Good Company and Summer Nights
You Are My Today And All Of My Tomorrows
Belfast girl Danielle Gault met Christopher Mallon also from Belfast when they were 17 and were introduced by mutual friends. They didn’t become a couple for a few years when they were 20/21 years old. The saying goes ‘from young acorns grow big oak trees’ well this story goes ‘from young love grows a deep and long lasting love’.
A proposal took place while on holiday in Portugal, as Danielle tells us “Wish we could say it was very romantic but it was on a balcony while eating Lays and chilling before dinner. The ring was from Goldsmiths, silver diamond band and a larger diamond in the middle”
I mean, Lays crisps in the sunshine, could you ask for anything more? If you know you know!
The proposal took place in September 2019 and the wedding planning started to take shape, the couple also decided to reward themselves with a day out whenever a task was ticked off the list; what a wonderful idea!
A date was set for 26th May 2023 with St Peter’s Cathedral in Belfast booked for the ceremony and Killeavy Castle booked for the reception, a theme of ‘Summer Night’ was chosen along with their 130 guests.
Danielle found her gown in Verona Bridal in Magherafelt, she told us “I saw a few online I wanted to try. Saw the one I picked on a mannequin and thought I would try it to see how it fitted. Had no intentions of it being the one I went for” finding the experience “The girls in Verona on multiple occasions were incredible. They made the whole experience for me. They were as excited as we were when the dress was picked. Made me feel very comfortable and at home in their shop. It was a great day I’ll always remember”.
Bridesmaid dresses for cousin and maid of honour Kaitlin along with cousins Zoe and Ellie and best friends Teresa and Carrie came from an online shop called Babaroni, a flowergirl dress came from Monsoon.
Suits for Christopher and best man Ciaran along with friends Michael, Paul, Kevin and Ryan came from Red Menswear in Belfast.
Danielle told us that the best part of planning the wedding was “Having days out for every time we ticked something off” and the most stressful part was “There were no major stresses as we started planning and booking quite early in 2020. So we ticked things off as we went along and tried to keep things as enjoyable as possible for ourselves”
Choosing their ‘Summer Nights’ theme was easy, they wanted to keep everything airy, soft and romantic, which they did, the warm white fairy lights helped with that. This tied in beautifully with the weather making it all seem even more romantic. The day went smoothly from start to finish, Danielle and Christopher told us “Our suppliers that were with us on the day from start to finish were amazing. They couldn’t have done anything more to make things more accommodating”
Danielle described their day as amazing and she said “We had our entrance song made which was brilliant craic. We also hired Surprise Singers for after the dessert and they did not disappoint. The Surprise Singers & the fall was amazing. So many guests were shocked and it really kicked the evening off”
The bride and groom said their highlight was “For both of us having our family and friends in the one room, everyone was on the dance floor start to finish having the time of their lives. It’s great to see everyone together as it doesn’t happen often”.
Having their first dance to Yazoo ‘Only You’ rounded their day off nicely before they visited Kilkenny for a few days to enjoy some time together, they are hoping to visit Italy later this year. They said “Married life has been great. It feels like we are having ‘firsts’ all over again. It’s been such an enjoyable few weeks.”
They gave this advice to other couples planning their own weddings “The main thing is the people around you on the day. All the other things will feel non existent on the day. Do what is right by you both and try not to allow a lot of people to have a say in your planning or your day. Lastly – enjoy the planning and the build-up. It can be the most enjoyable few years/months or the worst. How you manage it will determine the outcome”.
WEDDING SUPPLIERS INFO
Reception location:Killeavy Castle Estate
Wedding Dress from: Verona Bridal
Bridesmaids dresses from: Babaroni., Online
Groomswear from: Red Groomswear
Make-up by: S A K Make Up
Hair by: Aoife Ferguson Bridal Hair
Flowers by: Lets Face It Creation – Foam Flowers
Transport from:Diamond Elite Chauffeur Services
Photography by: McVeigh Studio
Videography by: McVeigh Studio
