A lovingly restored 19th-century castle, Lough Rynn Castle has been transformed from an incredible ancestral home into a place where old-world elegance mixes seamlessly with unimaginable modern hotel luxury. Marie Halpin married Pearse Walsh in one of Ireland's most stunning venues on the 15th of August, 2024. With their wedding day being photographed by Peter Carvill and their Day 2 celebrations in Bobbys Dublin captured by Emma from Treasure Forever Moments, it's not a shock that this is one of our favourite features of the year. Just wait till you see Marlo in his tux!

Due to COVID restrictions, the love birds were relegated to communicating through endless messages and voice notes before they could finally see each other in person for their first official date. That June, when they finally got to see each other in person, Marie and Pearse realised just how intertwined their lives already were, with her best friend being distantly related to his family and their parents having mutual friends, "A close friend of mine even shared a house with Pearse, and I’m pretty sure I was in that house at a party, so we may have even been in the same room together." Talk about invisible strings pulling two people together!

In the run-up to Christmas 2023, Pearse booked a trip for the two to stay at Ashford Castle. Since they had talked about going there for quite some time, Marie accepted his lie that it was a Christmas present and put the thought of a proposal out of her mind.  "He did a great job keeping up the charade until the proposal itself. I even told him amidst the castle's beautiful surroundings as we drove in the front gates, “If only you had enough cop to have proposed here”! I didn’t sense any nerves from Pearse, so I had convinced myself it was just a night away. My suspicions arose when he mentioned that we should walk to the walled rose gardens, especially as it seemed Pearse knew exactly where he was going! However, when we left the gardens with no proposal in sight, I was sure I had gotten the wrong end of the stick (only for Pearse to reveal later that he had forgotten that the gardens would not be in bloom in winter!). I reluctantly followed Pearse in mucky grass along the River Cong, through the woods and to a bridge where he eventually got down on one knee and (after much muttering) asked me to marry him. I just burst out crying, but I managed to get a “yes” out, too."

"Even though this was technically Pearse’s backup proposal location, it was pretty much pitch dark at this stage, and my new boots were now covered in mud following our trek to get there; I think the proposal was perfect. Not only did it lead to having a funny story to tell, but the symbolism and meaning of the location where Pearse proposed was so nice, too, and I think we only appreciated that after the proposal." It’s a beautiful setting on the bridge that you enter through a stone archway with Cong and an old Abbey on one side, the castle in the background and the river beneath you. Towards the end of the abbey side of the bridge, a lovely old structure sits out in the water, which was the monk’s fishing house. "My dad and Pearse’s brother Conor were avid fishermen, so that connection added something to the emotion and magic of the whole experience, too. I also discovered that Pearse had called my parent's house to ask for their blessing the day before the trip. While some might consider that to be old-fashioned, it meant so much to me, my parents, and my Dad. Knowing that Dad gave his blessing and was involved with the proposal and early wedding planning is now even more special and precious, given Dad passed away so soon after. "

For her wedding day perfume, Marie opted to wear her go-to. "I considered choosing a specific wedding perfume, but as a friend reminded me, my 'signature scent' of Chanel Chance was established over 10 years ago, so I stuck with my usual perfume. I bought Pearse Chanel Blue as part of his groom's gift for the wedding morning."

Although the pair had chosen a date, they hadn't even paid the deposit to the venue, so Marie wasn't even remotely in the mindset to pick her wedding dress! "I was out for a walk with my mum and ended up at the 'The One’ in Rathmines. I tried on three outfits and bought two! The dress was just a perfect fit; I could have left the store in it that day and walked down the aisle. I also fell in love with a Georgia Young Couture jumpsuit.  At that stage, I wasn't sure if I would change into the jumpsuit during the wedding or wear it for day 2."

After deciding that she wanted to save the jumpsuit for her Day 2 celebration, Marie worked closely with Rebecca Whelan at The Next Chapter Bridal & Occasion to create the dreamiest mini dress to wear for the reception and dance the night away in. "My mum kindly gifted me my wedding jewellery, a pearl and diamond necklace, and earrings to finish it off as my 'something new'. I also wore her wedding band, on the other hand, as my 'something borrowed'. She gave me an embroidered ‘daughter’ handkerchief from when I was born as my ‘something old’, and I carried a blue knitted heart that my Dad had, too, as my ‘something blue’."

To buy his wedding suit, Pearse followed in the footsteps of many of our featured grooms and took a trip to Louis Copeland & Sons. "He knew that he wanted to be in a tux, along with his groomsmen, as we felt it is a classic look for a wedding that won’t fade over time. It was straightforward; he was measured, and the tux and shirt were made for him in several fittings. He got cufflinks, socks, shoes and a bow tie there, too; it was all so easy. His tux shoes cost nearly as much as my Jimmy Choos!"

Marie's bridal party comprised her four best friends throughout her life, each representing a stage of her growth from school to adulthood! "They were totally laid back, to the point that I ordered a dress online, and they each tried it on and unanimously said they liked it. Too good to be true? Of course, it was, but not because they changed their mind - I did months later! I ended up ordering more dresses until we found one that, this time, we all loved. I just wanted them to feel like themselves and be comfortable on the day. The bridesmaid dress shopping online worked better than trying to coordinate days together because of where each lived. Once I settled on the final dress, we all celebrated together!"

"The ceremony was probably the hardest part, but also my favourite moment of the day. My dad died suddenly a few months before the wedding, and Pearse’s Dad and brother had also passed away, so we were both conscious that some of the most important people in our lives weren't there to celebrate the occasion with us. We had little nods to them throughout the wedding; their photos were beside us on the ceremony table; I had a charm on my bouquet with a photo of my dad to walk with me throughout the day, dad’s brother (who is my godfather) walked me down the aisle, and we also had a pianist who played a piece of music that was composed by Pearse’s brother.  We made a real effort to include as many different people as possible to participate in the ceremony, from close family to friends, whether through a reading, a prayer, or walking our dog Marlo down the aisle with the rings! Our celebrant filled the ceremony with personal stories about our relationship, many of which again included our family and friends and their impact on our relationship. It was really nice and made them feel part of our day."

Despite Marie having grown up in Dublin and the pair living in the city today, Pearse is from Mayo, and Marie's extended family live in Leitrim. "When we started wedding planning, we knew we wanted to have our wedding day in a castle in the west of Ireland, and our dog also needed to be present. It felt like a halfway point between his family home in Mayo, my mum’s family in Leitrim, and my family home in Dublin (where most of our guests were travelling from). Pearse and I already had lovely memories of Lough Rynn Castle, where we celebrated my 30th birthday with my mum and dad, so it felt right."

"We chose Bobby’s wine bar in Dublin for our Day 2 celebration as we had been there for a birthday meal a few years ago, and we knew it was dog-friendly. We were allowed to bring a musician too, who turned the beer garden at the back into a dancefloor! Gina, the manager, kept a constant stream of tequila shots flowing, so everyone was in good spirits!"

Moth Marie and Pearse come from families with a strong love for music, so the pair knew that choosing the right entertainment was necessary. "For the ceremony and the drinks reception, we had Claire Igo and her accompaniment, Enda, and we also asked that a pianist, Kieran Quinn (who knew Pearse’s brother), join them. They planned it all out together in response to our music choices. Our band was Jo Petit and the dream band, and then we had their DJ with a saxophone player for late night. We spent months searching for the “perfect” wedding band, even attending wedding showcases. Someone recommended we check out Jo and his band, and once we checked him out online and saw his variety and energy, we knew he was the right fit for our day. We were delighted with our choice; the dancefloor was always full, and there was such a good atmosphere from start to finish. 

Regarding the best decision, Marie said, "The best decision was having our dog, Marlo, involved in our wedding. He walked down the aisle with the rings, wearing a custom-made tux, and was with us for Day 2 in Bobby’s wine bar.  Marlo is very special, not just to Pearse and me but to our families, too.  Marlo brought so much joy to us and all of our guests. He was in his element, he thought all the fuss was for him, and I think he was the star of the wedding photoshoot! I also loved the fireworks display; my Dad used to love fireworks, too!"

Regarding the worst decision, Marie said, "The worst decision was probably not greeting all of our guests after the ceremony. We decided to go straight for photos because we were worried about the temperamental Leitrim weather (especially as it had been promised rain!). In hindsight, having that time to say hello and chat with our guests would have been lovely as the rest of the day flew by, and it was really hard to find time to speak to people individually properly. Even though people warned us before the day, it goes by so quickly, and parts of the day just become a big blur!"

- Gráinne