How does an Irish lad from Dublin fall in love with a lovely American girl from Austin, Texas? Well, our gorgeous fun and fabulous wedding today will reveal this secret! We absolutely adore Christine and Kevin’s love story and their glorious day at Barberstown Castle, Straffan. Thanks to Phil from Give Us A Goo Photography for sharing their wedding day with us!
“Kevin’s aunt and uncle live in Houston, and they’re close friends of my family. For years, his aunt always talked about her “handsome Irish nephew” who would be “just perfect” for me. In 2005, Kevin and his family visited Houston for Christmas and attended a party at my parents’ home. I still remember seeing him standing in my kitchen, thinking, “Wow, he is handsome!” We remained friends, seeing each other a few more times over the years, until we finally realised there was something more to our relationship in 2010 and started dating. As it turned out, his aunt was right about us being perfect for each other after all!” Christine explained.
For the first year of their relationship, Christine was in Houston, whilst Kevin was still living in Dublin. In 2011 Kevin accepted a job in Manhattan and their relationship quickly developed.
“We both knew it was our chance to see how our relationship would play out while living in the same city, so I decided to move there to go back to school. It was during the first few months in NYC, when everything was in transition and chaotic, that I realised it was for life. I would be on the verge of tears and he would be at his wits’ end with work, but at the end of the day, as soon as we were together, all was right with the world again. We grew closer during stressful times, and that’s when I knew he was the man I wanted by my side for life,” added Christine.
The proposal came a year later in the form of a living room picnic!
“Kevin proposed a few weeks before my birthday in 2012. My parents were set to come into town that evening, so of course, we were desperately cleaning the apartment that afternoon. Throughout the day, Kevin kept saying, “I just want to make sure we have an hour or two to ourselves before they come to have a quick picnic by the river.” With an hour to spare, I finally relented, and as we stepped off the front porch, it began pouring rain. Determined to have his picnic, Kevin cleared the furniture in our living room and set out a blanket. After eating, he presented me with an early birthday present, a “special edition” of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (I’m a huge Harry Potter fan!). Kevin had written a message on the first page and when I looked up from reading it, he was down on one knee. He had also cut out the pages in the book to the chapter entitled The Unbreakable Vow, and the ring was hanging from a ribbon there. My parents arrived soon after, and we all went out to celebrate the engagement together,” explained Christine.
Christine and Kevin planned their day from America with the help of wedding blogs and friends and family back in Ireland.
“We made an initial visit to Ireland to view potential reception locations and visit with hair and makeup people. There were a lot of emails exchanged with vendors over the course of the year and a half of planning, and Kevin had a massive excel spreadsheet file to keep track of it all. Kevin’s mother, Anne, was also amazing, running countless errands around Dublin for us,” said Christine.
On her wedding day Christine wore a pale peach wedding gown with beautiful lacework and beading, which she had chosen in a store in Texas called, Weddings By Debbie.
Christine and Kevin were keen to hold a classy day with a relaxed feel, without the need for any strong themes. Whilst Christine gravitated towards warms colours, Kevin wanted bright summery shades, and so the couple settled in a mixture of pinks, purples, golds, and creams, and tried not to be overly restrictive with their colour palette.
“From the moment the rehearsal dinner started on Friday night, all the stress of planning seemed to melt away, and I was truly overwhelmed with happiness. And that feeling lasted throughout the entire weekend. The day itself was perfect. The highlight for both of us was looking around and seeing our friends and family all gathered together in one place enjoying themselves. I don’t know when we’ll have another opportunity to have everyone we love in one place like that again, so it meant a lot to us,” said Christine.
Christine’s Advice
“Give yourself enough time to plan your wedding, knowing that there will likely be a few hiccups along the way. That list of tasks planned for the final week before the wedding should be started two weeks before the wedding. Delegate if you can- those little last minute things that need to get done can quickly become a source of stress if you try to do it all on your own. And of course, once the day starts, remember that all of those little details won’t really make a great deal of difference – it’s the overall feeling of happiness that you’ll remember when you look back, so enjoy yourself. It goes by so quickly!”
Wedding Suppliers
Ceremony: Clongowes Wood College, Clane.
Reception: Barberstown Castle, Straffan.
Dress: Allure Bridals, Weddings By Debbie, Texas.
Bridesmaids dress: Alfred Angelo.
Grooms wear: Dublin Formal Wear, Lucan.
Photographer: Phil Voon of Give Us a Goo Photography.
Cake: Kaleidoscope Bakery for the main cake, a Murphy family friend made the two side cakes.
Wine: Wines Direct.
Flowers: Ab Fab Flowers, Celbridge.
Bridal cars: Gold Cars.
Videographer: JMB Videos.
Entertainment: Colm Donnelly, DJ4Me.ie.
Wedding Ceremony Musicians: Ammazori Trio.
Drinks Reception Band: Celtic Breeze.
Hair: Christine Murphy with Powder Room Girls.
Makeup: Emma Farrell.
