A Long-Sleeved, Chic and Sophisticated Pronovias Gown for an Elegant Irish Castle Wedding

Like most (I hope all) brides, I absolutely adored my wedding dress (which was a ballerina length lace number with a scattering of sequins) but today’s beautiful gown is my ‘in another life’ dress.  If I had chosen a different wedding style (and had a different figure!) this gown would have been screaming at me from the hanger.  I absolutely adore its elegance and grace, two words which I feel sum up this gorgeous Irish wedding perfectly.

Meet Aoife, who works in homeless services, and Frankie, an engineer and dairy farmer, who married on the 23rd of September 2016 at the church in Oola, Co. Limerick, followed by a reception at Bunratty Castle Hotel, Co. Clare.

Aoife looked incredibly elegant in a long sleeved, low backed gown from Pronovias.  I just adore all the buttons and the utter beautiful simplicity of the cut.

“I had tried on a few dresses, and didn’t even look at the one I bought.  My mother asked me to try it on, and when I did, we all just started balling and we knew it was the one.  My mother wouldn’t let me leave the shop without buying it!”

Photography by Poppies and Me

“We were planning the wedding from Toronto (where we were living at the time) and Bunratty was the first place we looked at on a quick trip home.  The manager David was so helpful and the wedding coordinator Heather was the dream so we made the decision on the spot to have our reception there. We just wanted pure simplicity, with light colours- bright and timeless. We didn’t want too much fuss.”“Frankie and I met at college in Limerick in 2010.  Little did we know that a few nights out and a couple of tipsy kisses would lead to marriage! When we graduated, we left for Toronto where we lived for nearly four years and got engaged at Christmas 2014.  We were engaged for a year and a half before tying the knot, which flew around.”

“Make up was by one of my best friends Rachel Grimes.  I felt like a million dollars; she always gets it perfect.  My hair was by another bestie, Aisling Walsh.”

To complete her elegant look, Aoife wore a long, ribbon edged veil, purchased from Abheil of Adare, as well as sparkly shoes from Roland Cartier at Debenhams.

To finish she chose a spritz of Chanel Chance and a pair of earrings bought in Ha’penny Place in Tipperary Town.

The bridesmaids looked lovely in structured pink gowns from Amarra Bridal in Newbridge, Kildare and the little flower girl looked very cute in a crochet-topped dress from Monsoon.

The beautiful flowers were the work of Cashel Flowers, who had done the floral arrangements for Aoife’s sister’s wedding a few years before.  The soft and muted shades work perfectly with the light and timeless theme of the day.

Aoife was accompanied down the aisle by her beaming father, to Pachelbel’s Canon in D.

“The best part of the day was seeing each other as I walked up the aisle.  In seven years I had never seen a tear in Frankie’s eye and he was ballin’!  When we met each other at the top of the aisle it was a feeling I have never felt before, nearly exploding with love.  The whole day was so perfect, filled with nothing but love and positive energy from everyone.”

 

The vows were the traditional Catholic vows, while for readings, Aoife and Frankie chose an extract from the Song of Songs, and Colossians 3:12-17.

As part of the ceremony Aoife and Frankie exchanged wedding bands, purchased locally in Limerick.  Aoife’s engagement ring was from Anice Jewellery in Toronto- I love the idea that both Toronto and Ireland are represented in her rings.

Today’s beautiful photos come to us courtesy of Sean and Kate of Poppies and Me, who we have had the pleasure of featuring once before on the blog.

“Poppies and Me were recommended to us by a friend who is also a photographer.  We Skyped them one day while in Toronto, and knew we had made the perfect choice.  Sean and Kate make us feel so at ease, and we barely knew they were there on the day.””

They are full of positive energy and it felt as though we had known them forever.  The pictures were out of this world, and I still look at them all the time.  The album is divine and Kate was amazing and patient while we tried to decide on the pictures.  I couldn’t recommend them highly enough.”

Frankie and Aoife also chose to have their day captured on moving film, and picked Joe Boland from Abbey Video Productions to do the honours.

“I have known Joe for years.  His reviews were five star and I always knew he would be the man to capture our memories.  He was so discreet and we never even noticed our day being videoed.  He had a short clip ready for us to view the next day and we had our DVDs shortly after.  We couldn’t be happier.  He is top notch and would highly recommend him to anyone.”

The fabulous cake was the work of Tricia O’ Donnel.  The lace effect icing is particularly beautiful.

“I just wanted something simple and elegant.  Tricia ran with that and made our dream cake.”

Wedding band The Seducers kept the dancefloor full all night and guests were full of compliments about how fantastic they were.

For their first dance Aoife and Frankie chose ‘Can’t Take My Eyes Of You’ by Frankie Valli.

“This was a song that makes us both smile and think of each other when we hear it, it’s upbeat, and one we could enjoy dancing to.”

Words of Wedded Wisdom

“Don’t do things to please other people.  It’s your day, from who you chose to invite, to the dresses, to the food choices.  Do it for you and your husband to be.

When the band is going and everyone is distracted on the dance floor,  just take a minute, you and your new husband or wife, and take a step back to have a look at everyone having the time of their lives and dancing the night away.  Soak it all up.”

“I also recommend saying a few words to the women in your life during the speeches.  Your mam, new mam in law, sister, bridesmaids, besties, all deserve a word or two.  They are the reason you are the woman you are!  I am so happy I got to thank my mam and ladies for all they do.”

What an absolutely beautiful day, thank you to Aoife and Frankie for sharing it with us, and of course to Poppies and Me for the wonderful photos.

Are you marrying on the emerald isle?  If so, take a peek here for some inspiring Irish weddings to spend your afternoon reading.  Perhaps you, like me, have completely fallen for Aoife’s gorgeous Pronovias gown?  Take a look here if so, for more brides in this ever popular brand.

Much love,

Shona x