Many couples spend the days and even weeks before their wedding watching the weather and sending prayers up for a dry day. Our lovely couple today, Ciara and Liam were washed out with the heaviest rain possible, but it certainly didn’t dampen their spirits! We’re delighted to share their stone circle, hand fasting wedding with you, captured by the wonderful Olga from Mrs Redhead Photography.
“We first met at a Drumming workshop in Galway, about five years ago. We spent a little bit of time together at more of those workshops, but we really got to know each other at a camp run by our friend, building the stone circle. We were part of the crew helping set up the camp and ended up working together for a couple of days, we kept making excuses to stop working and sit in Liam’s van and talk. I had never met anyone as honest and good as Liam, the honesty bit was challenging and I fought it for a while! But I knew there was no better man than him, he was perfect for me. When he suggested having a baby together and I realised I actually wanted to I knew it was for life, I normally wouldn’t commit to the tiniest thing,” explained Ciara.
Bending the rules of tradition, Ciara proposed to Liam;
“I wanted Liam to know I wanted him. We had bought a gorgeous bell-tent, I said lets camp out in the garden to try it out, before he went to camp for two weeks the next day. We made it cosy with a stove, candles and rugs and then I chickened out of asking him!
The next morning I said I had something to ask him, when I asked him will you marry me he said ‘oh bollocks’! After a few minutes I told him you know you haven’t given me an answer yet, and he kissed me and said of course it was yes,” added Ciara.
Just after the proposal Liam head off to the camp which was actually to help build the stone circle they would later get married at.
“Liam rang me from the stone circle saying what about getting married here? I had been thinking the same thing. That meant having a civil ceremony for legal purposes, and the main ceremony in the circle. We changed our minds so many times about how and when to do both, but we settled on a civil ceremony in the hotel in the morning, with just us and the witnesses, and the big ceremony in the afternoon with all our friends and family,” said Ciara.
The couple asked their friend Ruth to perform the hand fasting as she had been part of building the circle and had done wedding ceremonies before.
“We had a vague earthy, nature theme, to go with the stone circle ceremony. Liam’s sister Maureen made our amazing cake, with us in the stone circle on top of it. I had planned to do lots of DIY bits but with our little son, Padraic my plans never made it!” added Ciara.
“The morning went so smoothly I couldn’t believe it, before I knew it it was time for our civil ceremony, It was beautiful, so intimate and emotional and sweet. We decided to sit and have a cup of tea together to soak it in before we parted ways until the main ceremony. We all walked up the field to the stone circle in a procession, it was powerful to have all our friends and family behind us like that. The ceremony began with some rituals to bring strength to the hand fasting, one of them was a reading from each of elements of the north, south, east and west. The west was the last one, and it symbolised bringing the power of water to our union, all the while there was this huge black cloud looming, and just before we be began our vows the heavens opened. Honestly it was the heaviest rain I’d seen in years, I thought everyone would run away, but they stayed, umbrellas went up, and everyone cuddled up under them laughing. The rain was so loud nobody could hear a word of our vows as the cords were each tied, we roared them, and everyone cheered each time, it was fun. Liam’s best man and brother Pat got a laugh when his reading started with the sentence ‘now you will feel no rain’ for you will each be shelter for the other.
As soon as the ceremony ended it stopped raining and the sun came out! It was like a blessing rain just for us, and definitely made it unforgettable,” said Ciara.
Wedding Suppliers
Ceremony: A stone circle on friend’s land, Co. Clare.
Reception: The Lady Gregory Hotel, Gort.
Wedding dress: Mrs Quinn Charity Shop, Loughrea.
Bridesmaids dress: Debenhams.
Grooms wear: Martin Feeney Suit Hire, Galway.
Photographer: Mrs Redhead Photography, Co. Clare.
Second shooter: Aleksandra Skibniewska.
