New York-based bride Sydney wanted to pay tribute to her Scottish grandfather by marrying in his homeland. Her and Jeffrey’s fairytale castle celebration featured abundant flowers, fabulous fireworks, mesmerising magic and...axe throwing (yes, really!)
Sydney Park and Jeffrey Cafarchio
8th August 2023
Venue | Blairquhan Castle, Ayrshire
Photography + film | New Chapter Creatives
"Jeffrey and I met online. From the minute he picked me up for our first date, I knew he was the only one for me. We started dating when I was in my last year of college, and have been together ever since. He took me to a beautiful waterside resort in upstate New York in August 2022 and after breakfast in bed, and a boat ride on the water, asked me to marry him on the dock overlooking the lake.
Scotland was our dream wedding location. My grandfather was Scottish, so we thought marrying there would be a great way to honour his memory. I also couldn’t think of anything more magical or romantic than getting married surrounded by our family in a castle in the Scottish countryside!
We settled upon Blairquhan Castle in Ayrshire. We wanted a location where all 40 of us could stay on-site and enjoy time together. We had all the rooms in the castle and cottages nearby on the estate at our disposal.
We ended up making a big family trip around the occasion. We started out in Edinburgh, and then took a bus over to Blairquhan, so it was a vacation as well as a wedding. I treasure the time we got to spend together.
Our budget was $40,000 and we had around a year to plan. I did most of the organising myself, but in hindsight, I would not recommend taking it all on without a Scottish wedding planner; it was tricky from the States.
We worked with Blairquhan’s superb coordinators to fit everything into place. I cannot praise the team at the castle enough – it’s a gorgeous venue with phenomenal staff and great food.
We had four bridesmaids and four groomsmen. I had my three sisters and sister-in-law, while Jeff had his three best friends and his brother-in-law.
My favourite memory from the morning of my wedding was my twin sister helping me with my hair and accidentally spraying lotion that ended up everywhere! Thankfully we were able to fix it and had a great big laugh about it.
Our blue and green colour scheme was based on the Flower of Scotland tartan.
Our florist Kirstie’s Flowers was amazing and really brought my vision to life – her work was stunning.
One of my favourite personal details was the red cardinal birds I placed at tables to stand for loved ones that couldn’t be with us on the big day. My family has always believed that when you see one of these birds, it’s a loved one saying hello, so it was really special to have those little reminders dotted around.
We sought out a photographer who was going to capture the emotion of the day. We didn’t want too many formal portraits or ‘typical’ bridal shots. Our photographers and filmmakers New Chapter Creatives were so great to work with and extremely receptive to my ideas. We had so much fun doing the video too – it makes me cry every time I see it!
The night before the wedding, we had dinner together in the castle. Then we had a storyteller recite some Scottish fairytales and legends. My mom and I split a bottle of wine, steamed my wedding dress and chilled out with my dad, which was really special.
The morning of the wedding was eventful. The boys all got to wear their custom velour tracksuits that had their names and roles printed on them. It was funny to watch them take pictures from the room we were all getting ready in.
Come mid-morning, our champagne truck arrived along with the archery and axe-throwing company. Our guests were able to try their hand at games before the ceremony. I threw an axe myself and hit a bullseye!
I walked down the aisle to the skirl of the bagpipes on the arm of my dad. I surprised everyone by having a piper play a version of Rick Astley’s ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’ as we walked out of the venue.
We had a humanist ceremony led by celebrant Andrew D. Scott. He was incredible and we had so much fun getting to know him and have him get to know us. He did a superb job of telling our story. I think my favourite moment from the ceremony was finally getting to kiss my new husband!
Magician Craig Roe did close-up magic during our drinks reception. He absolutely blew our minds.
The speeches were good. My sister cried the entire time. The DJ from Devotion Weddings brought out a “wet floor” sign as she gave her speech which we all laughed about.
I wanted to feel like a dancing queen on my big night, so I changed into an amazing silver Sherri Hill dress that sparkled like a disco ball.
Our first dance was to a song that my twin sister’s friend wrote, ‘The Village’ by Halle Payne. It had just been released in May so it was a privilege that we were the first couple who ever got to use it! My parents surprised us with a firework display to cap off the wonderful evening."
Venue and catering Blairquhan Castle
Photography and filmmaker
New Chapter Creatives
Celebrant Andrew D. Scott Celebrant
Bride’s main dress Martina Liana from Alexandra’s Bridal Boutique Massachusetts
Bride’s evening dress Sherri Hill from The Clothes Tree Nashville
Bridesmaid dresses Revelry
Flower girl dress BHLDN
Makeup Heather May Makeup
Hair Megan Riddex Bridal Hair
Groomswear MacGregor and MacDuff
Rings and jewellery Christi Sothers
Cake Custom Cakes by Lyndsey
Flowers and decor Kirstie’s Flowers
Stationery DIY by the bride
Favours Hand-stamped ornaments made by the bride’s sisters, and luggage tags from Etsy
Piper Alistair Brown, Ayrshire Piper
Drinks reception and reception DJ Devotion Weddings
Other entertainment Axe throwing, archery, fire pit and fireworks by Adventure Carrick
Magician Craig Roe Magician
Champagne truck Albert & Charlies Mobile Bar
Transport Rowe & Tudhope
