The word "dreamy' gets bandied around quite a bit when we talk about real weddings. But I think you'll agree, when you scroll through Una & Ben's beautiful Marlfield House wedding, that their day really does look like quite the dream. Una made for a stunning bride, in her elegant up-do and uniquely laced Myrtle Ivory gown. The bridesmaids were pretty in pink with braided hair and fabulous bouquets. And Ben in his dapper black tux, was beaming throughout, from the personalised ceremony with his former school chaplain, to the sublimely styled reception, filled with flowers and candles. All captured by SOSAC Photography - this one comes with guaranteed swooning...
Una & Ben met in London on St. Patrick’s weekend - in an Irish pub, of course! “We were both living there at the time and had been out with friends watching Ireland v England in the Six Nations. Ireland had a great win and there were quite a few celebratory rounds taken by the time we got chatting that night! Things are a little hazy (blame the sambuca) but we really clicked and exchanged numbers at the end of the night. We met up a couple of weeks later in Covent Garden for our first date and that was that really... We have been together ever since.”
Who else is pinning Una's gorgeous bridal make-up?
Ben proposed to Una after a walking break in Kerry with the bride’s parents, “We spent Easter 2015 on a walking break in Killarney and Doolin with my (Una's) parents. It was the most glorious week of the year and we haven't had weather like it since. We said goodbye to my parents in Doolin, and sailed across to the Aran Islands to spend a couple of days on our own at the Inis Meáin Restaurant and Suites.
On our second day we did a long cliff walk around the island. As we finished the walk we found a gorgeous spot beside an old fisherman’s cottage to sit down to have our picnic lunch looking out over the Atlantic, over to the Cliffs of Moher. I turned to get the food out of my rucksack and when I turned back around there was himself on bended knee.”
Una tells us, what made the proposal even more special, was that Ben had asked her dad for his blessing a few days before, “As I was walking alongside my Mum through the Gap of Dunloe, Ben was on ahead of us having the most serious of conversations with my Daddy... Although I should have realised that there was something going on as Daddy whistled and beamed for the rest of the week!”
Such romantic invitations!
Hair goals... the perfect sophisticated chignon!
From the outset, the couple say it was important for them to have the day they wanted, “You hear people saying that if they were to do it again that they would do things differently and I have often heard people saying that they were swayed by other peoples opinions or expectations. We did everything our own way and this meant that we had the most perfect day.”
For Una, her fondest memories of the day are all the laughter and the emotion, “When we got into the car after the ceremony the driver asked what all the laughing was about and said that he had never heard so much fun coming out of a Church before!”
It was their celebrant who made the ceremony so personal for the couple and their guests, “Fr Scriven, who was the chaplain at St Kieran’s College when Ben was a pupil, entertained us with his stories and kept Ben and the other ex pupils on the edges of their seats when he pulled out some old school records! He helped make the day and particularly the ceremony very special.”
Ben & Una sum up the vibe of their day as, “Elegant, understated and romantic, “The feel was relaxed and intimate.”
Una & Ben say the day was an emotional one, “There were happy tears but also sad tears shed as we sorely missed and fondly remembered Ben's grandmother Lil who passed away just four months before the wedding. She was a huge part of Ben’s life and he was the apple of her eye but she was certainly there in her own way. We thank her for the sunshine that beamed down on us as we came out of the Church after a grey and dismal morning.”
Una says Marlfield House felt just right when they went to visit the venue, “The house and gardens are simply beautiful and fitted exactly what we wanted in terms of style and feel for the day. The food at Marlfield is excellent and the conservatory size was perfect for our numbers. We also loved that we could have exclusive use of the house which made the day very intimate.”
This conservatory room at Marlfield House is so beautiful - I love that lush wallpaper!
Una’s advice for other couples is to try not to stress over your wedding, “Enjoy the planning and build up as much as you can. The day itself goes by in the blink of an eye and it all comes together in the end. Trust your suppliers, they will take over on the day (they do it every day of the week) so relax and enjoy every second.”
The couple jetted off for a fabulous mini-moon in Italy, before their big adventure honeymoon, “We spent a week in Positano on the Amalfi Coast straight after the wedding and then went to South Africa in November.”
The style, the decor and the emotions - oh what a beautiful wedding! Thanks so much to Una & Ben for letting us gush all about their day - and to SOSAC Photography for sharing these gorgeous pictures.
