Scottish Independent Media

By Claire Elliot

BRIDE-TO-BE Vikki-Ann Raeburn always dreamed of a fairytale white wedding.

But, desperate to tie the knot before fiancé Robert Stewart has potentially life-threatening surgery, she has no time to save up.

Instead, the 26-year-old mother-of-two is relying on recycled items via the internet to make her big day possible.
 

A white wedding dress and veil, worth more than £1,000, plus two matching bridesmaids dresses are just some of the hand-me-downs she has already received by using Freecycle.
 

It is a website which matches people who have goods to get rid of with those who might need them.
 

The aim is to keep usable items out of landfill - and all the items are free.
 

Miss Raeburn, from Aberdeen, said: “If we had to pay for everything there is no way we would ever be getting married. We just can’t afford it.
 

“Ideally if I had the money I’d want a big church wedding and I’d arrive in a limo wearing a big flowing dress with a long train. My fiancé would be in a tartan kilt and I’d love a big sit-down-meal for the evening reception in some extravagant place.
 

“But at the moment we just don’t have the budget and we need to get married before his operation.
 

“I’d be devastated if he died on the operating table and I couldn’t become his wife.”
 

Mr Stewart, 35, who had to have part of his leg amputated following a motorcycle accident, is due to have more surgery on his leg at Aberdeen Royal Infirmary next month.

But Miss Raeburn said doctors believe he may have haemophilia, a blood disorder in which wounds take longer to heal, and they have warned him that there are risks with the surgery.
 

She said: “That’s why it is so important for me to become Mrs Stewart.”
 

The couple, who got engaged after a whirlwind romance which started less than a year ago, already have the registry office in Aberdeen booked.
 

Dresses have been bought for her daughters, Kallie-Lee, six, and Tyler Ann, three, who will be her flower-girls.
 

Miss Raeburn has even ordered a £30 wedding band for her husband-to be.
 

But, with the big day less than three weeks away, she is still looking for everything from invitations and a Stewart tartan kilt for her future husband via the Freecycle website.
 

The couple, who are still searching for a venue for the evening reception, are also looking to use a photography student to take photos for free.
 

Miss Raeburn, said: “There’s still a few bits to get but I’m getting there slowly.
 

“It’s unbelievable some of the things people are offering to give away.

“I can’t wait to get married.”
 

The couple, who are to marry on June 27, are unable to afford to travel abroad for a honeymoon so plan to spend their wedding night in a local hotel, which they plan to pay for using a jar filled with £50 in change.