Brooke and Stephen’s Black Tie Ireland Wedding at Adare Manor
Brooke and Stephen met at Google while Brooke was on rotation in the Dublin office. Nearly a year later, they were reunited when they both happened to be relocated to Google's NYC office. Ever since, the two have been inseparable and shortly after were engaged and planning their wedding.
Choosing the wedding location was anything but easy for Brooke and Stephen. Brooke, although born in Chicago, has always had a difficult time defining where 'home' is, having moved around every few years growing up: from Chicago to London to Hong Kong to Singapore to Austin to NYC. Stephen, on the other hand, was born and raised in Wicklow, Ireland. The pair narrowed down a list of venues in both Chicago and Ireland.
Please scroll down to read more about Brooke and Stephen's black-tie Ireland Wedding and see where they decided to get married. You're going to love all the love and thought that was put into this destination wedding.
Be sure to watch the wedding film from Story of The Eve.
At the urging of their wedding planner, Tara Fay Events, they added Adare Manor to their venue list. Upon driving through the quaint town of Adare and into the extravagant grounds of Adare Manor, there was no doubt that this would be their venue. It had the perfect combination of all the attributes they were looking for in a destination wedding venue: a stunning setting, a once-in-a-lifetime type of hotel/venue, multiple alternate accommodation options in the town, and accessible to international guests. The location was set, and the planning took place. Ready to see their wedding? Read on for all the details and to take in all the photos captured by Ireland wedding photographer, Christina Brosnan.
Welcome Wedding Bags
Brooke and Stephen wanted to ensure that their multinational guests knew how much they appreciated them traveling to Ireland for their special weekend.
In partnership with Tara Fay Events and a calligrapher, they came up with a design that highlighted the guests' various nationalities and Brooke and Stephen's former homes.
The design was then used throughout various aspects of the wedding - on welcome bags, table plans, and table names. Please scroll down to see these.
They also wanted to highlight the unique traditions of an Irish wedding, namely the 2pm to 5am duration on the wedding day and the day-after party in a local pub. To warn their non- Irish guests of what awaited them, Brooke and Stephen came up with a limerick (an ode to the wedding being in Limerick, Ireland) that was printed on a welcome card given to guests when they checked in.
Welcome to Adare, a limerick:
We are so excited to welcome you to Adare.
Jet lagged or not, we don't care.
We expect you at 2,
So this is your cue:
Get ready to go on the tear.
Transporting Your Wedding Dress
to Your
Destination Wedding Tip
Brooke's couture Suzanne Neville wedding gown was bought in the US. She was concerned about transporting it the week before the wedding.
In August, she brought the dress to Ireland before her wedding and worked with a seamstress and alteration company in Dublin to create the perfect fit. It turned out beautifully.
Church Wedding Ceremony
Brooke and Stephen had a traditional church wedding in Ireland. Outside of the church was decorated with ivy and lanterns. Brooke arrived in a vintage green Bentley and was ready to walk down the aisle and say, "I Do."
Decor & Design
From - Tara Fay Events Brooke’s bridesmaids were all wearing navy, and the invitations were also navy, we suggested using navy as the base color for the ballroom at Adare Manor. It was quite a bold choice as it’s a large room and customarily filled with light colors. However, once Brooke saw the sample fabric in the room with candles and a floral sample, she fell in love, and the design and all details all fell into place.
Above is the seating chart that emulates the welcome wedding bags, and you can also see the custom design carried through to the table cards below.
Choreographed Dance
Brooke and Stephen worked with a dance teacher and choreographer the week of the wedding in Ireland on their first dance. As you can see behind them they have a full band playing at their wedding. How fun is that?
Day After Cake and Champagne Party
Brooke and Stephen's wedding cake was a three-tiered white and gold wedding cake from MM Cookies. Each tier was a different flavor, and they were all Brooke's favorites. She was worried that not everyone would be able to experience the fantastic cake.
The day after the wedding, Brooke hosted a Tea, Champagne, and Wedding Cake party for anyone who wanted to have a sweet treat and visit once more with the happy couple.
Later on, that Sunday, Brooke and Stephen hosted a traditional Irish pub night complete with Irish musicians for their eclectic mix of guests worldwide. A magical destination wedding!
- Dress & Apparel: Jenny Yoo Collection, Inc.
- Accessories & Lingerie: Jimmy Ch
- Accessories & Lingerie: BHLDN
- Aisle Runner: The Original Runner Company
- Cakes & Catering: MM Cookies
- DJs: Gordon Johnson
- Dress & Apparel: Hall Madden
- Event Planning & Design: Tara Fay Events
- Flowers: The Garden
- Hair, Makeup & Beauty: David Cashman
- Hair, Makeup & Beauty: Christine Lucignano
- Lighting, Entertainment & Photo Booth: Gorilla Design
- Lighting, Entertainment & Photo Booth: Connor McKeon
- Linens: Total Event
- Paper Goods & Calligraphy: Appleberry Press
- Photographers: Christina Brosnan
- Venues: Adare Manor
- Wedding Dresses: Suzanne Neville
- Wedding Dresses: Retrofete
- Wedding Films: The Story of Eve