We all have places in the world that are special to us, that we wish we could bring our friends and family to. And for Cait and Bobby, they made it happen for their real wedding celebration on Valentia Island off the coast of Kerry. An ambitious plan, the pair, who grew up together in Brooklyn, New York, brought 75 people together from both sides of the Atlantic for a week of festivities, culminating in their beautiful wedding at The Royal Valentia Hotel. The gorgeous florals, romantic style and epic portraits of their day were captured by Love Like Crazy.

Cait and Bobby tell us they actually grew up together as family friends but their circles didn’t overlap until Cait came back home for breaks during college. The pair had a few chance encounters and hit it off, until one night when Bobby took the plunge at a mutual friend’s birthday party, “He walked me home that night, like a gentlemen, and I was a goner. We dated in secret for months until we were ready to tell his sister (one of my best friends) and our families. Eight years later, a house in Long Island and a sweet rescue corgi Charlie later, we’ve built a life. And he treats me like a princess everyday.”

The couple got engaged during their favourite time of year, “Christmas is really big in our house. We look forward to it for months. Practically the day after Thanksgiving, we put on Nat King Cole and decorate the tree with all of the ornaments from our travels together.” While they were decorating the tree, Cait twigged that something was up with Bobby, she could feel his heart racing, “He was so nervous, and couldn’t get any words out except “I love you so much” before going down on one knee. We cuddled by the fireplace, admiring the glow of our (barely decorated) Christmas tree, our dog at our feet, giddy. We FaceTimed family later with the news, and enjoyed the night together, just us.”

We love how this pair sum up the feel of their wedding day, “Blessed, dripping in generosity and family love. A wild party where New York meets Kerry: it was a McCarthy family reunion, where we just happened to get married,” explains Cait. “I walked down the aisle to Celtic Vibe singing Cat Power’s Sea of Love, and it couldn’t be more accurate. All of our favourite people in the world, in our favourite place in the world. An overwhelming sea of love.”

As Cait works as a wedding photographer, she had a clear vision of what she didn’t want for her wedding day, “I’ve seen every type of wedding there is - and I wanted almost none of it for myself. All I ever wanted, was to have a few days in my favourite place in the world, filled with all of my favourite friends and family.”

The couple likened their wedding on Valentia Island to being on their ultimate vacation, “Driving around the small island, and having childhood friends biking by, or new family walking around. 75 people flew all the way from America to Ireland to see us get married. Most of them had never been, and our wedding was the perfect excuse,” says Cait. “My dream came true - I got to share my happy place with the people that make me the happiest.”

Cait loved the idea of getting married on the island where both her grandmother and grandfather grew up, “They moved away to find work and reconnected when they were older. My grandmother insisted she would only marry my grandfather if he took her to America - where they started a family. My parents have since retired and moved part-time to Valentia, a place we would visit every few years growing up, but now consider our second home.”

The couple opted for a church ceremony, “There are two churches on the island, where they alternate service every other week. The Saturday we chose, services were at the church in Knightstown - right next door to the Royal Hotel. During the ceremony, we had the normal readings, but had two family members recite the Prayers of the Faithful - one in Gaelic, and one with English translation. A lone butterfly was flying around us as we said our vows.”
 

This wedding is proof that with the right suppliers, you don't need to compromise on style if you're getting married in a remote location. Not only did Cait and her bridesmaids look stunning in their BHLDN gowns, but they carried cool, contemporary florals laced with peonies and protea, "We used wildflower floral hoops instead of traditional bouquets - and had floral hoop centrepieces, and three extra-large floral hoop design elements hanging on the walls behind our sweetheart table." 

One they’d decided on the location, Cait and Bobby knew the perfect venue to host their big day, “There is one special place on the island where we would go every time we would visit, The Royal Valentia Hotel. Just a few years ago, they renovated to include a 200-person venue. Once I heard they were renovating, I just KNEW - way before we were engaged. There is a picture of eight-year-old me sitting at the Royal bar, on my first ever visit to Ireland, in 2000. We recreated the picture the day before the wedding, 20 years apart.”

The pair planned activities in the days leading up to the wedding, “A hike for all the newcomers, which was the perfect ice-breaker, my cousin surprised us by bringing a bottle of Dingle whiskey, we all kept warm with a shot on the top of the cliff. A welcome party at my parents’ house. We planned on a boat trip to the Skelligs the day before the wedding, but it was rained out - so we rented the community centre gym for all the kids and families to play epic games of dodgeball and pass the time in the rain.”

After planning such an adventurous celebration, we hit Cait and Bobby up for their top planning tips. “It is so easy to get stuck in all the details of the day. But on the day, forget it all. Set up everything so no one has to come to you in case anything goes wrong. At the end of the day, the only responsibility you should have, is to get married. Let it all go on the day of, and just enjoy it.”

The couple also urge others to do their homework on the legalities of a destination wedding, “Make sure you know exactly what you need to be legally married in another country! We needed paperwork that doesn’t exist in America, and found ourselves scrambling the week of the wedding.”

Of course, as with all destination weddings, some family members weren’t able to make the trip to Ireland. “We were sad to miss them - including my uncle, who passed a few days before the wedding. We asked a cousin to sing “The Parting Glass” at grace, in his honour.”

Cait's keen eye for weddings is evident across the styling of the day, the vellum menus are a particularly chic touch, "The stationery by Polk Paper featured handmade paper wrapped in twine and vellum, sealed with clear wax with Italian ruscus inside. She created two watercoloru paintings for our invitation suite, one of a map of Valentia Island, with all the important wedding and local landmarks, and one of the Skelligs. She’s incredible! For our cake, Gabi Bakes Cakes made a three-tiered naked cake, with different flavours for different layers."

The newlyweds took a three-week honeymoon right after the wedding, “We spent 11 days in Italy - Venice, Florence, Rome, Amalfi Coast. We then spent nine days in Greece - Crete, then Santorini. I wish we had more time in Italy - swimming in our own private piece of the Amalfi Coast, in a sweet little AirBnB in Ravello, was the highlight of our trip.”

Thanks so much to Cait and Bobby for sharing the story behind your wonderful wedding with us - and to Love Like Crazy for documenting it so beautifully! Visit the gallery for even more from their day.