A Romantic and Relaxed Wedding Weekend in Ireland Full of Love, Laughter, and Letting Loose

[section title=”The Planning”]
[field title=”Wedding Colors”]White, cornflower blue, natural greens [/field]
[field title=”Design / Vibe / Vision”]

I had a vision for the wedding from the very beginning, and I was lucky enough to have an amazing venue and vendors who helped us to pull it off. I wanted the wedding to feel fun, romantic, and full of love, like a little bubble away from the real world for one weekend for all our guests. I tried to remember these three things when putting together all the decor, and it turned out even better than I could have imagined. I used Pinterest and TikTok for ideas and inspiration, and I made mood boards, which I sent to all the vendors so everyone was on the same page for what we were looking for. I wanted the weekend to feel elevated and elegant while also having a relaxed feel. I wanted our guests to feel they could enjoy themselves and let their hair down. We love our family and friends, and throwing a great party for all our loved ones was important to us!

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[field title=”Proposal Story”]James managed to pull off a complete surprise proposal! He had organised a ski trip with a group of our friends in St Anton, Austria, and I joined two days late after a work conference. On my second day, James asked me to stay behind to take some videos of him snowboarding down the piste. The group went on, and then suddenly, in the middle of this snowy winter wonderland, he was down on one knee asking me to marry him. My best friend was hiding on the side of the piste and captured the moment in beautiful photos and videos, which I will cherish forever. Later, we skied down to find our friends waiting to celebrate, followed by a gorgeous mountainside lunch with everyone and lots of bubbles to celebrate —the best après-ski ever! [/field]
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[board_carousel title=”Getting Ready”]

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[board_carousel title=”Bridal Portraits”]

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[board_carousel title=”Flat Lays”]

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[section title=”The Fashion”]
[field title=”Wedding Gown”]

Dress shopping was unexpectedly easy, and I had such a fun time picking “the one.” I visited several boutiques in Dublin with my mum and sister, which was great fun, and then made a trip down to The White Room in Mullingar. The girls there were so lovely, and their dress selection is amazing! I fell in love and said “yes to the dress” to a Jesus Peiro dress with a full skirt, strapless bodice, floral brocade, and the best part – pockets! The dress was light, comfortable, and perfect for dancing all night. My cathedral veil was a simple touch to let the dress shine.

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[field title=”Bridesmaid Dresses”]

My bridesmaids were my sister Iseult, and best friends Aideen and Emma, who went above and beyond in making the lead-up and the wedding itself unforgettable.. They were honestly the best bridesmaid I could have ever wished for! They made me feel so special during the whole lead-up, planned the best hen party, and were the most enthusiastic hype-women for the entire wedding weekend. In the morning, I gifted the girls, my mum, and my mother-in-law Piyama pyjamas, which were cotton and so comfy to get ready in. They looked so cute! Finding their dresses was pretty easy; the girls are gorgeous and looked good in everything! Their butter-yellow Bec and Bridge dresses were a nod to our time in Australia, with differing necklines to complement each of the girls. The yellow was beautiful against my dress and our blue and white hydrangea bouquets.

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[field title=”Groomsman Attire”]

We went with a black-tie theme, and James had a beautiful custom tuxedo made by Abrahams Tailoring. Declan and his team were fantastic, helping us choose every detail. The tux was perfectly tailored, and James looked incredibly handsome! The groomsmen also wore tailored tuxes from Abrahams, matching the timeless elegance of Gloster House.

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[board_carousel title=”Wedding Party”]

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[board_carousel title=”Ceremony”]

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[board_carousel title=”Cocktail Hour”]

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[section title=”The Details”]
[field title=”Food & Drink”]

We had the wonderful Jacinta and Val from Green Olive Catering in Galway provide all the food for our wedding reception and dinner; They were wonderful and such a pleasure to work with from start to finish. I would give 10 stars if I could! Their food was incredible, and the service was impeccable. We loved the idea of a sharing platter for our starter, allowing our guests to “break bread” and get to know each other over delicious sharing boards with dried Connemara lamb, wild garlic pesto, smoked cheese, prosciutto, hummus, fried halloumi, and fresh sourdough bread. Our mains were a choice of Irish beef or pan-fried seabass, and dessert was a trio of a chocolate marquis, lemon tart, and salted brown bread ice cream. I feel so lucky we got to have Green Olive; they helped make our day a literal dream come true. Thank you, Jacinta and Val! We were also lucky enough to be able to provide our wine to the venue, something we delighted in choosing. We did an informal “wine tasting” at home with our family, decided to go with a Macon Fuisse and Château des Roques, and sourced them directly from France – such a treat!

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[field title=”Florals & Decor”]

Gloster House is such an incredible venue; it didn’t need anything extra, and I wanted to keep the florals simple to allow the beauty and elegance of the house to speak for itself. We had the wonderful Richard Haslam provide our flowers for the weekend, and he did a wonderful job. I knew from the outset I wanted a mix of blue and white hydrangeas for my and the bridesmaid’s bouquets, which were so beautiful with the venue and setting. Richard did a wonderful job in the chapel and in the reception room, using a combination of hydrangeas and blue delphiniums to create a light and romantic feel. Mary from Gloster House has an amazing eye and put together all the natural greenery and the table setting for the dining room, and created a truly magical space for our reception and dinner.

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[field title=”Wedding Cake”]

James’ cousin Amy very kindly offered to make our wedding cake, and wow, how lucky we were. She created a masterpiece based only on a few inspirational pictures we sent her; we were blown away. Not only did it look magnificent, but it tasted gorgeous. We served the cake during our Day Two Garden Party, and it went down a treat – unlucky for us, there wasn’t a crumb left the next day!

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[field title=”Readings, Ceremony Music, Reception Songs”]

We held the ceremony on-site in Gloster House in their stunning White Chapel. It was this ceremony space that sealed the deal for us. It is an incredible, deconsecrated chapel, so it had the grandeur of a church ceremony without feeling like we were tied to a religious ceremony. Jennifer Carey was our celebrant, and together, we created a ceremony that felt deeply personal. She was an excellent guide, and we loved putting the ceremony together and making it feel like “us”. James’s favorite moment was watching me walk down the aisle with my dad, while mine was our vows, which we hadn’t shared until the ceremony—a truly special moment.

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[field title=”Special Detail #1″]

Gloster House is such an incredible venue; we felt so lucky to be able to spend the entire weekend there with all our family and bridal party. The celebrations began the night before, with a drinks reception and casual buffet-style dinner. A few friends of mine had surprised me with organising a photographer for the night before as a 30th birthday gift, and we had the wonderful Katie Bowe come to take some gorgeous candid shots of us and our families. It was the perfect start to the weekend, the sun was splitting the stones and there was such a warm and relaxed feel to the whole evening.

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[field title=”Special Detail #2″]

Both James and I love music, and we knew we wanted this to be a big part of our weekend. The gorgeous Glas Quartet set the scene for our ceremony by playing a wide variety of pieces from Bridgeton. Love, The Cranberries, and even a bit of Taylor Swift! For our main reception, James had heard about The Beams through a friend, and we couldn’t have been happier with them. Miguel was so professional and an absolute pleasure to work with. He and his team provided music for the drinks reception in the form of a three-piece jazz band, then gained some members to put on a full show after dinner with an 8-piece full brass set with a big band sound. Miguel then offered his services as a Piano Man in the Snug Speakeasy in Gloster, with a sing-along acoustic set into the early hours of the morning.

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[field title=”Special Detail #3″]

We wanted to create a whole weekend of fun for our guests and to show our appreciation for their spending their time with us. To end on a high, we put on a big Day Two celebration with a Garden Party and BBQ hosted in Gloster House. The Day started with a coffee van serving coffee, cake, and, as a surprise, espresso martinis! There was Crazy Golf out on the lawn as well as a very competitive Boules competition. Drinks included Rose (all day!), Guinness, wine, and beer, and everyone was having a great time. As the day wore on, we had a roasted Pig on a spit barbecue, followed by music by local musicians, the Ril Deal. As the night wore on, we had a second band, The Solid, play well into the night, with our guests up on their feet and the dancefloor full all night. It was an amazing end to what was the weekend of our lives – we wouldn’t change a thing!

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[board_carousel title=”Couple Portraits”]

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[board_carousel title=”Reception”]

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