An Elegant Destination Wedding In Ireland With Lots of Surprises

Couple: Sarah and Colin
Engagement length: 2 years
Wedding date: 2025-05-23
Wedding location: Kilkea Castle, Co. Kildare

Sarah and Colin met as emergency room nurses. They were new grad nurses at the time and quickly became friends.

Sarah shares how Colin proposed on their seven year anniversary, in Chicago, Illinois: “The weather that day was typical Chicago weather with possible tornadoes. Colin was frequently checking The Weather Channel and pacing the room. When we arrived to Montrose Beach in Chicago, Colin proposed and the weather was perfect. Afterwards, we had dinner at our favourite restaurant Hopleaf. Followed by a speakeasy magic show. We then met up with both of our parents to grab drinks, and it was the best day ever.”

They wanted the wedding to be full of surprises for their guests, as well as simple and elegant. They selected flowers that were mainly white, with soft hints of pink. The day itself was full of activities, like live musicians, fireworks, saxophone player and Irish dancers.

Colin wore a custom fitted tuxedo made in Chicago. Sarah’s dress was a strapless, hearted neckline light weighted dress with a floral pattern to reflect the rose garden where the ceremony took place.

Sarah’s brother, Matt, officiated the wedding and wore a classic suit.

“Our ceremony was meant to be short, yet meaningful. While my brother officiated the wedding, we also legally solemnised the wedding with our interfaith minister, Derek Bradley. We incorporated the Celtic hand fasting tradition into the ceremony to add an element of Irish tradition. The Dublin String Quartet played our ceremony music. Music choices were derived from our interests that included In My Life by The Beatles, Work Song by Hozier, and pop songs such as Good Luck Babe by Chappell Roan and Lover by Taylor Swift.”

They always knew they wanted to get married in Ireland, because they love it so much! Sarah shares what made them choose the beautiful Kilkea Castle:

“We came across Kilkea Castle through an acquaintance that also married there and when asked, she spoke so highly of it that we decided to book it site unseen. The wedding coordinator Sinead at Kilkea Castle was wonderful and anticipated every need. Also want to mention Waterlily Weddings as a day of coordinator who began coordinating 8 weeks prior and really made sure to coordinate all of our vendors, which was extremely important planning the wedding from across the pond.”

The wedding was beautifully coordinator by Emma Russell on photography and the content creator, Aine Leech.

“Emma Russell was one of the first vendors that we booked due to her style of photography. We felt that her style of photography matched our vision of what our pictures would look like. We ultimately decided to book her because we felt that we could envision her style pictures hanging in our home. We did not book a videographer, we did book a content creator, Aine Leech. She did an amazing job, capturing the small yet personal moments throughout the day as well as late into the evening.”

To keep their guests on their toes, and to keep the day full of surprises, Sarah and Colin really prioritised entertainment. The day started with Dublin String Quartet playing music during the ceremony. Cocktail hour was filled with drinks, including His & Hers cocktails and mocktails. Live musician, Finnean Quinn played the guitar and fiddle. The party continued with Irish Dance Party performing and even including guests in the dancing! After dinner and speeches, guests were ushered outside for an unforgettable firework show by Rocket Pyrotechnics. The rest of the night was handed over to Midlands DJ and a saxophone player who entertained guests and kept the dance floor full all night.

Colin and Sarah share their favourite memories from the day:

Colin’s favourite memory was watching Sarah come down the aisle with her father and the Work Song by Hozier played by the Dublin String Quartet.

Sarah‘s favourite memory is coming out during cocktail hour while Finnean played Can’t Help Falling in Love by Elvis Presley on the guitar and fiddle and dancing in the soft Irish rain with friends and family.

We love asking newlyweds for their best advice. Here’s what Sarah and Colin said:

“Our advice for other couples planning their own wedding would be to include entertainment if the budget allows. As Americans, the length of a European wedding was new for everyone, and therefore the entertainment was key. And to just genuinely have a good time and remember that all your hard work was for a good reason.”

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Wedding venue: Kilkea Castle