“I love the colour blue and peach. My maid of honour and bridesmaids came shopping with me and Alison came across the bridesmaid dresses in Folkster.”
Names: Suzanne & Paul O’Hara
Length of engagement: 1 & ½ Years
Wedding Date: 21st June 2018
Wedding location: Glasson Lakehouse
Photographer: Stephen Corkery
Paul and I met through a friend on a night out. We had a lot of fun that night which ended with me giving him a piggy back up a very steep hill in Balbriggan. Very charming… We had so many laughs that night and it has been the same ever since (well at least most of the time). He then added me on Bebo and the rest is history.
Our proposal… Christmas Eve 2016 Paul had been out with his friends and I was at home in my parents’ house. Paul rang me in a panic as he was locked out of the house. I arrived home to Paul having a row with his friend who was winding him up. He must have already been on edge as he never has a row with anyone. As I walked towards Paul I could see that he was visibly upset. I soon found out the reason being none other than our big baby, Bubba, the Great Dane. While we were out Bubba broke into the sitting room and destroyed the place.
He took down the Christmas tree, unwrapped all the beautifully wrapped presents, broke a lovely picture and ate two whole bars of Butler’s chocolate. To be honest it had not come as a huge shock to me as Bubba, the tyrant had been up to such antics before. Paul stormed into the house and went straight to the toilet. I called him to ask if everything was ok and it sounded like he was crying (something else I’d never seen him do). I called my dad and told him Paul was in the toilet upset and Bubba had destroyed the sitting room. To my surprise my dad, brother and mam arrived up to our house and started cleaning.
I was completely confused about everything that was going on so I went to bed. Christmas morning I woke up and the sitting room was sitting absolutely perfect. Paul handed me two wrapped presents that Bubba luckily did not get near and a beautiful Christmas stocking. I unwrapped the first present which was a Bruce Springsteen book (huge fan), and then he also got me a Jenga game which I was hugely excited about. I then put my hand inside the Christmas stocking and there was a little box inside. When I looked at Paul he was on one knee. He took the little box from my hand and opened it.
He asked me to marry him and made me the happiest woman on earth. Finally I understood all the drama and upset from the night before. He had wanted everything to be so perfect, but Bubba had other plans. He had asked my father for his blessing which was why my father had arrived up to clean the sitting room. I love to tell our story of our engagement.
Our wedding theme/colours… I love the colour blue and peach. My maid of honour and bridesmaids came shopping with me and Alison came across the bridesmaid dresses in Folkster. I loved them on the ladies straight away. I thought they were very flattering and beautiful on them. My mam also went with the blue theme and Pauls mum with the peach colour. They all looked so beautiful on the day.
Things we DIY’d/made ourselves… I lOVE DIY. We made our Invitations during the great snow in February 2018.
My dress… I bought a dress in a sale just two months after we got engaged and fell out of love with it eight months before our big day. Then I went to The Bridal Venue in Glasnevin and the ladies in the bridal shop were a fantastic help. I wanted something that felt a little more bridal. I loved my dress. It had Italian ivory lace with a champagne tone underneath which did not make me look so washed out.
My hair and make up… Joanne and Dayna were fantastic.
His suit… Navy three piece with a green tint from Dorian Black Balbriggan.
What our bridal party wore… Bridesmaids wore Grey/Blue full length dresses from Folkster. Groomsmen wore navy three piece suits from Love Suits, Swords.
Our ceremony… We got married in the Naul Church. It was a lovely ceremony with our celebrant Fr. Donal Toal. Lorraine did a wonderful job with our flowers. The church looked beautiful. Lucy Kavanagh was our ceremony singer. She was excellent. So many of our guests commented on how beautiful the ceremony was.
We chose our photographer because… We came across Stephen’s ad online. He hadn’t done any weddings but he had beautiful photos on his website. We contacted Stephen and met up with him in the city centre one Sunday. We had a chat and then did a spur of the moment engagement shoot in the grounds of Trinity College. It was very relaxed and Stephen made us at ease. The engagement shoot gave us a little practice for the wedding day. We thought the photos were very natural, and he captures people in the moment.
On our wedding day, Stephen arrived at Paul’s house early in the morning and was still snapping away until nearly 12 that night. He put in a huge amount of work that day, and when he sent us our photos we were delighted! Every time we look at them it brings us right back to the happiest day of our life. Thank you Stephen for doing such a wonderful job.
We chose our venue because… A friend had told us about the venue after viewing it for their own wedding. We took a trip down one Sunday and fell in love with Glasson Country House Hotel & Golf Club straight away. The view of the lake, the bright open reception room, and the outdoor area were all amazing. Gareth, our wedding co-ordinator was a great help on the run up to the day and on the day of the wedding. He made sure everything ran smoothly so that everyone enjoyed the day.
Our menu…
Starter – Chicken & Mushroom Vol au Vents
Soup – Leek and Potato soup
Mains – Roast Sirloin of Beef or Salmon with lemon Chardonnay Sauce
Dessert –Glasson Trio Dessert, Baileys Cheesecake, Apple Pie, Profiterole & Ice-cream
Our honeymoon… First we went to Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic. We stayed here for one week in Secrets Cap Cana Resort. This was very relaxing, perfect after the wedding. It was pure Luxury. The staff gave us everything we wanted and more. We did a day trip to Santo Domingo, and a speedboat, snorkel, and snuba excursion another day. The snuba was amazing, we were on the seabed feeding tropical fish from our hand. From there we flew to Denver and rented a car for a road trip to Las Vegas.
We spent four nights on the road, stopped in Glenwood Springs, Moab, Monument Valley, and the Grand Canyon. This part was very busy, we did white-water rafting on the Colorado river, horse-riding with a Navajo guide around Monument Valley, a couple of hikes, and seen the Grand Canyon and the Hoover Dam and so much more along the way. We finished off with four nights in Las Vegas where we stayed in the Cosmopolitan with a room overlooking the Bellagio fountains. In Vegas we saw Cirque Du Soleil, Tournament of Kings, gambled badly and took in the sights of Vegas. Best trip of our lives!!
My favourite part of the wedding day… We both really enjoyed the church, but seeing everybody through the day was great. Ardgillan for the photos and the drive to Athlone were nice as they gave us some alone time away from the madness of the day. They Pearls finished it off so well, as soon as they started nearly everyone was on the dancefloor for the night.
My piece of advice for other couples… The day flashes by in a second, take it all in, relax and most of all enjoy every minute.
Suppliers
Wedding venue: Glasson Lakehouse | Photographer: Stephen Corkery | Planner/coordinator: Gareth Jones | Videographer: Ray Yore from Ray Yore Films | Wedding Ceremony Musician: Lucy Kavanagh | Florist: Lorraine Mulhall | Band: The Pearls | Hair: Joanne Kelly | Makeup: Dayna McCaul | Dress: The Bridal Venue, Glasnevin | Grooms Suit: Dorian Black | Bridesmaids dresses: Folkster | Mother of the Bride Outfit: Jacques Vert | Groomsmen outfits: Love Suits, Swords | Cake: Patricia O’Neil | Rings: Appleby’s Dublin | Celebrant: Fr. Donal Toal
