Photos courtesy of Black Diamond Photography

The Engagement

Dearbhla Is a lover of the beach and takes every opportunity to visit Conor’s local beach in Donegal (Inver Beach) while visiting his home. On November 9, 2019 Conor suggested a walk on Inver. Dearbhla immediately agreed, knowing how much joy it would bring her for the day. Little did she know that Conor had more than a beach walk in mind. After a fine stroll, this Limerick lady turned around to find her boyfriend down on one knee asking her to be his forever!

The Wedding

Like any great day, one of the bride’s favourite memories is when she walked up the aisle and seeing Conor standing there. Conor feels the same. There wedding party by their side was Clodagh and Rachael as bridesmaids, Michael as man of honour, Pauric as best man and Kevin and James were groomsmen. Little Sophia was their flowergirl, so it was team effort all the way to the top.

After arriving back at the Longcourt House Hotel for their wedding reception, the newlyweds were delighted to see the “absolutely stunning décor” in the room supplied by Danielle from Tie the Knot Weddings. “The room looked absolutely breath-taking.” Conor and Dearbhla’s first dance was “The One” by Kodaline and their wedding party and friends joined them on the floor when Kayla McDonagh of the Experts Wedding Band kicked off a super night of entertainment.

Their wedding favours were scratch cards for their guests and a donation to the Irish Cancer Society. Dearbhla’s mum, is renowned cake designer, Cakes by Deborah. She created the most beautiful bespoke wedding cake for her daughter and son-in-law, and it meant so much to the couple. Mum Deborah also booked The Black Tie Magician, David, to entertain the guests during the meal, going table to table and he really wowed the crowd. “He was absolutely brilliant, everyone enjoyed him.”

How great were The Experts?

“We met Kayla at one of the Munster Wedding Extravaganzas and honestly from that moment we knew she would be singing at our wedding. Kayla sang for us in the church and there wasn’t a dry eye in the place during her gorgeous rendition of Nella Fantasia as I walked up the aisle. From her stunning voice in the church, to having us all rocking to Proud Mary as part of The Experts band after dinner – Kayla and the Experts were absolutely amazing.” theexpertsweddingband.com

How was your experience at the Longcourt House Hotel?

“What can I say; from the moment we enquired with the Longcourt House Hotel we were treated like royalty. Marian, Mario and the rest of the team went above and beyond for us. From the service to the food, guests were absolutely raving about the venue. We cannot thank the team at the Longcourt enough for making our day everything we wished for and more.” www.longcourthousehotel.ie

How was it working with your mom on your wedding cake?

“Well. as many probably know, my mum Deborah is the one and only Cakes by Deborah, wedding cake maker extraordinaire – So it was obvious from the very beginning who was going to be making our wedding cake! I see the attention and care she gives to each and every one of her couples and it is second to none. We gave her total control of the design as we had every faith that she would create a masterpiece – My only complaint was that we had to beg for a taster box, because she argued that we’ve been eating her cake for the last 7 years, so we shouldn’t need one haha. The cake was a work of art and people are still talking about not only how It looked, but how it tasted. We had family and friends from England, Wales, Northern Ireland and even the USA arguing about who would get the last slices to take home – If that doesn’t stand as a testament to how amazing the cake was, I don’t know what would.” www.cakesbydeborah.ie

Suppliers

Rings: Fields Jewellers, Limerick

Dress: Wed2Be in Dublin

Suits: Connolly’s Menswear, Limerick

Cake: The one and only Cakes by Deborah

Ceremony music: Kayla McDonagh and the Experts

Photographer: Black Diamond Photography

Videographer: Ollie Phillips at Woodstock Media

Band and DJ: The Experts Wedding Band

Other Entertainment: The Black Tie Magician

Florist and Décor: Danielle at Tie the Knot Weddings

Photobooth: Selfie Mirror from My Dream Day

Hair: Mairead Culhane, Askeaton

Make-Up: Melanie McCarthy, Askeaton

Alterations: Julia from Button Sewing Studio, Limerick

Invitations: Special Days Wedding Stationery

Wedding car: Irish Diamond Limousines

Honeymoon: A cruise around the Canaries, and a luxury stay in Tenerife