Real Wedding – Amy & Gary McGregor – 07/05/2021

After initially booking Kinkell in 2017 and after countless postponements, Amy & Gary finally tied the knot on 7th may 2021. Masks, social distancing and no dancing never stopped this couple from having the most special day. I have never met a more relaxed and genuine couple. They have kindly agreed to share some moments of their day with our couples and offer some experience and support to those who are also planning a restricted wedding!

What first attracted you to Kinkell Byre? And what made you decide that it would be perfect for your special day? 

The venue itself is so beautifully rustic and versatile. The location is stunning with the most beautiful scenery and views over St. Andrews. Kinkell is such a special place with the most spectacular twinkling lights and a romantic yet relaxed atmosphere – exactly what we were looking for.

Tell us a little bit about planning your wedding? What inspired you to pick all the things that you did and what was most important to you both?

We knew we wanted our wedding day to be a reflection of Gary and I – a day full of love and fun yet still relaxed. We wanted our guests to feel the magic of Kinkell and for them to just have the most enjoyable day. We wanted to do as much of the planning ourselves in order to be fully involved, our suppliers and talented friends/family really helped with this and made our vision come true. Everyone had the best day & that’s what mattered the most.

What did you both enjoy planning?

Gary would say the food & the bar – which were both fantastic!

But genuinely the most enjoyable part was having the choice and being able to put our stamp on our day as much or as little as we wanted. Not many venues provide this freedom. Kinkell also offer their own furniture, a recommended supplier list as well as an online portal which made our life so much easier.

Kinkell and all of our suppliers really made our experience of planning so enjoyable, even during the pandemic! You all made this so easy for us during such uncertain times for you all. You were all so accommodating and there for us through every step of the way. Sandy, Sophie & Sam were always available to answer our questions, provide solutions as well as offering us services from other suppliers for things we hadn’t considered due to the ever changing situation.

All of our suppliers are such genuine, lovely people who kept us updated throughout the turbulent times offering us alternative dates and continuous support.

Tell us about your day? & What made it so special?

Our day was truly just perfect and we wish we could do it all over again. Coming from a guest list of 200 people down to 50 was quite a drop but we could have never imagined just how intimate and special this made our day. This was the first thing in over a year that we were all able to do as family and friends, everyone was just so happy to be there, Kinkell was full of love.

Everyone felt so honoured to be there and we found this so lovely as it’s probably something which has been lost along the way.

Even though rain was forecast the sun shone at all the right times – Kinkell is just spectacular in the sunshine!

All of the staff and suppliers were so attentive throughout our day and every guest has since commented on how special they were made to feel. We personally can’t thank you all enough.

A huge thank you to Sophie, Stevie, Sam & Brian who made our day run so perfectly smooth.

What advice do you have for other couples planning their wedding during the pandemic?

Keep the faith and trust that your day will be even more wonderful than you could ever imagine. Even though it was upsetting at times the pandemic provided us with so much perspective and forced us to consider things we wouldn’t have before, which turned out to be so much better for us as a couple. Keep in touch with your suppliers – we are all human going through such an awful lot at the moment so communication and support is key. Remember everything can be adapted. Share your concerns – your suppliers are professionals and they have the greatest ideas. You can have your venue cleverly set up to be safe but equally beautiful. The way in which our seats and tables ended up being positioned allowed us to accommodate the restrictions but keep our vision and style.

Pick a venue like Kinkell – so much space, ventilation, different rooms and the most wonderful staff. This way everyone will be comfortable and you’ll be able to adapt to any restrictions with ease.

How is married life treating you?

Married life has been a little bubble of love so far. After 2 postponements we can’t tell you how happy we are to finally be Mr & Mrs McGregor.

Our new puppy, Luna, who joined us 2 days after our wedding has really contributed to our little love bubble too.

We already can’t wait for our 1st Anniversary as an excuse to visit Kinkell again, it will always hold such a special place in our hearts.