J & S // Tankardstown House
I can’t believe it’s already a year since this gorgeous wedding! It was picked up and featured over on Confetti magazine where you can see some bonus images. If you follow me on Instagram, you probably already know by now that I’m a huge dog-lover! So having two Maltese dogs to photograph was really the cherry on top of this already amazing wedding!
In fact, the dogs were among the couple’s top priorities when planning the day; “We viewed three venues in total but booked the first one we viewed, Tankardstown. It had everything we wanted, a private estate for us on the day, but more importantly it was doggy friendly! We really wanted Bo and Arlo involved on the day!”
Jennifer & Stephen began dating in 2012 when Jennifer was a contestant in the Miss Ireland competition, and Stephen was a judge! Once they got engaged, they set to planning a personal yet family-focused wedding. “Organising the party is easy, but dealing with people’s expectations along the way is the hardest part. When it comes to weddings, everyone has an opinion and often it’s not what you agree with or want for your day. Balancing family expectations was definitely a challenge for us (mum wanted a church, we didn’t). We eventually compromised and in the end, everyone ended up having a great day- the ceremony we wanted and the party we dreamed of!” Jennifer continues; “The hard part is staying true to you and your partner’s vision for the day and not being swayed by the opinions and emotions of others!”
The morning was such a lovely relaxed affair at their home, opening amazing gifts from Stephen, sipping on bubbly & getting into the dress while the doggies looked on! Before making the journey up to Tankardstown, Jennifer & her Dad had an emotional first look. She was an absolute vision and he was totally blown away!
When picking the vendors, Jennifer and Stephen told me they loved my work, which is a lovely compliment! “We knew the style of photography and videography that we wanted so it was easy to narrow it down. I loved Claire’s “Pinterest” vibes and knew straight away she was my dream photographer. We found Kevin from Little Bear Films on Claire’s recommendation as we wanted someone she had worked with before, and who had a similar style of work.”
Thankfully they got the wedding they planned for. Well, almost! “We originally planned for an outdoor ceremony and the walled garden of Tankardstown was just beautiful. However, I also thought option B if the weather didn’t go to plan, to have the ceremony in the orangery was just as beautiful. It’s so bright there it feels like you’re outdoors!”
“Dress shopping was more stressful than I thought. It was less “say yes to the dress” and more “say hey to the stress”! I knew what I wanted but I just couldn’t find it and became worried that I wouldn’t. I potentially started shopping too early as it was December 2017 when I started. I went to London with my mum, aunt and cousin. There were too many opinions and I wasn’t ready to commit to a dress as it was too far out. But when I didn’t find what I wanted I panicked thinking I never would. I eventually found the designer that I loved and went to one of his trunk shows when it was on in Ireland. As soon as I saw my dress I knew it was the one!” In the end, the gown Jennifer went with was a show-stopping gown, ‘Lazaro‘, from Padanee Bridal. The shoes were Jimmy Choo, and veil and flowergirls’ dresses were also from Padanee Bridal.
“I had followed Tara Anderson, our makeup artist, online for years so knew I loved her work. I had a trial with her but honestly felt I didn’t even need to! She knew exactly what I wanted and I was thrilled with the make up on the day.” Jennifer says. Hair was done by Lukasz from Batik Hair Studio.
“One of my favourite memories of the day was meeting Stephen at the top of the aisle. He took me aback because he was a lot more nervous than I was! He squeezed my hands so tightly for about 15 minutes of the ceremony. As the girl, you play out your wedding day over and over in your head but I don’t think he had, and the emotion of the day definitely caught him off guard!”
The celebrant was Colette Dully from Marry Me Ireland. Music for the ceremony was performed by the Dublin String Quartet.
The bridemaids’ dresses came from Th & Th. The groom and groomsmen also scrubbed up well on the day, wearing a bespoke tuxedo from Louis Copeland, Louis Vuitton shoes and Burberry cufflinks. The groomsmen wore suits from Protocol for Men.
The beautiful floral design was done by Pearle Walker Blossom Dublin. And that amazing cake was the handiwork of the Cake Cuppery. The stationery was a bespoke design by Mot Collins, and mirrored place cards were by Crafty Cuts.
Dinner was followed by hilarious, emotional and heart warming speeches from each of the speakers. They did an amazing job and had the guests both captivated and moved.
Right before their first dance, the couple kicked off the night’s entertainment with a fun sparkler exit outside. This was helpfully co-ordinated by the manager and the groomsmen. The Bentley Boys band got the party underway keeping the dance floor full late into the evening.