Amanda and John tied the knot last autumn in Maryborough Hotel & Spa after about seven years of dating. Photography by Dermot Sullivan.
Amanda works in social care, while John is an IT manager. They met through a mutual group of friends about 14 years ago, but only started dating about six or seven years ago. Amanda lived and worked in Limerick, while John worked and lived in Cork. “There were many miles clocked up driving the N20 over the years but in 2013 I took the plunge, got a job back in Cork and we moved in together, along with my son Matthew,” said Amanda. “Shortly after moving in together I caught the bouquet at a friends’ wedding so I think our faith was sealed then!”
John planned to propose at the top of Carrauntoohil during a trip to Killarney, but Amanda didn’t want to stop even for a break. Instead, John managed to pop the question after a romantic meal in the hotel. They didn’t want a long engagement, so aimed for autumn 2015. “We has seen a band at a wedding a few years previous (The Papa Zitas) and immediately we aimed to try to book them. Unfortunately, they’re extremely popular and had limited availability so the search was then on to find a venue that we liked who also had an available date that matched the bands availability.”
The couple visited a number of hotels in Cork but nothing really excited them. John suggested Maryborough and within 10 minutes of sitting down with events manager, Niamh McCarthy, the decision was made. “We then made sure my local church was available on the same date and all of a sudden the date was set and it all got very real!” Amanda used advice from married friends when it came to choosing most of the rest of her vendors.
“Once we met with Niamh McCarthy in the Maryborough Hotel we felt immediately confident that they would take care of us. What we loved most about the Maryborough was that it was so effortless. You didn’t have to add anything to the place to make it romantic. The hotel is not far from where we live but once you arrive there you feel like you are a world away from everything. The garden is beautifully kept and perfect for wedding pictures so it meant we didn’t have to travel to a particular place for pictures which resulted in us being able to spend as much time at our reception as possible. The food exceeded our expectations and everybody was complimenting it. Even if you are unlucky enough to have bad weather on your wedding day this hotel has so many beautiful places within the building itself to get photos taken and with the fire lighting in the reception and candles everywhere you will forget about any rain outside.”
Unusually, Amanda chose her bridesmaid dresses before she found her own dream dress. She found her bridesmaid dresses on Virgos Lounge that she and her bridesmaids loved. “Once they arrived they all fit really well and the girls looked fab so it was a done deal.” Amanda admittedly tried on so many wedding dresses because she found it so much fun. “I eventually saw a dress on the Pronovias website that I adored but none of the Pronovias stockists in Munster stocked it.” Say I Do in Midleton, Cork agreed to order it from Barcelona for her to try. “Once it arrived I fell in love with it and ordered it immediately. I then ordered the most amazing pair of shoes I have ever owned. They were Badgley Mischka Kiara shoes in burgundy red.”
The couple chose Volkswagen Campers as the wedding cars because they both always loved them. “In order to include my son Matthew in the wedding planning as much as possible we asked for his help in choosing a theme for the wedding and he had this amazing idea that the wedding would be Lego-themed.” They had Lego invites, a Lego cake with matching cake topper made my Matthew. “He spent weeks before the wedding making Lego centre pieces for the tables and he also had a special Lego Buttonhole on the wedding day.”
Amanda says it’s important for brides to enjoy every second of the planning process, even when you’re busy with a full-time job. “My mum, bridesmaids and I made an occasion out of all organisational tasks. Everything we did was followed by lunch and a few glasses of wine. I have so many memories that I will treasure forever.” She also advises brides to look at previous reviews and do your research when it comes to wedding venues.
Vendors: Venue: Maryborough Hotel & Spa | Bridal Hair: Audrey Cashman via Upstyle Junkie | Make Up: Kathy Delaney | Bridesmaid Dresses: Virgos Lounge | Wedding Car: VW Weddings | Music: The Papa Zitas | Church Music: Aoife O’Neill | Videographer: The Wedding Studio | Photographer: Dermot Sullivan | Flowers: Aisling Flowers | Bridal Shop: Say I Do | Suits: Tom Murphy Cork | LED Dancefloor: Cork Candy Carts | Personal Lego Engineer: Matthew James