“Paddy is a huge Bohemian Football Club fan so we decided that we would use their colours as our theme for the wedding. The colours were red and black and actually looked great together so I was happy to go along with it.”
Names: Paddy and Steph Mullins
Length of engagement: Just over 5 years
Wedding Date: 12/7/2018
Wedding location: Woodenbridge Hotel and Lodge
Videographer: Darren Byrne Photography and Film
We met… Back in early 2010, we went to school in the same area so met through mutual friends. We became inseparable very quickly after meeting. We fell pregnant quite soon into our relationship and bought a house together within 6 months of meeting. Our daughter was born in October 2010.
Our proposal… I was really annoyed at Paddy the day he proposed. He had gone to see his friend off at the airport as he was emigrating and we had made plans to go out as a family and he didn’t arrive home in time. When I text him asking where he was he kept telling me to trust him and that he loved me, I then saw a photo of him in the pub with his friends so I was very annoyed when he eventually got home. When he did get home he called our daughter out into the hall and she came back in with the ring box and I went out to the hall to see Paddy down on one knee. Obviously I was so happy I forgot I was mad at him lol. I made fun of him for years after that saying he would have to do it again to make it more romantic. On the 12/7/2017 an exact year before our wedding date we stayed in the hotel we were to be married in and we went for a lovely walk down by the river, we sat there for ages and Paddy got down on one knee again and said all the right things, it was very romantic and made up for the first proposal lol.
Our wedding theme/colours… Paddy is a huge Bohemian Football Club fan so we decided that we would use their colours as our theme for the wedding. The colours were red and black and actually looked great together so I was happy to go along with it. Our invitations, suits, bridesmaid dresses, bouquets, signs and table plan were all part of the theme of red and black. Everything looked perfect.
Things we DIY’d/made ourselves… I made our wedding invitations myself, they were red and black. I designed and made all the signs myself along with the table names and favour tags. We also did our own retro sweet table which all the adults loved.
My dress… I went dress shopping about 18 months before our wedding, I went to one shop which was The Bridal Corner in Glasnevin, and the girls there were brilliant. I tried on 7 dresses. I cried when I had the first one on as I just couldn’t believe I was standing there in a wedding dress. Dress number 7 was ‘The One’. I just felt like it had everything. It had straps which I was very set on having, it had lace, sparkle, it was fitted and it had the most amazing train. I just fell completely in love. I had my mam, mother in law, 2 bridesmaids and my bridesmaids 5 month old with me when I went shopping and they all loved it too. My daughter didn’t want to come dress shopping but she gave her nod of approval at all my fittings, it was a very special moment.
My hair and make- up… My hair and make- up were done by local suppliers. Benita’s in Arklow town travelled up and did our hair; she was amazing to deal with and had us all looking great. My hair didn’t budge all night and was still in the next day until I finally brought myself to take it down lol. Lauren Malone did our make- up; she is a miracle worker and my make -up was flawless and was perfect all day even through all my tears. I would recommend them both to anyone.
His suit… Paddy got his suit in Love Suits based in Blanchardstown Village. He was very much a last minute groom and only went to look at suits about 3 weeks before the wedding. They were great to deal with. Paddy wore a slim fit Tuxedo and he sourced his own waistcoat and bow ties as he wanted a red one to go with our theme so he ordered it online and it looked perfect.
What our bridal party wore… The lads also wore slim fit Tuxedos and they all wore bow ties that matched Paddy’s. The girls wore lovely red dresses. After 8 hours in Dublin City Centre with no luck, we found the perfect dresses online at Little Mistress. I really wanted something that the girls would feel comfortable in so I got something that flowed really nicely and didn’t look too much like a traditional bridesmaid dress. As it was a summer wedding too I wanted something that wouldn’t be too heavy. The dresses were perfect and we were blessed with the weather.
Our ceremony… We had our ceremony in the Lodge of The Woodenbridge Hotel. We chose to have a humanist ceremony as we wanted to be able to make everything personal. We had Richard Spicer as our celebrant and he was great throughout the whole process and was happy to go with everything we wanted, he also made some great suggestions. We went with the unity candle ceremony and the wine box ceremony. The wine box ceremony is where you put a nice bottle of whiskey or something else that will mature well and you write love letters to each other that you put in the box and you lock it. When you reach your 5th wedding anniversary you open it as a celebration but if there ever comes a breaking point in your relationship you can unlock it then. Reading the letters will remind you why you love each other and will hopefully mend what’s broken. We thought this was a lovely idea and I bought a lovely personalised box. Before locking it away in the attic I added some lovely memories from the day. I added our unity candles, Addie’s sheet music, some photographs and all of our wedding cards. It will be great to look through it on our 5th anniversary.
We chose our photographer because… We had met our photographer at a previous family wedding and we thought he was brilliant. He provided a lot in his package which meant we didn’t have to think about photo booths or selfie mirrors. He was so easy to deal with and captured some beautiful photographs. We would be happy to recommend him to anyone.
We chose our wedding coordinator because… Our venue had a wonderful wedding coordinator. Julie-Ann was a pleasure to deal with and no ask was too big for her. We had a great experience from the very start. I pretty much planned the whole day myself but she was always on hand if I needed advice which I was very grateful for.
We chose our venue because… we wanted somewhere that was quite unique. We knew from the moment we approached The Woodenbridge Hotel that it was the place we wanted to get married in. The scenery is out of this world and as Ireland’s oldest hotel it has tons of character. The function room was the perfect size and the ceremony room had the most amazing view. I still absolutely love everything about this hotel. It’s a hidden gem.
Our menu… We had the Vegetable soup as a starter and it was gorgeous. Prior to our wedding we had visited the hotel many times despite living over an hour away and I had the vegetable soup every time as I loved it so much. We had the beef and the turkey and ham as our main course. We thought they were a good option. We also had a hidden vegetarian option as we had 3-4 vegetarians at the dinner. For dessert we had the Trio of dessert. This consisted of Profiterole and Cream, Mixed Berry Pie and Vanilla Ice-Cream. The Mixed Berry Pie is still my favourite, it was delicious. We had nothing but compliments from our guests about the food, everything tasted amazing and portion size was perfect.
Our honeymoon… We have an 8 year old daughter so we wanted to include her in a little holiday after the wedding so after we left The Woodenbridge Hotel we drove to the Clayton Hotel in Sligo which had a kids club and swimming pool, she had a great time. It was great for us to be able to relax for a bit before returning to work. We decided to wait for a few months before going on honeymoon so as to avoid the ‘Wedding blues’. We booked Rome for October. We had an amazing time, we loved the Italian architecture and the food was incredible. I would recommend delaying the honeymoon if you can. I luckily didn’t feel sad about the wedding planning or our day being over; I was delighted to have some great memories and something still to look forward to other than married life.
My favourite part of the wedding day… There are many things that I loved about our wedding. I loved that I could share the day with my daughter and that she played such a big part in it. I loved how amazing I felt in my dress, I don’t think I’ll ever feel so beautiful again. I loved Paddy and I exchanging our vows and that all our favourite people were there to witness it. I loved walking into the room for our first dance and hearing everyone cheering and being genuinely happy for us. I love that I now have memories that will last a lifetime.
My piece of advice for other couples… I would advise couples not to stress about talking to everyone on the day. You get so caught up thinking about getting around to everyone that you miss all the fun things like dancing and the photo booth. You will see everyone again and you can talk about how great the day was.
What is it that makes your wedding unique?
Our daughter played a huge part in our wedding day and she was just incredible. She has been playing the piano for nearly 3 years and decided that she wanted to play at our wedding. She asked her teacher for the sheet music for the bridal march and she practiced for months before the big day. She walked down the aisle and took her place at the piano and she played me down the aisle. She didn’t miss a beat and was so professional that people couldn’t believe she was playing. We kept it as a surprise for everyone. I was so nervous for her but she smashed it. It was so emotional and Paddy and I are so very proud of her. She also took it upon herself to write a speech and spoke before the meal. Her speech was brilliant and everyone was singing her praises all day. Once the big things were out of the way she danced her socks off and had a great time. I feel blessed that we were able to share our day with her and that she will grow up with some great memories.
Suppliers
Wedding venue: The Woodenbridge Hotel and Lodge | Photographer: Glitz and Glamour Event Photography | Planner/coordinator: Julie-Ann Harper | Videographer: Darren Byrne Photography and Film | Musician: Amie Grendon | Band and DJ: Redwood | Hair: Benita’s Hair | Makeup: Lauren Malone | Dress: The Bridal Corner | Suits: Love Suits | Bridesmaid’s dresses: Little Mistress | Cake: Cakes Galore by Polly | Celebrant: Richard Spicer