All Photographs by @itsvictoriaphotography
How did you find out about Sophia Grace Couture?
I first came across Sophia Grace Couture when I attended one of the Razzmatazz wedding exhibitions, where they were handing out copies of Your Scottish Wedding magazine. Sophia Grace Couture had a dress advertised right at the front of the magazine and I absolutely loved it. It was exactly what I’d always had in my head.
Funnily enough I had actually seen the same dress advertised on Facebook by the designer as an advert before we were even engaged and had screenshotted it and saved it to my wedding album on my phone! So when I open the magazine and saw it again, it felt like a sign to go and try it on.
I’d already booked an appointment at another dress shop that was more local to me and it was where one of my best friends had found her wedding dress. Going there really helped me narrow down what I did and didn’t like, but it just didn’t have my dress. After that I booked an appointment at Sophia Grace Couture specifically to try on the dress from the magazine.
How would you describe your experience at Sophia Grace Couture?
I was so excited to come to my appointment. I brought my Mum, Gran, Sister-in-law and one of my bridesmaids. They were all as excited as me, they had even brought along strictly-style scoring paddles so they could score every dress.
I did feel a little pressure going into it because I’d built up this one dress in my head. I was worried that I’d try it on and not like it and spiral into a bridal panic.
As soon as we arrived though the team were amazing! Charlotte was so welcoming, kind and reassuring. She immediately made us feel at ease and allowed us to just enjoy the whole bridal experience. She asked about what I liked and what I was looking for, then let us browse the dresses at our own pace and pick out ones to try. She threw in a few wildcards too, which surprisingly were almost a yes!
But when I finally tried on the dress from the magazine I just knew. It was exactly the one for me, and it even scored a perfect 10 from all my strictly judges.
Once I’d bought the dress everything felt very real. I made a few adjustments which the designer was able to accommodate, and before I know it, it was ready. Even collecting it felt like a special occasion and Charlotte and the team made the whole thing incredibly memorable from start to finish.
Tell us about your dress and why you choose your particular gown
My dress was ‘Hera’ with the detachable overskirt. It was an ivory sheath-style gown with beautiful 3D lace and beaded detailing, a scoop neckline and spaghetti straps. The detachable overskirt had the same gorgeous beaded lace and gave me a completely different look when I added it.
Although I had a pretty good idea of what I wanted, I almost didn’t want to admit it to anyone in case I tried that style on and hated it. So I made sure I tried a mixture of dresses, including some simpler figure hugging styles and a couple of ballgowns. But as soon as I put Hera on, I knew. It made me feel amazing and like a bride. I remember thinking if I could feel so nice trying it on in the shop, just wait until I had my tan, hair and make up done then I could only imagine how special I would feel on the day.
How did you meet? Are you happy to tell us about the proposal?
We actually met while working at Tesco. Ross trained me on the checkouts on my very first day, but after that we didn’t really speak much in work.
A few months later, around Christmas 2016 we happened to both be on a night out and got chatting. Ross asked me out on a date and naturally we opted for Nando’s. We’ve been together since, with a few bumps along the way but bought our home together in 2021.
A whole 8 years after our first date, Ross proposed in Dublin a few days before Christmas in 2024. He’d tried to do it a few times during the trip but I unknowingly kept ruining his plans! So third time lucky he finally managed to get down on one knee beside the canal and ask me to marry him.
What was your inspiration for your wedding? Did you follow a specific theme or colour palette?
I never really had a specific theme in mind. More than anything we just wanted it to be the best day we would remember forever and for it to feel like us not something that was trending or viral on tik tok. We went for mostly monochromatic tones, with chocolate brown incorporated through the bridesmaids dresses and the men’s kilts. I loved seeing colourful weddings and all the gorgeous bright details other couples had chosen but whenever I tried to decide on colours for ours, I kept coming back to whites and neutral tones.
We wanted everything to feel timeless and elegant, so that when we look back at the photographs in 30 years time, it hopefully won’t feel tied to a particular trend.
What made you decide upon your chosen venue?
We chose Balbirnie House in Markinch. Before we started looking, we had narrowed down what was important to us. We wanted somewhere with accommodation on site, a good package so that we didn’t have to source everything like tables, linens and cutlery separately, and somewhere that would give us beautiful photos whether the Scottish weather behaved itself or not!
It was important that our venue was relatively easy for our family and friends to get to as well as we had a lot of family travel from all over the UK and Ireland.
When we visited Balbirnie, we just loved the personal touch from the team. Gaynor was wonderful when she showed us around, and the venue just ticked all the boxes we’d set out beforehand. We knew we could have a beautiful day.
Tell us about your wedding
We got married on 22nd August 2026 at Balbirnie House with around 120 of our family and friends joining us. We had our ceremony in the Orangery and our reception in the Ballroom.
Our ceremony was fairly short but really personal to us. We revisited our story and even had our dog, Lola involved as our flower girl and ring bearer. We also included a handfasting ceremony, using a piece of fabric from my dress and a piece of Ross’s kilt tartan to literally tie the knot.
Afterwards we had drinks reception with our singer Jess while everyone mingled and we had photographs taken. We had speeches from my Dad, Ross, my MoH Jemma and Ross’s Best Man, Jordan. In the evening, during the room turnover we had Elliot with his saxophone set playing whilst we enjoyed golden hour photographs before the ban kicked off the evening party.
We put a lot of effort into making the little details feel personal to us. Our tables were named after our friends’ and families’ dogs, and we even had personalised tennis balls and dog biscuits for our guests with dogs.
We also created our own wedding magazine, filled with our story, the love stories that came before ours, information about our amazing suppliers, fun facts, lots of behind the scenes planning snippets and guest awards. We wanted our guests to feel like they were part of our story rather than simply attending our wedding.
What was the most memorable moment?
This is the hardest question as there is so much I remember so well.
If I had to choose one though it would be just after the ceremony when we were officially married. We went into the West Room and had a little moment together with a glass of champagne.
It was the first opportunity we had to properly stop and take everything in. I got to see some of the decor including our amazing cake for the first time and we had a chance to laugh about some of the funny things that had already happened that day.
Do you have any advice for future brides visiting Sophia Grace Couture?
Take people with you who will be honest with you but most importantly who will support you and make the experience fun and enjoyable.
Try not to put too much pressure on yourself to have that perfect ‘this is the one’ moment. Keep an open mind, enjoy trying on different styles and remember that ultimately its your day. CHoose the dress that makes you feel the most special.
Most of all enjoy every second of it. When you’re planning a wedding it can feel like the day is so far away, but suddenly it arrives and then it goes by so quickly. So enjoy all those little moments along the way too, including finding your dress!
Vendors:
Photographer @itsvictoriaphotography
Videographer @leerichardsonfilms
Venue @balbirniehouse
Celebrant @yvonnehannahcelebrant
Decor @tigerlilyweddingevents
Kilts @scotlandkiltco
Hair & MUA @outback__salon
Cake @crazybakingladyy
Florist @blaithinblooms
Band @abbeyroadscotland
Photo/Audio Booth @gd_photo_booths
Sax Player @elliotgsax
Singer @jesshawkins.celebrates
Piper Graeme Boyd
Dresser @_fairytale_fittings