“As we were getting married in a woodlands area I had my heart set on greens to be a colour that ran through from the invitations to the flowers to my bridesmaid.”
Your Names: Laura and Aidan O Connor
Length of engagement: 16 months
Wedding Date: 2019-06-15
Wedding location: Langton House Hotel
Photographer: Angela Farragher Photography
Videographer: ER Films
How did you meet and get engaged?
We met for the first time, November 2012, on a Friday night in The Front Door pub in Galway. The following night I had friends visiting and ended up having a bit of a shindig in the house later on that night when one of my friends came back to the house with Aidan and his friend. I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw him standing in the doorway. What were the chances!! The weekend we got engaged I had planned a weekend away in Sligo for Aidan’s birthday but unbeknownst to me, Aidan had other ideas! He took a detour to Achill island (we had been there a weekend away 5 years previously and it was where we first said I love you) and he got down on one knee! I had no idea as I thought I had planned the agenda for this weekend!
Describe your wedding:
There was no theme as such but as we have both been to so many of our friends’ and family’s weddings we just wanted to ensure we planned a day that involved the parts that we enjoy most.
I feel that laughter is the best medicine so we booked a hypnotist for the interval between the meal and the band to get everyone back on a high after the lull that can sometimes occur after eating.
We also wanted something a little different so tried to shy away from traditional wedding band, large bridal party, traditional meal structure etc. One of our favourite parts of other weddings is the drinks reception so we really wanted people to enjoy and mingle here so moved a course from the meal and had them served after canapés with a wider selection of drinks and cocktails available. This was such a fun time for us also to be able to chat with everyone here as we had plenty of time after our photos before the sit-down meal started.
As we were getting married in a woodlands area I had my heart set on greens to be a colour that ran through from the invitations to the flowers to my bridesmaid.
Tell us about your bridal look:
I wanted a classic look so that in years to come I would be able to look back and feel my look wasn’t obviously associated with a certain trend or decade.
I actually picked my veil first and as it was quite theatrical I knew I wanted a simple dress to compliment it.
I visited so many bridal shops but none compared to Vintage Pearl Bridal, it was an experience to be remembered. They are a pleasure to visit. I preferred a flowing romantic feel rather than structured which was super comfortable to wear all day!
Tara and Tanya were more than hair and makeup artists. They were such fun to have on the morning and were so so helpful.
What did your bridesmaids wear?
I decided to have only 1 bridesmaid, my stunning friend Edel wore a folkster flowing sage green skirt and an appliqué top with pinks and greens on it. As the groomsman suit had pink flecks in it they coincidentally complemented each other very well.
What was your ceremony like?
Our ceremony was a traditional catholic ceremony however our family friend Fr. Jim Murphy gave the most entertaining ceremony. It was all over too soon. Guests are still talking about him with some saying he converted them to Catholicism by the end of the mass! It was important to us that we could say our vows facing our friends and family as without them we wouldn’t be where we were that day.
Tell us about your wedding venue:
We made a long list of venues that we intended to visit over various weekends in and around Kilkenny after we first got engaged. As soon as we sat down with Eamonn Langton in Langton House Hotel our list went by the wayside straight away. It seemed too good to be true, every question or hypothetical request received the same response: “No problem, whatever you want.” From moving courses in the meal to changing venues to adding cocktails and flower arches and giving us recommendations of who to contact for what, the team from the receptionist to the coordinator were unbelievably helpful. They made you feel like yours was the only wedding on their agenda (when in reality we were even lucky to be able to get a Saturday in summer!!)
I liked the idea of having a different area for drinks reception, dinner and then moving again for dancing so when we were told that we could have the garden for drinks, ballroom for dinner and the set theatre for dancing all our dreams came true.
The hotel is based in the city centre in Kilkenny and to have the privacy and different themes located in one place was amazing.
What is your favourite memory from your wedding day?
It’s so hard to choose as it felt like 3 different days! We loved it all but I think we both agree that the ceremony was our favourite. The excitement and anticipation just before walking down the aisle is a feeling I’d love to bottle as I could see all our loved ones and of course my groom at the altar. The ceremony flew and it was lovely to be able to have that time to sit and take everything in as the rest of the day and that morning is so hectic.
Have you got any advice for other couples?
It’s so hard to please everyone so just focus on what you both want and try to tune out everything else. While everyone was being seated for dinner we went for a private drink with our bridal party and it was so lovely as these are obviously very special people in your lives and it’s the only time that day that you can just be together and enjoy a little chat and be able to sincerely thank each other during all the madness of the day itself.
Suppliers
Wedding venue: Langton House Hotel | Ceremony location: Jenkinstown Woods church | Photo: Angela Farragher Photography | Video: ER Films | Planner/coordinator: Sean Reid and Eamonn Langton | Musician: 3 Men and a Bass | DJ: Eddie Hughes | Hair: Hair by Tanja KK | Makeup: Tara Power Makeup | Dress: Vintage Pearl Bridal (veil from Folkster Bridal) | Suit: Fallons Galway | Bridesmaids dresses: Folkster | Groomsmen outfits: Feeneys Menswear Galway | Celebrant: Fr. Jim Murphy | Stationery: Wedding Stationery by Sarah | Flowers: Eva Holmes
