Claire and Eoin's autumn wedding had a wonderful fairytale twist. The couple who live in Cabra in Dublin tied the knot in a sensationally romantic wedding at a prestigious 19th-century country estate surrounded by breathtaking scenery. Their nature-inspired big day at Killruddery House in Co. Wicklow was packed with beautiful botanical touches from Claire's wildflower embroidered wedding dress to the colourful floral arrangements in the Victorian conservatory where they exchanged vows, and there's no forgetting their impressive wedding cake and uber-cute crocheted bouquets. Their rustic reception was packed with cool touches from their fun twist on the popular photobook to their truly unique wedding cake toppers. They had the Child of Prague in the garden, so their Killruddery House wedding day was blessed with great weather and documentary-style photographer Renata Dapsyte captured the true essence of their splendid celebrations. Let's get going!
Claire is from Meath and Eoin hails from Dublin. The seeds were sown for their happily ever after when they met during their first year in college at a house party in Lucan. They gradually became close friends after that and they started dating after three years. Eoin reveals there were a "lot of hints" in the run up to the proposal.
We love their engagement story and there's no one better to tell it than Eoin himself. "We’d chatted about it a few times, and (disastrously) Claire had seen a photo of the ring on my desktop monitor. When I invited her on a walk to Howth suspicions were at an all-time high, so I planned out a needlessly elaborate fake out. When we reached the view over Baily Lighthouse I took out three wrapped presents: one record and two books."
The second book was Circle of Friends by Maeve Binchy which is one of Claire’s favourite books but it was a very special copy as it had a hollowed-out compartment and a jewellery box. "Claire excitedly opened it, revealing a pair of earrings! She looked up in confusion to see me kneeling down with the actual ring. She was delighted and said yes immediately, after giving out to me for the prank."
Their wedding day on September 23rd, 2023, had a nature and fairytale theme. "We wanted a classic yet slightly quirky vibe, with unexpected elements and pops of colour." They admit they viewed Killruddery House knowing full well that it was outside their budget but once they saw the stunning orangery they were smitten and they reconsidered their spending.
"The combination of the gorgeous glass roof, the breathtaking grounds, and the charming reception area made it obvious that this was the perfect spot. We wanted to tie into the enchanted forest feel of Killruddery’s grounds, and the gorgeous, earthy flower arrangements in the beautifully lit orangery."
The bride made her way to the aisle in unforgettable style, in a character-filled vintage Volkswagen camper van from Volks Weddings. Their wedding styling was loaded with gorgeous contributions from their friends, like how they used art drawn by Claire’s friend Niamh in their invites and Claire then created a stamp depicting herself and Eoin for the backs of the envelopes.
Claire and her craft club pals painted dainty flowers on the candles for the ceremony too. Flower wedding dresses have been blooming in popularity and Claire was a vision of whimsical grace in her ethereal fit and flare gown from Etsy which boasted tulle bow sleeves and wildflower embroidery, as did her veil.
Sweetly, her something blue was the earrings she was wearing when Eoin proposed to her. Claire's bridesmaids looked utterly fabulous in forest green bridesmaids dresses which married with the green vines on her dress. We were blown away with the bouquets and boutonnieres, it took Claire and her friends Emily and Doireann months to crochet and knit them.
All the hard work paid off because they were so fabulous and unique. "Each flower in the bouquet represents a close friend or family member of Claire’s, including lavender and daisies for her late grandmothers and pink carnations to match her mother’s wedding bouquet." They exchanged vows in the imposing surrounds of the orangery which is inspired by the Renaissance gardens of Italy.
It is a lush haven and the fresh foliage which adorned the ceremony chairs added to the verdant aesthetic. The couple did a ring-warming ritual, which is a meaningful and low-pressure way to include your guests in your ceremony. "Every guest got to take one of our rings and imbue it with good wishes before we exchanged them. It was beautiful looking down at everyone we love sending us nice thoughts."
They were thrilled with the atmosphere their celebrant Bonnie evoked during their ceremony. "From the off we got on great with her and she really helped us think through the kind of ceremony we wanted. She was very interested in our personal story and catering the ceremony to our own personal tastes. She’s also possibly the soundest person alive, we would recommend her to anyone."
Eoin’s aunt Mary gave a very moving reading of I Carry Your Heart With Me by E.E. Cummings. Their dear friend Meabh who is a harpist provided the spine-tingling soundtrack to their ceremony as she performed Bat Out of Hell and You Took the Words Right Out of My Mouth by Meat Loaf, Elton John’s Don’t Go Breakin’ My Heart and Belle and Sebastian’s Piazza New York Catcher.
Another unforgettable musical moment came courtesy Claire’s cousin Matthew, who forms one third of The Celtic Tenors. He teamed up with his two children to give a rousing rendition of First Day of My Life by Bright Eyes. "That was truly special," they say.
They held their reception in The Grain Store, the 19th-century barn conversion which has a vividly rustic vibe. With festoon lights overhead, tables were dotted with colourful taper candles and vibrant blooms including dahlias and were held in glass vases. The table numbers were displayed on carved wood bark adding to the nature theme.
They will cherish their wedding photos forever. "Renata Dapsyte, and her second photographer Milla were both great. Renata in particular was great at keeping things moving and getting through loads of shots all over the grounds, which we really appreciated. She was also very friendly and good at directing us to get the best shots."
"When we got the sneak peaks, and later the full set of photos, we were stunned by the big beautiful photos but we were also impressed by all the little details and candid moments they captured, some of which we would have missed completely otherwise. Renata put a lot of care, attention, and planning into the whole day."
They have plenty of wonderful wedding planning tips following their big day. "Make lots of spreadsheets! Keep on top of what needs to be done one year out, six months out, etc. Make time for each other outside of the wedding and enforce a strict no-wedding-talk policy at bedtime and dates. Figure out your budget and guestlist as soon as possible, everything else will follow."
"Remember that no matter how many details go awry on the day, absolutely nobody will notice." The menu proved a bit hit with their guests. In fact, they tell us: "We are still getting compliments from random relatives about the beef, which is kind of funny as we’re both vegetarians."
Their wildflower wedding cake was nothing short of phenomenal and Claire made very unique toppers for it. "Claire made dinosaur cake toppers using a desk ornament from her late father’s office, so that he could be included." For their first dance as a married couple they chose Certainty by Big Thief.
The Suitcase Trio ensured that the dancefloor was teeming all night long and the couple had a very fun way for their guests to capture treasured memories too. "We had a photobooth on the dancefloor and every guest that took a photo got a copy for themselves and a copy to glue into our guestbook. There was room beside the photos for lovely messages, and we had a great time flipping through it the day after."
Even with all the dancing, their guests never got peckish. They served up a late-night feast by hiring a fabulous food truck they had tried at their first music festival together. "It's one of our absolute favourites. During Covid, we ordered about thirty metric tons of gravy from these beautiful men, so it was great to see them in person." The couple chose the immensely glamorous Amalfi coast in Italy for their honeymoon.
They visited Naples, the island of Ischia and Maiori. "We ate delicious food, got amazing weather, and developed an abiding love of Hugo Spritzes. Our favourite spot was Ischia, we stayed in a beautiful (and surprisingly affordable) five-star hotel right on the beach with a dramatic view of the castle. The town nearby was charming and full of lovely restaurants, and we got to take a day-trip to Capri."
A huge thank you to our lovely couple and Renata Dapsyte for sharing this incredible colourful country wedding with One Fab Day. You can see even more fabulous photos in the gallery below.
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