I'm pretty head-over-heels for today's real wedding. Now I might be biased (I was there as a guest!), but I think you'll all agree that the setting, the ceremony, the style, and the couple, in this one are pretty special indeed! You might remember Eoin & Yvette from an episode of the podcast last year, (Yvette has also written features on the site), the pair married at Loughcrew House last summer. Their day tossed out the rulebook and focused on really celebrating their life together, with a completely personalised ceremony, (wait 'til you see Eoin's face when he sees Yvette walk down the aisle!), alfresco speeches, and a chilled BBQ vibe. Photographers, Elijah & Susannah documented this gorgeous couple and their day, and I'm not just saying it because they're my friends, but I think we can all take some inspiration from their "outdoor all day, drinks flowing, sun shining, sit back and have the chats with old friends" kind of wedding.

Yvette and Eoin met while they were both studying at DCU, and their early days were filled with your typical 'college romance' moments! “I saw Eoin walking through campus one day and instantly fancied him, nicknaming him ‘hot guy’,” Yvette tells us. “I was the year ahead of him but we had a lot of friends in common so eventually got talking."

The pair kissed a few times over the term and before they broke for summer, Yvette gave Eoin her number. "I was so nervous knocking on his door, I asked a friend to come with me for Dutch courage. She hung behind me as I passed my number to Eoin but he saw her - cringe! But it worked, on his first day back to college for the new term he called me and we got together shortly after.”

Well prepared, Eoin bought Yvette’s engagement ring two months before he planned to propose, “I bought the ring in June and had planned to pop the question at a weekend getaway with friends. But that wasn’t until August, so I stashed the ring away in my home office and checked on it every other day to check it was still there. I was getting a bit impatient and then one Saturday morning, we were having a lazy start to the day in bed talking about our future and the moment just seemed right.”

In a not-so-subtle move, Eoin jumped out of bed to fetch the ring, “Due to a particularly difficult double knot, I hadn’t quite managed to free it from the jewellery shop bag by the time I got down on one knee and proposed. But she got the idea all the same and said yes.”

If love and laughter is the words that sum up the day, the ceremony was packed with plenty of both, “We didn’t want to be bogged down by tradition and ritual, so for the ceremony, we incorporated some personal touches. Our friend was the celebrant and all the songs and readings were done by friends and family.”

Eoin lost it a little bit when he saw Yvette for the first time, and it was pretty frickin' sweet (I'm getting emosh at the thought of it!)

These two loved the idea of putting their own stamp on their ceremony, “We got legally married at a registry office two weeks before the ‘big wedding’, which freed us up to do whatever we wanted for our ceremony. Our friend Niamh was our celebrant and she designed the entire ceremony for us from scratch. And she played an absolute blinder, to put it mildly. We had games, jokes and plenty of laughter. A lot of guests (particularly older guests who were more used to church weddings) told us later that it was the most fun they’d ever had at a ceremony.”

The couple wanted their wedding to have a relaxed garden party/BBQ vibe that they perfectly describe as “An outdoor all day, drinks flowing, sun shining, sit back and have the chats with old friends, kind of thingy.” AKA, our kind of bash!

What a well-coordinated family! I love that both Eoin and Yvette's mams tied in with the bridesmaids, and that all the gents kept in summery in blues and greys.

Babes! Yvette chose her two sisters as bridesmaids, they wore gorgeous wrap style gowns and carried smaller versions of the bride's bouquet by O'Reilly Flowers laced with peach and blush roses and wild foliage. How pretty are the touches of blue in Yvette's bunch to tie it all together?

Eoin and his groomsmen opted for a tieless look, setting the tone for the relaxed summery vibes. I love how Eoin's lighter suit pairs with the bridesmaids and the peachy florals.

Yvette says she and Eoin visited four other venues before Loughcrew but none of them were ticking all the boxes, “I always loved the idea of getting married in a forest or in ruins, and Eoin was set on a summer, outdoor wedding. When we viewed Loughcrew it was a really dreary day but even through the rain clouds, we could tell this was the one. It had the rustic, laid back vibe we were going for and the fact it was a DIY venue with June availability sealed the deal.”

What a show-stopping bride! I can vouch that there was audible gasping when Yvette walked down the aisle in this stunningly simple gown! The dipped back and flowing skirt were beyond beautiful, and Yvette looked incredible with her hair out naturally, adorned with a fresh flower slide.

The pair lucked out with a balmy summer’s day in County Meath, “Eoin really wanted a summer wedding with lots of outdoor festivities. It was a bit of a gamble choosing a venue where the ceremony and most of the reception space had no shelter but we’d secured a June date so we rolled the dice. It completely bucketed down the day before but thankfully the big day itself was a scorcher.”

After planning such a craic-filled party, we hit these two up for their top tips. “I think making a list of your top three priorities is really helpful as it helps you focus on what really matters to you both,” advises Yvette. “As the day draws closer, accept that not everything will go to plan. And that’s fine. You won’t even notice on the day.”

For Eoin, it’s all about keeping the stress to a minimum and enjoying the process, “Don’t make wedding planning your every waking moment for months on end. When we first got engaged we went full throttle planning mode for the first couple of months but we realised it was sucking the fun out of it, so we hit the breaks for a bit. Just pick a thing to get done that week and just do that. Making a table plan isn’t a fun job so make it a short job that lasts a few painful hours rather than a long drawn out process.

The couple opted for outdoor speeches ahead of dinner, which added to the informality - as you can see, there were lots of laughs!

As you can see, the style game among Eoin and Yvette's friends and family was pretty strong!

When it came to the details, the pair let their gorgeous venue shine but added a few personal touches, “Our wedding was very much a DIY affair and we were lucky that we had bucketloads of super talented family and friends who were gonna make the day extra special and unique. We’d say love and laughter are the two words that spring to mind when we look back on the big day. We did have a Pinterest Board for inspiration but decor wasn’t a focus. For the most part we let the venue speak for itself but we did have a loose colour theme around sage, navy and blush.”

As for the reception, the couple kept to a tried and tested formula, “Food and fun were our main priorities. We wanted our guests to have good banter, be well fed and watered and have fun on the dance floor.” Andrew Holmes Catering created a beautiful buffet feast with sharing boards, a hog roast, and fresh salads.

Eoin works as a whiskey expert, so the pair treated their guests to favours filled with his favourite tipple. The only problem was, the bottles he ordered weren't so mini, so we all got a double shot of the hard stuff!

Why have one wedding cake when you can have twenty! “We had so many cakes on the day, all baked by friends and family. Not only did the cake table look amazing as a result but there was so much choice that there was something for everyone.”

Straight after the festivities, the newlyweds headed north-west for their mini-moon, “We spent two nights pampering ourselves in Castle Leslie. I had always wanted to visit and it did not disappoint. We then rented a remote cottage in Donegal for five days and it was amazing. The weather was unusually good for that part of the country and we were blown away by all the beautiful sights.”

Then it January, it was time for the main event! “We travelled to the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico for two weeks, visiting Cancun, Tulum and Isla Holbox. It was worth the wait and we’d definitely recommend delaying the big honeymoon so couples get to relive that newly wedded bliss all over again.”

So many couples tell us they're looking for a relaxed and informal wedding - and this is how it's done! Thanks so much to Eoin and Yvette for sharing their day with us - and to Elijah & Susannah for capturing it. Make sure you visit the gallery for lots more from the day - it was pretty hard to whittle down the images!