A Sweet Summerhill House Wedding by Konrad Kubic Photography

Real Weddings

“We had the best time dancing, I don’t think we stopped all night.”

The couple: Kevin Golding & Philippa Lindley
Length of engagement: 2 years | Wedding date: 24th August 2017
Wedding venue: Summerhill House Hotel, Wicklow
Photographer: Konrad Kubic Photography

We met… In outback Queensland, Australia at a charity camel racing meet in a very small town called Mitchell.

Our proposal… I brought Pip back to a location where we had taken a selfie 6 years previous during our first official week together, I had flown down to Canberra in the ACT to see her, where she was at the AIS doing some intense rowing training after competing on the Australian team in the world championships in Prague. Oddly enough, we are currently living in Canberra so it was a handy place to do it. It was in a kind of outdoor hallway feature in a garden on the lake. I had counted the number of joints in the wall so I knew exactly where to stop and pop the question, then got a second selfie in the exact same spot…but this time with the ring on!

Bridal look… Pip’s dress was her grandmother’s wedding dress and after alterations by her mother, the 67 year old dress turned out great. Pip’s hair and makeup were done by local suppliers who were very helpful.

Our ceremony… Our ceremony was perfect. Gerry Byrne was the celebrant and we had it at Summerhill House. We had planned for an indoor wedding, but Summerhill mentioned that they can decide on the day if we could move the ceremony outdoors in their front garden beside the fountain. Well we managed to strike it very lucky and the weather was amazing, so out we went! My cousin is one of the organisers of the Tullow Vintage Club, and so he and his dad brought along two of the most amazing vintage cars for the day, a Ford Pilot and a Jaguar. These cars made the day and I cannot thank them both enough. We had them parked either side of the front door where Pip came walking out to the ceremony, and then went for a spin in them afterwards. At the start of the ceremony we had one of our bridesmaids Ingrid play the violin as Pip was walking up the aisle, then my uncle and his son played a great tune on the guitar and banjo as we were signing the register, and then my brother (the best man) and Ingrid played us out. We loved all the music, it really made the ceremony perfect.

His suit… Organising a wedding from overseas makes it hard, but also easy. Lack of choices in an online world makes for less decision making. I rented the suits from Hennessey’s Suit Hire in Kilkenny. They were very helpful, and well used to working with people from overseas with some good ideas on how to go about choosing.

What our bridal party wore… The groomsmen wore suits from Hennessey’s also and the bridesmaids wore dresses that Pip had bought in Australia.

We chose our photographer because… I loved Konrad’s (Konrad Kubic Photography) website, and he had the kind of photos I liked, very natural. His communication and enthusiasm came across very well in the emails (again, working from overseas) and his price was right. We’re both very happy with the work he and his assistant did on the day.

We chose our venue because… We found Summerhill House Hotel online and loved the old house look to it and its old furniture. It was a very classic look which is what we were chasing. Then I was home for another wedding the year before and had just a couple of days to drive around looking at venues, Pip was still in Australia. As soon as I walked in to reception I was sold on it. The first time Pip actually saw the venue was 2 weeks before the wedding!

Our wedding theme/colours… As we were organising the wedding from Australia, we just went with whatever Summerhill house thought was appropriate, which was perfect. Seasonal flowers and a traditional feel.

Our honeymoon… We went to Italy for a short break after the wedding celebrations had settled down. We flew into Rome for a day and then drove north to Perugia where we stayed with some Italian friends I used to work with in Galway before the GFC hit. We had the best time, and they were the best tour guides. Definitely need to go back.

My favourite part of the wedding day… I think outside of the ceremony itself, our favourite parts of the wedding day would have to be going for a drive in the back of the Ford Pilot, the speeches, and dancing our feet away on the dance floor. We had the best time dancing, I don’t think we stopped all night.

My piece of advice for other brides… Don’t fuss, wear comfy shoes, relax, smile and enjoy it.