Like so many 2020 couples, Laura and Barry had to drastically reduce their guest list to make their real wedding a reality, but, when you peruse the outrageously beautiful imagery by IG Studio Photography, you'd never think for a moment that this is a Plan B wedding. From the early days of wedding planning, Laura and Barry wanted to create the feel of a destination wedding at home, and that's exactly what they did, with help from the marvellous staff at Kilshane House. Oh, and if you just can't get enough of this wedding (we don't blame you!), keep your eyes peeled for Laura and Barry's wedding film by VowArt Wedding Storytellers, which we'll be sharing on Friday!

Laura tells us that she met Barry at a bar in London, through mutual friends. "I went back to Ireland raving about the handsome Northern Irish man I met, while all my friends rolled their eyes," she says. "The following year I moved to London for work, got in touch with Barry and the rest is history. He likes to tell people I moved to London to hunt him down, but I certainly would never admit to that!"

Fast forward four years, and Laura and Barry were making the move back to Ireland, and celebrating their last weekend in London together. Barry took Laura on a walk through Battersea Park. "I spotted a photographer taking pictures of the river up ahead and, next thing I knew, Barry was down on one knee – he had arranged for someone to photograph the whole thing. Thank god, because to say it’s a blur is an understatement! We had the most amazing night, filled with plenty of drinks, and FaceTimed all our families the next morning to tell them."

Laura and Barry tell us that they really wanted their wedding to be a weekend-long celebration, and not just one day. "Originally, we had planned to get married in Portugal, but once we saw Kilshane House, we fell in love, and that went out the window." From then on, the couple resolved to "recreate the vibe of a destination wedding. We just wanted the weekend to be a big relaxed party."

The couple's top priority was making their guests feel at home. "That’s exactly what Kilshane House offered. We wanted an exclusive venue so that everyone would mix and get to know each other over the entire weekend. We wanted good food, good drinks and plenty of it, lots of live music, dancing and somewhere everyone could let loose and enjoy themselves."

The couple fell head over heels for Kilshane House. "The setting is beautiful, there are so many options, from ceremony areas to dining, breakfast to late-night bar. The options are honestly endless. Jane and Finbarr, the owners, are amazing and really did care so much about us and wanted to ensure we had the most special day."

We've said it before and we'll say it before, amazing suppliers take a wedding to the next level! Laura tells us, "A special shoutout has to go to Maria, the wedding co-ordinator at Kilshane House, and Calem, the bar manager. Maria had so much to deal with coming up to our wedding, with so many couples having to cancel due to Covid, but always made time for my calls and got fully on board with all my solutions to everything that was thrown at us. Calem was at Kilshane from when we arrived on Thursday to when we left on Sunday. He was honestly the star of the weekend, I don’t think anybody has stopped talking about him since."

Laura and Barry had planned a wedding for 180 guests, but, unfortunately, due to Covid-19 restrictions, they had to reduce their numbers. This meant that the couple were missing some important people on the day. "My bridesmaid was stuck in Australia, and Barry's groomsman was in Dubai, but we both FaceTimed them the morning of the wedding," Laura says. "Sarah, my bridesmaid, even got up during the night, put on a dress and makeup, and I sent her a bouquet of flowers so she could feel part of the morning. It was hard not having our friends present for our ceremony, but they all watched over Zoom and we could see them all smiling back at us through the laptop."

The couple tell us that they've got such great memories of their wedding. "It really was our only big day out in 2020 and the reduced numbers meant we got to speak to each person individually. It made it all the more special. At the end of the day, it's not the quantity of people you have at a wedding that’s important, it the quality. Each person who came made us feel so special and so loved, and it made the weekend what it was."

Laura tells us that she loved doing DIY projects for the big day. "Making the table numbers, table plan and all the signs for the weekend seemed like a silly idea in the weeks leading up to the wedding, but, looking back at the pictures, I am so proud of all the effort we went to. The table numbers in particular were a big hit."

As you can tell, the couple's dog, Reggie, stole the show! "I had a custom bow tie made to match the bridesmaids dresses and we got some lovely pictures with him," Laura says. "We had him staying with us in Kilshane the night before the wedding and then he left after the ceremony on the wedding day for a few days' holiday! He was great and we couldn’t have imagined getting married without him."

Can you believe that Laura's Dad built this spectacular flower arch!? "It was the photo spot for the weekend and Sarah from Flowers from the Secret Garden did an amazing job of decorating it. We used it as a backdrop for pictures on both days, and brought it into the reception room for our photobooth in the evening."

The aesthetic details of the day are just beautiful, aren't they? "The look of the day was really important to me," Laura says. "I spent months coming up to the wedding drying flowers to make the table plan and table numbers. There were lots of dried flowers, pampas, muted tones… I think when I met our florist I mentioned 'moody boho', and it went from there."

Laura's advice to other couples planning a wedding during Covid-19 is to "follow your gut. Someone will always have an opinion, but at the end of the day, it's about each individual couple, their circumstances and priorities. Don’t worry about insulting people – those who matter will understand and those who don’t understand shouldn’t matter."

The couple hadn't started planning their honeymoon when the pandemic hit, but, they tell us, "we hope to go somewhere warm towards the end of 2021 if it is safe to do so."

Thanks so much to Laura and Barry for sharing their gorgeous Kilshane House wedding day with us, and to IG Studio Photography for providing the beautiful imagery! You'll find more photographs in the gallery below!