Photos courtesy of Gareth McGaughey Photography

The Engagement

It may have taken Conor 10 years to pop the very important question, but he certainly outdid himself with the proposal. Early December 2018 the pair went on a Christmas market trip to Belfast. Day two of the trip, they booked to visit the Titanic Museum. Louise recalls the details fondly; “After the tour Conor took me down to where the titanic was built. We sat on a bench overlooking the dock, the sun shined, and he dropped to one knee and asked me to marry him.” To celebrate they went to the Titanic Hotel for some champagne and lunch.

The Ring

Conor proposed to Louise with “the ring before the ring.” The bride always wanted to design her own wedding ring so when she heard how fantastic Sharon from E-Jewels was in Limerick she made contact and organised an appointment. “It was just the best experience ever having my own ring designed the way I wanted it.”

Louise’s dress was a Sposa Lia A-Line ball gown with floral detail around the bodice. It was an off the shoulder with a sweetheart neckline and the bride said it was the most fabulous dress she ever tried on. She purchased it in The Little White Dress Bridal Shop in Limerick and, together they made slight alterations by adding a belt etc.

Louise’s stunning cake was designed and made by Cakes by Deborah. “I’ve never seen a cake like it, it was amazing,” said Louise.

Favourite memories: Some of Louise’s favourite memories included getting ready the morning of the wedding with her girls and mom in her family home, seeing each other at the top of the aisle and having everyone they loved around them (and those who couldn’t make it watch online.)

Louise’s dad and Conor organised an oboe player to come from Spain to play “Gabriel’s Oboe” from the movie “The Mission” for their ceremony. “Hearing it with the violin was just so stunning we both got emotional during this,” said Louise.

Instead of wedding favours, the couple donated money to Limerick Suicide Watch.

Their theme was Indiana Jones and movies in general. Conor and Louise are full of their fun all the time, so they had to infuse a little bit of this into the wedding. They chose songs from movies and each table was given a song. So, when the song played between courses, guests had to stand up to compete by dancing and singing. “We would give the winner at the end a free round of drinks for their table. The room got very competitive; people were on chairs, using props and taking off clothes but everyone loved it.”

Louise's Advice

“Don’t sweat the small finer details, people won’t notice and it’s not worth ruining your day for. Get all the small things that will stress you nearer to the day out of the way early on. Take every bit of the day in and live in each moment; we did, and we had the most special day. Take a deep breathe on the morning of and just enjoy every moment.”

The newlyweds went to Orlando, took a Caribbean cruise and spent a week in Mexico as part of their honeymoon package booked with Susan Ryan Travel Counsellor.

Louse has been a long-time follower of Brides of Munster magazine and booked Treble and Bass, Cakes by Deborah, Mirror Image, Irish Diamond Limousines and Esquire’s Formal Menswear after seeing them featured in this magazine.

How was your experience with Treacy’s Oakwood Hotel?

“Due to the pandemic, and our original hotel cancelling, we had to find another venue six months out which was really hard but it’s true what they say everything happens for a reason. We had to do many calls to other hotels, and we ended up finding our dream venue. Brian and the team at Treacy’s Oakwood Hotel in Shannon just blew us away they were all so kind and understanding and really made us feel important in every way. All our dealings with Brian were just so easy and all of our expectations were met and exceeded! The food on the day and the service was just out of this world and the décor was just so beautiful you could see all the effort that the team has invested in the day.” treacysoakwoodhotelshannon.com

Suppliers

Engagement rings: E-Jewels, Limerick

Wedding rings: E-Jewels and Topaz Jewellers, Limerick

Dress: The Little White Dress Bridal Salon, Limerick

Suits: Esquire Formal Menswear, Limerick

Bridesmaid’s dresses: JJ’s House (online)

Cake: Cakes by Deborah

Wedding Celebrant: Fr Richard Keane

Ceremony music: Sinead O’Brien

Photographer: Gareth McGaughey Photography

DJ: Paul Prendiville

Band: J90

Other Entertainment: Treble & Bass and Celtic Rhythm Irish dancers

Florist: Louise’s mom and Flowers by Karen

Photobooth: Mirror Image

Hair: Mary Joyce Hairstylist

Make-Up: Jeanette Cronin

Invitations: McNamara Printers

Wedding car: Irish Diamond Limousines

Wedding candles: Maeve Keavey Creations

Mother of the Bride’s outfit: Sinead’s Boutique

Honeymoon: Susan Ryan Travel Counsellor