Real Weddings

Cassandra & Nathan wedding by Holly Prins

Real Weddings

Sarah

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Cassandra & Nathan wedding by Holly Prins

The Details
How did you and your partner meet?
We met at a mutual friend’s bonfire in Cowra on the June long weekend 2013. There were so many people we didn’t meet until the end of the night when everyone was leaving so it was a quick conversation but instant connection. He was searching for me on Facebook but I didn’t have it anymore and it wasn’t until about a week later that I come across him on Instagram and started to follow him then we started talking, then catching up on weekends, then dating, my dad was a bit skeptical of him until I was rushed to hospital one night (1st June the year after) with a bleed in my brain and even though I was in a wheelchair for 3 months not knowing if I was going to walk again, he still wanted to marry me. That’s when dad knew he was as perfect as I said he was.

How did he propose?
Out of hospital for 4 months he took me to a look out to give me an Ipad that I had wanted for a few months, we had to leave the look out when random people showed up. When we got down to the river I got out of the car and sat on the bench with my present he paniced and couldn’t find one of his shoes so he quickly tied a bucket hat on his foot and hopped over so he wouldn’t get a bindi, when I opened the iPad I wondered why the charger was black instead of white so I pulled it out of the box and it was actually the ring box! Then I looked over at him sitting next to me huffing and puffing from trying to rush over before I opened it and he had the biggest smile as he got down on one knee.

What’s your most important piece of advice for creating and maintaining a strong relationship?
Never go to bed angry with one another, always speak nicely to each other and don’t forget to tell each other how you feel.

Tell us about your wedding gown and how you chose it:
We went to a lot of dress places and I was being fussy and getting depressed as I had put on 20kgs from being in hospital and unable to move properly. I was ready to give up and let mum choose for me until we went to Beautiful Brides and they listened to me and helped me choose something that would match my new body type as well as trying to match what I originally wanted.

What sort of style did you envision for your wedding day?
I envisioned pretty much exactly what we had, I wouldn’t change it! Country, timber, leafy green, perfect sunny day with blue skies. Belgenny Farm wasn’t much on looks from the outside a rundown old timber and glass hall but it was perfect inside paved floor and there was a vineyard and beautiful trees outside where we could have photos. The flowers were perfect we had succulents, a lot of greenery and a few white flowers to pop.

What was your favorite moment from the day?
The whole day was just amazing it went to fast it felt like one small moment. My favorite moment would have to be driving away from the ceremony as a married couple ready to spend quality time with our close family and friends, we didn’t want to leave at the end of the night.

Any DIY décor elements?
My sister and I made the Table numbers, Nathan cut the timber for the center pieces, also Nathan’s Nanna made my shawl to keep warm.

If you could do it all over again, what would you change?
I would have remembered to get a cake knife for the wedding day instead we had to borrow our friends the night before and I would take more photos preparing and leading up to the big day!

Any tips that you can give to future brides?
Make sure you get a good photographer because it is the only thing you can keep forever from the best day of your life. Also make sure you enjoy your engagement period leading up to the wedding it can get stressful but when you get to the day it just goes so quick and then it’s over so just take your time make sure you’re 100% happy with your decisions and have fun doing it!

The Team
Photographer: Holly Prins Photography www.hollyprins.com.au/
Stationery: Adorn Invitations www.adorninvitations.co.uk
Dress: Beautiful Brides
Makeup: Tamee Rene
Hair: Nicole Hamilton
Shoes: Sheplers
Accessories: Carati Jeweler
Bridesmaids Dresses: Seduce
Grooms Suit: Roger David
On The Day Stationery: Bwedding Invitations www.bweddinginvitations.com/
Cake: All Things Sweet By Carissa www.allthingssweetbycarissa.com.au/
Food: Belgenny Farm
Flowers: Shaynee Lou
Ceremony Venue: Kingdom Hall of Jehovah’s Witnesses
Reception Venue: Belgenny Farm www.belgennyfarm.com.au/
Photo Booth: Mace Photo Booth http://www.macephotobooths.com/

Kristi & David wedding by Darin Collison

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Sarah

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Kristi & David wedding by Darin Collison

The Details

How did you and your partner meet?
David and I met in Amsterdam while traveling Europe.
How did he propose?
David completely surprised me by proposing while on a Sunday morning walk along the beach in Elwood. David tried so hard to make it a private moment for us, but it didn’t work as passers-by yelled out “Congratulations!”
What’s your most important piece of advice for creating and maintaining a strong relationship?
Communication is just so important, without it there are always issues. Talk it out and say what you mean!
Tell us about your wedding gown and how you chose it:
I was devastated when I started looking for a dress, I didn’t like anything. Then I found Belle et Blanc where I had several dresses to choose from! It was an easy decision though, I loved my dress!!!
What sort of style did you envision for your wedding day?
I envisioned a beautiful summer afternoon and something simple with pops of color. The
Emerson was our first thought as it’s truly the perfect classy rooftop. Crisp white tables and
chairs on top of synthetic grass giving an easy “Sunday lunch” feeling. Then we added bright flowers and buckets of colored shots to get the party started 🙂 It turned out better than I imagined.
What was your favorite moment from the day?
The whole day was amazing. I remember sitting down for lunch and thinking, “Take a moment to look around.” All of the smiling and laughing from our loved ones was all we wanted for our wedding day, and that’s what we got.
Any DIY décor elements?
We made signs for the shots that said “Have a shot we tied the knot.”
If you could do it all over again, what would you change?
I wouldn’t change anything! It was honestly amazing!
Any tips that you can give to future brides?
Don’t stress so much, it really isn’t worth it. Enjoy the process, but don’t make it harder than it has to be and make sure it’s what you want. You’re the bride, it’s your day! Remember that this is your day.

The Team

Dress: Belle et Blanc www.belleetblanc.com.au/
Makeup: Ben Dniprowskij
Hair: Runway Room Prahran
Wedding Invitations: Adorn Invitations www.adorninvitations.co.uk
Accessories: Love On Jewellery http://www.loveonjewellery.com.au/
Grooms Suit: Oscar Hunt
On The Day Stationery: BWeddings www.bweddinginvitations.com/
Photographer: Darin Collison darincollisonphotography.com.au/
Cake: Ministry of Cake
Food: The Emerson
Flowers: Jizell Flowers jizellflowers.com.au/
Ceremony Venue: The Emerson www.theemerson.com.au/
Reception Venue: The Emerson
Hire: Complete Function Hire

Laura & Liam wedding

Real Weddings

Sarah

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The Details

How did you and your partner meet? We met at a friend’s wedding!

How did he propose? He proposed with a bunch of candles at his grandparents’ house, it was super romantic and intimate which is what I’ve always wanted.

What’s your most important piece of advice for creating and maintaining a strong relationship?
Honesty, trust and love

Tell us about your wedding gown and how you chose it:
My gown was the 4th dress I tried on. It wasn’t the style I was looking for, but when I tried it on I loved it! It suited me perfectly.

What sort of style did you envision for your wedding day?
My venue was a bit rustic and elegant. I had ivy around the lanterns for the centerpieces with hessian runners. Fairy lights for the backdrop. It was simple and beautiful!

What was your favorite moment from the day? There were so many moments.
One that I’ll never forget is I was sitting down at the bridal table. I put my flowers in front of me on the table and I didn’t know I put it on a candle. So, some of my flowers caught on fire!!!
Lucky they were fake, I easily fix it. Not many people saw, but it was hilarious.

Any DIY décor elements?
I made my own chocolate favors and presented them nicely in little brown boxes.

If you could do it all over again, what would you change?
Only my cake! It was not what I wanted. I was very disappointed with it.

Any tips that you can give to future brides?
Remember to not stress. There’s nothing to stress about. It’s amazing how everything falls into place and on the day, it all flows!

Anything else you’d like to add?
Treasure every moment of your special day. You only get it once!

Suppliers

Dress: Devine Bridal
Makeup: Tropical Beauty http://www.tropicalbeauty.com.au/
Hair: Tropical Beauty
Accessories: Lovisa
Bridesmaids Dresses: After 5 Bridal and Formal
Grooms Suit: Roger David
Invitations: Adorn Invitations www.adorninvitations.co.uk/
Photographer: Adawphotography
Food: The Pacific Hotel
On The Day Stationery: BWedding Invitations www.bweddinginvitations.com/
Flowers: Perfect Moments
Ceremony Venue: Kingdom Hall Of Jehovahs Witnesses
Reception Venue: The Pacific Hotel pacifichotelcairns.com/

New Years Day Winter Wonderland Wedding at Breaffy House Hotel

Real Weddings

Lorrcunno

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New Years Day Winter Wonderland Wedding at Breaffy House Hotel

So our story started with “mammy will you marry our daddy”. 22nd December 2011, all snuggled up on the couch with our 11 month old baby Luke, when our older boy Ben walks in and asks the question, to which I started laughing and said ah I will do someday Ben. He then said “but look we went shopping and even bought you a ring”, he put his hand into his pocket and pulled out a jewellery box, opened it up and there sparkling up at me wast the most beautiful ring. Then Darragh walks in and says “so mammy will you marry me?”. Well poor Luke nearly got thrown into the air ! It was the most perfect proposal, for our 2 boys to be so involved just makes it so memorable and special.

We were quick on deciding that we would love a new years day wedding, what a way to start the new year!! (and an anniversary he couldn’t possible forget). We were lucky our chosen venue Breaffy House Hotel was available on our date 1-1-2014, so we booked it quickly! I also bought my dress local from Elegant Touch bridal. Our church was a 1pm service, I was walked down the aisle to the beautiful singing of “I cant help falling in love with you” by my dad and my little man Luke. Ben had gone ahead with the flower girls holding a sign saying “Daddy here comes your bride” needless to say that started the tears, Ben also done the first prayer of the faithful for us, very cute as he was only 3 and a half. Upon arrival guests were greeted with canapés and wowed by a beautiful ice sculpture we had made that would serve the champagne.

I had some personalised cupcakes made for each kid, and they loved them. A good friend of ours offered her services of draping the room for us, to give the room the “winter wonderland effect”. The room looked beyond amazing, our guests were in awe upon entering it. Each table was decorated with crystal globes, beautiful baby breath and white rose displays and candles! It really was breathtaking! We had an amazing 5 course meal. I had a childminder organised to take the kids (there was 10 small kids at it) of to the playroom for some fun games for the Speeches, but not before they helped themselves to the sweet table i had made up !

We had a comedian organised for after the meal as a surprise, he was brilliant and really gave everyone a lift after the meal. Our first dance was the 4 of us dancing to “The Lumineers Hey ho” it was Bens favourite song so we happily choose that! The day was nothing short of perfect and my face was sore from smiling! It really meant so much for our kids to have being such big part of our amazing day.

Best day of our lives! by Arianne & Garrett

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ari.ryan

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Best day of our lives! by Arianne & Garrett

Garrett left Ireland to do a round the world trip after his PhD and ended up in Sydney, Australia when finances started to ran out. At the time I was still doing my Masters in Nursing at the University of Sydney. He found a job and was not planning to stay for long but ended up staying for about 3-4years. After 6 months of his stay in Sydney, Garrett and I met at a random night out in Oxford St and had a crazy dance off and this is how our story started. Since we met we have never really been apart, we moved in after a few months together and later decided to move back to Ireland.

After a year in Ireland, we travelled around South Africa and made me climb up the steep Table Mountain and when we got to the top, admiring the views, Garrett suddenly got weak on the knees and proposed!

As soon as he proposed we knew straightaway that we’d love to get married in the Philippines. So we excitedly told family and friends that we got engaged, told them the location so they can save up! 🙂 I, being a super excited, have pretty much researched and booked the important things before we even got back from our holiday. A week after getting back from South Africa, we had more good news and found out we were expecting a baby so we had a long engagement, long enough so our baby could walk down the aisle!

Organising our wedding from Ireland was not easy especially with a baby so I got Detalye weddings to help me organise our wedding. We got married on the 30th December, 2014 at Chapel on the Hill followed by reception at HillCreek Gardens Tagaytay. We both love the outdoors so we chose to get married in a church with lovely mountain views and we had a garden reception. Most of our guests travelled for our wedding so we made sure that the wedding will be a special experience for them too. We had a traditional Filipino wedding ceremony, Garrett and all the men at the bridal party all wore the traditional formal wear called Barong. We had the candle, veil and cord ceremony. We had full choir and quartet for church music. There was a traditional ice cream cart waiting outside after church ceremony. Guests were then transported by bus to the reception where guests where welcomed with hors d’oeuvres, frozen margaritas and many other drink choices.

We had a choir, quartet, band and a DJ for music throughout the reception to dance the night away. We thanked our guests by giving the ladies freshwater pearl earrings and cufflinks for the men as favours, the kids also got backpacks with activity book, crayons, bubbles, toy watch and snacks. Our prenup photos where played whilst waiting for the bridal party’s grand entrance with sparklers and indoor fireworks. We went for a buffet reception to give guests more choice and for a change. We had SDE video shown before we cut the cake, which was worth every penny! Just after the cake was cut we had a spectacular 5 minute firework display with the band singing Firework by Katy Perry in the background, which was a hit to the guests! We then had the shoe game, bouquet and garter tossing, which was a great laugh and breaks all formalities of a wedding before the dancing began and bartenders start serving shots on the dance floor! It was definitely a great way to end the year!

We thought we were going to have a small wedding as we weren’t expecting many to travel the distance not to mention the costs involved. We had 130 guests on the day, which was a great turn out and we thank and appreciate each and every one of our family and friends who travelled from all over the world to celebrate our special day with us.

Boracay Wedding Ken and Sherylin in Sea Wind Resort

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sherylin.buckmaster

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Boracay Wedding Ken and Sherylin in Sea Wind Resort

10th November 2012 was our special day. When Ken and I visited Boracay, Philippines in 2011, he told me that he wanted to get married in that beautiful island. After he proposed in December 2011 and told our families of our engagement, the first thing we did was to contact resorts in Boracay.

We kept the wedding simple and the details were all about us. From the Cayman Island coins we used in the ceremony, to the Cayman Island rum cake that we gave to guests, to the table names which were Cayman Island places significant to us, to the passport invite, up to the colour motif which was purple, our favourite colour. We also gave Filipino wines to overseas guests and put Irish and Filipino sweets, and of course Irish tea bags, in our loot bags.

The ceremony was held in a Catholic church in the island and the reception followed on the beach.

We were very much overwhelmed by all the people who flew from different places to attend our wedding. It was a small wedding yet complete. We also got free fireworks that night (courtesy I think of another wedding in Boracay) which made the night more magical!

Janice & Patrick’s City Centre Love & Marriage (Vienna Woods Hotel)

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Janice OShea

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Janice & Patrick’s City Centre Love & Marriage (Vienna Woods Hotel)

It all began three years ago when I met Patrick through our mutual friend in our local city pub. Patrick had planned to return to Australia for work but alas it was love at first sight and we were instantly smitten, his words not mine! Eighteen months later, after a whirlwind romance Patrick popped the question Christmas morning and thus we set upon planning our special day.

As we love the city we decided we wanted to have a big party with all the people that we love there. There would be a few traditional twists along the way, we opted for a civil marriage ceremony as it allowed us add a personal touch and I chose three of my males friends to be my bridesmaids (bridesmen)! The theme was Old Hollywood and as the weather would be cold we asked our guests would they wear black tie to add some extra old school glamour and fun. Although, the attire was formal but it was a relaxed affair and the effort and turnout was humbling. Keeping it Cork we used Cork suppliers and some creative friends got on board.

After fourteen months of excitement and planning, February 20th 2015 arrived. The ceremony was held in the Triskel Christchurch in the heart of the city, it is now a cultural and artistic centre managed by the Triskel Arts Centre and as we had coffee and movie dates there it was perfect and suited our personalities. Inside it was dark and atmospheric and as I entered the energy was electric. The groom was cool and calm and we hugged, I knew we were exactly where we were supposed to be. Our documentary photographer was unique and he captured some spontaneous moments, we wanted our photos to be natural and not posed so that they would tell the story of the day. We were lucky to have Karen Underwood sing throughout the ceremony and she belted out some serious soul.

After our ceremony we headed to where it had all began and had a quick drink and a few kisses, ahem, before continuing onto the old worldly Vienna Woods for a champagne/mulled wine/espresso martini reception. Dinner, dancing and a cheese cake literally made of cheese was on the menu and everyone rocked into the night. A fun photo booth was another little highlight of the evening. We had the best day and we were even more thrilled that our family and friends had a great day too.

Outdoor Fairytale – Wedding Of Amy & Jonathan in Maryborough House Hotel

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amy.obrien

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Outdoor Fairytale – Wedding Of Amy & Jonathan in Maryborough House Hotel

Jonathan and I are together 13 years now, having met and fell in love when we were still in school. We have two beautiful children Abigail 10, and Nathan 6. We wanted to get married for so long, and we wanted to make it as memorable experience so we saved and saved whilst planning the day of our dreams. I have always thought outside the box and racked my brain for something we could do for our wedding that would ‘wow’ our guests.

After deciding on the Maryborough House for our wedding I then got thinking if it was possible to hold a ceremony outdoors. Seen as the grounds are so beautiful. I got to Googling and although the outdoor ceremony was not legally passed yet, there were no laws against it either. I booked a minister, Miriam Fitzgerald, with the Spiritual Union of Ireland and she talked us through the choices of ceremonies. I did not realize how personal the ceremony would be, as Jonathan and I were talking to Miriam, she was taking notes on her impression of us as a couple. She personalized the whole ceremony around that.

I booked Cork Weddings and Events for flowers and decor. Iris loved the challenge of creating something different and this was her first out door wedding, she explained how she would create an aisle in the gardens and use flower arrangements and arch to compliment the surroundings. My mind was instantly put at ease knowing we were on the same page and visualizing the same thing 🙂

Annmaria was our wedding consultant with the Maryborough. She was equally as excited about the hotel’s first outdoor wedding. She reminded me that we are in fact in Ireland and the weather us a huge factor. Annamaria assured me that we would have a back up ceremony space ready should the weather not be on our side, we had meetings and lunches in the build up to the big day and I was really confident that she had everything under control, from the ceremony space to the drinks reception and choice of food for our guests.

Months went on as Jonathan and I were booking cars, music, suits, hair makeup etc. We decided not to tell our guests about the outdoor ceremony as it wasn’t certain due to unpredictable weather.

When our day came around 29th of May 2014, we were truly blessed! It was 20°c and no sign of any rain. Jonathan was nervous that we would be mid ceremony and it start lashing but somehow I wasn’t thinking like that, I was very positive and felt a sense of all is going to plan 🙂 Jonathan said when he saw our guests arrive and they were escorted out to the gardens, each and everyone of them had a look if awe and surprise on their faces!

Our ceremony was unique and personal with a teary reading from my brother which left a lot of our guests in tears to a beautiful sansands ceremony to include our children and symbolize the union of our family. The singing was by Gemini, who were breath taking!
After the ceremony, our guests simply had to walk a few steps to the dome marquee for the drinks reception, The lounge man set the tone and atmosphere with his swing/Bublé style and waiters served canopes and prosecco. We had our photographs, done by Klickapic Cork, all outdoors. It was nice to see our guests enjoying themselves whilst we were photographed 🙂

After the drinks reception our guests were called to the Sherrard Suite for the meal, after everyone was seated, Jonathan and I made our entrance to a very apt song ‘Happy’ by Pharrel Williams. I think we floated in to the room instead of walking!
Everyone loved the food, there was full and plenty and the wine was flowing. The atmosphere was electric! I remember saying to Jonathan whilst we were at the top table ” this is amazing, look at all our friends and family enjoying themselves”. Jonathan told me of his relief that it didn’t rain for the ceremony! He was more nervous about that than me being late it think! 🙂

Gemini set up again for the evening entertainment, the dance-floor was never empty from start to finish. They really know how to please a crowd! I don’t know where we got the energy from but we managed to continue to festivities right through until 6am! The staff at the Maryborough were still poring champagne and treating us like royalty 🙂 It really was an amazing unforgettable day and the feedback and comments from our guests were overwhelming.

I hope you have enjoyed our little outdoor fairytale. Wish we could do it all over again, we wouldn’t change a thing! 🙂

The Perfect Day Of Annmarie & Niall in Radisson Blue Athlone

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amo260685

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The Perfect Day Of Annmarie & Niall in Radisson Blue Athlone

Our wedding day was the most perfect day ever. We had the time of our lives. Would happily do it all again tomorrow and not change one thing.

Magical Time In a Magical Land Wedding of Vicky & Paul in Maple Hotel Bangkok

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Vicky Bracken

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Magical Time In a Magical Land Wedding of Vicky & Paul in Maple Hotel Bangkok

We had our wedding in Bangkok, Thailand with all of our family and friends. We had Thai morning ceremony it was 32 degree and we had a wonderful evening reception with nine tier wedding cake.