Mr & Mrs

Photography by Fiona Maclay

My brother got married on Saturday.

They said 'I do' in an Elizabethan hall set amongst the rolling hills of Shropshire's Church Stretton. The room was full to the brim with friends and family, perched on thick wooden chairs or on long wooden benches, there to share and celebrate in their marriage vows. The ceremony was beautiful but relaxed -the registrar checked, with a giggle, that she was pronouncing Ailsa's name correctly part-way through the service, and the readings (sonnets by John Donne and Shakespeare performed by close friends) received a warm round of applause from the guests - the latter I have never experienced at a wedding. As with all weddings, 'You may now kiss the bride' was welcomed with applause and general exclamations of happiness, but I have never heard a room erupt with such sound as it did on Saturday; the applause was full and thick and loud - every single person in that room was overjoyed that these two wonderful people were now married.

I could go on for hours about the whole day - the ceremony, the cream tea, the Middle Eastern Wedding Breakfast (a very personal touch as both bride and groom lived and worked in the Middle East); the Scottish musicians on stilts, the Keilidh, the speeches; how beautiful the bride looked, how handsome my brother looked, how the ushers lost a frisbee in the trees before the day had even started...

But what I would like to share on here is how home-made and personal the wedding was. It was an old fashioned sort of wedding that didn't cost thousands and thousands of pounds - it wasn't over the top, or excessive. It was perfect, and a real representation of the couple - a factor that I think a lot of people forget when planning a wedding.

The foundation for such a wedding was laid as soon as Adam decided to propose. One of Ailsa's closest friends is a very talented jeweller so she and Adam secretly planned and forged the engagement ring; she has now also made both of their wedding bands. My brother (a man of many talents!) then designed and produced their invitations - as literature graduates with floor-to-ceiling books they decided to design it as though the front cover of a book. This theme then ran through the wedding, with each table at the breakfast being named after Penguin book editions.

For the day itself, my mother had created bunting made out of children's picture books; my sister and father (who are both designers) designed and illustrated the order of service, the seating plan, and the room allocations; Ailsa's brother had written all of the place names for the Wedding Breakfast; the mother of the bride had not only made the main wedding cake, but also made an additional 8 cakes (all of which were exceptionally tasty!); and Ailsa's step-dad, who is a gardener by trade, lovingly grew and then arranged every single flower in the wedding -vases were placed all around the hall, and the groomsmen and fathers wore single orange flowers in their button holes. I was also very honoured to add a little family touch to their wedding, and sung them down the aisle as part of a quartet. The ushers and family arrived early to pitch up the marquee, hang fairy lights, and set up sound equipement.

The day reminded me of my parent's wedding - not that I was around for that, but I have heard many stories and used to love looking at the photos as a child. My mum made her own wedding dress, and all of the bridesmaid's dresses; my Uncle Bob was the photographer (yes I actually have an Uncle Bob...); my Grandpa's friends were bell-ringers so their wedding present to my parents was the ringing of the bells; my mum's sister made the wedding cake; another friend of my Grandpa's was a chauffeur so offered his services and his car; and my Nana made the buffet food. My parents were young Art students in the 70s (see below!) so didn't have much of a budget - they weren't from very wealthy families either. Everyone chipped in in-kind for their wedding, they had a simple day surrounded by friends and family, they went to the Isle of Wight for their honeymoon, and they have been married for 36 years...

My brother's wedding, as I'm sure was the same with my parent's wedding, was full of warmth and love. In years to come I won't remember the exact flowers that were in the vases or whether they had fairy lights on the marquee or not. What I will remember is how happy my brother looked - how absolutely besotted he was with his recently proclaimed wife. I'll remember that, so full of love, my sister-in-law struggled to get through her vows, and was supported by a gentle squeeze from her groom.