For more than a year, today's real wedding couple Erin and Mark organised the details of their dream summer wedding in Ballyscullion Park - until the COVID-19 pandemic hit, leaving them worried about whether their big day would go ahead. Over the next couple of months, the couple weighed up postponing their wedding against cutting their guest list, but finally decided to move forward with their lucky date and a reduced guest count. Of course, looking at the lovely imagery by NavyBlur Photography, you'd never know that this gorgeous, romantic garden wedding caused even a minute of stress - it looks completely effortless!
So, first things first, how did this lovely pair meet? Erin fills us in, "We first met on the 21st August 2011 when we were 16 at a CEF camp in Kilkeel. After exchanging numbers, things quickly fizzled out and we thought we would never see each other again. However, two years later, we both signed up for the same CEF camp in Scotland and once we were reacquainted, there was no separating us. If you had've told me 9 years ago that the curly haired, surfer boy I met at camp would be the man I would marry, I would have laughed, and yet here we are."
The proposal happened while the couple were on a romantic walk along the North Coast, "Mark really surprised me and was very clever in planning the proposal. He made me think it was my idea to head up to the North Coast for a walk on White Park Bay beach, but, little did I know, he had NavyBlur hiding in the sand dunes waiting for us." She adds, "Halfway through our walk, Mark suddenly stopped, got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. This was only made better by NavyBlur (Christine and Xander) surprising me and turning the day into a engagement shoot!"
The couple's wedding date was a truly special and serendipitous one as it was 9 years to the day since they first met at 16. "We didn’t plan this and it wasn’t even our original date!", Erin says.
Anyone else eyeing up those fabulous blush bridesmaid dresses?! They are from Maids to Measure.
Finding the perfect venue proved surprisingly straightforward for this pair. "As soon we stepped foot in Ballyscullion Park, we knew it was where we wanted to get married. We are both outdoors people and we loved the beautiful gardens and the idea of our family and friends being able to enjoy them and relax during the wedding day. We also fell in love with the marquee. The fact you could have such an elegant reception area that looked out into the beautiful gardens was a big bonus for us. We also loved the freedom people had in the evening to enjoy the fire pit and fairy lights outside, as well as the possibility of enjoying the band and dancing inside the marquee. Another big thing for us was Rosalind, Richard and Cathy at Ballyscullion, from the moment we met them there was nothing they wouldn’t do for us which never changed throughout the whole planning process."
When Covid-19 guidelines meant their original ceremony plans had to change, the team at Ballyscullion Park were happy to host them. They tell us, "it wasn’t in our original plan for our wedding, but, with everything that went on this year, we changed our ceremony from our home church to under the canopy at Ballyscullion."
The couple's al fresco ceremony site featured a romantic door backdrop adorned with garden roses and assorted foliage.
While it may not have been what they originally planned, this wedding turned out even better than they imagined. "After a week full of rain and gale force winds, we were all a little nervous of how it would turn out, but I will never forget standing at the top of the aisle, surrounded by the beauty of the gardens and the sun splitting the trees. There was actually a dark cloud that surrounded the walls of the garden but, inside, the sun shone. This just blew us away and was all our guests could talk about all day."
Erin's little cousin Maddie had the honour of being flower girl for the day. Erin tells us, "it was so special to have Maddie because, when I was her age, I was her mum's junior bridesmaid and I never forgot the excitement of that wedding. It was amazing to see Maddie experience that at mine, a full circle moment."
Before we go any further, we have to discuss Erin's stunning bridal style! We've all the heart eyes for her backless, long sleeve gown, which she sourced at Ivory and Pearl. To complete her bridal look she added a pearl encrusted veil and pearl heels by Charlotte Mills.
Lush, romantic, and airy, the bridal party bouquets featured lots of eucalyptus, alongside garden roses, lisianthus, astilbe and waxflower in shades of ivory and white. A delicate silk ribbon in cream pulled the pretty look together.
Looking back on the big day, the bride advises other couples embrace the process: "Don’t sweat the small stuff, things may go wrong, your plan may change, but at the end of the day as long as you are married to the person you love, surrounded by the people you love, you can't go far wrong."
"Our wedding day was better than anything we could have imagined," she adds. "It was very relaxed and intimate, with just our family and close friends in attendance. Simply being able to have all our family and close friends with us in such circumstances was so special and something we did not take for granted."
In the pavilion, reception tables were set with crisp linens and petite arrangements of eucalyptus, and dotted with candles in glass hurricanes. Simple eucalyptus vines were suspended overhead to add a dreamy effect to the serene scene below.
Later that evening, the couple cut into a stunning three-tier confection iced in white and decorated with fresh flowers.
Erin and Mark had originally planned to go to Croatia for their honeymoon, but, of course, it was cancelled due to Covid. The couple instead opted for a couple of nights in Clandeboye Hotel and then headed down to Dingle for a week. "We absolutely loved our honeymoon and it was so nice to just head away and chill out after the stress of the wedding. Would 100% recommend, you don’t have to travel far to amazing views and great places."
Huge thanks to Erin and Mark for sharing their incredible wedding with us all. And big thanks to the talented duo at NavyBlur Photography for sharing their beautiful photographs with us.
