A Real Fairytale Wedding at Barberstown Castle by Bigger Picture Photography

Real Weddings

“I actually thought I would hate walking down the aisle but the moment I saw Conor I totally relaxed and just enjoyed the moment! I thought he was going to pull a muscle he was smiling so much!”

Length of engagement: 1 year | Wedding date: 7th September 2012
Wedding location: Barberstown Castle

Photographer: Eric Molimard – Bigger Picture Photography

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We met… At my best friend (and chief bridesmaid!), Jenny’s 21st birthday party in the local GAA club! Conor and Jenny are actually cousins and we are from the same area so we did know each other before this but it was at her 21st that we really hit it off… the rest, as they say, is history.

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Our proposal… was on the beautiful Croatian island of Hvar! Our first holiday together was a three week trip around Croatia which we loved but Hvar was by far our favourite place and we often talked of going back. So in August 2011 (six years after our first trip there!) we went back  to Croatia on holiday and spent a few days in Hvar. On our first night there, we went back to a restaurant on the waterfront that we had been to six years before… a small family run seafood restaurant. We had a table right beside the water and after we ordered our food Conor asked me to marry him… he was so nervous that he wanted to get the words out before his fish arrived so he could enjoy it! Of course I said yes and then I was so excited that I couldn’t eat my dinner.

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Our wedding theme/colours…We didn’t really have a theme, we just chose things that we liked. Our bridesmaids wore ruby/plum coloured dresses by Dessy (6548). I found it quite hard to find a colour that would suit them all as they have different colourings, and we decided on this colour almost by accident but they looked stunning… My ‘Pippas’ as I like to call them!

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“We decided on [the bridesmaid dress] colour almost by accident but they looked stunning…”

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My favourite part of the wedding day… I just loved every minute of it. It really was the best day of my life but if I had to pick one moment it was seeing Conor at the top of the aisle with a big smile on his face. I thought he was going to pull a muscle he was smiling so much! I actually thought I would hate walking down the aisle… I was terrified in fact… but the moment I saw him I totally relaxed and just enjoyed the moment!

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Our ceremony…  A catholic wedding ceremony was something that was very important to both of us and we were delighted to be able to have our ceremony in St Patrick’s Church, Celbridge as it is beautiful inside and we felt it was the perfect location for our big day. Our priest was a family friend and the singer was also from my local area. Having both of these play such an important role in our ceremony made it very personal and special for us. Our singer, Ruth Cahill was just fantastic. She completely blew everyone away. She gave me Goosebumps every time she sang… it was magical!

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My dress… I wore a Paloma Blanca (4263) that I bought in Truly Bridal in Naas – the girls there were great. My shoes were Jenny Packham.

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We chose our photographer because… Eric (Bigger Picture Photography) was the wedding photographer for my brother’s wedding the previous year and I was really impressed by his approach. He seemed to just blend into the crowd and was completely non intrusive. We really liked that about him and of course the quality of his photographs were just amazing… he captures the ‘moments’ of the day perfectly. We also knew that Eric had done weddings in Barberstown before so this was an added bonus for us as he knew his way around!!

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“As soon as we walked into the banquet hall in Barberstown Castle we knew it was the place for us. It was so different to anything else we had seen and really had a very magical feeling inside.

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We chose our venue because… we wanted a wedding venue close to Dublin as that’s where most of our families and friends live. We actually live in London so somewhere not too far from the airport was important for us coming over and back to organise things! We looked at a lot of venues in the Wicklow/Kildare area but as soon as we walked into the banquet hall in Barberstown Castle we knew it was the place for us. It was so different to anything else we had seen and really had a very magical feeling inside. The beautiful gardens outside too were stunning for photographs. Nowhere else came close to it! We also asked friends that had been to weddings there previously and could not find any negative feedback. Everyone commented on the high standard of both the food and service… not a easy combination to get right but Barberstown definitely did not disappoint! We were also very impressed by Eimear. She was extremely professional and worked with us every step of the way to make sure our day was perfect.

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“Of course the quality of his [Eric – Bigger Picture Photography] photographs were just amazing… he captures the ‘moments’ of the day perfectly.”

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Our honeymoon… We wanted to go somewhere we had never been before and most likely will never get the chance to go to again. We love travelling so were keen to explore a new place and some relaxing time in the sun was also high on our list. So in the end we decided on a week travelling around Sri Lanka and a week in the Maldives. This meant we had a week of site seeing in Sri Lanka, which is truly beautiful, and a week of  much needed relaxation in the Maldives.. it was just like a postcard… a very special place where we just cut off from reality for a week! The perfect combination for us and would highly recommend it!

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My piece of advice for other brides… Enjoy! Enjoy! Enjoy! You will only plan a wedding once (hopefully) so just enjoy it all from the planning to the final build up to the day itself. Do the things that make you both happy and try to add in some personal touches to your BIG DAY as this will make it all the more special for you both!

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By Karen Birney