A bride has revealed how choosing sustainable fashion helped ease the pressures surrounding her big day.
Siobhan Cummins, a wedding musician at Siobhan Shore Pianist, got married in a beautiful ceremony with 120 guests back in 2018. She instantly fell in love with her chosen wedding gown, purchased in Covet in Powerscourt Townhouse Centre.
The bride had initially considered renting out her dress, which is an option within Covet, but ultimately decided to buy instead. The decision to go down the sustainable route ultimately helped her save a considerable amount, her dress totalling €800. Brand new wedding gowns typically cost upwards of €2,000.
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She told Dublin Live: "There is a second hand section, where you get designer stuff for literally half the price. I went in with my mam and it was the second dress I tried on and it was fabulous. The back had this butterfly detail and it was really well fitted, with a tiny train. I’d really recommend going sustainable for those on a bit of a budget."
The bride also said that getting married in Dublin proved less stressful than forking out for a larger country venue. One of her favourite memories from the day is sitting in the penthouse at Morrison Hotel after her ceremony, where she got to soak in breathtaking views of the city's skyline.
Here is Siobhan's full recollections about her big day.
Who is your partner and how did you meet?
My partner is Neil and we met online on Tinder. I was travelling in Australia and had recently come home in 2014. A few years later, we were married very quickly!
How did Neill propose?
It was my 30th birthday and he wasn’t letting on that he had anything in particular planned. We went for a drive, he drove me to Dalkey and had someone waiting in the harbour with a boat. We went over to Dalkey Island and he had music set up ready to go. He got down on one knee and popped the question. It was very romantic!
How has your own big day influenced your work as a wedding pianist?
I wasn’t doing weddings officially at the time but I was performing for friends and family. We are both very musical. It was really important for us to have good music for the ceremony. We got married in the Morrison Hotel and wanted the music to be reflective of our personalities, to mean something to us.
We put a lot of effort into soundtracks played at dinner because music creates the atmosphere one the day. When I perform at weddings now, I really want to hone in on the couple’s favourite music because I think it makes a huge difference on the day.
What was your wedding like?
We had 120 guests and their packages are very reasonable. We didn’t want to spend a load of money on just one day.
The food was absolutely amazing. We went for a free food and wine tasting in advance. They cater for vegetarians, gluten free diets… so many options. The food was a big factor but the staff were so professional. We didn’t have to worry about anything.
The hotel itself was really modern and clean. When you have a city centre wedding, I feel like it is way less pressure than a big country house venue. It was great from start to finish.
The wedding co-ordinator brought us up to the penthouse, which is the bridal suite, after our ceremony and it had amazing views over the city. We were able to have a moment with just the two of us before we went down to all the madness.
Describe your dress and the bridesmaids dresses.
I got my dress from Covet in Powerscourt. I got it second hand. They can create your own style. They have a second hand section where you get designer stuff for literally half the price.
I went in with my mam and it was the second dress I tried on. It was fabulous. The back had this butterfly detail and it was really well fitted, with a tiny train. I’d really recommend it for people on a bit of a budget. I got it for about €800.
People can sell their dresses to them, obviously they have particular styles. They have more of a focus on modern dresses in store and you can rent them too, which I initially was considering but I ended up buying and they gave me a good deal. I think with Dublin weddings there are ways of keeping the costs down, you just need to be clever about it.
I had three bridesmaids and I bought their dresses in Quiz. They have ones in there for €80. The women in Covet recommended going for a dark grey colour to match me, so I got three variations of grey in the same dress for my two sisters and my best friend. They all fitted, it worked perfectly.
What advice would you give to other brides?
The rooms in the Morrison are quite basic so I wanted to make them more wedding-themed. I rented out some floristry bits, including flower arches, from a crowd in Arklow called All About Weddings.
They made the room look more like a wedding rather than a event. If you’re on a budget, you can rent a few pieces instead of getting people in to decorate and do it yourself.
You could get your cake from someone who is just starting out in the business and could do with your custom. You can buy your dress second hand, there’s a few websites dedicated to second hand wedding dresses online.
You don’t want to look back and think you spent too much money on one day. There are definitely ways to keep the costs down without getting too carried away.
Is there anything you would do differently?
It was really nice to have that moment with my husband from the ceremony to the dinner because you can get caught up with getting around to everyone and can miss the reason for why you’re there.
It’s nice to set aside some time just for the two of you. I also really enjoyed having the walk around the city and getting candid shots. They’re the ones you’ll remember the most, not the staged ones. We love the ones where we are walking around and just having a laugh.
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