Wedding Fair - 3

Post number 3 - it was a busy day, what can I say?

After all of this we still had to meet the photographer, who we already had penciled in for our date. The photographer is Neil Fordyce, and was originally recommended by the venue so we know he knows how to get the best shots of the grounds etc. Both him and his wife seemed very friendly and the selection of albums on display were stunning. Having met him we were happy to go ahead with the booking. Our parents were especially impressed with the albums and seemed to be trying to pick which ones they would like to use for their copies of the photos.

Dad spoke to the car's chauffeur who opened the car up for us to sit in. I couldn't believe how comfortable it was in the back - lovely soft leather. The car will likely have to make four trips to the Church in the morning but they said that's quite usual for them. Car booked.

On our way out to look at some of the lodges in the grounds we bumped into the piper who we hadn't seen around earlier. I've had my heart set on a piper because I think it's one thing that really adds to the atmosphere of a Scottish wedding. She was very reasonably priced and I mentioned a few songs I liked and she began playing them then and there - perfect - booked.

Both sets of parents were considering booking lodges for the whole weekend so we wandered around the grounds and explored them a bit. All of them wee lovely inside, though some were more spacious than others. Both of them eventually booked one so I know I'll have plenty space for me and the girls to get ready in on the morning of the big day. There's a kitchen as well so perhaps we'll be able to have some people round on the friday night before everything kicks off. I'll need to remember to leave myself some time to get my beauty sleep though.
 

After all of this we had to call it a day. We were due to get a train from Edinburgh at 7 pm so needed to get back down the road fairly promptly. I was buzzing for the rest of the day and we both were very pleased to see how nicely the planning was coming together. There's still a lot to do but at least most of the big things are booked, even if the details still need to be finalised.

Wedding Fair - 2

We quickly wolfed down the sandwiches mum had brought with us from home as we drove up the long winding driveway back to the Atholl Palace.

 It was pretty busy and we could see lots of tantalizing stalls through the many windows of the Atholl suite where our reception will be held. I was getting so excited to be back and indulging in all things wedding - especially as we were about to hit the 1 year to go mark - I was practically jumping up and down.

I'd come prepared - armed with a heavy bag of bridal magazines and venue brochures to show examples of things I liked to suppliers. Gerard had brought his tablet to take notes on a spreadsheet document but he had left it in the car. He ran back to get it as myself, Mum and Dad noticed a very swish looking car (a Rolls Royce) decked out with a ribbon parked in front of the main entrance. Dad being Dad headed straight to it and had a good look around. I loved it and Mum pointed out that it matched the colour of the sapphires in my engagement ring. We all decided to find out which supplier it belonged to and to consider booking it. One thing ticked off the list and we hadn't even set foot inside yet.

As we arrived there we were offered a glass of sparkling wine. Gerard then caught up with us and asked if we'd seen the car outside - it had caught his eye too.

Within a few minutes we were talking to a florist who had set up an amazing display in front of the veranda restaurant. I discussed my ideas for flowers and she explained how her consultations would work and showed me some pictures of her work - also showing us a few more affordable options within our colour scheme for us to consider. She was offering a 10% discount if we booked that day so there went our first deposit.

Next on our to-do list was to meet the band we had tentatively booked beforehand. As it so happened they were set up right next to us and were just about to start playing. They were fab and we were able to book them properly. Looking forward to everyone getting up and dancing at our evening reception.

We made the most of all the tasters that were on offer at the different stalls: lovely shortbread at the tea station, wedding cakes and ice cream from the old fashioned cart that could be hired to attend the day.We were all swept up in the excitement and very keen to book this cart, but we realised it would have been an impulse purchase so we agreed to think about it closer to the time. The ice cream was delicious though.

Gerard and dad found a stall allowing wine tasting of some of the wines that we could choose to have with our meal. Gerard brought me over a glass of red wine and white wine to taste - telling me this was what they had chosen. The red was fine, but I wasn't terribly bothered by it as I will not be letting red wine get anywhere near me in a wedding dress. I hated the white wine and had an almost bridezilla moment. Luckily there were others to choose from and the next one (I think it was a chenin blanc) was very pleasant. We may need to taste them again when we do the menu tasting nearer to the time.

I managed to lose Gerard for a little while, deliberately of course, because I had spotted a stall stocking wedding dresses by the same designer as mine and I was desperately trying to persuade someone to measure me for my dress so I could then send my measurements to Karen who was going to order the dress for me. Unlike the London shop, who wouldn't take measurements unless I gave them a deposit, these ladies were only too happy to help. One of them led me into a quiet room and then wrote the measurements down on an order sheet for me and told me the size she would recommend I get. When I got back to the stall I spotted their small rail of sample bridesmaid dresses - one of which was in a gorgeous colour. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that this was in fact the colour I had been looking at online on the Dessy website. It was good to see it was as nice in reality, although I'm still yet to have any of my bridesmaids try the dresses on.

Wedding Fair - 1

April was a pretty busy month for us. We went up to Scotland for the Easter weekend and were busy socialising with all our friends and family for most of the week. I was supposed to be writing an essay for uni but thankfully I'd put in a big effort the weekend before so I was able to put it to one side for most of the visit. When we arrived back in London I had three days to finish it off and the day after the deadline we were         on our way to Paris for the weekend as Gerard was about to run his third marathon! Gerard did very well - in surprising heat he managed his personal best of under 4 hours 15 minutes!

After the marathon we had a bit of a mad dash for a train and we were off to the alps for two weeks of skiing. We had a fabulous time and really made the most of the great snow and the sunny weather that came with it.

Back in London two weeks later we returned to work and uni only to jump on a train again at 6pm on the Friday and make our way back up to Scotland. The Atholl Palace was hosting a wedding fayre on the Sunday and we intended to book a number of local suppliers who would be attending.

On the Saturday we had arranged to meet Gerard's best man Neil for lunch at the centre and had gone along early to do some shopping ourselves. When we still had twenty minutes to kill before Neil was due we decided to nip in to a jewellery shop to try on a few wedding rings. I'm not sure what style of ring to go for which will suit my rather large and blingy engagement ring, and Gerard has yet to be convinced that he even wants a ring. Unfortunately I don't think this trip has actually helped to convince him. When the shop assistant gave Gerard a ring to try on it was clear that it was way too small. She then pulled out her bunch of ring measures to work out Gerard's finger size - turns out it's off the charts! Even the Z tester ring wouldn't fit over Gerard's knuckles. When we told Neil the story he was in fits which just made us laugh even more. Now everyone wants to look at Gerard's hands to compare them to his own - no wonder they always seem so warm to me if there's so much of them.

Sunday morning we were up bright and early for the drive to Pitlochry. We wanted to attend 11.30 mass at the local church where we'll be getting married so we could meet the priest. John and Kathleen had been staying overnight in the hotel and were going to meet us there as well. We arrived at 11 am - plenty of time to get parked in the very limited space at the church. In fact it gave us an opportunity to see how many cars could realistically get parked there - it's actually a fair amount if the drivers think creatively (and don't mind double parking). It started to rain so we waited in the car until closer to the time but noticed that everyone who was walking up the hill to the church seemed to be dressed very nicely indeed. Alarm bells started ringing. Clearly something was happening at the church that day.

Indeed it was - the mass included confirmations and first communions of some of the local school children and it lasted for 75 minutes. We had only ten minutes to get to the venue before the fayre started and I was starting to get antsy. Thankfully the priest seemed happy to chat briefly to us as we were leaving the church. He was very friendly and it was good to be able to meet him.