There’s something so romantic about a Scottish castle. The breathtaking views, the fairytale charm and the knowledge you’re standing where history has been made. It’s no wonder they make such popular wedding venues!
Angela and Ian travelled all the way from America - along with their guests - for their summer wedding at Glenapp Castle. They really embraced everything about Scotland and I love that they went for Scottish grown flowers, in our national colours!
Scottish wedding at Glenapp Castle
Photo by Emma Lawson Photography
Just a few miles from the South Ayrshire coast, Glenapp Castle boasts amazing views out over the Firth of Clyde towards the iconic Ailsa Craig.
The castle dates back to the 1800s, when it was built as the home of James Hunter, Deputy Lord Lieutenant of Ayrshire. Today, it’s a luxurious, five star hotel and wedding venue with beautiful grounds. Tatler have named it one of the most spectacular wedding venues in the world!
I’ve done a few weddings here and the drive up to the castle through woodland is always a treat. The castle is surrounded by formal Italian gardens as well as a Walled Garden filled with exotic plants, a Victorian greenhouse and rare trees. As a florist you can imagine I’m in my element here!
Summer florals at a Scottish castle
There are lots of spaces within the castle and its grounds to get married, from the more formal dining rooms to the walled garden and lawns. As the weather was on Angela and Ian’s side they opted for a ceremony out on the terrace, with those views out over the Italian gardens and across the coast. What a backdrop!
There wasn’t a traditional aisle, purely due to the way the chairs were set up on the terrace. Angela and Ian walked around the side of the castle which looked great but it also posed a few questions for us all when it came to planning flowers. Some of their inspiration images had meadow boxes lining the aisle, which always looks fab. So we decided to take that idea, and run with it!
Angela and Ian loved the more wild, romantic feel of the meadow boxes, a contrast to the formal gardens. So we made a real feature of them. We created a beautiful focal arch for them to stand in front of during the ceremony. Instead of putting meadow boxes down the aisle we used them to extend that arch space. It made for a stunning focal point in the ceremony and guests made use of it as a photo backdrop throughout the reception as well.
Like all of my designs, the meadow boxes and the arch were foam free. We don’t use floral foam (you might know it by the brand name, Oasis) at all. It’s a single use plastic and we are all foam free and environmentally friendly.
The arch was made up of whites and greens, making a bold statement by limiting the palette. There were lots of beautiful roses along with more textural wild flowers in the meadow boxes to mimic the natural, organic feel of a meadow. It had the wow factor and made the whole area feel like something out of a fairytale. It was a real joy to work on.
Meadow boxes are a great addition to wedding florals. Not only do they look great you can also repurpose them later on. They’re easily movable and can look great along the front of the top table or down stairways.
They are more of an investment piece, but in the grand scheme of things you can reuse them much more effectively than other floral installations. It’s definitely worth considering a meadow box if you love the more relaxed, wild, flower filled vibes. There’s something very romantic about a meadow!
Scottish colours at a summer wedding
As Angela, Ian and their guests had all travelled over from America they wanted a quintessentially Scottish feel to their day, which extended to their flowers. We really leaned into the theme with mainly whites and a few pops of blue and soft lilac. We also used as many Scottish grown flowers as we could, just with a few imported roses in there.
Ian’s buttonhole - along with the male party buttonholes - was made up of thistle and white rosebuds. We didn’t want it to be too big or overpowering. There was a little bit of lavender in there, along with mint and scabious which is a lovely light lilac or dusky soft purple. It gave a lovely scent as well as bringing the wedding colours together.
Angela went for a more structured, round bouquet with just a bit of shape to it rather than fully wild and loose. It’s a great example of a more traditional shape that is also more organic. Using the Scottish grown flowers, instead of all roses or all hydrangeas, meant we could be natural without going too crazy. Summer is a fab time of year to get married if you are after Scottish grown flowers. Angela's bouquet had globe thistle, mint, jasmine and clematis along with roses and hydrangeas.
We finished off the bouquets and button holes with a ribbon in family tartan. This is a great way to incorporate tartan (family or otherwise) into your day.
Luxurious castle wedding flowers
Angela and Ian’s wedding breakfast and reception was held inside the castle. They were in a beautifully grand room filled with muted gold, cream and peachy tones. It’s so elegant.
We created a focal area around the fireplace, putting flowers at the side and base as well as making the most of the features. We filled the mantlepiece with foliage and white flowers, using a vintage clock as a central point.
We wanted the table decor to be elegant yet still make an impact. We added footed bowls filled with flowers to the round tables, slightly raised but not enough to block any views across to other guests. We dotted candles and tealights around and it worked so well within the setting.
Photo by Emma Lawson Photography
Due to the unexpectedly glorious weather the guests could move around between outside and inside spaces, so we had flowers dotted around in other rooms in bud vases and some larger displays of flowers on tables near the various castle staircases.
In these bigger stately homes / mansions / castle wedding venues I always suggest considering your guest’s journey throughout the day. Where will they enter the venue? What will they see first? Are there already flowers provided by the venue?
This last one is key. Unlike barns and marquees which are stripped back and ready for you to fill with your decor, within hotels and castles there are going to be other flowers and decor that could clash with your wedding colours. This is also often the case if you’re getting married around December as venues will often put out artificial trees and garlands as part of their Christmas decor so it’s worth checking what will be in place and if it can be temporarily moved so it doesn’t clash with your colours and wedding style.
If you have any extra budget it’s nice to add in a few additional bits like bud vases in hallways or bathrooms. These little touches continue your wedding colour scheme throughout the space and add that element of luxury. It’s easy to overlook but can really elevate your wedding.
Recycling your wedding flowers
If you’ve rented my vases, bud vases or meadow boxes I’ll come over the day after the wedding to pick them up. I bunch up the flowers into wee posies and leave them with you. I encourage couples to give these out to guests or donate them. Flowers are perishable goods but you’ll likely get a few days out of them post wedding. If you don’t think you’re going to take them yourself or your guests then get in touch with a local care home or hospice and arrange to donate them. A lot of places love this idea, just make sure you get in touch in advance rather than turn up with hundreds of flowers. That could be a little overwhelming!
Thanks so much to Emma Lawson for the amazing photographs. If you’re looking for more Scottish wedding inspiration in take a look at my blog posts - here’s one from Fasque castle, and one of our favourites Rowallan castle.