We’ve seen the trend for brides cutting their hair before their reception a few times (and we love it) but this is definitely the first time we’ve seen someone cut and colour their hair midway through the wedding! That was just classic Gaelle though – she didn’t want their wedding to be like anybody else’s. Not wanting to be outshone, the groom cut his long hair as well and the reaction from their guests was priceless!

Overall, they were inspired by their own tastes, wanting a wedding which included things like the bride’s love of Dita Von Teese and pin up in general, and having a tattoo artist come and give them commemorative ink the night before. The three day event was a riot from start to finish and full of so many personal touches.

“We called our theme ‘moody dark romantic’ but we basically just wanted it to be us”, Gaelle said. “We wanted it to be an unforgettable three day Scottish castle experience – fancy style with an edge, classy but where people still felt at home and supper relaxed. For the main day, we gave a dark dress code to guests and for the evening we planned a candle lit dinner with velvet tablecloths, moss, and dark calla lilies.”

Both Gaelle and Maxime work in design and marketing, and they approached their wedding like a full creative project. They planned it over two and a half years, designing and producing everything themselves. Max created every piece of stationery, from invitations to personalised dinner menus written in each guest’s language, complete with hidden notes. They produced more than ten printed formats, an 80-page wedding magazine, and even their own merchandise, including caps, tote bags, and umbrellas. Their custom website ran on a system Gaelle coded herself, complete with newsletters, guest segmentation, and automated updates. “EVERYTHING was tied in and branded from the invite to the merch available,” she explained.

The castle itself wasn’t safe from their customisations either. They replaced the flags with their own and commissioned Stewart Christie & Co. to design a custom tartan registered under both their names. Inspired by the hex code of their wedding palette and the stone in Gaelle’s engagement ring, it became an official document connecting them. They turned it into handfasting bands for the ceremony and gifts for guests, including scrunchies, pocket squares, and coin purses.

A friend officiated the ceremony. Gaelle entered with both parents, then walked the aisle alone. Their chow chow, Pépin, was supposed to appear later, but he had other plans. “He was supposed to come later into the ceremony but when Gaelle started her vows and he heard her voice he barked once and when she said that ‘Max is the best dog dad’ he barked a second time so we brought him in. he was so proud!”

Then, after the ceremony, the couple both disappeared for their makeover. “We both cut our hair dramatically and I even changed her hair colour from light pink to dark red to turn into a pinup showgirl,” the bride said. Her evening look leaned fully into this mood, drawing inspiration from Dita Von Teese and Jessica Rabbit.

They invested heavily in food, wine, photography, and Gaelle’s dresses, which fulfilled a lifelong ambition. “I wanted to be a wedding dress designer as a kid, I even sewed one as a high school project so it was a forever dream to have a huge couture dress.”

Looking back, there is little they would change, aside from skipping formal group photos and maybe hiring a videographer. “The best pictures are not the group ones”, she said. “We could have enjoyed more time with our guests.”

Their advice? “Do what the hell you want!” she concluded, “Enjoy taking your time doing it together. And take time to meet your suppliers before hiring them. Being able to find the people who have the same vibe and vision as you makes it feel like you have a team. If you are doing the wedding planning by yourself and are an organisational control freak like me, make a full PDF with every single details of what happens where and how. Just write everything down from your brain to paper. I had 60 pages of images, tables and text, by the hour. Then I handed it over to the venue, assigned two people of contact to the venue managers and said if there is a decision to make during the wedding these people can do it. Giving this made me able to know I had given all instructions and to then be able to let it go and just enjoy!”