AILISH & VINNY

27 June 2014 / Fota Resort, Cork

We met…

Through mutual friends who set us up! Our mutual friends Muireann and Dermot (who were part of our bridal party- what better way to say thank you!) brought Vinny out for Ailishs birthday night out on the 27th June 2008. What a birthday present!

Our proposal…

On the 27th June 2013, exactly 5 years since we met…happened in our kitchen at home, having pizza and wine! It was Ailishs 30th birthday on the 30th June, and that weekend we were having a 30th birthday bash which then happily turned into an engagement party! We then went to Morocco that Sunday for a week of celebrations- engagement, 5year anniversary and 30th birthday!! Vinny proposed with my grandmother’s engagement ring, which we had restored by Askoy Jewellers in cork city. Staff here were very helpful and acknowledged sentimental value of the ring…

Our wedding theme/colours

Green and Cream

Our ceremony

Took place in tallow church, Co. Waterford, where Ailish grew up and family live. Ailish’s uncle Tony was the celebrant, which made the ceremony very personal and special.

We chose our photographer because…where do we start! Our friends had Trish for their wedding, we were part of their bridal party, so we saw how professional and brilliant she was, her photography is flawless! She managed to capture the whole day, every little detail, without us even knowing where she was. We wanted our pictures taken at Ailishs parents house, Trish called there some weeks before the wedding to see the garden etc and we were able to chat about what photos etc we wanted. Our photos are more than we ever expected, looking through them feels like watching a video of the day as everything is captured beautifully. She also did a slideshow of the days pictures before the first dance, we loved this! our friends and family are still talking about it, it really is a special part of the day!

We chose our venue because…

We felt Fota Island Resort was beautiful, inside and out, the food has a great reputation and we knew we would have no fears or worries on the day, all the staff were extremely helpful and professional, couldn’t have done anymore for us, leading up to the wedding and the day of. Our guests spoke about how friendly the staff were and how fantastic the food was, so all were happy!

Our honeymoon…

We went to Cuba for 17 nights.. It was exactly what we wanted, we spent the first half relaxing with cocktails in a 5* all inclusive, exactly what we wanted as we were pretty wrecked after the wedding parties! Then we went to Havana which was absolutely brilliant- great food, live music, walking, sightseeing and of course lots of mojito! We booked our honeymoon with GoHop.

My favourite part of the wedding day…

Very hard to choose!! I loved getting ready with the girls and my mother… Loved walking up the aisle with Dad, even though I dreaded it! Loved the ceremony and seeing Vinny! Loved the photos and the drive to the venue.. Loved the meal, speeches, dancing, resident’s bar!!! Loved it all!

My piece of advice for other brides…

Try have all the small bits organised a few days before the wedding day as it’s really nice to have a pamper day, meet friends, lunch etc before the wedding.

Make sure and have a trial for hair and makeup, then you all know what you want therefore no stress on the morning!

Also On the morning, enjoy the whole experience of getting ready and forget about time, leave the professionals and your bridal party make sure things are going in time.  Take a couple of moments throughout the day and night with your husband, look around and take it all in- it’s your wedding day and it really does go too fast!

Even though you’re wrecked the next day get up and have breakfast with your guests.

Even though everyone says it… Enjoy the day and remember what it’s about… Whatever goes right or wrong on the day you are getting married to the man you love and who loves you.. That makes the day perfect! X