A Newtownards couple have told all on their beautiful wedding day at Orange Tree House.
Molli and Brendan Berry got married at the Greyabbey venue on February 17, 2022 with 50 of their nearest and dearest.
In Be 's weekly feature Inside My Wedding, couples are delving into their special day to give bride and grooms-to-be some top tips.
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The 28-year-olds met on Tinder and started dating in New South Wales while Molli was living in Australia, later getting engaged in New Zealand.
Brendan was born and raised in Australia and had never set foot in Europe before moving over with Molli.
She has told all on their big day!
Tell us all about your wedding day.
Our wedding day was amazing. We wanted a chilled out, relaxed day and that is exactly what we got.
We only had 50 guests but it meant we had time to chat to everyone and just have the best day!
How did you begin planning?
If I’m honest, I began planning my wedding years ago on Pinterest way before I even met Brendan. I swear every girl does this!
The first thing I did was pick a venue.
How did you decide on your venue?
Originally I only wanted to get married at Montalto as I think it is stunning, but when we found out the Australian family and friends couldn’t make it due to Covid travel restrictions, we decided on a smaller more intimate venue and I am SO GLAD!
Orange Tree House was the most perfect venue for us. Both being from the country, we wanted a rustic feel and it definitely gave us that! Not only that, the staff at Orange Tree House were so lovely from day one.
The view from Orange Tree looking over the beach was amazing!
Tell us about your wedding dress, bridesmaid dresses and suits.
I love my wedding dress. I got it from a bridal store in Banbridge called La Boda Bridal.
I cannot recommend these girls enough. They made the whole process enjoyable and fun. I think my dress was the eighth one I tried on and I instantly knew it was the one. I thought girls were talking rubbish about ‘knowing it’s the one’ but it’s ALL TRUE!
I tried to be responsible and booked in at another bridal store, but I had a horrible experience there. I remember messaging the La Boda Bridal girls and booking in a follow up consultation right away!
Brendan got his suit and the groomsmen suits from Remus Uomo in Victoria Square. They were very nice and helped us pick out the perfect suits.
My bridesmaids dresses were from an Etsy store called DesirVale. I was a bit sceptical about ordering dresses online but she made them to measure which was amazing, as one of my bridesmaids was seven months pregnant at the time of the wedding. She was SO LOVELY and accommodating for all my questions... and I had a lot!
They were made and delivered within two weeks and they fit my three girls PERFECTLY. She literally had to estimate how big the pregnant belly would be at the time of the wedding and she got it spot on.
She’s a miracle worker.
What was the best part in the build up to your day?
I loved planning the wedding. I tried to do as many things myself as I could and I loved every second of it. I want to plan everyone’s weddings now! I really enjoyed the meetings with the florist, the venue etc because it allowed me to get so excited.
What was the best moment of your day and your other favourite parts?
The best moment was being able to spend it with my family. Obviously we would have loved Brendan’s family there, but unfortunately it just wasn’t possible.
I got about 12 of his family and friends to send me a video of them sending their love to him and I played a compilation of it at the speeches. I loved that it meant so much to him.
What would you tell other bride and grooms to plan first & what are your top tips?
First, pick your venue. Second, pick a photographer/videographer. Third, pick a florist. Everything else will fall into place!
Top tip is to enjoy every minute because it goes faster that you can imagine!
Another mega top tip: HAVE YOUR DOG AT YOUR WEDDING. Just do it. It’s amazing. The photos are epic, the guests love it, our dog had the best day and we will cherish it forever.
We also made a donation to Dogs Trust and they sent out little broaches for all of our guests as wedding favours. I LOVED this as I often think that wedding favours get binned, eaten, thrown away or lost.
What were the hardest parts to plan? Did you come across any difficulties?
I loved planning it! ran into trouble when my minister pulled out two weeks before the wedding as he had a health issue. As you can imagine, it stressed me out! Luckily Rev. Stephen Orr saved the day and he was the most fabulous minister!
Did you have a theme?
Our wedding didn’t really have a theme. The bridesmaid dresses were dark, burgundy velvet and we had small amounts of burgundy in the flowers, but apart from that everything else was very natural tones.
As I said, we just wanted it to be relaxed and chilled so there was no pressure. I mean, I wore white fluffy slippers for the entirety of the day, and I got matching ones for my bridesmaids to wear.
Would you do anything different or wish there was anything you didn't worry about?
I wouldn’t change a thing!
Do you want to tell us all about your wedding day? Email be@belfastlive.co.uk to be featured!
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