Boy, do we have the the perfect dopamine hit for you today with today’s real wedding! Irish couple Aoife & Ian’s vibrant, glitter-infused celebration at Cloughjordan House was a stunning celebration of love, creativity, happiness, bold colours, and pure joy. Set against the rustic backdrop of this beloved Tipperary venue, their inspiring summer wedding was a true reflection of their fun-loving personalities. From their handmade origami décor to bold, playful florals grown by the bride’s mum and The Florist on The Hill, a surprise alpaca appearance, a secret ring bearer, and even their epic wedding style, every detail was infused with their very own unique touch. If you have been looking for colourful wedding inspo you’ll want to pin each epic image by Chris Mee Studios to your Pinterest board immediately!
First things first, let’s get to know our couple a little better, shall we?. Limerick-based Bride Aoife and Groom Ian already shared many mutual friends, but their romance originally blossomed one night at Costello’s Tavern, Limerick in 2011.
Ian proposed to Aoife while on a hike in December 2023. The bride tells us she was bribed to venture out in freezing conditions with the promise of a wine lunch! But lucky Aoife got more than a lunch when Ian proposed much to her surprise after (nearly 12 years as a couple) on top of the 12 O’Clock Hills in Clare.
After getting engaged, the couple set about planning a fun-filled wedding with a colourful-party-meets-festival vibe. The bride telling “We didn’t take anything too serious, so we wanted fun and a good laugh to be up front and centre. Lots of disco balls, colourful themes and good craic!”.
And the perfect venue for their colourfun celebration? The wonderful family-run Cloughjordan House set in the lush countryside of North Tipperary. A venue which prides itself on on creating a premium ‘house-party’ atmosphere for guests while allowing the couple’s true personality to shine through. After visiting and meeting the team, the decision felt sure. “The venue looked incredible, it’s a beautiful and tastefully done place”, the bride says. She adds, “It was a fantastic mix of indoor and outdoor spaces, and a wonderfully done rustic/boho type vibe. The food is INCREDIBLE. We still have guests commenting to us about the food and cake. The staff were unbelievably good and helpful for everything right from our first tour.”
“We also wanted to be able to spend as much time as possible with our guests, so we opted to have everything on site at Cloughjordan. We wanted good fun, good company and great food! We had a little fun at the ceremony with the music and speeches. And we had a “secret ringbearer” which was a lot of fun. Most of all we wanted our guests to have a great time and enjoy a good party.”
On 5th August 2024, Aoife and Ian exchanged vows in the Woolshed surrounded by 110 of their loved ones, the bride making her way down the aisle to the Jurassic Park theme song, which set the tone for a fun and not too serious wedding!
The couple added a unique “secret ring bearer” element to their ceremony as suggested by their celebrant Tríona O’Callaghan. “Triona mentioned this idea and we jumped at it!”, the bride tells. She adds, “We had our stylish Niamh hide the wedding rings under a chair at the ceremony which no one knew about. Then Tríona asked for everyone to check under their chair for the rings as our “secret ringbearer”. How fun!
A lover of all things glittery and colourful, bride Aoife wanted to ensure lots of this was included in their celebration. The couple, along with the help of the Cloughjordan House wedding team, their stylist Niamh Danaher, and Carolyn Duggan of The Florist on the Hill brought the vision to life with precision.
As well as a stellar wedding team, Aoife’s mum Dympna who is an amazing gardener, grew tons of sweet pea for the couple’s day. She spent months growing the bloom from seed and training, and delaying it so that it would be flowering for August 5th. Aoife, her mum, her bridesmaid and her sister in law all put together 20 odd jars of sweet pea and other flowers from Dympna’s garden the day before the wedding.
On the wedding day, the vision was colourful and fun-filled. The converted barn Woolshed ceremony space and the reception area were both complemented by bright and bold homegrown florals and blooms by The Florist on the Hill, as well as pink disco balls and sequin and tulle fabrics.
Following the ceremony, before guests gathered for cocktails outdoors, they were joined by two very special guests! “We had a visit from two amazing alpacas at the drinks reception which was a brilliant surprise for the guests.”
Aoife’s bouquet was quite the showstopper filled with Irish-grown Dahlias in bright jewel tones, along with roses, Anthuriums, cosmos, clary sage and delphinium.
After trying on countless designs, Aoife chose a White Rose sequin wedding gown for the ceremony which she sourced at Virginia’s Bridal boutique in Limerick. She paired it with hot pink block heels by Irish shoe designer Nicki Hoyne, geode earrings by Magpie Rose, and a Chupi necklace which was her “something borrowed” from her maid of honour. A statement-making colourful sequin veil by Mizz Rio completed the look. For the after-party, she changed into a custom two-piece dress by Mizz Rio which matched her ceremony veil.
Ian wore a sleek green made-to-measure suit by Louis Copeland & Sons which he accessorised with Remus Uomo shoes, his Great Grandfather’s pocket watch and bespoke paper crane cufflinks. The couple’s maid of honour rocked a sequin bridesmaid dress in lilac from Phase Eight.
Wanting to put their own stamp on their day, Aoife and Ian designed their own wedding stationery, as well as 1000 folded paper cranes which decorated the main reception hall. “We love Japan, it is one of our favourite places to visit, (Ian had originally hoped to propose there but Covid and lockdowns said NO) so the cranes were a nice little nod to this.”
Aoife and Ian’s first dance was to The Offspring’s Want you Bad before their wedding band Spring Break transitioned into an upbeat set of 80s classics which brought an unforgettable energy to the evening.
When it comes to advice, they reassured readers of how everything comes together in the end and to make sure to relax and enjoy the day. “The day is all about you, everyone is here for you and everyone is here because they love you”.
Aoife adds, “Don’t be afraid to go completely non-traditional! This is what I loved about all our vendors, any mad idea I had they were completely on board and enthusiastic. Try not to get stressed over the little things and not to take on too much, we were lucky to have Niamh as our stylist as she made the whole day come to life. She incorporated all my dream DIY projects into the decor perfectly.”
And finally she says, “Go with a venue that works to take the stress away from you, not pile it on. For us Cloughjordan 1000% did this for us.”
Aoife and Ian both love travelling and their honeymoon to Japan will no doubt be a trip to always remember. Ian initially intended on proposing to Aoife back in Japan after they visited for the rugby World Cup in 2019, but lockdowns prevented this from happening. Instead, it became the “perfect place to honeymoon and a place we recommend to everyone.”
A very special thank you to Aoife, Ian and Chris Mee Studios for sharing this gorgeous, colour-filled Cloughjordan House wedding day with us at One Fab Day!
If you enjoyed this inspiring country house wedding, visit Ireland’s best country house venues right here.
