When a French lady gets married, she does it in style...

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For French bride Virginie and Irish groom Mike the main priority for their black tie wedding was that all of their guests from around the globe stayed together and had fun. Concerned that language barriers would be a dampener on the atmosphere, Mike and Virgine made a special effort to make the day as relaxed as possible and incorporated some clever ideas to ensure everyone had a (black tie) ball. Truly beautiful from beginning to end, this is one for you glamorous brides...

Virginie and Mike's Chic Irish Celebration by Inspired by Love | onefabday.com

Mike and Virginie met at work in London, and although this may not sound romantic, reading Virginie's words it quickly becomes clear that Mike was lovestruck at first sight and made a huge effort to win this beautiful girl's heart... "It was my first ever job and I was so excited to be there – I had worked so hard to get there and was ready to focus on my career, when this Irish guy started to chat with me and be nice with me out of nowhere. We worked very close and had to interact all day, but at the beginning I really knew nothing about nothing, so I kept asking myself why this more experienced guy keep asking me questions I didn't know the answer to. The firm we were working for and the people were very nice and sociable so we would have a lot of networking and social events to attend. We really first started to flirt at a casino themed party that my boss organized – he gave me his coins to play with. Two months later after a tough week and a glass of wine he invited me to come to a bar with his friends and we kissed that night. From there we became inseparable."

Mike and Virgine continued to work together whilst dating and falling more in love. Later down the line Mike surprised the beautiful Virgine with a suitably perfect proposal whilst on holiday in Beirut. Virginie explains..."We were there for the wedding of one of our very good friends. It was our first trip to the Middle East. The day after the wedding we had a lovely lunch outside in the country side with all the wedding guests. It was such a lovely day but by the time we got back to the hotel I was exhausted and didn’t want to do anything. He insisted that we go for a walk at the sunset near the sea side and that I should bring my camera to take pictures. I followed him out of the hotel after a lot of complaints. As we walked closer to the harbour, he stopped and started to say all these nice things about me out of the blue, then got on one knee. I was so surprised and so happy at the same time. I obviously said yes. First thing after was to call my parents who already knew it all as he asked them for permission. I was so touched. Everything was so perfect."

The couple chose to tie the knot in a full traditional catholic ceremony in the magnificent Cobh Cathedral (where our own new team member Sho is tying the knot this Summer!). What a sight Virginie made walking down the aisle in her utterly beautiful Oscar De La Renta wedding gown.

After the candles were lit, the vows made and the register signed, the couple made their way from the cathedral to nearby Castlemartyr, not before stopping off for a few minutes together to take it all in, and of course capture some beautiful portraits.

As Virginie is originally from France, and Mike from Ireland, their main priority was that both French and Irish guests would be relaxed and have a good time. To ensure Virginie and Mike put a lot of effort into planning, including translations in French where needed, and finding the perfect venue to home all their guests for the wedding weekend.

Castlemartyr met all of their requirements and exceeded their expectations... "The venue was the one for so many reasons. First it was a very special place as my husband went there to school when he was little. Second, we really loved the fact that we could have all our guests in one place. Thirdly, the people we met there were so friendly, making us at ease. The scenery of the hotel and its surrounding was also a selling point. We had so many options for places to take pictures."

With the perfect venue booked Mike and Virginie decided on a black tie event, with elegance at the fore.

In keeping with the glamorous theme of the day Virginie and Mike kept their décor elegant, centring on beautiful floral arrangements by The French Touch with subtle smatterings of glitter, pink and gold.

But ultimately the most important and touching thing about the day for Virginie and Mike was the effort all their guests made to attend (from as far as Japan and the US) as well the sentimental speech Virginie's sister prepared - which was projected in French and English subtitles for everyone to easily read. A clever little idea, and definitely one to keep in mind if you're having lots of guests who don't speak the one language.

A huge congratulations to you both, and thank you so much for sharing your gorgeous wedding with us all. A big thank you also to Sona at Inspired by Love for sharing her work with us. To see more Inspired By Love weddings head on over to www.inspiredbylove.co