***Photography by Eleanor Mackay Photography

Wedding season is in full swing and we sat down to chat one of our lovely team members Amy Macleod (nee McClements) about her wedding last April. After three years of planning, the couple pulled off a beautiful, elegant wedding on the isle of Lewis that supported many local businesses & makers in the process:

Hello Amy, tell us a bit about you.

Hello! My name is Amy, and I’m originally from Lewis. I studied in Glasgow and now I am a Business and Admin Teacher at the Nicolson Institute.I also do a few hours at Sandwick Bay Candles to help fund my bougie lifestyle.

From getting engaged to walking down the aisle, how was your wedding process?

We got engaged in June 2019 at a picnic by the Eiffel tower in Paris. We had been together since our school days. After some time both in Glasgow, he was away back to Stornoway so it was the right time.

Being a self-confessed type A personality, I had planned everything within 2 or 3 months for a date 3 years in advance. It turned out that looking ahead as far as 2022 was lucky. I was thinking so far in advance to divide up the stress of a busy next few years because I was still studying and had my probation teaching to go too.

How did you plan the wedding and what vision did you have in mind for the big day?

Pinterest was a good source for inspiration. When the planning began, I created an intense spreadsheet that I still have on the Excel app on my phone. It contains every detail of the wedding from conditional formatting of the meal planning numbers to the itinerary of the day.

We always wanted a big wedding filled with all our family and friends and ended up with 189 guests. I wanted the day to look plain, simple, and elegant! Our colour scheme was green and white with a gold accent. From the photography, invitations, outfits and table places, it all came together for a timeless look.

What was important to you when choosing businesses, vendors and creators?

As well as getting married on the island, we wanted to feature as many local businesses as possible. Even though we are on the island, we absolutely felt they were game with the mainland and current trends.

We decided on Lews Castle for the ceremony and the Cabarfeidh for our reception. Lews Castle is so stunning! The Cabarfeidh has great food and a very welcoming atmosphere. Both teams were so accommodating. I was also a waitress at the Cabarfeidh many years ago and catered other weddings there in the past, so it was a nice link.

There were lots of small makers included with the venue decoration. Buttercup & Wren did the Signage and Stramash Ness created a doughnut wall for us which was the perfect sweet treat.

We knew Ceitidh Chalmers (@ceitidh.illustration ) through friends and she designed our invitations, save the dates, table numbers and more.

Sandwick Bay Candles did our candles for the event of course, including sets of pillars, tealights and small tin candles. More on that later….

Bespoke Blooms by Maybury Gardens did the most beautiful flowers in our colour theme. In the bouquet, flower crowns and table pieces there were avalanche roses, gypshillia, big round eucalyptus and asparagus fern that suited the wedding perfectly.

Our glam squad was amazing, and everyone looked their best on the day. We had the help of Maureen McBratney (Salon nan Eilean) and Darrah Mackenzie on hair and Alison Macaskill and Eilidh Macdonald on makeup. I wore my Jo Malone fragrance as it’s the scent I wear when I know I am going to boss this day.

I had bespoke earrings for both myself and Mum made from freshwater pearl by Islewear after sending over some island inspiration. Hebridean Luxuries also put together lovely giftboxes for my mum and Ali’s mum filled with Hebridean treats and special gifts, packaged beautifully.

For music, Jane Hepburn played Violin during the ceremony and played Elvis’ ‘Can’t Help falling in love with you’ as I walked down the aisle. It’s so emotional to rewatch!  Spanish & the Band brought the party as our reception music.

To capture the day, we had Eleanor Mackay as our photographer and did an amazing job picking up all the details of the day. Hebridean Wedding Story filmed our wedding video which was surreal to watch after the businesses of the day.

Were you always going to have an island wedding?

Yes, it was always the plan because of how I much I love the island. In university I was gifted a t-shirt and mug that read ‘I love Stornoway’ since I am always such an ambassador for Lewis. As both of our families are from Lewis, it also meant everyone could be there.

We can’t help but notice that candles were a big part of your wedding…When did you get into candles and Sandwick Bay?

We go a long way with Sandwick Bay Candles as Megan lived across from my mum Ishbal and I a few years ago, so we were one of the first fans when the business first began. We love Megan and have wanted to support the brand and team ever since.

We love all the candles and for years Mum and I have subscribed to the candle subscription boxes. We like to open and go through the contents together. We even Facetimed our subscription unboxing when I was in uni in Glasgow!

Candles were 100% going to be a central part of our decoration and wedding, I asked Megan for a quote for candle favours when I started my planning 3 years ago!

We ended up with 16 sets of pillar candle centrepieces, tealights around the venue for the twinkling atmosphere, small tin candle wedding favours for all the guests, and personalised white jars as gifts.

The scents were amazing! I know every scent well and had lots to choose from, but I ended up going with a new scent for my wedding favours: Tigerlily Blossom. It was a perfect bridal scent – parts fruity & floral with pineapple, gurjam and a creamy tonka base.

Ali chose Mandarin, Amber & Lavender for his side of favours. It was a rich and masculine scent with lavender sprigs, citrus, rich patchouli, and musk.

The small tins incorporated Ceitidh’s invitation illustrations into the design and looked so elegant and beautiful.

The tealights were in a fresh and sophisticated sheer lily and white rose to create to give the whole room a scent to remember and a cosy atmosphere.

As part of your Hen Do you had a candle-making workshop with us, and you have attended lots in the past. What is your favourite thing about them?

I love that you get to make something you couldn’t buy in the shop. Scent carries a memory too, like how “blueberry jam” has now become the scent that will always remind me of my Hen-do. It’s also a good insight and fun to smell what everyone else has gone for and combined at workshop.

What was your favourite part of your wedding day?

It was all a wonderful whirlwind, but my ultimate favourite moment was going down to Tolsta beach for our couple photos. It was just Ali and I with our friend’s mum driving. She asked if she could listen to the football match on at the time on BBC on the way down to the beach.

It was just us at the beach with our photographer Eleanor as we’d left our guests in town. Getting that moment of quiet and time to ourselves allowed us to be present and appreciate the moment.

 If you had one piece of advice to offer people planning their wedding, what would it be?

I would recommend a master spreadsheet to keep organised. I would also advise taking some time during the day for just the two of you. It’s overwhelming experience and so much of it goes by in a flash but being alone allows you to slow down and connect.