
What was the best advice that you received during your wedding planning? Take moments on the wedding day to look around and let yourself enjoy and cherish the day itself.
Where did you go on honeymoon? El Medano in Tenerife after the wedding, with a Mediterranean Cruise to follow in October (since the original cruise we had booked for after the wedding was cancelled)
What was the best part of the wedding? (Apart from the photographs obviously!!) The video that was produced was fantastic in capturing so many great moments, as were the photo booth pictures in the evening. We loved the ceremony and the speeches, and the meal was fantastic too …so all in all, we can’t really pick a single best part! If I had to, I’d say Pete Hartley playing ‘Amazing Grace’ during the service at the church – it was superb! – and Esther loved the drive in ‘DOB 100’ – the old Rolls Royce that she felt was like “Brum” from the Children’s TV programme in the early 90’s!
What is your favourite photo? The black and white photo of Esther and I next to the car, and the black and white one of us together outside the church after the ceremony. We love the group photos from up at the Ardoe as well.
Is there anything else you’d like to mention? Were there any particularly funny moments? The speeches were all very unique and very memorable, and there were plenty jokes in them that still make us smile!
Style File
* Bridal Dress – Berketex Brides, with alterations to make the design more personal
* Bridesmaids dresses – BHS weddings with additional ‘bling’ added by the Bride’s mum!
* Hairdresser – Riah Hair and Beauty, of Banchory
* Make Up – as above
* Menswear – Slaters of Aberdeen
* Flowers – Flowers with Flair, Bridge of Don, Aberdeen
* Cake – Kelly of Cults
* Stationery – Main artwork by a local artist, and designs thereafter by the family
* Table Decorations – All designed by the brides family
* Seat Covers – Fairytale Events
* Video – ‘Scott Video’ (Scott Cassie)
* Entertainment – Sporran Again Ceilidh Band, of Dundee, and Pete Hartley a professional violinist from the Midlands. We also had photo booth pictures, Deirdre Varley (caricaturist), and 5x Giant Games (Elite Promotions) there in the evening, all of which the guests seemed to really enjoy!
* Piper – Alba bagpipes
* Cars – Carriages
You can see the highlights of the day here, and the complete set of photographs here.