An autumnal country house wedding at Errol Park, Perthshire

Harley-Jane and Liam originally planned their wedding for May 2020 so when their venue first suggested bringing the big day forward to Autumn 2019 they had their reservations.

Now, in light of the pandemic, they’re relieved they just went for it!

Read on for all the details of their gorgeous day, shot by Fern Photography.

We all know how good a fresh haircut can make you feel, but one trim actually changed Liam’s life.

A last-minute appointment at his friend Laura’s house led to him meeting her friend, his future wife Harley-Jane.  

The couple were together for years, spending much of that time long-distance while Harley-Jane was at university, before Liam popped the question on Christmas Eve in 2017.

They then set about planning their perfect day with a specific date in mind.

“We were always going to do our wedding in 2020 for Liam’s 30^th birthday weekend,” explains Harley-Jane.

Despite doing a grand tour of potential places nowhere was quite right.

Then they visited Errol Park. “As soon as we viewed it we knew it ticked all the boxes,” says Liam.

But there was a problem, it was booked up for the weekend they had in mind and then the venue asked if they would ever consider getting married in 2019.

Liam says, “I’m relieved we did it when we did. I couldn’t imagine not being married.”

With their new date booked Harley-Jane could work on creating her beautiful autumnal colour palette and work out the finer details.

She knew they would say “I do” on the grand staircase of the mansion house and whatever colours she chose for her bridesmaids’ dresses and kilts would have to tie in with the bright walls of the hall.

“When I told people I was going to have my bridesmaids in ivory they were horrified,” she remembers.

But she stuck with her gut and it paid off.

Choosing her own dress was a lot harder than deciding on her ‘maids dresses though.

“I must have tried on about 150 wedding dresses,” she says.

After sampling all different styles, she settled on a plain Jesus Peiro dress and then designed the cape she wanted to go with it.

She found the dream gown at Eleganza Sposa and then with the help of Mirka Bridal Couture she pulled off her perfect look; altering it, changing up the cape and adding the floral design to the dress.

She accessorised with a headband, also from Eleganza Sposa, and fun trainers from Next children!

Liam’s wedding outfit was much easier to sort, taking his boys on a fun trip to Slanj Kilts in Edinburgh.

Harley-Jane loved wedding planning and discovered a real creative flair, crafting her bridesmaids’ hairpieces and the flowergirls’ floral hoops, as well as the floral wreaths that adorned their guests’ chairs. 

The night before the big day the wedding party stayed at Errol Park and went out for a meal but Harley-Jane was so busy chatting she barely ate.

“I woke up at 4am the morning of the wedding starving and found a caramel wafer in the room,” she says.

Then she got up at 6am and the staff at Errol Park remarked she was the first bride ever to eat her full breakfast!

She spent a lovely, chilled morning getting ready with her ‘maids and then the nerves kicked in about 20 minutes before the ceremony.

The couple tied the knot in a humanist ceremony and can’t praise their celebrant Brian Hawkins highly enough.

“When we met him he gave us homework and sent us ‘Brian’s Big Handbook’ of suggestions like ring-warmings and handfastings,” explains Liam.

“Our homework was the story of how we met, how the relationship’s been and how the engagement went.”

Harley-Jane adds, “We wrote a letter to one another which he read before we said our vows.”

After the ceremony guests were entertained outside on the lawn with a brownie bar and Rusty’s Travelling Piano Bar.

The fun continued at dinner when guests were asked to check their name cards and those with a pink dot had to report to the kitchen where they were each handed a roast to carve at their table.

“We wanted it to feel like a Sunday roast and to be something fun that people could get involved in,” says Liam.

Liam urges all grooms-to-be to get properly involved in wedding planning and their first dance choice was very important to him.

“Our band The Big Papas were happy to learn Small Bones by The Corteeners for us,” he says.

“It’s all about her moving away and having a long-distance relationship like when Harley-Jane moved to Aberdeen for college.”

Looking back the couple had an absolute blast at their evening reception, with guests flitting between pizzas in the courtyard, the dancefloor and a vintage ice-cream van.

“It was just really good fun!” smiles Harley-Jane.