Loughcrew House Venue
Loughcrew House & Gardens Wedding is a wedding venue based in Oldcastle not far from our home town of Kells, Co. Meath and my mother Jess suggested we take a look. It was the first venue we viewed and we instantly knew it was the one for us. We have a beautiful civil ceremony in ruins following by party in an awesome rustic barn. It all creates a perfect afternoon cocktail party. Photos will tell you all about this festival wedding party.
Uniqueness
We had a humanist ceremony in the ruin in Loughcrew Gardens. It was really relaxed and made us feel at ease. We are both passionate about music so had more music than readings and rituals. From The Shirelles to Macklemore, we made sure all of our favourite songs provided the soundtrack to our ceremony. Some of our friends and family sing in the Gospel Choir which made it extra special.
My bridal party consisted of my two sisters; Ciara and Nessa, and my best friend Fergus. Everyone thought it was unusual to have a bridesman but he has been in my life forever so it was just perfect to have him by my side. He loves style so it was easy to find an outfit with him to match my sisters skirt and top combo.
Brendan’s best man (and brother) Gavin and his groomsman (and best friend) Gerry both travelled from Australia to spend the day with us. This made our few days extra special as it was a reunion of all the gang from Oz back on our shores.
We never eat wedding cake at weddings so we opted for a signature drink after the meal instead. They looked great and made sure everyone was ready to dance after their drink!
My dad Ray showed clips of old home movies for his speech. It was such a surprise and brought the house down. I was mortified but was delighted at the same time.
My sister Nessa conducts the Gospel Choir that sang at our ceremony.
My sister Ciara was my right hand woman in wedding planning. She came to meetings with suppliers and as she is the business brain of the family she was great at negotiating!
Here is few words from Kate and Brendan about their amazing day in Loughcrew House Wedding Estate What should I write about this… Chilled out vibes and fun… lots of fun. Kate in her original Mooshki dress. Brendan and his “gang” with their totally laid back manners. Plus the choice was instead of a cake, we had a signature cocktail, Cosmos and Old fashioned. Jacks Railway Bar Kells was the bar.
How did you meet originally and get together?
We’ve known each other since our teens and are both from the same town of Kells, Co. Meath, Brendan and his friends drank in my family pub so it was inevitable we would get together someday! I used to serve him free drinks so he would get the hint, although my dad would kill me if he knew that!! Ha! We are together for ten years and now both live in Dublin 8. Brendan works as a barber in Ranelagh and I work as a television researcher in RTE.
The proposal
Brendan surprised me at Christmas with a trip to Iceland. He had secretly been designing a ring with jeweller Eva Lynch and got down on one knee with the ring on our first night in Iceland. When we arrived home from Iceland, my family were at the airport with signs and made a show of us!
What inspired you?
While we didn’t set out with a theme in mind, as we began to plan we realised we were both drawn to an informal country chic style. Loughcrew Gardens is a DIY venue which meant we had a lot of freedom to pull off our theme.
The groom and groomsmen spent the day before the wedding hanging all of the lights. Brendan’s sister Aoife and my sister Ciara did readings at the ceremony.
What was your favourite moment of the day?
It’s so hard to pinpoint one moment of the day as a favourite, but I think both of us enjoyed the ceremony the most. Sally our humanist made us feel so at ease and the last song, Can’t Hold Us, by Macklemore, set a real party atmosphere for the rest of the day.
What advice would you give to brides and grooms planning their day?
If you are having a DIY wedding, make sure to find a seasoned caterer. Our caterers were a great source of support and advice throughout the planning and were so efficient on the day liaising with the bar staff, the venue staff and the guests.
If you both have a clear idea of what your dream wedding should be in your mind, don’t let anything or anyone stray you off your path! It will all be worth it!