“We set up a table with Prosecco for our guests to have after the ceremony, it was a lovely relaxed atmosphere for our friends and family to mingle before we left for the hotel. “
The couple: Yvonne Keane & Richard O’Grady
Length of engagement: 2 years | Wedding date: 19th September 2014
Wedding ceremony: King House Boyle Co. Roscommon | Wedding venue: Landmark Hotel, Carrick-on-Shannon, Co. Leitrim
Photographer: Michelle Prunty Photography
We met… In Edinburgh in 2007. It was a short summer romance that never ended! I was spending the summer there and Richard was packing up after four years at Uni in Edinburgh to move home to Belfast. We met through mutual friends. Two weeks later Richard moved home but we somehow made it work with lots of bus and train journeys between Belfast and Galway!
Our proposal… was five years on. After a magical two weeks in Boston, New York and Chicago we landed in Key West, Florida. After all our sight-seeing we were ready to chill and soak up some sun! Richard took me down to Fort Zachary Park where we watched the sunset over the Gulf of Mexico and out came a ring and a question! We celebrated with dinner and Champagne at a beach front restaurant on a private island which he pointed out from where he proposed! A total surprise and amazing night.
My dress… I got my gorgeous dress from the fabulous House of Delphine, her whole collection is to die for and made choosing the one quite the task! I am still so in love with my dress, Delphine was an absolute dream to work with, so talented and so so lovely!
{Pretty pastel wedding bouquet by Gemma Eden Flowers, Carrick-on-Shannon}
My hair and make-up… I had my hair done by Celine in Grafters in Carrick-on-Shannon, she was great. My make-up was done by the very talented Amanda McCarthy.
His suit… Richard got his suit from Red in Belfast, it was a gorgeous navy slim fitting three-piece suit paired with brown shoes from River Island.
Our wedding theme/colours… We wanted to have a rustic/boho chic wedding theme, with dusty pinks and soft blues as the colour scheme. I love the softness it added to the day.
My favourite part of the wedding day… Walking up the aisle with my dad seeing all our friends and family that came there to celebrate our day with us and of course seeing Richard at the top of the aisle a little emotional.
Our ceremony… we had a civil ceremony in King House Boyle Co. Roscommon, it’s a really beautiful building and Tommy the manager could not have done more to help us with everything there. We set up a table with Prosecco for our guests to have after the ceremony, it was a lovely relaxed atmosphere for our friends and family to mingle before we left for the hotel.
What our bridal party wore… the bridesmaids wore dresses from Ted Baker, I loved the two different colours and the girls loved them. The flower girls’ dresses and the page boys’ outfits were all from Monsoon. The groomsmen were also looked after by the guys in Red in Belfast.
We chose our photographer because… we were instantly drawn to Michelle’s work (Michelle Prunty Photography). We loved her wedding portfolios and natural approach to photography, capturing the moments as they happened. She was so relaxed and lovely to have with us capturing those special moments on the day.
We chose our venue because… after checking out a few places outside of my home town we decided to pop into The Landmark Hotel in Carrick-on-Shannon on our way back to Dublin just for a look, and we were so glad we did. The room and décor was so different from what we had seen elsewhere, it was stunning to see in person and we just fell in love with it there and then. Noelle, our wedding coordinator, looked after us so well from day one, her enthusiasm and energy left us even more excited for the day after every time we met with her. She and Ann were great to work with, so lovely and personable. Nothing was ever too much trouble, they went above and beyond for us.
Our menu… To start we had a medley of appetisers which included a terrine of smoked salmon, duck wonton, melon and berries. The soup was wild mushroom and smoked bacon. The main course was a choice of honey glazed duck or fillet of beef. To finish we chose a warm pear and almond tart, the food was superb.
My piece of advice for other brides… Enjoy the build up to the wedding and on the day itself just let any worries about little things go. The day will be fab and you get to share this day with your favourite people in the world. The day really does go so quickly so really drink it all up and enjoy it! Also be sure to have at least a few days after the wedding before you head away on honeymoon – we had to be at the airport early the Sunday morning which meant we didn’t have as much time to enjoy the next day with everyone after the wedding.