These newlyweds have shared a look inside their Northern Ireland-Fijian fusion wedding at Rocky Mountain in Co Down.
Optometrist Shauna Reynolds (39) from Newry and ambulance crew worker Alic Qalikaono (40) from Bournemouth had their big day on August 13, 2022.
In our weekly feature Inside My Wedding, couples are delving into their special day to give bride and grooms-to-be some top tips.
Read more: Inside Belfast couple's amazing wedding day at The Loft in Templepatrick
The couple, who currently live in Bournemouth, met on Tinder three weeks before the first Covid lockdown hit and got engaged a year later.
Shauna has told all on their special day!
Tell us all about your wedding day!
Our wedding day began with Alic heading off on a run around Kilbroney Forest Park and a bacon butty. I decided to get ready at the venue as the home house was full of family and my mum is no longer with us. Grainne at Rocky Mountain had the tunes on and we ended up getting ready outdoors as it was a heatwave. Bronagh Trainor MUA and Mary Maguire Hair Management were great craic and had us all looking pretty. Andrew from Andrew McKenna Photography was so lovely taking the time to chat and taking some candid photos whilst his colleague Matt was with Alic and his sons down in Rostrevor. One of my bridesmaids Stephanie, owner of Vivid Clay Bridal, presented me with beautiful bespoke earrings and a lovely photo of my mum to attach to my bouquet.
As we had over 50 guests staying in Rostrevor, we organised a bus to take everyone up the mountain and Alic hopped on that too. Whilst the girls changed our six month old's nappy, Alic and I had our first look. We already live together and have a baby so I didn't feel like I was being given away. Instead, each of the three children made their entrance with a grandparent, and in turn we were able to come in together, united.
We had a witty and intimate humanist wedding by Fleur Mellor, incorporating elements of Fijian culture such as the Salusalu garlands we lay on each other. My brother read out a poem my late mother had wrote out. Whilst the ceremony was underway, Belfast UkeJam silently set up outside to surprise our guests with fantastic songs, energy and awesome ukulele playing. They were a huge hit! As we had the ceremony and reception at Rocky Mountain, the guests happily chilled on the lawn and mulled around enjoying the music in the sunshine. They also checked out the animals and enjoyed the delicious tapas by Kris and his team at No 7 The Duke. The atmosphere was just as we had wanted, lovely time to enjoy seeing friends. We had such incredible photographers in Andrew and Matt.
Espresso martinis and brambles were on tap and everyone sat down to a delicious meal by No 7 The Duke. Each chair was decorated with a floral garland the guests enthusiastically wore. Instrumental ukulele music played during the meal and a show piece of a wedding cake was presented by Away With The Mixer Cake Artistry. Cold Porter kicked off the music and rocked the dancefloor, they were just incredible and Sound Function Events kept the party going until the bus came and the babysitter went home!
How did you begin planning your wedding and how did you decide on the venue?
Initially with Alic being from Fiji, we had thought about eloping to Fiji, however the more we discussed it the more the pull of Co Down had. We wanted to have a personal and special wedding on location and so I started off looking at humanist weddings. Living in Bournemouth, most things were organised or initially organised online. My dad joked that given half a day on the computer, I had everything booked. We came across Fleur and her creative background. Her enthusiasm for a Northern Irish/Fijian wedding was terrific.
Location wise, I wanted somewhere close to home. I adore Rostrevor and a friend recommended Rocky Mountain Cottage (which is better known as Santa's Cottage in the winter). Upon meeting Grainne and her dad Lawrence for the first time and walking around the grounds, surrounded by the mountains, seeing the reindeer and other animals - you cannot fail to be wowed. That was it!
Ukuleles are very popular in Fiji and somehow I stumbled across Belfast UkeJam on Facebook, we saw maybe two clips and decided we would love to have them play at our day. Our band Cold Porter are legends, we never considered anyone else. I had seen Rocky Mountain rate Soundfunction Events, so after liaising with Anne Marie, we were booked. Grainne at Rocky Mountain is a superstar! She recommended Karen from Karen's Childcare to look after our six-month-old daughter, which was just wonderful. Karen instantly set our minds at ease with her calm and caring demeanour.
Tell us about your wedding dress, bridesmaid dresses & suits!
Whilst organising the wedding I was pregnant and so I was reluctant to go shopping for a dress. I saw a lovely dress by Folkster which is an Irish brand in Dundrum Shopping Centre and tried it on, whilst Alic was waiting outside. Our bridesmaid dress shopping date was cancelled when I tested positive for Covid, so I got the credit card out and ordered an array of dresses in the same palette, but different styles and sizes. The next week we had a fashion show and thankfully the girls all found a beautiful dress they liked and felt confident in from ASOS, Oh Hello Clothing and Folkster. With regards to Alic's outfit, he's not a suit and tie guy. Ideally he would love to have been married in his shorts and flip flops, so we went for a waistcoat from Louis Boyd's in Newry and chinos from Jack Jones. The kids had tropical braces and bow ties from Etsy, with matching ties for our dads.
What was the best part in the build up to your day?
In the end, we had around 50 people coming from across the water so not only were we planning the wedding, but organising airport runs and accommodation for the evening before, however this meant everyone was really excited to come on a mini holiday. There was a great buzz of excitement. We were having all three kids baptised the following day whilst the family were together. I have to say absolutely everyone involved in the wedding was only an email or a phone call away and nothing was any bother.
What was the best moment of your day and your other favourite parts?
The day was great from start to finish, it was so lovely to see and hug all our family and friends. It's so hard to pick a favourite moment. One of them was walking into the ceremony together and seeing all the smiling faces. We also loved getting away from the madness of the house (we had 17 people staying over) the previous day to head up to Rocky Mountain and decorate, enjoying a bit of craic with Grainne and Maurice.
What would you tell other couples to plan first & what are your top tips?
I would tell other brides and grooms to just be yourself and do what you want to do rather than be swayed by other people's judgements. My top tips are to check recommendations, see who your friends like on Facebook etc. A lot of people we ended up working with came from recommendations and were absolutely terrific.
What were the hardest parts to plan and did you come across any difficulties?
There really were not any issues apart from two suitcases of Alic's dad being lost, however we managed to retrieve both just before the wedding.
What was your theme?
The theme and vibe was a Northern Irish/Fijian fusion wedding. We stood on traditional Fijian wedding mats brought over by Alic's family, we also had garlands and fans made for the wedding in Fiji. We wanted a relaxed environment and the sun shone, which was a big bonus.
Would you do anything different?
Wouldn't change a thing!
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Do you want to tell us all about your wedding day? Email be@belfastlive.co.uk for your chance to be featured.
