Laura & David’s Glorious Day At Camden Fort Meagher by Tomasz Kornas

Real Weddings

Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork

Laura and David’s beautiful wedding day was anything but the norm! They were the very first couple ever to be married in a civil ceremony at the stunning Camden Fort Meagher, Co. Cork. Photographer Tomasz Kornas captured the stunning location with all its underground tunnels, perfectly. With a relaxed and informal BBQ for their reception, Laura and David’s day was pretty amazing looking to us!

 

Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork

Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork

Todays couple, Laura and David first met in May 2008 when he began working at Laura’s local pub, Pine Lodge. David, who is originally from Durbanville in Cape Town played it cool at first and when Laura’s friend asked for his number, he said he didn’t have a phone! A couple of weeks later along with her change for the round, David also gave Laura his number, folded up on a piece of paper!

Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork

“We got engaged on our fifth anniversary. We had organised to go for drinks at Pine Lodge, Dave had gone before hand to meet up with his uncle and I got collected later on with a friend of mine. When we arrived my friend said she needed to go home and walk the dogs, which I thought was a little suspicious! We ordered drinks and went to the pool table, I was just about to take my jacket off and Dave came up behind me and and blindfolded me. He then lead me out of the bar and tried his best at guiding me around. Much to his effort he did a fairly good job, leading me up the garden until he walked me into a tree. We eventually stopped and Dave sat me down and told me to take the blindfold off. There in front of me was Dave down on one knee and in his hand was a little black box. I sat there overwhelmed with emotion surrounded with the most beautiful array of flowers, Dave then asked, ‘Laura Toomey, will you marry me?’ And of course I said YES!” Laura explained.

Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork

When it came to planning their wedding day Laura and David wanted their day to reflect them as a couple with a relaxed and fun atmosphere. After her mum suggested they decided to hold their civil ceremony in Fort Camden,  which they decorated with lots of DIY touches.

“The DIY aspect played a major part in our wedding. We ended up decorating the ceremony venue ourselves, from hanging ivy on the walls to gathering rocks to lay alongside the isle. Looking back I’m really glad we did so, because it gave a more personal touch to the day. We worked really hard the two days leading up to the wedding trying to figure out what exactly the room was missing and coming up with a plan and what an amazing feeling it was, walking down the isle alongside my father knowing we did it and it worked really well,” added Laura.

Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork

“During the wedding instead of a candle ceremony we decided to represent our unity in a sand ceremony. When we started to pour the sand it worked really well, taking it in turns pouring the sanding, but about  two minutes in the sand stopped flowing! We had basically used sand from our hometown, Dave’s parents brought sand from South Africa and I gathered sand locally. As the sand hadn’t been filtered properly there were little pieces of shell that had become stuck- we ended up having to dig the shells out during the middle of the ceremony and it didn’t happen just once, it happened about four times. Looking back it was quite funny and thankfully there wasn’t a single near disaster and even if there was I wasn’t even aware of it,” said Laura.

Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork

The reception at Bunnyconnellans, Myrtilville was a laid back affair with no speeches or first dance but instead a gathering of Laura and David’s closest friends and family, great food from the BBQ and a beautiful wedding cake, which Laura’s friend had made.

Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork

“David’s favourite memory from the day was seeing me walk down the aisle. Having my dad drive me to the ceremony in his Mazda MX5 was one of my special highlights,” added Laura.

Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork Laura & David's wedding at Fort Camden, Cork

Laura & David’s Wedding Suppliers

Ceremony venue: Camden Fort Meagher, Co. Cork.

Reception venue: Bunnyconnellans, Myrtilville.

Photographer: Tomasz Kornas Photography.

Wedding dress: Cinderella’s Closet, Cork.

Bridesmaids dresses: Etsy.

Flowers: Bouquets by Victoria, Carrigaline.

Grooms wear: Tom Murphy Suit Hire, Cork.

Transport: Laura’s Dads Mazda MX5 & friends blue vintage VW Beetle.

Wedding band: Arundo.