WeddingDates.ie

I previously wrote a post about Gillian O’Sullivan Personal Trainer based in Cork who does one-on-one sessions with grooms and brides-to-be in preparation for the big wedding (and honeymoon!).  In the run up to my own cousins wedding, where I was a bridesmaid, I had to call in Gillian to help me get in shape to fit into the bridesmaids dress!!

My cousing bought the dresses off the rack in Coast and as she lives in Dublin and I live in Cork, we didn’t get to go shopping together.  “Just get me a size 10″ I said without hesitation.  Little did I realise, after the long winter, when I met her to collect the dress - it didn’t zip up on me!!!  She was a little worried (naturally) but I reassured her that the wedding was months away and I’d be grand.

Months passed and I put the dress and thoughts of the wedding  out of my mind.  Then, with only 6 weeks to go I tried on the dress again - only to find the zip STILL would not go up!!  Panic stations.  So, I called Gillian and told her my predicament.  6 weeks to fit into a dress.  There was no alternative, it was either that or be sacked as bridesmaid!

Gillian was brilliant for me, and I think it really shows that if you have a specific goal you can really work towards achieving it.  I am guilty of always saying, ” I want to loose a bit of weight, or shape up” but nothing has ever really spurred me into doing anything serious about it.  Well, I’m happy to say after 6 weeks with Gillian I was able to fit into the dress and looked fabulous on the day!  She has a really great approach, she’s not scary but at the same time you wouldn’t want to let her down.  I ate more sensibly and trained during the week too, running and weights at home.  I was out and about, getting fit and healthy and Gillian really gave me the motivation to do it.

Walking up the Aisle

I couldn’t recommend personal training highly enough to any bride (or indeed bridesmaid!) out there that wants to trim up before the wedding.  Having a goal, and an end in sight is a real motivator - and it’ll be all worth it for the bikini bod when you hit the honeymoon!  If you are based in Cork, why not call Gillian to get started!

Our new promo video is now live on You Tube!!  We had HUGE fun filming this in the Derrynane Gardens and O’Carroll’s Cove Beach Bar in Caherdaniel, Co. Kerry.  Check it out and leave your comments below!

Special thanks goes out to the ’stars’ of the vid, my ‘husband’ James Kennedy and poster-girl Jenny Owens.  Peter Sweeney for lending us his ZapCat and Nicky Condon for the camera & his filming skills.

Couples Names: Liam Quinn & Dorothy Barrett
Proposal Date: January 1984 with official Engagement on Valentine’s Day
Wedding Date: 6th July 1985
Wedding Location: Cathedral, Ballina, Co. Mayo with reception in Bartra House Hotel

On a cold night at the end of January, Liam ever the gentleman; walked me home from the dance we had been to and right there on the doorstep of my mothers house, he got down on one knee and asked me to marry him!  Back then people often went away to get engaged, so a few weeks later we went to Dublin to buy the ring and make it official.

It was Valentines Day and we went to a jewellers on Henry Street where we picked out the ring.  We then walked to Stephens Green and sitting down on a bench he put the ring on my finger and we were engaged!

We had about a year and a half engagement and then the wedding was in July the following year.

There are a lot of nifty online wedding tools out there that simply do not work in Ireland, mostly because we lack post codes. Happily, Wedding Mapper is not one of them - just type in Cork, Ireland or any other location and you can start mapping your whole wedding.

This is a handy thing to link to on a wedding website if you have one, or you can just provide the URL of your personalised map in your invitations.

In addition to pinpointing your wedding and reception locations, Wedding Mappr is really useful for out of town guests. You can use it to show them helpful information like local hotels and restaurants, not to mention the best pubs to pass the time in between your wedding and reception. And after the wedding, you can use it to map and review your venues and vendors to help out other local brides, too.

My cousin had her wedding in the Diamond Coast Hotel right on Enniscrone Beach in Co. Sligo. My own parents met in Enniscrone so this place will always hold a special fondness for me and though a new hotel, the Diamond Coast has established itself in the area as a premier wedding venue.  They certainly showed us tremendous hospitality and the day went perfectly.  Food and service impecable!

Check out the video of the wedding itself to get a preview of the venue and check availability for your own special day in the Diamond Coast Hotel a perfect Sligo wedding venue on WeddingDates.ie.

Name: Grace O’Sullivan

It was christmas morning and i was so excited to see what my boyfriend Daniel had gotten me!  We let our 1 year old daughter open her presents first, as she could not wait anyway….then he opened his, they ranged from cds, dvds and then onto his xbox 360.  He was delighted.

I opened my first present, it was perfume - no surprise there as i get that for every occasion.  Then i got a dvd and cd myself, then on to the last one.  I couldn’t guess what it was by the shape……i was so shocked to open it and see inside a hand blender!!!  He said he had gotten it for me to help with making our daughter Jennas dinners.  Well, “it’s the thought that counts” I thought to myself.

Then we sat round for about an hour waiting to leave to go see my mam, and he gave me my card, which i opened, read and put the envelope in the bin to his horror as he rushed to the bin and asked did i not look inside the envelope?!  He brought it over to me and I found a beautiful diamond ring inside, he then popped the question!  I was so excited my litle girl didnt know what was going on, and of course i said yes!

We’re getting married next June.  I definitly appreciate getting a card now, and always remember to look in the envelope….haha there might be something in it! :)

Video walkthrough of Claregalway Hotel, located just outside of Galway City.  It’s Galway’s Premier Deluxe AA 3 Star Award Winning Wedding Venue.

If you are looking for a Galway wedding venue you can check availability for your wedding day in Claregalway Hotel.

For the day that’s in it, wanted to wish all of the Dad’s out there Happy Father’s Day!  Most especially to my own Dad who has been so supportive and encouraging to me since setting up the business last year.

Dad - you’re the greatest!

At my cousins wedding, the Father of the Bride made a speech and I was in tears on the top table!  It is such an emotional thing for a Dad to hand over his little girl to her new husband and a life outside of her immediate family home.

So, all the newlyweds out there; or brides-to-be…don’t forget to make an extra fuss out of your Dad today!

A video of one of my own personal favourites in County Mayo - Mount Falcon, in Ballina.  I love this hotel and get a lovely warm feeling every time I am in there.   I guess it helps that the staff are so nice and Shane, the Sales and Marketing Manager always makes me feel so welcome.

A stunning wedding venue and one of our “Private Hire” properties; you have the run of the place for your wedding, so you can party the night away without fear of disturbing other guests.

If you are looking for a wedding venue in Mayo, check the availability for Mount Falcon for your Wedding Day on WeddingDates.ie

This months fabulous prize is kindly sponsored by Paula over at Mabel and Violet who have a gorgeous range of unusual and quirky gifts.  I personally love the site for its antique-y feel products and it is fantastically easy to use as you can browse by price, room in the house or gifts for him and her.  Newly launched is the Wedding Accessories section, where you can get great gift ideas for when money-in-an-envelope just isn’t personal enough!

Up for grabs this month are 2 Large Glass Candlesticks worth over €200.00 - for those romantic evenings in and all you have to do to win is to submit an enquiry (has to be genuine!) for one of our venues listed on weddingdates.ie.  Simply do a search for venues on your chosen wedding date, browse the list and select your favourites and fill out the Enquiry Form to request a call back from the hotel directly.

So, what are you waiting for?! Get Searching….