‘I do’ diary – Sophie and Chris share their wedding planning with YSW

Sophie and Chris have known each other since they were little with Chris being friends with her brother.

Back then they weren’t interested in each other but meeting again as adults there was definitely a spark.

The pair got engaged this April and are planning a wee wedding at Venacher Lochside.

They’ll be sharing their planning journey with us. So first up, the proposal and finding the dream venue…

Friends first

Sophie first met Chris through her brother when she was 11 and he was 12.

Back then they weren’t interested but ended up in the same circle of friends a few years later.

“We always had eyes for each other and the odd kiss here and there,” she smiles.

“Our lives went on different trajectories, and we ended up meeting up with each other about four years ago.

“We then realised we actually couldn’t be apart as we definitely weren’t the same people we were when we were 16 thankfully!

“Since then, it been a wonderful journey of exploring the world together and, dare I say it, life has been pretty dreamy.”

The proposal

Before they got together neither Sophie or Chris were interested in marriage but realised pretty quickly they wanted to marry each other.

Chris proposed this April at Durdle Door in Dorset.

“We had gone away for his birthday and spent the day exploring Lulworth Cove and the surrounding cliffs and beaches,” explains Sophie.

“Then as the sun was setting we went down to the beach where Chris took me to a secluded part.

“He said a few words about how lucky he is to have me and my son and how we’ve made his life so much better and lots of other lovely things.

“He then got down on one knew and took out the ring.

“At this point I was ugly crying and covered my face so didn’t actually see him propose!”

Sophie composed herself and asked him to ask again so she could take it in properly.

“I then saw the ring, which was the most perfect, beautiful ring I’ve ever seen, started crying again and ran into the sea as it was all very overwhelming, in the best possible way,” she smiles.

“We then spent the night in a safari tent I had hired for Chris’ birthday, in a perfectly happy, blissful bubble.”

The venue

Getting engaged during the pandemic Sophie was worried they may not be able to visit venues.

In fact, restrictions at the time of the proposal meant they could only celebrate with up to six people at a time outside so they had a few cold meals out.

With the couple’s families coming from England and Scotland they had to find a venue that could accommodate them.

But they knew they wanted somewhere by a loch as so many of their happy memories are tied up with being waterside.

“Chris is from Scotland and I’m from London but as soon as I visited Scotland I told him there was no doubt our wedding would have to take place in Scotland,” says Sophie. “I just fell in love with it.”

Living in London meant the couple had to do a lot of video calls with venues but as soon as they saw Venachar Lochside they say it “felt very ‘us’.”

Sophie says, “It wasn’t your typical wedding venue with great big chandeliers and ornate décor.

“We then took a visit to Scotland and went to Venachar and knew 100% we didn’t want to get married anywhere else.

“The scenery is breathtaking and will look amazing in photos.

“It is a small, intimate venue which is exactly what we’re after as we’re having about 40 guests.

“It has a very natural, earthy feel and when we visited they had two dogs.

“So that sealed the deal there and then!”

Add to that, the venue was playing a lot of music the couple will have on their wedding playlist and it just felt right.

“And super importantly, they gave us free yummy cake,” adds the bride.

And speaking of cake, they booked their cake on the same day as their venue with Philippa Rose Cake Design.

This couple have their priorities right!

Look out for the next instalment of Sophie and Chris’ ‘I do’ diary

Read fellow to-be-weds Debbie and Andrew’s first column here