Gorgeous pops of colour, cute graphics & wait till you see where Jaki found her gem of a dress..

By

A little bit retro, a lotta cool, today I'm delighted my first ever real wedding feature (woohoo Niamh -Ed!) is a red-hot creative wedding full of colour, adorable little details and a real sense of fun and love. Bride and artist Jaki used her talents and incorporated her love for all things happy and bright into her day - making it properly unique for her, groom Alan and their 55 guests. This pair clearly love their city and celebrated in not one, or two but three different Dublin venues including Medley and The Pig's Ear, with stops along the way for really special mementos caught by Half A Dream Away. If you're a Dubliner at heart, you'll love this...

Jaki and Alan (illustrated in a super cute portrait above by Nan Lawson) met whilst living together during their college days in Cork back in 2001. House sharing the future love birds mingled in the kitchen and shared some glad eyes (so why did nothing happen??!!). Anyway, who knew the setting for making baked beans could be so romantic? As chance would have it the pair met again, six years ago at Electric Picnic and that was the start of something special (and quite different to those college days)…

Romance ensued, one thing led to another and we arrive to the guys' fun-loving spirit really shines through in their wedding day. Lots of effort was made into making the wedding very relaxed, colourful and most of all - fun. It just goes to show, although weddings often look beautiful and care free, there is hard work behind them and a whole lot of prep. Don't worry though as you can see here it's all worth it in the end..

50's style wedding dress and striped bridesmaids dress

Before saying her I dos Jaki popped her head out the door of her cottage in Stoneybatter and took a wander round the corner to bring an extra splash of colour to the 'hood (best place in Dublin! -Ed - just cos I live there!). Can't believe we missed her! How perfect is her powder blue underskirt and Jessica Rabbit-esque hair? She put the look together with great finds from Dublin's George's St Arcade (more of that later). And what about that for a bridesmaid dress - vavavoom.

Once the fun photos were done, Jaki jumped in her red ride and cruised into town like the dudette she clearly is. Parking the wheels, she popped around the corner to join her patient groom and their intimate wedding party of 55 in Medley on Drury St for an intimate ceremony performed by their friend Finola.

Jaki and Alan by Half A Dream Away Photography

With music and readings chosen by Jaki and Alan, the ceremony was totally unique to them, a proper reflection of their relationship, love story and hopes for the future.

From Medley on Drury St, the reception was just a short wander away on Nassau St, so the wedding party took a little trip by foot through some places you might just recognise.

Blessed with an amazing sunny day it was perfect strolling weather for some relaxed portraits and group shots, and they were sure to include a snap of George's Street Arcade where Jaki and her bridesmaid got their retro-tastic dresses in the aptly named Retro.

Jaki and Alan were even lucky enough to run into some bunting perfectly paired with their simple blue and red colour scheme. Fate if I ever saw it..

Food was a big thing for Jaki and Alan and so they decided upon The Pig's Ear on Nassau Street. "To us so we wanted to choose a restaurant that was known for its standards, knowledge, great tasting food and providence of their ingredients. The Pig’s Ear was a natural choice because their passion comes through in everything they do. The size of the restaurant was perfect for us and the staff were excellent."

As an artist Jaki had a very definite idea about the type of look she wanted to create and spent a lot of time choosing colours and honing in on the small details. The playful details really add a sense of fun, and as the couple worked on a budget they are all purse friendly ideas for a bitta DIY inspiration.

There's always room for a pun or two, especially dowsed in a little romance and pretty doodles!

This stylish couple had some really down to earth advice for all of you in the midst of planning your wedding day "It’s only one day so keep the budget low. DIY is great if you’ve got the time and ability but if it stresses you out, just outsource! People don’t notice as much as you think. If worst comes to worst, confuse and dazzle with sparkling wine!" Priorities on the champagne? My kinda couple!

A big congratulations to Jaki and Alan on their Dublin city celebration. A big Thank You goes to Half A Dream Away Photography for sharing their work with us at One Fab Day. To see more of their work pop over to www.halfadreamaway.com

The Wedding Details