Tying the Celtic Knot - Heather and Brian's Ireland Destination Wedding by Tamara Lakeman

The ultimate in what you can imagine as an Ireland destination wedding - a ceremony in a ruin on an Island in the Atlantic ocean, breathtaking scenery and a beautiful blend of Irish traditions for a very modern couple

For any of you not from Ireland, today's wedding should be a great inspiration to persuade you to come here for your wedding. It's the  ultimate in what you imagine as an Ireland destination wedding - a ceremony in a ruin on an Island in the Atlantic ocean overlooking breathtaking scenery and combining a beautiful blend of Irish traditions. Heather and Brian came all the way from the US to the tiny island of Inishmore off the West Coast to tie the knot (literally), the sun shone, the birds sang and there were more than a few tears shed  - we're delighted that Tamara Lakeman chose to share her lovely images of this enchanting wedding with us...

I don't think there's anything as romantic as an island wedding, cut off from the mainland, just a couple and their nearest and dearest, together to celebrate love, especially when it's in the cutest of picture-postcard settings...

But how did a couple from 3000 miles away, end up on the Aran Islands? "Brian and I met at a wedding (ha) a month before he was deployed to Iraq in the US army. Several months into his deployment he discovered that I was newly single, and sent me an email asking if I would be interested in writing to him while he was away. So we began getting to know each other for that year through emails, letters, phone calls, and packages I sent him. I greeted him at his home coming and we officially started dating then. Brian got out of the army soon after and went back to school in San Diego to become an elementary teacher, and I having just graduated from college moved to San Diego from Georgia to be with him. Shortly after he graduated from college he asked me to marry him!

I've always been an equestrian. Horses are a big part of my life and I think Brian knew that I couldn't be proposed to without them involved somehow. One morning I was volunteering at a local therapeutic riding center and Brian showed up. I thought he might have been coming to help out but he shocked me by dropping to one knee and asking me to marry him! It was perfect.

It was not long after we got engaged that I started proposing the idea of having a destination wedding. Our families live on the opposite ends of America, and it was becoming problematic picking a location. Ireland was the best place to incorporate everything I wanted in a wedding and it was a stunning location." Once the destination was chosen, the theme of the wedding was a natural evolution: "Our invitations had celtic designs, the welcome bags had a celtic knot on them, and our ceremony was a traditional celtic hand fasting. I have always had a love and fascination for the celtic tradition and celtic history. Having the wedding in Ireland was a perfect way to incorporate those things into our wedding."

My favorite moment of the day was seeing Brian at the ceremony site. My dad and I arrived in a horse and carriage, and we walked up this grassy hill to meet all the guests and Father Dara. Our eyes met, and he immediately burst into tears. Brian isn't a crier and I was so caught off guard by his emotion that it was all I could do to hold it together. It was a lovely moment and I'll always remember the look on his face.

The ceremony location is a dream come true, courtesy of Father Dara Molloy "I worked with Anne Lanier Weddings who gave me a list of vendors on the Aran Islands. When I asked Father Dara to officiate the ceremony, the ceremony location came with that, as Father Dara does the ceremony on Inishmore at Mainistir Chiaráin, which was the perfect backdrop for our celtic ceremony. 

Heather and Brian's parents wrote an introduction about the couple that was read at the beginning of the ceremony. Brian and Heather then read the vows they themselves had written, and picked different guests to do readings, one of which was from the book The Hunger Games.

Father Dara wove a number of number of old celtic, pre-christian, traditions into the ceremony for Heather and Brian.  First, Heather, as the bride, was celebrated at the holy well. The well is a Celtic symbol of the feminine. As the bride Heather placed her hands in the well water, and the guests prayed for fertility, womanhood, and for the bride as wife and mother.

Then came the preparation of Brian, as the groom, at the Standing Stone, which a celtic symbol of male fertility and power.The original celtic standing stone was a phallic symbols, but the monks carved Christian images on it and used it to mark the boundaries of their monastery. At the standing stone Brian placed his hands on it, while the group prayed for him as husband and father.

Rings exchanged, readings read, the knot is about to be tied...

Tying the knot is an old Irish tradition, it's done with a crios, the traditional handfasting cord, made on the Aran Islands by Niamh Trua (whom we've featured before, I had one incidentally!), while blessings on the couple are bestowed.

Once the knot was tied, the floodgates opened...

It seems that the men of this family are the emotional wrecks!

Then finally, to the Sundial, this primitive clock is a carved stone with a hole in it, a stick was placed in the hole to cast a shadow from the sun across the dial. Thus the monks used it to measure out the day and set their periods of prayer. The wedding group gathered in a circle around the Sundial and Heather and Brian placed their index finger of their right hand through the hole, by touching fingers through the hole, they confirmed their marriage vows.

The splendid ruins of Mainistir Chiarain, provide a spectacular location for portraits, and a solemn spot for some intimate moments.

The reception venue, the Man of Aran cottage was where we and our guests were staying, and Joe and Maura graciously prepared dinner that night for us.

What advice would you give to brides and grooms thinking of planning a destination wedding in Ireland? "If you want a destination wedding, don't let anyone tell you not to! Pick a great photographer - those pictures are what you'll have to remember that day and they should be taken by someone who's work you love and who you click well with."

Much love and congratulations from Ireland, Heather and Brian, we are so delighted you had a wonderful and unique wedding here. And of course to Tamara Lakeman we are very grateful that she shared her beautiful images of this event with us, giving a great insight into a very special celtic ceremony. Check out more of Tamara's work on www.tamaralakeman.com

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