True Love Tuesday: Kirsty & Michal's Sweet & Simple Day - Getting Married in Northern Ireland Magazine

What a miserable day, it certainly is one for the ducks!

Whilst the weather might be trying to bring us down we are still buzzing from our very successful Reader Awards 2014, which was held on Saturday night past at the Hilton Hotel, Belfast. Almost 300 guests from across the provinces’ wedding industry gathered to see who won the coveted Belleek awards. If you missed out on who won what, you can check out all the results on our Twitter feed, just follow @GMINI_.

This evening we have an alternative wedding for you; Kirsty and Michal were married in September and chose Photography by Astrid to capture the very special moments before their ceremony. Instead of the usual all day coverage, Astrid was asked to catch the couples first look at each other, followed by a mini shoot around glorious Belfast which was bathed in early autumn sunlight.

“We decided to have our photographs before the ceremony so that when we arrived at the ceremony we were both in excellent moods, feeling relaxed and with no stress,” Kirsty explained.

Kirsty and Michal first met at a party hosted by a mutual friend, although it wasn’t until six weeks later they bumped into each other in the hallway of her apartment building. The both knew early on their relationship was special because they enjoyed each others company and could communicate well, a must for married life.

Michal proposed on the balcony of Belfast Castle, a place that the couple both love to visit.

With a clear idea of how they wanted their wedding to look and feel, they headed straight in to planning prep, with their wedding only six months away.

“We had loads of support and help from our friends in the local congregation and our polish friends cooked all the food for 120 people! Other friends made all the cakes and some also served the food for our guests at the meal. Without our friends this wedding would not have been possible,” added Kirsty.

Kirsty didn’t have to look far for her wedding gown, it was intact hanging in her wardrobe!

“I bought my dress about 10 years ago in the Rusty Zip in Belfast. I bought it because I immediately loved it and it was not expensive. It was £18 but because there were a few stains on it I paid £13. It was sitting in my cupboard for all those years but honestly I thought I would never get an opportunity to wear it and nearly got rid of it a few times! Thankfully with the help of my friend, Elice, we were able to hide the stains and she also did a great job with some alterations,” said Kirsty.

“The day was amazing! We both enjoyed every moment. Yes of course things went wrong, but they were so unimportant on the day that I hardly even noticed them. We were both relaxed and happy because it was a great day and we were with our good friends,” added Kirsty.