“For us we wanted ‘fun, food and drinks’ to be the main elements of the day.”
The couple: Ashley St. Claire and Michael Funchion
Wedding date: 6th May 2016 | Wedding venue: Hotel Kilkenny
Photographer: Peter & Aurelia – Fleeting Moments Photography
We met… Over the stroke of a keyboard! Haha. We both worked in separate companies that had to deal with each other daily and after two years of knowing each other through email, Facebook nudged us in the right direction.
Our proposal… We love America (which showed in our table plans on the day!) and we had organised a trip travelling the East Coast of America – part of it was due to take place in New York where my husband’s sister is from. We organised to rent bikes and cycle around Central Park. We nearly didn’t go as the weather forecast for the day was bad. Mike proposed in Central Park when we were sitting in the sun eating our picnic of American Subs and reading the New York property section of a newspaper! I wouldn’t change it for the world!
My hair and makeup… My hair was done by local hairdressers The Edge and they really understood that I was looking for something relaxed to go with the rest of my theme. My makeup was probably the only area I knew in advance where I wanted to go – Karen Maher Make-up is absolutely fantastic. She is a dream to work with and uses all the brands I love. I think she was my first booking after the venue.
His suit… Was rented from Grooms in Kilkenny and we added the ties ourselves so we could really fit in with the day.
My dress… My dress was really different. Totally afraid it would not be anyone else’s cup of tea but it was just so pretty and The Bridal Boutique Fairview were an absolute dream to deal with. They also do all the alterations in there so it was an added bonus when you already have enough suppliers to deal with!
Our wedding theme/colours… I wasn’t a big fan of ‘matchy matchy’ I just loved how pastel colours can all just blend together and I just love vintage so we had pastel bridesmaid dresses, pastel flower bouquets, a pastel flower arch and lots of burlap and lace around the bouquets in the personalised bridesmaid bags, tins with burlap and lace on the pew ends and vintage suitcases for holding flip flops.
My favourite part of the wedding day… This had to be the Church and outside afterwards, we had beautiful weather and the ice-cream van outside was so relaxing and it let people get the chance to mingle and relax.
We chose our photographer because… We wanted to capture the day and not just ourselves posing but the whole event and feel like moments we may not see or may not be able to catch in a picture had been saved. Fleeting Moments Photography were a dream to deal with and Peter has an amazing eye for detail, always in the background but somehow he got pictures up close and in the moment that people didn’t even know were being taken at the time.
Our menu… We had so much food! We had ice cream from Rockfield Ice Cream outside the church, canapés, mini personalised cupcakes, scones and home-made biscuits. We also served alcoholic punch in little personalised milk bottles with vintage straws and added little jars of sweets to each person’s place setting as a wedding favour. Slightly changing the menu to suit our tastes was fun and we had chicken and fish goujons served with chips in little newspaper cones instead of the usual after’s food.
We chose our venue because… we wanted character in our drinks reception area and loved the stone walls at Hotel Kilkenny – we wanted a boutique feeling on the day with lanterns on each table. Hotel Kilkenny were so willing to let us make it as personal as we wanted it to be.
My piece of advice for other brides… Don’t worry what others may think on the day and if they are going to judge anything. For us we wanted ‘fun, food and drinks’ to be the main elements of the day. I really wanted to make it have a personal touch by personalising as much as I could but knowing I won’t make everyone happy we just tried to relax and enjoy it all, which we did. It really is the best day of your life so enjoy it – that time you have in the car between the wedding photos/church and the reception venue is such a great time to catch up with your new husband, have a drink, relax and enjoy each other as it just speeds up the moment you arrive at the reception.
Suppliers
Wedding venue: Hotel Kilkenny | Photographer: Fleeting Moments Photography | Hair: The Edge Hair Studio, Callan, Kilkenny | Makeup: Karen Maher Make-up | Ceremony: Our Lady of Coolagh, Callan | Cake: Maria’s Cakes | Invitations, Table Plans and Signs: Wedding Creations – Caroline, Wexford | Dress: The Bridal Boutique Fairview | Groom’s suit: Grooms, Kilkenny | Ice-cream van: Rockfield Ice-cream