April wedding at Carrick Castle
Up in the hills of the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park you’ll find the wee village of Carrick Castle. Set on the western shore of Loch Goil it’s one of the most remote spots in The Trossachs, and home to an exclusive Scottish wedding venue - also called Carrick Castle. Despite its name, the venue is not actually a castle, it’s an amazing, luxurious barn venue, with incredible views out over Loch Goil and the old, ruined 14th century castle.
In such a scenic location it’s no surprise that most couples get married outside. Some will put up a wee marquee in case of Scottish weather…if you know, you know…things can change quickly and we can easily have four seasons in a day! Or, if you decide against a marquee backup then you can get married inside the barn itself which is pretty spacious and can be divided up into two spaces for ceremony and reception. Whatever ends up happening with the weather the estate is beautiful, with plenty of onsite accommodation for the wedding party and you just can’t go wrong in The Trossachs, surrounded by water, those big dramatic skies and mountains.
A colourful spring wedding
Carrick Castle is very much a dry hire venue, there’s not much of the way of decor inside so it’s worth allocating a decent chunk of your wedding budget to your florals. There’s a lot of space to fill and, like a lot of barn venues, it really benefits from those colourful floral touches.
Ciara and Stuart had chosen a really nice, warm and bright colour palette, in keeping with their spring wedding. We mixed pastel tones with some zingy, almost clashing brights. Think pinks, oranges and peaches alongside baby pink, white and lemony yellows. It’s a fun combo and one that was great to work on. As their wedding was late April the growing season was really coming into its own and we were able to use lots of lovely spring Scottish grown flowers including ranunculus, tulips and anemones. To Ciara’s delight we had some early summer peonies - a real wedding favourite. Everyone loves a peony but there are only a lucky few couples who get married at the right time of year for them.
Ciara loves big, round, bold shapes - that full, rich, blousy look you get from peonies and ranunculus. We teamed the coral peonies and bright pinks with more frothy, textural flowers like orlaya, also known as white laceflower - it looks like cow parsley so great for a meadowy vibe..
The resulting bouquet was lightly structured and wild with lots of fun, bright colours. Ciara’s hair was set off with some loose flowers woven around a low bun, adding a little pop of colour. That slightly bohemian look contrasted so well with her elegant, high neck wedding dress. Her bridesmaids carried smaller versions of her bridal bouquet. They were in sage green, letting the bright colours of the flowers sing against the lighter tones of their dresses.
Stuart and his groomsmen had fun buttonholes with wee rosebuds and cute billy buttons (craspedia), little yellow bobbly flowers that look like alien antennae! They are really funky looking and have a great texture. They are fab in buttonholes as they last really well out of water and add a zing of yellow. We mixed in rosemary to create little informal bunches, finished off with twine. The colours went so well with their tweed jackets while the wild flowers and twine added a more rustic feel. The rosemary gives off a great scent, which is always a treat for those post ceremony hugs!
I’m known for my wild flower style, but it’s worth saying that I don’t use actual wild flowers. It’s illegal to go out and cut flowers from the woodlands and verges for profit so that’s something I will never do for my business. Sustainability is also a core value of mine and it’s just not sustainable to go out and keep cutting wild flowers from where they naturally grow.
Instead I grow my own varieties, as well as buying in from other flower growers and importing if I ever have to. That way we can use wild looking flowers without damaging local beauty spots. Orlaya for example is so wild and natural looking that it could almost have come straight from the woodland instead of my garden.
Outdoor ceremony overlooking The Trossachs
Ciara and Stuart got married on the lawn, with those panoramic views of the loch and surrounding mountains. Now, I will often get couples thinking that all they need is an amazing view, and that flowers will get ignored in favour of the scenery, or even that the flowers will distract from the Highlands. I’m going to argue against that. If you’re getting married in Scotland, in The Trossachs or places like Glencoe, then the view is just so epic that you actually need something to anchor people’s eyes to the front of the aisle. To you two. You don’t want to lose yourselves against the vast setting!
Plus, flowers add a scene of occasion. Putting aside a bit of money for decorating a ceremony space - even an outdoor space - is a really good idea. Especially if you can then reuse the arrangements. I will always agree that you can’t beat the Scottish landscape as a backdrop but you can always add to it. Plus, keep in mind that if the weather isn’t great you might need to move inside, so having some decor that works inside as well as outside is just good planning.
A birch flower arch - one of my more popular ones - perfectly framed Ciara and Stuart as they stood at the top of the aisle. It’s got a good, rustic look to it and is weighed down with logs. It works really well if you’re having a barn, or farm, wedding and going for that countryside feel. You can elevate the look with fabric and the flowers you use. We went for more of those big, blousy flowers which made the arch look a wee bit less rustic. We kept the columns bare and decorated the crossbar, it created a real focal point and just gave a wee lift to the lawn space. Those bright colours with the flowy greenery and foliage made for the natural, botanical styling which is very much my bag!
We placed two big, seasonal pedestal arrangements at the start of the aisle. The spring flowers were in vases, meaning that after the ceremony they could be moved up to the barn and reused for the wedding meal and reception. We lined the aisle itself with mason jars, a bit bigger than jam jars, filled with more seasonal flowers. Mason jars work really well in a setting like this, where you can dictate the width of the aisle. It means people are less likely to knock them over! Some spaces are a wee bit tighter so anything lining the aisle just becomes a bit of a hazard!
Sustainable Scottish wedding flowers
Those mason jars were on double duty as we moved them up to the tables after the ceremony. The long trestles were set out in a banquet style, and we alternated the mason jars with candles to create a bit more visual interest. I love any arrangements or decor that can be reused. It helps your budget as well as keeping everything sustainable.
We added some loose eucalyptus foliage runners to the tables, that soft blue green tint contrasted perfectly against the bright flowers. Very simple but very effective. It’s a great example of how even if you get married in a barn, or outside, your flowers can still look quite modern, and elevated.
The ceremony arch was also repurposed. It sat behind Ciara and Stuart’s top table, making a beautiful backdrop for speeches. When it comes to apportioning your flower spend it’s always worth thinking about your photographs too, and what’s going to be in shot and when. We know that the top table will always be photographed during the speeches so anything we can use there to create a pop of colour and interest is great.
Ciara and Stuart’s wedding was so fun and bright. They went for rustic vibes with a modern twist which worked really well, especially with the combination of flowers and colours that we chose. If you’re looking for rustic wedding inspiration, or perhaps more bright and colourful weddings then you can find posts on my blog. Huge thanks to Leanne Heron for these beautiful photographs.
If you’re looking for more inspiration for colourful spring wedding flowers take a look at our blog from an April wedding at the Byre at Inchyra.