Sarah and John Paul had an intimate, fun and stylish wedding in the heart of the city! I absolutely LOVE Sarah’s 1930’s inspired dress and her accessories were the perfect fit! I also think John Paul looks super cool in his pink suspenders and bow tie. Their sense of style, fun and laid back personalities created a wonderful atmosphere until late in the evening. Sarah also included some lovely advice, stories and links about their super fabulous wedding…enjoy!
My bouquet…
“At some point in my research, I came across a bridal shoot and the model was holding a brooch bouquet. Carrie from Best of Buds was listed as the supplier so I contacted her immediately. I gathered old brooches and earrings that belonged to my mother and my grandmother and even got a set of pearls to use form my mother in law. Carrie kept me up to date while she was putting it together by sending me pictures of the progress and correcting anything I wasn’t happy with (which wasn’t much.) She has an amazing eye and incredible talent. It’s worth looking into if you have any old jewelry hanging around…lovely to have as a keepsake and someday an heirloom.”
My dress…
“I quickly discovered that I am not the kind of girl that enjoys traditional wedding dress shopping. I found the whole experience exhausting and humiliating and struggled to find one dress that I like, let alone “loved.” Then I stumbled across the London based designers Belle and Bunty online and discovered that Pamela in Vintage Bride stocked their dresses. I loved all of them but particularly fell head over heels about the 1930’s inspired ‘Belle’ dress. It was quite literally the moment where I knew I had to have it as soon as I tried it on.”
Our ceremony…
“Short & sweet! The traditional church ceremony wasn’t our thing so we opted for a civil ceremony in Sir Patrick Duns on Grand Canal Street. We invited all our dinner guests (50 in total) to the ceremony also, so it was lovely to have them there to share it with us. We would highly recommend a registry office wedding, all the guest commented on how it much fun it was and how it’s great to have the formalities over so quickly, but yet still feel very special.”
My piece of advice for other brides…
“If tradition is not important to you then do whatever suits yourselves. It’s YOUR day. Don’t divulge too much information either during the planning process…people tend to give unwanted advice. Also, take some time out on the day for just the two of you…it goes so fast!”
We met…
“To begin with, in primary school! We had come in and out of each other’s lives since then and found ourselves working together in 2004 when I got back from Australia. After a few cinemas dates, as ‘friends’, I earned his respect by giving him a royal beating in Scrabble on night. And that was that.”
Our wedding theme…
“As soon as the dress was picked everything seemed to take on a Parisian/Art Deco/1930s theme. The color palette became pink with black and white, art deco font seemed the most appealing and even the cake took a Parisian twist. The private dining room in the Cliff Townhouse is an incredible venue with old Georgian balconys, windows and high ceilings so we didn’t need to do much with the room except decorate it with Babys Breath arrangements supplied by Mark in The Garden, Powerscourt.”
My favorite part of the wedding day…
“Speeches! Having a small wedding meant it all felt so intimate and real. There were poems, jokes, standing ovations and a lot of tears!”
“We opted for a small Dublin city centre wedding. We wanted to keep the atmosphere pretty informal and romantic and most of all just wanted everyone to have fun.We initially booked a more formal, traditional style photographer but regretted it as soon as we came across Gina’s photographs. They were exactly the style of photographs that seemed to capture the atmosphere that we were after, so we booked her straight away. It turned out to be one of the best decisions we made in the whole wedding process, as her photographs were on the money. All the guests said she captured the atmosphere perfectly. The time spent on formal photographs didn’t feel like it stole time from the day at all. I love that Gina stayed all night to include the dancing…some of those pictures are priceless. It was also lovely having Gina with all the girls for the bridal preparations, all the girls commented that the chat may have been a little different if there was a male photographer with us! If you’re looking for something different or for natural photographs that capture all the pretty details and atmosphere, then you won’t go wrong with Gina. Thanks Gina for everything, you were superb. ”
– Sarah & John Paul
Dress: The Belle by Belle & Bunty – http://www.belleandbunty.co.uk/
Hair & Makeup: Stephen & Cara at Dylan Bradshaw – http://www.dylanbradshaw.com/
Grooms Suit & Suspenders: House of Fraser
Rings: John Farrington Antique Jewellers Dublin – http://www.johnfarringtonantiques.com/
Brooch Bouquet: Brides own vintage brooches put together by Carrie at Best of Buds Heirloom Bouquets
Shoes: “Carmen” by Rachel Simpson – http://rachelsimpsonshoes.co.uk/
Headpiece: “Odessa” by Jo Barnes Vintage – http://www.jobarnesvintage.com/
Personalized Signs: Delightful Living – http://www.delightfulliving.co.uk/
Stationary: Derek at Clear Print – www.clearprint.ie
Croquembouche (Profiterole Tower): Julien at French Wedding Cakes – www.frenchweddingcakes.com