Picture by Tony Marsh

Eilean Donan Castle Wedding

Huge congratulations to Alisha and Robert (Ontario, Canada) - who married at Eilean Donan Castle on April 21st with reception at Tingle Creek Hotel.

Hello Natasha & Jackie,

My husband and I are so very pleased with the way everything turned out! It really was a fairy tale come true. Plus the 8 other guests that came over from Canada with us to Scotland to share in our special day thought it was amazing! We all want to say how much we truly enjoyed our visit to the Highlands. Our wedding was perfect! We all just keep saying that it doesn't seem real ....like it was too good to be true! It was such a great experience. The Eileen Donan Castle is absolutely breath taking and we so very much loved our dinner and stay at Tingle Creek Hotel. The food was so delicious and the family that owns the place are an awesome group of people! Thank You so very much for all your assistance in helping make such an important day so perfect! Steve from Rapture Photography took such amazing pictures. We really appreciate all the attention to detail. Even after everything was done you were still helping. Thanks again for taking such care of us all on a most memorable day for my family and friends. As you can see from our pictures below we really enjoyed ourselves! We certainly recommend Highland Wedding County Planners to assist in making your wedding day special!

All the best ,

Robert & Alisha Buchanan
plus family & friends


Pictures by Rapture Photography

Highland Country Weddings

Isle of Mull at Sir Lachlan's Castle!

Katia and Steve from California married at Duart Castle on Mull - May 29th.

Paradise!

Congratulations Katia and Steve!
Pictures by Tony Marsh

Highland Country Weddings

Cake!

We love this picture. This is the cake that traveled across land and ocean to Sir Lachlan's Castle on the Isle of Mull for a fabulous wedding this last week-end. Cake was deliciously amazing! More fabulous pictures of Mull to follow :o)

Cake by Rainbow Sugarcraft

Highland Country Weddings

Dunnottar Castle Wedding! May 4th

May 4th with Misty and Robert at gorgeous Dunnottar Castle!

Hello Natasha, I hope you are well! Thank you so very much for everything you did to make our wedding day so special. It was definitely a very interesting and exciting day! We did have alot of fun despite the weather and the ceremony was quite beautiful. The cows and the Italians just made it all the more memorable! Everything was wonderful, the hotel, the cake , the dinner-all of it! I cannot thank you and the wonderful HCW staff enough.!
Again I would like to express my sincere gratitude and commend you on how excellent you are at what you do!
Much love,
Misty and Robert

Congratulations Misty and Robert!

Pictures by Graham Vaughan

Highland Country Weddings

Edinburgh Castle Wedding - May 8th

Monica and Vidar married at their dream castle - Edinburgh Castle - with their family friends from Norway. And were witness to the rapid weather fluctuations of Scotland! Torential rain, gorgeous bright sunshine, and hurricane winds in the space of one hour - such good sports with the photography, helped by the ever charismatic and energetic Tony Marsh.

Dear Janis, Lesley and all the staff at HCW!

We want to thank you for making our dream wedding come true! From the minute we arrived at our wonderful hotel we felt really welcome, and the staff at the Sheraton made sure we did not lack any kind of comfort during our stay. Opening the doors to our suite and finding the gift basket from HCW really got the week of to a great start, and reassured us that we had made the right decision in choosing HCW as our wedding planners!

All the wonderful people we got to meet during our stay really made this a week to remember! From hair and makeup trials, red carpet and a fabolous bridal car, perfect piping and fantastic photographers - everyone made sure this really would be an unforgettable event! The staff at Edinburgh Castle took care of us all, and even made the sun come out for our photoshoot.

A special thank you to Norman the minister! So calm and easy-going, yet funny and full of laughs, he made us relax and made our ceremony so beautiful and romantic.

Dear Lesley, thank you so much for all your help throughout the process! Please bring our deepest thanks to all the members of your staff and all the wonderful people who work with you to make our dreams come true! You all really made us feel so good, and we owe you so much for making our dream come true!

All the best and thank you once more from Norway,

Monica and Vidar.

Huge congratulations to Monica and Vidar!

Pictures by Tony Marsh

Highland Country Weddings

Inch Country House Wedding

Patricia and Robert from Glasgow enjoyed a wonderful weekend wedding in the Inch Hotel in Fort Augustus on the 28th March 2009.

Along with almost 50 members of their family and friends they took over the hotel where they were truly spoiled by all the staff. They loved the location and the very relaxed atmosphere of the hotel. George, the owner of the hotel extended a very warm welcome and a weekend of highland hospitality to the happy couple and their guests, allowing them to feel relaxed and spend some real quality time together.

The whole weekend was absolutely fantastic!

From the minute we arrived George and all his wonderful staff looked after our every need, nothing was too much trouble. The location was amazing, being March we didn't know what to expect weatherwise ...as it turned out it snowed a little in the morning and the the sun came out just in time for our ceremony and photographs.

The food was delicious and plentiful, we actually had to tell the talented chef Nick, that the only reason we were sending back some food on the plate was because we were so full.

The cake and flowers were beautiful and Karen and Eilish made me feel like a model. Many of our guests will be returning for a weekend again. Everything surpassed our expectations, I can't thank Lesley, Natasha and George for making my dream day come true.

They took all the stress away and made everything seem so easy to arrange. True professionals!

Congratulations to Tricia and Robert!!

Pictures courtesy of George Witherspoon

Highland Country Weddings

Dornoch Country Village Wedding - April 16th

Many congratulations to Anja and Lars who married in the gorgeous Highland town of Dornoch, last Thursday! Willie the piper, piped them across town back to the Castle for champagne and home-made truffles :o)

Barbara, everything went PERFECT!

It was an amazing and unforgetable day for us and our friends! We want to thank you so much for all of the effort you put into the planning and the details. Really, a dream has come true!

Of course we also want to thank you, Jackie! It was a pleasure to meet you and we thank you for all of your warm words, your kind support and for being with us at our special day. The piper, the photographer, the castle staff, everyone was really wonderful.

Also the ceremony with Catherine Macangus was very emotional for all of us, including Jackie I think...

Please take care and all the best for you and all the ladies from Highland CountryWeddings.

Thank you SO MUCH!

With kind regards und vielen lieben Grüßen from Germany, Anja and Lars

Pictures by Rapture Photography

Highland Country Weddings

Cromlix Country House Wedding

Catherine and Michael from Canada celebrated their marriage at Cromlix Country House near Stirling, on April 8th. Gorgeous Spring day with daffodils in full bloom!

H
Huge congratulations to Catherine and Michael!

Pictures by Jenniflower Weddings

Highland Country Weddings

February 16th 2009 at Dalhousie Castle

Anhtuan and Anne, their family and friends from Texas, celebrated a really gorgeous day at this really gorgeous castle just outside of Edinburgh! Lesley Simpson, from Highland Country Weddings performed a detailed packed Humanist ceremony punctuated with the sounds of a trumpet, played by Finlay Hetherington!

Thank you to Alastair Brown from A Brown Digital Video for this beautiful video summary.

Anhtuan & Anne from Alastair Brown on Vimeo.

It's a boy!

Congratulations to Janis and Robert on Jack - born last night, January 13th at 7:55pm, 8 lbs 10oz! Mother and baby doing just fine!


Janis can be contacted at hcweddings@btinternet.com

2008 wedding pictures!

Here's a review of some of the 2008 great wedding pictures.
Thank you to everyone for a fabulous year!
Happy 2009!

Thank you to the following photographers for a great 2008 year of pictures!

Tony Marsh, Margaret McAtier, Rapture Photography, Jenniflowers Weddings, David Ho,

Graham Vaughan, Terras Photography, Justin Scobie.

Highland Country Weddings

Dornoch Cathedral - December 12th 2008

Rondi and Tom (from Georgia) at their gorgeous wedding ceremony at Dornoch Cathedral last Friday.

Rev. Susan Brown performed this ever so romantic ceremony for them. This followed a leisurely walk back with Willie the piper, across the village road to the Castle where mulled wine was waiting. After which George the chauffeur from Top Car whizzed them off in his Mercedes to the 'Falls of Shin' and then down to Inverness to the award winning restaurant Rocpool. Albert Roux, world famous French chef was there and served them food fit for king and queen!

Congratulations Rondi and Tom!

Photographs by Margaret McAtier

Highland Country Weddings

Rufflets Country Mansion Wedding - St. Andrews

These are pictures of Janelle and Evan's (from New York, NY) wedding at Rufflets Country Mansion, just outside of St. Andrews. They decided to have their ceremony outside - the weather was brilliant!

That's Lesley performing the humanist ceremony :o)

Congratulations Janelle and Evan

Pictures by Tony Marsh

"Spirit of the Highlands"

Bill and Linda flew over from Hawaii last month to have their pictures taken at Ardvreck Castle in the Highlands - they wanted a photographer to capture the romance in their relationship. We suggested Margaret McAtier - they were NOT disappointed!

...I am so glad Margaret was able to capture the moment for us. Bill and I loved the entire trip: we really appreciated your help and suggestions; Margaret was patient, fun, and accomodating; the Boath House was a perfectly beautiful haven; and Ardvreck Castle was everything we had hoped for...romantic and intimate, not commercialized, and for us it held the spirit of the Highlands. The castle was well worth the drive, and the trip was well worth the flight. We cannot wait to return. I know you will continue to make many couples' dreams come true.
Take care,
Linda

Pictures by Margaret McAtier

Highland Country Weddings

Favorable exchange rate!

With the UK Pound plunging against the US Dollar, your wedding 6 months ago would have cost you 25% more.





As an example, a wedding in Scotland costing $10,000 6 months ago, now costs $7,500.

Take advantage of this favorable exchange rate, and get an additional discount for pre-payment. Contact HCW for details.

Highland Country Weddings

Launch of new text service - THE SCOTTISH WEDDINGS HELPLINE

Today, marks the launch of a NEW TEXT SERVICE - ask the texperts any question about weddings in Scotland!

You've done a bit of research online and in the bridal magazines, you've been to the bridal shows and stores but you still have one or two pressing questions. Who do you turn to for a quick personalised answer? The Scottish Weddings Helpline

Examples of topics covered by the texperts.

Legal paperwork issues

Recommendations of suppliers

Financial questions - estimates, ballpark costs

Current 'special offers' at venues

Cheapest option for a wedding

Scottish traditions

And anything else related to Scottish Weddings!

Here are some typical questions:

'I want to get married in a castle in Scotland - are there any special deals off season?'
'On which side must I wear my Sgian Dubh?'
'Can I have a Catholic ceremony even though I don't live in Scotland?'
'Can my Minister/Priest back home marry me in Scotland?'

'How soon must I give notice to the registrar?'
'Can you recommend an owl ring delivery in the Highland area - lowest fee?'
'I want to marry outside, by the ocean with mountains and woodlands - where?'
'My in-laws wish to contribute towards the cost of the wedding - how much should we ask them for?'
'Who's a top photographer in the north west who will do a high resolution disc only (no album or prints)?

Start your message with the word 'WEDDING' followed by your question and send to 80008 - it's simple!

Service currently available in the UK only.

For full details visit The Scottish Weddings Helpline

Texting bride picture by Tony Marsh

From Oz to Eilean Donan Castle

Jason March and Susan Legrady chose the beautiful and romantic setting of Eilean Donan Castle for their wedding on 10th October this year. Along with their witnesses and friends, Jason and Sue had a lovely time at the castle and a romantic and intimate ceremony, performed by Alan Smurthwaite and Jackie Goode from the Humanist Society for Scotland. Following the ceremony, photographs and champagne, they headed back to Hotel Eilean Iarmain for dinner and whisky!

You will see in the photos, a kazoo... brought all the way from Australia to take part in the wedding of Jason and Sue. Sue explained that it's now an Oz tradition for them to make sure that when they are at a wedding (including their own!) the kazoo must make an appearance. It's a little joke started by Sue at her friends weddings when she was a bridesmaid - so here is proof that the kazoo made it all the way to Scotland for a brief appearance! It's similar to the stories I've read in the past about travelling gnomes who send home postcards... ;o)

Anyway, our very best wishes and congratulations to Jason and Sue, from all at Highland Country Weddings!

Photos By Rapture Photography

Birkhill Castle Wedding - Cecile and Chris

Birkhill Castle was the perfect setting for Chris and Cecile's gorgeous and fun wedding, October 4th! They invited family and friends from their native countries of Germany and France - they themselves met and have settled in the US. Lesely Simpson (Humanist Celebrant) performed a fascinating ceremony, including in this the ancient Celtic ritual of hand fasting and the 'Unity Sand Ceremony'. Here is a part of the script for the Sand Ceremony - there wasn't a dry eye anywhere!


Sand Ceremony (read from the script by Lesley Simpson, Humanist Celebrant)

As a symbol of their union, Cecile and Chris have decided to perform what is known as a ‘Unity Sand Ceremony” prior to exchanging their wedding rings. The blending of two different coloured sand is used to symbolise the joining of two people.

Cecile and Chris, your relationship is symbolised through the pouring of these two individual containers of sand; one representing you Cecile, and all that you were, all that you are and all that you will be, the other represents you Chris and all that you were, all that you are and all that you will be. Each one holds its own unique beauty, strength and character.

They can stand on their own and be whole without the need of anything else. When the two are blended together they represent an entirely new and extraordinary love relationship. Each individual grain of sand brings to the mixture a lasting beauty that forever enriches the combination.

(Cecile and Chris pick up their containers of sand)

As each of you hold your sand, the separate containers represent your lives to this moment; individual and unique. As you now combine your sand, your lives also join together as one

(pouring of sand)

The life that each of you has experienced until now individually, will now be inseparably united, for the two shall become one. Just as these grains of sand can never be separated and poured again into the individual containers, so your marriage will be, you will become one.

Congratulations Cecile and Chris!

Hi Natasha,
The wedding was magical. We loved the castle, the grounds, and having our closest friends and family to share this special week-end with us was incredible. The flowers and color scheme were right on what we were envisioning: I absolutely loved my bouquet!! Everybody had a lot of fun with Tony to make a great set of pictures where everyone was always laughing! There were some tears as well as the ceremony was beautiful and very emotional for all of us, including Lesley! And the food was delicious! The piper, the hair and makeup ladies, the castle staff, everyone was really nice.
Thank you for helping us make of this week-end an amazing memory for all of us.

Cecile

Pictures by Tony Marsh

Highland Country Weddings

Laird and Lady of Balgonie's Home

Much merriment was had by all at this extaordinary medieval castle, October 4th at David and Celeste's wedding. Laird of Balgonie and his son welcomed us all into his living museum - a 14th century candlelit Chapel and Great Hall which they have restored beautifully.

Pictures by Terras Photography

Highland Country Weddings

October 16th - Janelle and Evan

October is great for weddings in Scotland! Gorgeous pictures of Janelle and Evan (from New York, NY) who married yesterday in the gardens of Rufflets House, St. Andrews, with family and friends.

Congratulations Janelle and Evan!

Pictures by Tony Marsh
Highland Country Weddings