Although both Jeff and Jenn hail from Pittsburgh, their romance truly began many moons ago in beautiful Dingle. Years later, after Jeff had popped the question, it seemed only right to return to Dingle (with 40 guests in tow) to get married. Not only did Jeff and Jenn get married in Dingle but they embraced every aspect of the Kerry culture with Irish tweed suits, Murphy's ice cream, pints of Guinness and whiskey after their vows and some rustic country chic décor. Making sure their guests fell just as much in love with Dingle Jeff and Jenn also took some admirable steps to ensure each and every guests had an amazing time. Savo Photography captured this Irish American wedding just right with stunning landscape shots and candid shots of each step of the way, get ready to plan a trip to Dingle...
So what connects Jenn, Jeff and lovely little Dingle? Back in 2005 Jeff and Jenn were both attending law school at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. A group trip to Ireland and then Netherlands was on the cards and Jeff asked Jenn if she'd like to come along. Having always wanted to visit Ireland Jenn immediately said yes, little did she know the trip would end up just Jenn, Jeff and Jeff's roommate at the time Adam. Through the planning stages Jeff and Jenn grew closer and began dating...
On the trip Jeff and Jenn fell in love not only with each other but Ireland, and specifically Dingle. Jenn describes the trip and how it led to this epic Dingle wedding "We drove more than 500 miles over four days in our rental car, listening to the Wolfe Tones and stopping along the way. While all of southwest Ireland was beautiful, we fell in love with the Dingle Peninsula and particularly the town of Dingle. We had our first pint at Dick Mack’s and listened to music all night at An Droichead Beag. In the morning, we drove Slea Head Drive and were captivated by the beauty of the Dingle Peninsula. This was the first of our many international trips together, but no matter where we travelled we always remembered the fun times we had in Dingle and the beautiful scenery. When we got engaged, Dingle was the first place that came to mind for a wedding— we couldn’t think of a better place to make a lifelong commitment to each other than the place where we first fell in love."
But first things first, although they'd fallen madly in love Jeff still needed to propose and all was planned to go ahead after a brunch at the rather Irish sounding Meat & Potatoes restaurant in Pittsburgh "One Saturday morning in August 2012, we had brunch reservations at our favourite restaurant in Pittsburgh, Meat & Potatoes. We had planned to wake up early and take a walk along the North Shore before brunch, but our cats had other plans. Fergus and Duesenberg had kept us awake most of the night before (chasing each other, meowing, fighting, you name it… they did it), so we ended up sleeping in and heading straight to brunch in the morning. We took a walk after brunch, and as we were walking underneath the Fort Duquesne Bridge, Jeff directed me toward a dock in the Allegheny River. We walked to the end of the dock, and Jeff bent over (conveniently) to tie his shoe. When I turned around, Jeff was on his knee with a beautiful, shiny ring."
Formalities sorted it was time to start planning and from the off Jenn and Jeff knew their Irish wedding would have two main priorities: 1. All of their guests would have an amazing time and fall just as madly in love with Ireland and 2. As many locally sourced products and produce as possible would be used.
Adore the Sláinte bunting!
When it came to choosing a venue Ballintaggart House was an easy choice "As soon as we set foot in Ballintaggart House, we knew it was “the one”. The house was perfectly grand yet cozy, and the views from the front across to the Kerry Peninsula and Skellig Michael were the perfect backdrop for our destination wedding. "
To make Ballintaggart House their own, Jeff and Jenn worked with florist Ann Marie O’Leary to complement the natural beauty of the house with personal touches and fab florals. Jeff and Jenn brought wooden, Booker’s Bourbon boxes from America which Ann Marie stained and used for table centerpieces, filling them with fragrant herbs (basil, rosemary and cat nip), hydrangeas, white and purple lilacs, roses, and sweet peas. How gorgeous does that sound?
Jenn went for a classic bridal look bringing her Justin Alexander dress from America.
Shots?
The combination of the lace, veil and flowing bouquet make Jenn the perfect country bride.
Having a destination wedding Jenn and Jeff were all too aware all of their guests had made a huge effort to be there and so they put in just as much effort to make sure everyone had a great time. "Our guests were our top priority. We had a destination wedding, so all of our 40+ guests had to travel to Ireland....We wanted our guests to experience all the Dingle Peninsula had to offer and fall in love with Ireland just as we had on our first trip there together more than eight years before. We created a detailed wedding website with places to go and things to do on the Dingle Peninsula, and greeted our guests with welcome bags filled with travel brochures, restaurant listings, digestive biscuits, tea bags, personalized koozies, local postcards and custom, hand-painted wedding map cards outlining the events scheduled during the three days our guests were in town."
As Jenn has Slovakian roots she also wanted to incorporate this into the day and help with this came in the form of the local priest "While our priest was giving his homily, he said a few words in Slovak so that Jenn’s relatives from Slovakia felt included in the mass. He then translated what he had said, including his request for Jeff to brew a Slovakian beer for him within our first year of marriage!"
Pint of Guinness in hand, Jeff is still the picture of a dapper groom.
After the ceremony Jeff and Jenn took a few moments to themselves and headed to one of their favourite local pubs, Curran’s for a quick whiskey and some gorgeous portraits "Curran’s is our favourite pub, and we have very fond memories of chatting with the locals there during our previous trips to Dingle. We now can count our wedding day in the special memories we have at Curran’s."
After hitting up Dingle's pub hot spots it was time to embrace the true beauty of Dingle and it's scenic natural surroundings.
Such pretty scenes, almost like stills from a movie...
Really keeping things Irish Jeff had his entire suit made from handwoven, Donegal tweed which he complimented with a bright Tommy Hilfiger tie.
Not the only Irish element, Jenn also carried a purple, leather handbag made by Holden Leathergoods in Dingle on the wedding day (They also made both Jenn and Jeff's wedding gifts to each other ). Food and drink wise the couple toasted at the reception in toasting flutes from Dingle Crystal, and guests were served the famous Murphy’s Ice Cream.
Going back to Jenn's Slovakian roots a Slovakian wedding tradition provided one of the most memorable moments of the day "As a nod to Jenn’s Slovak heritage (and to honor her Slovakian relatives in attendance), we incorporated a Slovak wedding tradition into the reception. When we arrived at Ballintaggart House, Jenn’s cousin was supposed to break a plate on the ground and we were to work together to sweep up the pieces, which symbolizes cooperation and working together in the marriage, all while the best man (Jeff’s brother, Sean) tried to kick the pieces of the plate away from us. Well, Sean took “kick the plate” a little too literally and kicked it while it was in midair, shattering the plate and sending shards of porcelain everywhere."
For the wedding meal the team at Ballintaggart prepared some mouthwatering dishes once again showcasing Irish food.
For the tables the guys kept it classic with subtle shamrock shaped escort cards and rustic burlap table runners.
Making sure the day (and night) lasted as long as possible Jenn and Jeff organised for a DJ to play long into the night complete with glow sticks and extra comfy shoes for each of the guests!
How amazing do these cakes prepared at Ballintaggart look?
Jeff and Jenn's day went without a hitch and they have some great advice for anyone planning a destination wedding "If you’re planning a destination wedding, make sure it’s a meaningful destination to you -- if you’re able, travel to the location a few times before the wedding and take the time to get to know the locals. Having this kind of connection to your wedding location really makes your wedding day that much more special-- you’re getting married at your home away from home, and sharing your love for each other and that place with your closest friends and family."
Huge congrats to Jenn and Jeff - it's always so lovely to hear of visitors to Ireland enjoying themselves so much! And a big thank you to Eric Savoie of Savo Photography for sharing your work with us - beautiful as usual.
To see more of Eric's work pop on over to www.savo.ie
The Wedding Details
- Ceremony: St. Mary’s Church, Dingle
- Reception & Cake: Ballintaggart House
- Wedding Dress: Justin Alexander at MB Bride
- Bridesmaids dresses: Nordstrom
- Bride's Shoes: Vince Camuto heels, Hunter boots & Lucky flats
- Groom's Shoes: Cole Haan
- Flowers: Ann Marie O’Leary
- Groom's suit: Samuel Baron Clothiers
- Photography: Eric Savoie , Savo Photography
- Grooms Accessories: Tommy Hilfiger & Robert Graham socks.
- Groomsemen's Ties: Kevin & Howlin
- Bride's Accessories: BaubleBar necklace & Holden Leathergoods bag
- Ice Cream: Murphy's Ice Cream
- Wedding Favours: TerBearCo.
- Stationery: Custom Passports, NattyMichelle Paperie , Mavora art & design
- Make Up & Hair: Clodagh Cluskey at Ballintaggart House & Monique McGee
- Wedding Bands: Brian Smith
- Ceremony Music & DJ: Aoife, Deirdre Granville & John Seymour
- Rehearsal Dinner & Welcome Reception: The Chart House & John Benny Moriarty's
- Toasting Champagne Flutes: Dingle Crystal
- Spa Services: Dingle Skellig Spa
