A Geeky Wedding With Touches of Emerald Green

“As we are both self-confessed nerds, there were many geeky elements throughout the day. The main colour of the day was emerald green to match Deirdre’s engagement ring. The bridesmaid dresses were emerald green that matched the leaf of Lorien pins that the groom, groomsmen, fathers, grooms woman all wore (from Lord of the rings).”

Couple: Deirdre Linehan and Luke Martin

Engagement length: Almost 2 years

Wedding date: 2021-06-06

Wedding location: Ballyseede Castle

Photographer: Laura and Benny Photography

Dierdre and Luke met at a UCC Sci-fi Society social.

“Luke had planned to pop the question at Nohoval cove in Cork (one of our fave spots). When the day came, the rain came in force and I had suggested we cancel the trip. Like had a surprise dinner also booked so he was determined to go to Nohoval Cove regardless of the rain. Miraculously the sun came out as we parked at Nohoval cove. Luke sweated in a leather jacket to hide the ring box until we sat down and he finally popped the question. Of course I said yes!”

“As we are both self-confessed nerds, there were many geeky elements throughout the day. The main colour of the day was emerald green to match Deirdre’s engagement ring. The bridesmaid dresses were emerald green that matched the leaf of Lorien pins that the groom, groomsmen, fathers, grooms woman all wore (from Lord of the rings). We also had a caricature of us on the day as a signing board. It was of us in front of Ballyseede castle holding a light sabre and Gandalf’s staff that protected us from a fire breathing dragon on top of the castle. It was a hit with our guests and staff. Deirdre’s bouquets were handmade paper bouquets made of comic books and Harry Potter books.”

Deirdre wore a floor-length a-line gown from Memories bridal boutique in Cork. The dress was ‘Siobhan’ from the WTOO collection. Luke wore a grey suit from Redchurch in Cork. Luke’s tie was also ivory to match Deirdre’s dress.

The bridesmaids wore emerald green a-line floor-length dresses from JJshouse. The groomsmen wore matching grey suit to Luke’s from Redchurch but with an emerald tie to match the bridesmaids. The groomswoman wore a similar style to the bridesmaids and wore a grey a-line dress from JJshouse. The 2 flower girls wore beautiful blush pink dresses from Monsoon.

They had a humanist ceremony conducted by Mary O Shea. Deirdre and the bridal party walked down the aisle to ‘Concerning Hobbits’ from the Lord of the Rings. Munster String Quartet played and it was beautiful. The ceremony happened in the stone room in Ballyseede so the decor old castle style with beautiful paintings, red carpet and decor. The ceremony consisted of a tree-planting ceremony in which a tree was potted in a pot using soil from Douglas in Cork and Dungarvan in Waterford to represent both hometowns as the roots of marriage.

“We also did the handfasting part of the ceremony. During the ceremony, the quartet played the theme from Braveheart, One Day Like This by Elbow, Starlight by Muse, and Signed Sealed Delivered by Stevie Wonder. We had 3 readings by friends and family and one reading even mentions zombies and inventing sandwiches which had everyone in laughter. Mary O Shea kept it so fun and we could not recommend her more.”

“Our venue was Ballyseede castle in Tralee. Beautiful venue with a rich history. The stone room is the perfect ceremony room and does not need any extra decor as it’s beautiful the way it is. There are Irish wolfhounds roaming the grounds and donkeys out the front. Spectacular place.”

“Laura and Benny were outstanding. Half of the bridal party had known Laura and Benny from their own weddings too. So Deirdre and Luke were well known to Laura and Benny at this stage. Having that sense of familiarity was awesome. Even the Maid of Honour booked Laura and Benny for her own wedding the day after Deirdre and Luke’s wedding because of how well they worked. So Laura and Benny will be sick of seeing us at the many many weddings that our paths keep crossing. They were brilliant from start to finish and ensured that the photo sessions are fun and relaxed.”

“We had brass key bottle openers that had tags attached by twine saying ‘thank you for being a key part of our lives’. Luke is a pun nerd so we had to! We also had bagged up a few kilos of sweets for everyone. Originally we had a candy cart but that could not go ahead with Covid and we already had the sweets. So everyone got bags of sweets to keep them going for days.”

“The ceremony was perfection. We really made it our own, from mentioning zombies and inventing sandwiches, to our mothers assisting in the hand fastening, it was memories that will last a lifetime. One other memory to mention was that we did the speeches during the drinks reception and it was great because being an intimate wedding, it was very emotional and everyone was standing closely so we could embrace during touching moments. Everyone could then enjoy their meal without the pressure of a speech coming up.”

“Do it your way. If you want a poem that mentions zombies, go for it. It’s the quirks in a wedding that make it unique to you both as a couple.”

Suppliers

Ceremony and Reception venue: Ballyseede Castle | Photographer: Laura and Benny Photography | Planner/coordinator: Mary Lyons | Ceremony musician: Munster String Quartet | Hair: Tricia O Sullivan | Makeup: Georgina Mackessy | Couple’s outfits: Memories Bridal Boutique, Redchurch | Cake: Family made – 4 tiers, each representing Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter and a film reel on top | Celebrant/solemniser: Mary O Shea | Jewellery: Alan Dalton Goldsmith in Dungarvan | Flowers: Comic book and Harry Potter book hand made flowers on Etsy

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