Great Scot!

Aifric and Scott’s relaxed, rustic wedding was brought to life by an abundance of colourful wildlfowers

Images courtesy of Lucy Dracott Photography

Aifric and Scott met through a Wakeboarding Club while studying at the University of Edinburgh. “I was immediately attracted to Aifric’s very distinctive red hair and her big smile,” recalls Scott, while Aifric adds, “When I first met Scott I thought he was really handsome, fun to be around and very engaging.”

Fast forward to August 2021, when Scott proposed to Aifric on Brighton beach, a short walk from their house. “It was a very windy Friday afternoon so the beach was nice and quiet, however it took Aifric a little bit of persuading to go out for a walk in such conditions!” shares Scott. “It turned out to be one year and one day before we got married!”

When it came to deciding on a dream venue, Scott always thought they’d get married in Scotland, but after moving to Brighton they decided they’d rather tie the knot closer to home. The pair found Pangdean Barn and instantly fell in love with the venue and its staff. Aifric says, “The gardens were perfect for our outdoor wedding, and the main barn took our breath away with the high ceilings, exposed beams and fairylights.”

The big date was set for Sunday 7th August 2022. Here, Aifric tells us more about their day…

I was a mixed bag of nerves and excitement! I’m so glad that Scott and I decided to have a first look before walking down the aisle as seeing him instantly put me at ease. It was so special to have those few minutes before the wedding together.

Once we got underway with the ceremony, we weren’t too nervous, it was obviously emotional, though we both really enjoyed it. The weather and location were exactly as we had wanted our wedding to be, so this was wonderful. We exchanged personal vows as part of our ceremony –definitely an emotional moment and a highlight.

Madi Lane make such beautiful dresses, they both look and feel amazing, and I wore the Callie dress. I loved the A-line style with the exposed boning on the corset, and I personalised it by adding off-theshoulder sleeves to give it a softer look.

His brother, the best man, also wore the family tartan. The other groomsmen wore green tartan kilts, which complemented the groom’s and his brother’s. All the groomsmen wore charcoal grey jackets and waistcoats, which made Scott’s outfit stand out.

We really wanted our friends and families to get to know one another and for the whole wedding to feel relaxed. We decided on having two long banquet-style tables with bud vases filled with a few flowers dotted here and there.

We opted for seasonal flowers from Sussex. Lib, our florist, was great at finding locally-grown blooms in the colours we wanted – she even managed to incorporate some of our favourites.

We had a lovely two-tiered wedding cake with seasonal pressed flowers.

In true Scottish wedding style, we had a ceilidh band as our main entertainment of the evening. This went down a storm with the guests, especially some of our international family and friends who were doing one for the first time. It also felt like a very befitting location for a ceilidh, doing a ‘strip the willow’ in an authentic barn in the countryside.

We knew we didn’t want a standard wedding breakfast and Pangdean Barn created delicious Mexican sharing dishes for the mains and we opted for Eton mess as the dessert option.

There were a few funny stories on the day, we had a few people take a tumble during the ceilidh and, during the Mexican main course, one of our guests ate a whole chili pepper (apparently for a bet) and had to go to the bar for a glass of milk during the speeches.

Our photographer, Lucy, was superb. We’d only met her virtually before the day, but she was a really friendly and relaxing presence to be around. A few people remarked on this on the day and even asked us if she was a friend of ours.

THE W-DAY TEAM

Venue, Pangdean Barn, www.pangdean.com | Photographer, Lucy Dracott Photography, www.lucydracottphotography.com | Dresses, Mode Bridal, https://modebridal.co.uk | Hair stylist and make-up artist, Petal Blush, www.petalblush.co.uk | Suits, Clan Kilts, https://clan.com Bridesmaids’ dresses, Rewritten, https://wearerewritten.com | Cake, Love from Luisa, https://lovefromluisa.co.uk | Flowers, Bettie Rose, https://bettierose.co.uk | Band, Brighton Ceilidh Collective, https://brightonceilidh.co.uk

The perfect country wedding venue set within 247 acres of stunning Sussex countryside

Ceremony Room, Reception Rooms, Enclosed Courtyard, Outdoor Ceremony Space, Lakes, Bar & Restaurant, 26 Hotel Rooms, 7 Self-Catering Lodges, Health Club, Swimming Pool, Beauty Salon & 27 Holes of Golf