Describing their wedding day as “celebrating happiness and love”, the couple at the centre of today’s real wedding clearly created something special. Robert and Kealan are a travel-loving couple currently based in Australia, but returning home to Ireland for their big day was a no-brainer. The pair's epic Irish wedding celebrated their commitment and love for each other in the company of loved ones (pre-pandemic!) with a humanist ceremony and a reception party at Clonabreany House. Phil Voon from Give Us A Goo Photography was on hand to capture all the wonderful moments of their colourful, travel-themed day and we're thrilled to be able to share them with you!
Robbie hails from Dublin, and Kealan is from Sligo, the couple are currently based in Perth, Western Australia, where they have been living for the past 5 years. The pair have been together since September 2007. Here, they fill us in on their love story, "We just clicked from the moment we met and, as cheesy as it sounds, it really was love at first sight. Within a year of meeting, we were living together in Dublin and, seven years later, we embarked on another life-changing journey together as we travelled to the other side of the world to set up a new life down under. Again, we haven’t looked back since, and have only become stronger as a couple and as corny as it sounds, more in love also."
The proposal happened while the couple were in Sligo celebrating Kealan's 30th birthday. Kealan proposed to Robbie 2 days after the celebrations in Strandhill (after asking Robbie’s parents for their blessing) in Sligo overlooking Strandhill beach.
The couple's ceremony and reception were both held at Clonabreany House in Co. Meath, a special spot that the pair fell in love with while venue hunting. They tell us, "once we had experienced Clonabreany for ourselves and met Mary and the wonderful team, we knew this was our special wedding venue. The venue has such special characteristics, like a cute little bar and courtyard, to a fairy garden and stunning photography backdrops, but, most of all, the venue felt like it captured the essence of how we wanted our day to be, stylish yet relaxed and fun, with absolutely no pretentiousness. We knew it would be a place where our guests could fully relax and have fun. On top of all this, the food options and commitment to quality, and the genuine and personal approach from all the team sold us on the venue."
The pair said 'I do' in a humanist ceremony. "Our humanist celebrant, Eithne Dempsey, made our ceremony so personalised and special we cannot thank her enough."
Before we go any further, we've got to talk about these gorgeous groomswear looks! Robert and Kealan wowed us with their dapper looks the moment we laid eyes on them. We love how they completed their outfits with patent leather black shoes and bespoke bowties.
Look at these cuties! The couple had a mini bridal party consisting of their adorable nieces and nephew.
During the drinks reception, the guests were treated to music by The Kooky Ukes and lots of bubbles in the sun-filled outdoor courtyard.
These images from Robert and Kealan’s day by Phil Voon from Give Us A Goo are stylish and romantic, not to mention filled with fun.
Robert and Kealan's wedding party look so sharp! The pretty mint Groomsmaids dresses were purchased from Debenhams.
After their portraits, the couple and their guests retreated to the stunning reception space at Clonabreany House for an evening full of good food and great entertainment by the Pink Champagne band, followed by a surprise fireworks display themed to Take That’s song Greatest Day.
The couple did all of the planning and styling themselves. They tell us, "a lot of our colour scheme was guided by our vibrant cake creation by Primrose Lane Bakery. The colour palette inspired everything from our wedding invites and stationery, to our flowers, balloons ,wedding favours and overall theming."
The couple also had a travel theme to celebrate their travel memories throughout their time together. We love all the little details they choose including these fun personalised flight-inspired wedding menus!
Robert and Kealan tell us that their top priority was to make sure that their day was truly a day of happiness and fun not only for them, but also for their guests. "For us, being back home in Ireland, surrounded by all of our loved ones, and having a party to celebrate our love, together with our friends and family, meant the world to us. We wanted the day to be a celebration of love. We also wanted the day to be relaxed and full of little surprises for our guests to help them have fun including ice-cream in the Clonabreany courtyard, pop up performances by Kooky Ukes and a surprise firework show in the evening."
The couples advice for engaged couples is to, "be true to yourselves as a couple and have the day you want to have, because after all it is your special day. Don’t get fussed on thinking you need to plan the day based on what is expected or traditional, and don’t feel like you need to go above and beyond (unless it is really what you want to do)." They also add, "try and create memorable moments that you can look back on in years to come as a couple with fond memories."
After the celebrations, the couple headed off on a minimoon to Amsterdam. "As we had travelled from Perth to Ireland for our wedding day, we wanted to spend most of our time on the trip back at home with our family and friends, as we didn't know when we would get back home again, (this was before Covid was even a thought). So we had a four-day city break to Amsterdam and stayed in a boutique hotel overlooking the stunning canals, and explored all the beautiful culture and sights that Amsterdam has to offer. It just so happened to be World Gay Pride when we were there also, so we made sure to celebrate Pride in style and join the party on the canals while celebrating as newlyweds."
Before we leave you, we must say a huge thank you to Phil Voon of Give Us A Goo for sharing these beautiful images with us, and, naturally, to Robert and Kealan for letting us fawn over their fabulous wedding day!
