(Bee)Wild at heart

Alice and Andrew combined their surnames for a witty wedding logo that enhanced the rustic beauty of their barn venue

When it comes to proposals, Andrew’s was pretty epic, involving a scavenger hunt round Edinburgh. After first meeting on Hinge – where they had some “terrible chat about Nicholas Cage” – the groom asked for Alice’s dad permission to marry her less than a year later. Then on the eve of her birthday in 2020 he arranged his elaborate proposal. “Alice is a leap year baby so her birthday is 29th February and she would have actually had the traditional chance to propose, which she maintains she would have done but I’ve never seen a ring,” smiles Andrew.

On proposal day Andrew sent Alice to meet her friend Justine for lunch, who presented her with the first of four sealed envelopes which gave details of the next location. After a trip to get her nails done, a drink with her dad and a pub quiz with friends she walked to the final destination; a door with her nickname “Beebs” on the buzzer. A lift took her to a rooftop terrace overlooking Edinburgh Castle, where

Andrew got down on one knee. Talk about romantic! And to top it off, her whole family was in the bar downstairs to celebrate, including her brothers and their partners who had flown in from America for the surprise!

Family had been at the heart of their engagement and that theme continued with Alice’s beautiful engagement ring which included a diamond recovered from an earring set gifted by her gandmother. She had lost one so the remaining diamond gave her ring sentimental significance.

The couple got engaged just three weeks before lockdown and they suspected something was on the horizon so whittled down a list of the barn-style venues Andrew favoured and visited a handful as quickly as they could. “When we first arrived at The Rhynd we were doing it more as a tick box exercise as it was a little more remote than we had planned but we were greeted by Ed, the owner, who had had his own wedding there and we were blown away by the simple, yet rustic feel and the various options for setups,” remembers Alice.

Let There Be Light

The couple fell in love with the look of The Rhynd so didn’t do much to dress the venue but they did opt for a gorgeous autumnal feel with greens, maroons and elements of cream.

Alice’s dad is a lighting designer and was tasked with striking the right atmosphere. “It was probably one of the biggest wins of the day,” she says. “It looked amazing!” And Andrew’s friend Chris created their stationery and a logo incorporating the Bee and Goose parts of their surname for the wedding’s “BeeWild” theme.

Alice had envisioned a long satin dress with a cowl neck and low back but knew she ought to try different styles. After only two appointments she fell in love with a simple full length Essense of Australia gown with a train and glitter belt, which she altered with lace capped sleeves. She accessorised with rhinestone encrusted Dune London shoes, the veil her mum wore to marry her dad, and she also had the tiara her mum married her step-dad in remodelled as a headpiece. One bridesmaid also gifted her a bracelet engraved with “BeeWild 18.09.21” as a nod to the wedding theme.

The Big Day

Walking down their outdoor ceremony ailse to How Long Will I Love You? by Jon Boden, Alice admits felt like a blur and she was exceedingly emotional, but when she saw Andrew she was smiling from ear to ear. They had chosen to wed in a humanist ceremony, conducted by Halde Pottinger. “He was hilarious and kept Andrew and I very much at ease,” says Alice. “We didn’t write our own vows but I felt very adult saying them, like this really is the real thing now!”

Andrew runs pub quiz company Goose’s Quizzes and buzzers had been set up so during the drinks reception guests got to compete for drinks tokens. There was more opportunity to mingle during the buffet wedding breakfast. Andrew loved being able to say the ever-popular “On behalf of my wife and I” line during his speech and appreciated his father-in-law addressing him as “Wee Goose” in his speech. “Nothing like being 6ft 3 and marrying into a family where both Alice’s father and brother are 6ft 6!” he laughs. “I was really glad Alice decided to do a speech. It was important to me to let her have time to say the things she wanted.”

Wheel Of Fortune

The evening reception was “electric” with a full dancefloor the whole night. The couple had a ceilidh band for the first hour followed by Magic Nostalgic who run a club night. “Guests could spin the wheel to decide the genre of music for the next 20 minutes,” explains Alice. “It was a lot of fun. We loved seeing so many smiling faces and people being completely in the moment.”

Alice and Andrew loved seeing all their friends and family chatting and dancing away, knowing they had planned it all. “The moment we always remember was sitting at the top table and pointing out all the guests who were chatting, laughing and having a great time,” says Alice. And now they’re married she says it feel wonderful. “It’s a lovely continuation of what we had before but no needing to plan a big event!”

BRIDE’S DRESS

Essense of Australia at Kudos

Bridal Edinburgh

BRIDE’S DRESS ALTERATIONS

Fashion Bride

BRIDE’S EARRINGS

Laings

BRIDE’S RINGS

Chay McClory

BRIDE’S SHOES

Dune London

BRIDESMAID DRESSES

JJ’s House

CELEBRANT Halde Pottinger

FLOWERS AND DÉCOR

The Country Garden Company and A&D Bar Catering

GROOM’S OUTFIT

Kinloch Anderson

GROOM’S RING

Hamilton and Inches

HAIR

Eireann Roberts

MAKE-UP

Becki Wernon

STATIONERY

Chris Watt

VIDEOGRAPHY

Olive & Thistle

WEDDING PLANNER

The Wedding Guru - Oskar

“Alice & Andrew had put so much thought and personalisation into their wedding, it was an amazing reflection of who they are as a couple. The speeches had everyone crying, including me. I love this couple so much!”

Sarah Joy Story