Melissa and Bryan met on April Fool’s Day... the joke was on them as they lived in different cities and had to spend years commuting to each other every weekend! Bryan was in Dublin for the weekend to watch a Munster match, and Melissa was in a pub called the Waterloo watching a Leinster rugby match with her friends. Bryan spotted Melissa and braved approaching a gang of girls in order to talk to her. They chatted for ages and later that night spotted each other again in a night club and the rest is history.

The Proposal

Melissa and Bryan got engaged on New Year’s Day, 3 years after they first met. They were in Phoenix Park in Dublin, Melissa’s favourite place, and the park was covered in snow. Bryan asked Melissa where her favourite place in the park was, to which she replied "where you walk by the road (which was a long way away), or right here is looking picture perfect too".  So Bryan got down on one knee and proposed.

Hen and Stag Parties

Melissa and fifteen friends went to London for her hen party, where her bridesmaids had a surprise Austin Powers theme. They dressed Melissa up as Foxy Brown, in bright orange and gold PVC trousers and belly top! One of Melissa’s bridesmaids dressed as Austin Powers, and the others all wore 60’s clothes.

Bryan went to Amsterdam for his stag party with a small group of close friends. Three of the group were getting married in a row so they merged it into one crazy trip rather than three.

The Bride and Groom’s Outfits

Melissa had seen a picture in a wedding magazine of a dress she adored, however it wasn’t stocked locally and the price was a lot more than she was prepared to pay. Melissa loved the dress so much that she took a chance and ordered it online from China for a tenth of the price. Her mum made some alterations to the lace on it but other than that it was perfect.

“I am so glad I didn't spend a fortune as I didn't worry about being careful with it on the day. People kept standing on it so the lower layers ripped and were trailing; my brother cut them off with a knife. It was great to be able to do that and laugh about.”

Melissa’s dress had a sweetheart bodice that went past her hips and then out into a 5 layer princess style dress.

“It was fun, light and floaty which is what I wanted.”

Melissa and Bryan went to Thailand on holiday 6 months before the wedding, so Bryan had his suit tailor made in Bangkok by a highly recommended tailor called Pinky! He chose a navy blue 3 piece fitted suit, which he wore with a cream shirt and tie and brown shoes.

The Bridal Party

Melissa had five bridesmaids who wore soft yellow, full length dresses, bought from the same website as Melissa’s dress.  The five groomsmen all wore hired navy blue suits with matching navy blue ties.

Flowers

Melissa’s friend of a friend Joanne Lawlor, who has a flower shop in Carlow, arranged the flowers. They chose roses, tulips, peony roses, eucalyptus with other flowers mixed in. Melissa bought 20 white wicker baskets and Joanne did a fresh, rustic, spring display in each one for the centrepieces. They also had ivy in the church, placed around candles in jars.

The Ceremony and Reception

Melissa and Bryan had a traditional church ceremony in Duiske Abbey in Graiguenamanagh, attended by 140 guests.

“It's a stunning Abbey with incredible ceilings and walls, so there was something for guests to look at through the long ceremony!”

The reception was held in Borris House in Carlow, Ireland. Melissa wanted an alternative venue where they would have freedom and not be tied down to rules, closing hours and have staff everywhere. She found it on the Internet and fell in love with it. It was exactly what they wanted; a stunning house, beautiful scenery, but not too pompous or rigid.

The Cake

Melissa’s friend and bridesmaid Katie, who is a top pastry chef made the cake. It was a choclate biscuit cake with Rolos and Maltesers through it!

“Usually there is loads of cake left at weddings, but there were only a few slices of ours left as people could not stop picking at it.”

The Photographer

Melissa and Bryan chose Wim Vanhengel and Johannes Photography, who both captured the stunning scenery and surroundings of the day.

“My favourite wedding picture is of me with my 92 year old Grandad who always loves a good party!”

Wedding Details

Melissa made all her own decorations. She went to a packaging company in Dublin with her dad and bought different sized jars, and her sister and mum helped her tie ribbons around them all.  On the tables there were small love heart sweets, betting slips for speeches, and each guest had a marriage tip for husbands and wives from 1913. Melissa bought a big roll of material and made table runners and matching napkin ties, with mini pegs to hold the place names on the napkin ties. Each guest was titled as Sir or Lady on the place names which guests got a kick out of. They ended up wearing the place names all day by using the mini pegs. Melissa also bought a strip of red carpet and cream lanterns for the church.

“At one stage I thought I was mad with all the bits and bobs but it paid off on the day. Bryan gave me a hand with everything too and was a great support which kept me sane!”

The Honeymoon

Melissa and Bryan started their honeymoon by going around all the theme parks in Florida, then drove to Miami, Key West, and finished with a Caribbean cruise.

Memories

“The whole day was so much fun from start to finish, but if I had to pick the best parts it would be the wedding ceremony itself and the Irish dancers in the evening who were amazing.”

The Wedding Community

“I found it really useful to see pictures of other real weddings and get ideas from other brides. Things like flowers are hard to pick straight from your head so it was great to look through the photos on the site.”

Tips and Ideas

“Have loads of flip flops by the dance floor as all the ladies feet were aching and they could dance till dawn once they put the flip flops on. I put a red wax seal on all the invites and guests seemed to love that too. We had a videobooth so guests can leave short video messages; it's really hilarious to watch after as it captures all the messing about and friends and family at their best!”

Bride’s Top Tips

“I got my Mam to sew a little purse to the inside of my dress so on the day I could top up my lipstick and blusher anytime I wanted. If you are having a party the day after the wedding, book a hairdresser to have your hair done.”

Groom’s Top Tip

“Don’t leave everything until the last minute!”

Best Buy

“My wedding dress and the bridesmaid dresses.”

Money Saving Ideas

“Making your own invites, booklets and decorations saves a lot of money.”

Bride’s Beauty Tips

“Do your own make up if you are good at it. Use clip in hair extensions for a bit of bulk if your hair is not that thick.”

Photography: Wim Vanhengel and Johannes Photography

Wedding Planner: Linda McAllorum of Perfect Irish Weddings

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