Mark and Jane’s Wedding at Comlongon Castle
Saturday, August 28th, 2010It’s not unusual for me to blog about all things ‘wedding’ or about the gift angle to a wedding! On this occasion however, having just returned from my wee cousin’s wedding in Dumfries in the Scottish Borders, I thought I would make my blog a little more personal so here goes!
The Weather: Well I tend to pay a fair bit of attention to the weather each weekend as here at OneBigPresent HQ we have gift lists registered for more weddings than for any other occasion. Significantly this particular Saturday was a very busy one for us and so I was praying for sunshine a little bit more than usual, not only for our OneBigPresent couples but obviously for Jane and Mark, who had flown in from Australia earlier in the week. As it happens it was gloriously SUNNY and the start of our perfect day! Wow!
Now a little about the bride and groom: Jane is Australian and Mark is from Elgin in the Scottish Highlands, though he has lived in Australia for many years now! They met when Jane, who is an interior designer, started working with Mark, an architect! According to Mark the attraction was instant but as he was Jane’s boss it was a tricky one. Some months and one change of employer later Jane was expecting their gorgeous baby girl Scarlett who at ten months old took pride of place at Mum and Dad’s wedding on Saturday!
So why Comlongon Castle? Well Mark and Jane wanted to find a traditional venue in Scotland and dreamed of a castle so spent some time at home in Australia googling said Scottish venues and castles! They stumbled upon Comlongon Castle near Gretna in Scotland which is a restored Medieval Scottish Castle as well as the ultimate wedding venue and which actually dates back to 1451. Several superb Trip Advisor reviews later and despite being an extremely busy wedding venue (400 weddings a year) they were able to offer Mark and Jane a cancellation on Saturday 21st August and so it was an absolute must and from then on full steam ahead with the planning! As a guest at this beautiful wedding I can honestly say that everything was perfect. The wedding guests were a lively blend of Scots and Australians who united at the Castle entrance before being piped to the ceremony in The Great Hall by the Scottish Piper. This is quite an intimate venue so was perfect for our party of 50 guests, but as The Great Hall is accessed by a very steep yet very narrow stone staircase it’s possibly not ideal for the elderly or infirm. I know that our bride did find it slightly tricky to negotiate in her stunning dress which had been specially designed and made for her back in Australia. She looked just gorgeous as she entered on the arm of one very proud dad and by the look on Mark’s face he knew he was a lucky man. Baby Scarlett was a picture in silk and as good as gold as her mummy and daddy said their vows. Even in August the fire in The Great Hall was glowing and with candles and candelabra’s everywhere this just added to the amazing atmosphere, though admittedly we were a wee bit hot due to the lovely August weather. The ceremony was simple but perfect, with a good helping of emotion, and then it was back down and onto the lawns for champagne. The Castle also prepare their own special champagne punch which is just delicious and such a refreshing change from regular champagne. We loved the punch but unfortunately so did the wasps who were our uninvited guests all day! Thankfully no stings that I know of though!! Lots of stunning photos were taken in the Castle grounds and there was plenty of time for the little ones to run around before we made our way to The Banquet Hall.
I loved the fact that each guest selected from a leather bound menu on arrival and so as a Scot now residing in Yorkshire I was hugely excited by my first course of Haggis, Neeps and Tatties! It certainly did not disappoint, but had serious competition in the form of the exquisite Scottish Beef main course and decadent Tipsy Laird dessert which is a delicious alcohol soaked trifle. The Banquet Hall was truly stunning and the floral displays from Blooms of Dumfries were some of the most exquisite I have seen. This is where the dedicated Wedding Co-ordinators at the Castle come into their own as they use only the best local wedding suppliers. Some more emotion in the form of some wonderful Scottish and Australian speeches and then back to the terrace for coffee and chocolate brownies as the room was prepared for our evening’s entertainment.
Now at this stage a special mention must go to the scrummy chocolate brownies which were actually made by our bride just before the wedding! I appreciate that getting married can be pretty stressful so I figure that coming all the way from Australia to get married must be doubly stressful, never mind with a 10 month old baby and all of your wedding outfits etc, but to make trays and trays of ‘THE MOST DELICIOUS’ chocolate brownies on the day before your wedding had me in complete and utter awe!!
Our evening continued with a lively ceilidh by the Castle’s resident band which had the Austalian contingents swinging their kilts with their new Scottish family till the wee small hours and competing badly, (sorry guys), in a traditional Scottish Sword Dance. Our fabulous day ended as Scots and Australians joined hands and hearts for that old Scottish favourite Auld Land Syne! Mark and Jane, congratulations, this truly was THE perfect wedding!