RATHMULLAN HOUSE
THE VENUE: Rathmullan House, Donegal, Ireland.
Rathmullan House is a fabulous Georgian House run by the Wheeler family in Donegal, overlooking Lough Swilly. Seeing is believing in this one, I cannot even begin to name all of its good qualities. I cannot say enough about their hospitality, staff and the atmosphere at Rathmullan. It is out of this world and something truly remarkable is how intimate it is; it is not often that I can feel so at home whilst in a fancy hotel! I have heard someone say that it’s a place of luxury without feeling like you have to watch your p’s and q’s. They are unique in that, I don’t know of anywhere else like it! Rathmullan was incredible when it came to advising, they took away a lot of the burden of planning and had so many connections and suggestions. They put us in touch with almost everyone we needed to know, from registrar to bands. The other appeal of the Rathmullan was that it was a venue for the ceremony and reception.
One of the most incredible place in the North West of Ireland to have a wedding celebration? Of course Rathmullan House! Not only by stunning setting as House is surrounded by beach and woodland which makes this venue so attractive for your wedding photos. There is something more about Rathmullan House its atmosphere. Straight when you step in you can feel like at home, no rush, everything is so well organised. Rathmullan House is famous also from their cuisine and anybody who has a chance to try the food there will be back for sure.
It was only a short day for me to shoot Jane and Ian wedding there. Quick civil ceremony with such great music following outdoor drink reception and quick photoshoot on grounds. There is one more thing I have to mention…Jane DRESS. As one of my friend comment on Instagram ” This is the dress and a half, and cool hairs to” (thanks, Caroline:)
For those who are curious about a bit of detail:
The dress is by Romanian designer, Divine Atelier and is called Aimee. They had stockists in the north and south Ireland. Jane got it from Blackburn Bridal in London. So yes, the statue goes to Jane for such an incredible style.
YOUR PHOTOGRAPHER
Darek Novak– the photos speak for themselves, don’t they?! Darek had a short day with us, I didn’t want any getting ready shots or anything so he just came for a couple of hours in the middle of the day. I am thrilled with the photos and have had so many compliments about them! Darek was so easy to work with, he quickly organised us down to the beach for our photos and had us back up again before we knew it! We had small beachy arrangements for our table centrepieces. The theme was sort of trees, so our table plan was a tree, each table was a branch and each leaf was a person. The tables were named after different tree types. I have to say that when it came to décor, my Aunty Allison was beyond helpful! From painting the watercolour painting of Rathmullan for the invitations to making the table plan!
THE VISION | I had no clue what I wanted for my wedding, as much as I had badgered Ian for a proposal, I had actually never considered the aftermath! I knew I wanted to feel comfortable and at home. Not too many guests, a relaxed setting and a dress that felt like me. Thankfully, after a bit of searching, I managed to find these things.
THE PLANNING PROCESS I cannot say that I enjoyed planning, at all, but I was fortunate to deal with a lot of great people and had pretty smooth sailing. We decided against a long engagement and started planning in September 2016 for our May 2017 date. My cousin bought me with a wedding planner journal, which I highly recommend!
Ian proposed to me in Montenegro, August 2016, shortly after locking himself out on our hotel room balcony. Luckily I opened the door to let him in, he persuaded me to come out and he got down on one knee and popped the question.Dress- Divine Atelier, Aimee. Head Piece- Hermione Harbutt, Georgia. Shoes- ASOS Makeup- Lisa Wilson, my cousin (I have to add that Lisa did make up single-handedly for the whole wedding party, all whilst 8 months pregnant!) I went to 3 bridal boutiques in Northern Ireland and each shop was lovely, however, I found it very disheartening. All of the dresses were very formal and just didn’t look right on me. I began an online search for ‘casual wedding dresses’ and ‘bohemian wedding dresses’ and I found the designer Divine Atelier. I got the dress, from Blackburn Bridal in London (October 2016), a Divine Atelier gown called Aimee. I just love this dress, there is something so ethereal and vintage about it. I was unable to travel for alterations so took the gown to a seamstress in Bradford upon Avon, I got her details from the Carina Baverstock wedding dress boutique in the same place. Grom chose a Paul Costelloe suit from House of Fraser, it was called Sharkskin and was a dark navy. His shirt, pocket square and tie came from William Suitor in Belfast.
BEAUTIFUL BRIDESMAIDS I would never choose to have 5 bridesmaids, but the decision was out of my hands. These ladies are incredible and I had to have them all! Finding bridesmaids outfits… I can say with absolute certainty that this was the hardest part. For a start- 5 bridesmaids, all of the different body types and one 8 months pregnant was a challenge from the get-go. I searched high and low for a particular cornflower blue coloured dress, but to no avail. After months of searching and ordering and returning I came across the pleated satin skirts on ASOS. They weren’t the exact colour I had wanted but they were good enough! A compromise had never looked so good. We got plain camisole tops (from Topshop) and my Mum had her dressmaker attach some blue lace to the neckline of each top. We got the cardigans from Coast and it was a done deal. Their hair clips were from Hermione Harbutt and were the gift I gave each girl on the morning of the wedding. We had the help of Lavender Green Florists, based in Portrush, co. Antrim. Jean was so helpful and thankfully could pick up on what I wanted despite my vague descriptions! My arrangement was fairly simple and wild and I’m afraid I don’t know the names of all of the flowers. Mostly Delphinium and Roses
HONEYMOON | We had a mini-moon in Fermanagh and Donegal. The weather was unreal, we even swam in the sea (without wetsuits)!
MEMORABLE MOMENTS I will never forget the nerves I had on the morning, to the point that I was in tears a few times, which just washed away as soon as I saw Ian at the end of that aisle. Special mention goes to my flower girl (blarrgirl as she calls it) Heidi who leapt up mid-service to drag me away from the altar… “What is Aunty Janey doing?” My Aunty Allison arriving fashionably late Florence- our registrar. She just made me feel totally relaxed and she had obviously put a lot of work into tailoring the service to suit us. And she was good craic!My Mum and Dad are the most generous people I know, it gets to the point that I actually start to feel guilty. I will never forget how much they have done for me and how happy they were to do it!
ADVICE FOR OTHER COUPLES |Don’t give yourself any jobs that aren’t necessary! You have enough to do. If you’re thinking about making 100 pots of chilli jam you need to consider how essential it is. My Aunt Lynda told me (just after our ceremony, unfortunately) that you should only push the ring down on your partner’s hand to the knuckle and then just let them get it the rest of the way on. Get rid of Pinterest or Instagram, just do you. Don’t compare yourself with others because it doesn’t bring happiness!