This is the story of our incredible Isle of Skye Elopement.
We will mostly be allowing the photos from the day to tell the tale, but we'll also include some detail for those of you who also aspire to elope to the the Isle of Skye.
Our requirements for our wedding day were very straightforward;
- we wanted our day to be private - just the two of us
- we wanted to get married outdoors and in nature
- we wanted there to be no fuss and for the day to be relaxed and informal
Having done lots of research, we discovered that Scotland allows couples to marry literally anywhere (with agreement from the registrar). With a plethora of incredible landscapes to choose from, Scotland very quickly became the focus of our location search.
After some false starts and with the help of other bloggers, we found an ideal spot for our ceremony, on the shores of Loch Coruisk on the Isle of Skye.
Let's begin our photo story of our Isle of Skye elopement, starting with the morning preparation.
At A Glance
This post is split into sections. Click below to jump to a section that interests you most.
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Preparing for our Isle of Skye Elopement
Our Outfits
Matt bought each element of his suit individually from a local men's outfitter shop and from Asos. He wanted something modern, classy and informal and something he could wear beyond the wedding day.
We went dress shopping together. We started by visiting traditional bridal shops, but ended up buying a dress from a charity shop in Kent. Jade arranged for some alterations with a local seemstress and hand-crafted the blue flower embellishments on the belt.
Jade's shoes were also discovered in a charity shop. By sheer chance, they were the exact shoes she wanted for the day. We bought them at a bargain price!
As you will discover as you scroll through the story, these shoes actually weren't worn during the ceremony itself.
The Bouquet
Jade made the bouquet herself by hand. She collected various grasses and flowers from the area local to our home and hung them upside down to dry for a few weeks.
The paper flowers are crafted out of maps of countries that we have previously visited, to symbolise our love of travel.
The bouquet is fastened together with hession ribbon and finished with a golden winged key charm to symbolise Jade's love of the Harry Potter series.
Find out more: Make Your Own Wedding Rings: Our Experience at a Jewellery Workshop
Getting to Loch Coruisk
Elgol was a 30 minute drive away and from there, we would need to charter a boat to the mouth of the Skavaig River. Upon landing, we would then take a 30 minute walk to a spot on the shores of Loch Coruisk for our ceremony.
In keeping with our collective desire to keep things simple, we hitched a ride to Elgol in the back of our photographer's van.
Our chartered boat had been pre-booked with Misty Isle Boat Tours.
Our Humanist Ceremony
After the Ceremony
After our ceremony, we posed for some photos and danced to music amidst the wonderous landscape. It was truly magical.
Upon our return to the boat, the skipper revealed a bottle of bubbly that he had been chilling in the water. He also treated each of us to a dram of finely aged whisky.
Our boat sailed us back to Elgol and, upon our arrival, the propriator greeted us with a gift - a decorative tile depicting Loch Coruisk.
We thanked and parted ways with our celebrant, Neil and then headed to Elgol beach with some more photos.
Our Isle of Skye Elopement Team
We'd like to thank the following people, organisations and businesses for making our dream Isle of Skye elopement a reality.
- Our Humanist celebrant, Neil Lynch, who couldn’t have been kinder, more reassuring, nor more professional.
- Our unbeatable photographers, Sean and Justyna of Sean Bell Photography and We Are Elopers, for their friendliness and for capturing our day with such care and finesse.
- Lynn Reilly of Skye Beauty, for making us both look pretty.
- Tanni the Dog, for just being there.
- Misty Isle Boat Trips, for taking such great care of us and for an unforgettable sailing experience.
- Coruisk House, for providing our wedding day evening meal. Check out their amazing accommodation options on Tripadvisor*.
- Dark Skye Cottage*, for providing exceptionally luxurious accommodation during our time on the Isle of Skye.
- Demelza, a charity providing hospice care for children, specifically their charity shop and bridal room is Canterbury, Kent.
- HRH Holmes in Hitchin, Hertfordshire for their range of quality men’s clothing.
- Rachel Jeffery Jewellery School in Wheathampstead for helping us to make each others wedding bands. Find out all about how we made our own wedding bands in; Make Your Own Wedding Rings: Our Experience at a Jewellery Workshop
- Uig Pottery, for creating our personalised quiach.
- Isle of Skye Baking Company, for allowing us to buy an entire wedding cake from you at the spur of the moment.
Other Suppliers and Makers
- Jade's 'Team Bride' canvas bag and notebook were made by Paperchase
- Jade's jewellery was made by Simply Silver and Jon Richard
- Jade's dress was made by JJsHouse, with some alterations.
- Jade's high heels were made by Irregular Choice.
- Jade's wellies were made by Joules
- Matt Jacket was made by SAND, Copenhagen
- Matt's shirt was made by Eterna
- Matt's trousers were made by MMX
- Matt's belt, shoes, socks and tie were bought from ASOS*
- Our wooden ring box was bought from Etsy*
- Our cake topper was made by Gingerray
If you’re planning your own Isle of Skye elopement, we’d love to hear all about it and answer any questions you might have.
Please get in touch using the comments box below.