The ‘Match of the Century’ – a wedding spectacle set in a industrial coal mine. Be prepared to fall in love with Ant and Matthew’s big day. We did for sure. Everything about it from their sublime styling, to their food truck festival, is going to blow your little socks right off…
Tell us more about your venue and how you found it…
We really wanted a special place. In my job (Ant), I see a lot of the phenomenal venues Edinburgh has to offer…and I didn’t want to use any of them! I know, I’m spoilt. I love the venues we have and I feel so privileged to see these places dressed up in every way possible. But we wanted something that really fit our personality & style.
We found the Lady Vic online and went for a viewing. I instantly loved it. Matt took a bit more convincing. But I could really see the potential in the space. It’s just outside Edinburgh with loads of transport options. It’s beautifully industrial, which was exactly what we were looking for. Edinburgh is not an industrial town, and dramatic turn of the century spaces are really hard to find here – especially with a working commercial kitchen, toilets and disabled access! We think this venue is a total hidden gem.
How did you meet and become engaged?
It all started back in May 2010, we met in the traditional, modern way – THE INTERNET! Actually if we had not met online we would never have run into each other, because we have such different interests. although we found out later that Ant knew Matthew’s grandmother from the Salvation Army, so that was a weird moment of serendipity.
We began chatting & quickly agreed to meet for coffee, outside Jenners in Princes Street. Coffee is not a huge commitment, and you can scarper quickly if it doesn’t work out, you just wouldn’t go straight to dinner. But we actually did coffee, lunch and dinner then drinks and got the last train home!
We had three dates and then Ant headed off for his usual summer work at the performing arts center in the states. We spoke a lot while away, Skype, Facetime, text, carrier pigeon…technology is a wonderful thing. When Ant returned at the end of the summer, we reunited on the 10th September in front of the National Gallery, didn’t quite run into each others arms in slow mo, but it was that kind of a moment….apparently we have an eye for the dramatic.
When we got engaged on our 5 year anniversary it was a joint decision. We bought our rings together. Ant’s is from a New Zealand jeweller
Ash Hilton and Matt’s is from
Jewellery by Johan in the States. Matt’s reflects the mountains and the sun and Ant’s the forest and the night sky, symbolic of our relationship! On our anniversary we headed to Glencorse Reservoir near Penicuik at sunset, when day becomes night, with the trees and the mountains in the background. We had a picnic of sushi and when the sun set we proposed to each other, exchanging sentiments and rings. It was perfect, it was wonderful, and we wouldn’t have wanted it any other way!
Our wedding day was inspired by…
We took our inspiration from the Victorian industrial building we had the day in, and went from there. Lots of raw materials and copper highlights with a few nods to our personalities. Matt is a scientist, so we did a ‘periodic table plan’, with test tube favours and elemental symbol name cards.
Lighting also played a huge part in the day. Ant’s background is in theatre & events so we drew from old vaudeville/carnival with the canopy of festoon lights and the copper marquee letters. We dubbed the wedding ‘The Match of the Century’ to give it a big event/spectacle feel.
Ant did a lot of the logistics and “production management” for the day. He also made the stationery & candle sticks. Matt, as a bit of a foodie, oversaw all the food elements including our food truck festival evening buffet, & creating a really personal wedding breakfast menu (including an elegant bhan mi starter as a nod to his Vietnamese heritage) that the team at Saltire hospitality executed perfectly. We were incredibly hands on in planning the day. We could not have done it, however, without the help of our wedding party. In particular our two shining stars were our friends Claire Guest and Thomas Ramage. Claire was our eyes & ears on the day who made all of the elements & final touches happen so we could just go be grooms for the day.
Thomas, our event technician went above and beyond, making the venue look sensational!
Tell us something surprising about your wedding day…
So, two things: It was really important the our evening guests felt properly part of the day, that they hadn’t missed out. Also evening buffets suck! They do! It’s always the same, predictable things. So our solution was to have A FREAKING FOOD TRUCK FESTIVAL!
We took five of Scotland’s best food trucks in vintage Citrion H vans and had them create tapas sized dishes so our guests could taste a little bit from everyone. It was phenomenal and a totally one off experience!
How did you go about organising the floristry for your own wedding?
Planet flowers are quite simply the best! (OK I may be biased here). I work for Planet Flowers as a proud #planetbee! Gemma was so much more than the florist for me. She was a sounding board, source of inspiration, critical eye & friend during the process.
We went for simple succulents in copper cans with purple accents. We love that they gave a great balance of hard and soft. They worked so well with the surroundings and the copper candelabras I (Ant) made for the tables.
For our personal flowers we again went with succulent details. We had a black calla lilies accent to our buttonholes bound with twine & copper wire. The groomsmen had a simpler version with viburnum accents. For our groomsmaids, Gemma & I came up with the idea of creating copper wrist cuffs with succulent details on them. They were absolutely gorgeous!
Planet also supplied, amongst other things, all of our glass cylinders, the poseur tables for the reception, and the alter table.
Any advice?
Be in the moment: fully take in your day & make sure you indulge in every second. Keep a sense of humor: things will go wrong, so just roll with it! Plan it together: don’t let one or the other have to carry the burden, it is so much more fun as a united force!
Do YOU! Our wedding worked so well because it has us running through its veins. Do what you love and let your personalities shine through. Don’t try to copy/paste something you’ve seen because you think it will impress your guests. If YOU’RE having a great time, we promise you your guests will be right there with you!
Why Scotland?
Well…we live here! And that is a privilege. It has the most incredible magic this place does! We actually had guests from all over the world and they were blown away with the beauty & wonder of our country. We have so many incredible venues. Why would you want to tie the knot anywhere else? Also the fact we can celebrate our love with true marriage equality in our own country makes us so proud!
What’s the one thing you’ll never forget about your big day?
The ceremony was incredibly emotional and touching. We chose a humanist celebration, which we would absolutely, wholeheartedly recommend. Dorothy Nowak was our celebrant, a delightful woman who lives in the middle of nowhere and travels around the country in her camper van, with her dog, marrying people (no really, you can’t make these things up). She managed to capture our story so well and set the tone for a truly once in a lifetime day!
A ‘freaking food truck festival’? Now that’s how to rock your evening entertainment! Anyone else inspired? Alie x