Weddings are one big celebration right? In Elisa and Shane's case this was definitely true as their wedding was one big whopping international party with guests from all over the globe! The two met in New Zealand when Irish lass Elisa was travelling, love blossomed and she took Shane home to Ireland as a souvenir, as she likes to say. Food and fun were the main priorities of the day and the super Plas Glansevin mansion ticked all the boxes for their perfect venue. Despite the rain the pair held their outdoor ceremony under a beautiful tree with their guests and several colourful brollies! The party lasted well into the night with an impromptu Haka from the boys and a wee bit of Irish dancing from the girls. Christopher Ian Photography was the man who captured all the fun for us to share with you today...
A New Zealand kiwi and an Irish belle equals a very sweet pairing... Shane is from New Zealand and we met there while I was travelling. He was a friend of a friend who owned a bar in a lovely beach town in the north island, what was not to like! After a few months I was due to get on a flight back home to Ireland to attend a friend's wedding. We had only been dating a few months but I knew if I went home I would always be asking myself 'what if' so I ditched my friend (she has since forgiven me) and stayed. A year later I took him back as a souvenir.
We got married in Vegas about 13 years ago in secret. We played the 'We don't want to get married' card since until last year we both decided that we were ready to come out of the wedding closet and have a wedding. Many of the guests only found out the night before the wedding that we had been married all along when we played our Vegas wedding video. For us though our real wedding was this one, it's the only time we have said husband and wife...Even if it still sticks in our throat at times!
Elisa wore a beautiful tea length gown with a delicate birdcage veil paired with some rather cool shoes by Vivienne Westwood that we love! What a fun pop of red...
The pair added some gorgeous flowers arrangements in simple jam jars to their outdoor ceremony, hanging in them in trees and as chair decorations.
We got married beneath a tree outside and it rained through the entire ceremony. Our guests generously upped umbrellas and donned rain coats over their beautiful dresses to make it happen.
We wrote the ceremony ourselves with the help of our friend Ruth, who acted as the registrar. Because we didn't need an official person we wanted someone who knew us and would be engaging and funny, Ruth was amazing.
My brother and sister and friends played the music throughout and we chose songs that meant something to us e.g. Californication, Chilli Peppers (because that what we travelled around New Zealand listening to, as we only had one CD that worked! )rather than traditional music. Everyone got involved and helped out and that is what made the day for us.
Whoohoo! It's official!
With Shane a chef, great food was a top priority for the couple, so when it came to choosing their venue, Plas Glansevin ticked the food priority box! It fitted 60 people, we had complete use and control of the place and the owners also allowed us to dig a pit in the ground to cook a Hangi which is a traditional New Zealand Maori method of cooking.We didn't want a traditional wedding, we wanted a weekend long party to celebrate with close family and friends. Hiring a place to ourselves insured we could do what we wanted. It did mean more things to think about and do ourselves but it made it better because of it.
The couple added the sweetest personal touches with lace table clothes, flowers in jars, acorn table numbers and mis-matched floral pattern dinner plates.
Shane is a chef and has a restaurant in London so we designed and prepared the perfect dinner for us of venison, woodpigeon, rabbit and foraged local ingredients.
The guests were treated to a spontaneous Haka by the men later in the evening, followed by a Riverdance jig by the women in the group! Good on ya!
What advice would you give to brides and grooms planning their own day? Don't be pressured by tradition, do your wedding the way you want it. If you are considering saving money on not getting a photographer, don't. We nearly didn't, our friends photos are lovely but what we got was amazing! Some wise words ladies and gents...
Congratulations Elise and Shane! Your wedding celebration sure did look like one hell of a party!
A big Thank You goes to Christopher Ian Photography for sharing his work with us at One Fab Day, to see more of his work pop over to www.christopherian.co.uk.
The Details
- Venue: Plas Glansevin
- Wedding Dress: Cutting Edge Brides
- Flowergirls dresses: Poppy
- Shoes: House of Fraser
- Flowers: New Spitalfields Market
- Groom(smen)’s suits: Hugo Boss
- Accessories: Islington Vintage Market
- Wedding Bands: Michelle Oh Jewellery
- Ceremony/Reception Music: Local Gypsy Jazz band
- Catering: Shane's On Chatsworth
- Photographer: Christopher Ian Photography
