On 29th February 2020, after a nearly 4 year engagement, real wedding couple Maria and Ross had their dream day at The Park Hotel, Kilmarnock. The now Mr and Mrs met randomly in the middle of a field during Tinie Tempah’s set at an Avicci concert, in their home country of Scotland. Neither knew at the time that they had found the one, but then who ever does?!
After viewing a few other venues in the local area and attending several wedding fairs, Maria and Ross chose The Park Hotel for their special day. They loved the feel of the venue, it was in budget and they were confident they would get the day they wanted. Plus, being located next to the home of Kilmarnock FC, there were some great photo opportunities!
Although they included all aspects of a traditional wedding, this fun-loving couple couldn’t stop themselves from adding some humour to their ceremony. Firstly, groom Ross was joined at the end of the aisle by the couple’s beloved dog Bruce, a tiny jackawawa with a big personality who (as anyone who knows Ross would know) could never have missed such a huge event! Secondly, as the piper started playing and the guests were standing ready for the bridal procession, along comes a fully grown man acting as flower boy, comedically scattering rose petals down the aisle…not your typical flower girl or page boy!
Not everything was for the laughs though. As a lot of their guests had travelled from different countries to witness their wedding, Maria and Ross also used the opportunity of everyone being gathered to celebrate their baby girl’s naming day during the ceremony. It was a beautiful way to include little one in the day.
Staying true to their heritage, the couple chose to incorporate many of the beautiful things about Scotland in their styling. Using the colours of the Thistle as inspiration, the bridesmaids wore purple dresses, the grooms party wore kilts in a green and purple tartan and they included thistles in the bouquets, decorations and the ushers kilt pins.
Maria looked online to source her bridesmaids dresses, and eventually found that WED2B in nearby Glasgow had the ones she wanted. After going to have a look in store she found the colour of the dresses matched their theme perfectly! The dress was available in different styles making it perfect for each bridesmaid to choose the best fit.
Maria herself looked stunning in a White Rose Bridal gown from a boutique in Fife, which had been recommended to her by a friend:
“I had been following their social media pages for some time and they had a wide range of dresses. I went along to the appointment with a vision of the dress I wanted, but after trying six dresses on I didn’t like any of them. The shop assistant suggested a different dress and I instantly fell in love with it!” – Bride Maria
Ross honoured the tradition of wearing his formal kilt, looking handsome in his family tartan. His grooms party all wore matching kilts with a purple and green tartan to reflect the thistle inspired styling, as well as matching sporrans, socks and shoes. However, underneath all the traditional garb, as an avid DC fan (in particular Batman), Ross had treated each of his grooms party to a personalised, superhero themed t-shirt which they revealed all together later in the day.
With so many guests to cater for, the hotel was the perfect venue choice for this couple. The large room was beautifully adorned with a white runner for the ceremony, as well as stunning artificial cherry blossom trees lining the aisle. Whilst the guests enjoyed some delicious canapés and the couple were whisked off for photos (in the freezing cold!), the room was transformed for the wedding breakfast, and the trees were used as table centrepieces, a perfect example of clever styling!
The speeches were true to form with the mother of the bride, Ross and his two best men taking to the microphone. Although to the amusement of most of the room, some of the English guests had trouble understanding the accents! The speeches flowed nicely into the wedding breakfast for which, unusually (in our experience) the guests were able to choose their starter, main and dessert options at the table on the day from a menu chosen by the couple. The food was delicious and the service faultless.
Having very creative family and friends made it easy for Ross and Maria to choose some of their wedding suppliers. Their wedding stationery was designed and handmade by the couple and some close family, their rustic buttercream wedding cake was made by Ross’ stepmum and the wedding flowers and bouquets were beautifully arranged by Ross’s aunt. Their guests were treated to miniature bottles of Irn Bru, Tunnock’s Tea Cakes and homemade tablet as wedding favours, truly delicious and inkeeping with the Scottish theme!
Another reason for choosing The Park Hotel was because the evening reception could go on into the early hours, something the party-loving couple were set on from the beginning and their guests took full advantage of! The couple chose live band Vice Versa as their evening entertainment, with an acoustic version of Avicci’s Wake Me Up as their first dance song. The dancefloor was packed all night long!
When asked about her favourite part of the day bride Maria told us;
“My favourite part of the day was seeing Ross at the bottom of the aisle, but also getting to spend the day with all my friends and family. Getting handed a bottle of tequila rose during the reception was pretty good too!”
She also offered the following advice for other couples planning for their big day:
“Enjoy your day and cherish it! The day goes so fast so try not to get caught up in chatting to everyone, and remember to eat the food you have paid for.”
Wise words!
SUPPLIERS:
Dress: White Rose Bridal Collection at Madison Rose Bridal, Kirkcaldy
Photographer & Videographer: Kim Stewart Photography
Bridesmaid Dresses: WED2B (Glasgow)
Menswear: Slaters (Ayr)
Venue & Catering: The Park Hotel, Kilmarnock
Cake: Sneisters Afternoon Tea to You
Flowers: Groom’s Aunt
Hair Stylist: Karen King Hair
Make Up Artist: Fiona Grant at Fabulous Face & Nail Studio
Band: Vice Versa Band
