A Palladian manor, in the heart of Ireland, Cashel Palace Hotel is a luxury hideaway, located by the Rock of Cashel in Tipperary. This breathtaking hotel was the venue for Molly Burke's wedding to Sean O’Brien on the 29th of September 2023. Photographed by Under the Veil, planned by Dream Irish Wedding, and featured in the Spring issue of SOCIAL & PERSONAL WEDDINGS, we couldn't imagine a more beautiful day if we tried!
The couple met on a holiday in Portugal. They were on separate family holidays when Molly's mum bumped into Sean’s one morning at yoga. They had known each other socially from growing up in Galway (where Sean was living) and Aileen (Sean’s mum) invited the family to meet for dinner. "It was Sean’s Grandad’s 79th birthday so it was my first family event. Our matchmaking mums sat us down beside each other and now claim they always knew! We then met up a few times for drinks throughout the holiday with some mutual friends!" Molly & Sean had apparently met when they were very young children, but neither can remember!
Sean proposed a weekend away in Kerry on the 3rd of December. "We had been there before a few times, and one of our favourite weekends away was when we’d stayed in a gorgeous little cottage by the beach and brought along our dog Hank. Sean booked it as a surprise as a pre-Christmas getaway. We went for a walk on the beach where Sean proposed, and then he whisked me off to Aghadoe Heights Hotel for a spa day & some lunch and champagne! It was perfect."
Pre-wedding Molly stuck to regular facials and tried and trusted skincare. "My skin has always been quite consistent so I knew if I kept up with my normal routines I wouldn’t have any problems, although I panicked a week before the wedding and bought a red light mask!" For her makeup on the day, Molly wanted to keep it quite natural overall, and Oksana, her makeup artist, did a great job. "We kept it soft and glowy which ended up working perfectly because I didn’t have to worry about major touchups throughout the day." On the morning of the wedding, she decided to change her hairstyle to a more slicked-back bun to keep the hair out of her face, "it was the best decision as I didn’t have to touch it up once or worry about it falling out of place!" Molly added a beautiful cathedral veil with a lace trim for the ceremony and pictures which pulled the whole look together. For her fragrance on the day, Molly wore Chanel Chance Eau Fraiche, which has been her staple for years. "I actually really liked wearing a fragrance Sean would associate with me, since my makeup was light and my hair was back I felt like I was myself (Just a little polished!) and having my go-to scent on the day tied that all together."
Molly actually found my dress on the very first day she went shopping! "My mum, my sister & I were in London and booked three separate dress appointments to try on different styles as I wasn’t 100% sure of what style I wanted to go for although I had a fair sense of what I didn’t want that was about it!" After the third appointment, she went back to the first shop to try on her wedding dress and ended up putting the order in there and then. On her wedding day, Molly wore the Sasha dress from Leah Da Glória. The gown has an amazing strapless draped bodice and a huge skirt with a slit to mid-thigh and a long train, the whole ensemble was elegant and romantic. So as to not take away from the dress, Molly kept accessories to a minimum, wearing only a pair of diamond studs and silver leather jewelled heels from Jimmy Choo.
Sean bought his suit for his 21st in Louis Copeland & Sons and he loved it so he went back and got his tux made there. "I think he looked incredible in the tuxedo and the staff at Lois Copeland were so helpful with every stage of finding the right ensemble for him."
Molly's two sisters Annie & Eily were her bridesmaids. Molly remarked that she had a tougher time picking a bridesmaid’s dress than her wedding dress! "It can be extra tricky when your bridesmaids are your sisters since they don’t hold their tongue if they hate a dress you’ve picked. They did a lot of online ordering and returning but in the end (with a lot of trial and error), we found beautiful dresses from Jenny Yoo and they were perfect!" For colour the girls chose a rich seafoam blue, wanting something that would suit them both, despite having polar opposite hair colours. Molly added a matching shawl which, in our opinion, took the whole outfit to the next level!
The couple loved their ceremony. "The setting was beautiful, Joanna Caffrey, our florist, did a fantastic job decorating the altar, pews and entrance and the music & Father Vivian (the priest who married us) along with the excitement of our family and friends created such a wonderful atmosphere. The whole ceremony was perfect, and saying our vows in front of our loved ones was really special."
Initially, Sean & Molly thought about getting married abroad but decided to keep their options open and look closer to home too. "When we went to visit Cashel Palace we were blown away by the character and charm, as well as the beautiful setting. The venue is so full of history a life! On the day the weather was perfect, we got so lucky to have such a clear and bright day at the end of the summer which just made exploring the grounds all the more beautiful. We really wanted to have a ‘Day 2’ and Cashel was able to accommodate this in the Secret Garden & O’Donoghues pub, the fact that the whole weekend was in the one venue was a big plus for us! We could not complement the staff enough, at every point in the wedding and our Day 2 they went above and beyond to make sure everything was perfect and stress-free."
For the drinks reception, the pair chose The New Brass Kings as Sean had seen them live and thought it would be a great way to kick off the celebrations. "They were absolutely fantastic and set the tone for a fun evening of dancing ahead." For the wedding band, Sean & Molly chose Jo Petit & the Dreamband as they had seen clips of weddings the band had played at and loved them!
Regarding the best decision, Molly had to say "We were so beyond happy with our venue choice – everything from the staff to the food was just incredible. We were absolutely thrilled with all of our vendors. We also made a plan to as best we could not get separated on the day as we were worried about getting split up, as everyone wanted to chat with you. It meant we spent almost the entire day together and didn’t miss out on any special memories."
- Gráinne