WHO ARE YOU + WHERE ARE YOU BASED?
We’re Sarah & Mike and we own Netherbyres House – a brand new wedding venue in Eyemouth in the Scottish Borders.
DESCRIBE YOUR WORKPLACE.
They say opposites attract, and we have the perfect blend of old and new… the Victorian house has been lovingly refurbished with a twist. Our guests can relax on eclectic furniture, mingle in the greenery and party in the vibrant nooks. The many pops of colour and patterns are a wedding photographers dream. So, you and your guests can choose from our many stylish, playful and (most importantly) Instagrammable backdrops.
We have 9 individually styled ensuite bedrooms, so you can party all weekend with your friends and family.
WHERE/HOW DID IT ALL BEGIN?
When we were looking for our own wedding venue back in 2015, we were surprised by the lack of options if you wanted to do something a little different and a bit more chilled out. The venues we really loved that were more of a blank canvas were totally booked up. We were lucky enough to find a great venue that was brand new so had availability… and of course we had the best day ever (you can read all about it over on Rock My Wedding!)
So we decided that one day, we’d open our own wedding venue and offer all of the things that couples want (and none of the things they don’t).
Fast forward to 2019 and we finally made that dream into a reality. We found the perfect venue in Netherbyres House. It had all the entertaining space we needed, huge amounts of character, plentiful bedrooms and beautiful gardens. We’re so excited to be opening for weddings this summer.
FAVOURITE WORK TO DATE?
We’ve really enjoyed doing up the whole house in a bold and quirky style, but our favourite room has to be the lounge. The original corniced ceiling is incredible and already had dusky pink detailing, so we used that as a basis for our colour palette. And as the Chandelier in the room felt very art deco, we decided to go for ‘Deco Martini’ wallpaper from the wonderful Divine Savages. To complement the blue tones in the wallpaper, we picked Farrow and Ball Stiffkey Blue for both the walls and woodwork.
And because that wasn’t enough colour for us, we introduced a couple more with some sumptuous mustard and turquoise velvet sofas, making it the perfect chill-out space. We accessorised the walls with bright and quirky pieces of artwork featuring Philomena the Flamingo and the legendary David Bowie.
WHO/WHAT INSPIRES YOU?
Two of our really good friends set up Ocelot Chocolate a few years ago. They started making chocolate in their kitchen and have grown it into a thriving business (check it out, both the chocolate and the design are increds). They inspired us to be brave and go for it.
We’re both from creative backgrounds and have taken inspiration from our favourite artists, designers and musicians throughout the interiors in the house.
DESCRIBE YOUR TYPICAL DAY
Mike: Creative Director / handyman / chef extraordinaire.
Mike’s often found fixing things around the house, designing marketing materials, shaking up an old fashioned at the bar, cooking up a storm in the kitchen, or trying to keep alive the many plants he keeps buying.
Sarah: Organiser of things / stylist / marketing guru.
My background is in events and digital marketing, so I get to put that into practice organising our weddings and events, and running our website and social media. I also gets to indulge my passion for interior design, coming up with the quirky schemes at Netherbyres.
WHERE’S YOUR FAVOURITE PLACE TO GO?
We love traveling and take trips whenever we can. Back in 2012 we spent 6 months traveling all around New Zealand, Australia and South East Asia, and we got engaged in India in 2015. It’s hard to pick a favourite place but, but if we could only pick one place to go back to it would be Hoi An in Vietnam.
We’re massive fans of Glastonbury festival and have been 14 times between us.
Now we live in Eyemouth, we make the most our surroundings, going for walks along the incredible Berwickshire coast, which is on our doorstop.
FAVOURITE WEDDING SUPPLIERS?
So many it’s too hard to choose. My favourite people to follow on Instagram right now are…
Tub of Jelly – did our wedding photography and videography. We loved that they didn’t make us go off for ages to get photos taken, and instead concentrated on getting really natural shots of our guests having fun.
Knot your average bride – Zoe did the hair and make up for my best friends wedding last year and she was amazing. Her style is so natural and effortless, and she does fun video tutorials.
Flossy and Dossy – Wendy designed my wedding dress and it was exactly what I wanted. I love seeing her latest creations.
Katie Lees Jewellery – My current obsession. I went for quite a plain wedding band and am now determined to replace it with one of her beautiful rings.
BEST PIECE OF ADVICE YOU’VE BEEN GIVEN?
The power of positivity! I was told to stop worrying about what might go wrong, and just make it happen. There’s always a solution, sometimes it just needs a bit of creativity to find it.
