There’s something truly special about a wedding that feels personal and relaxed, and that’s exactly the vibe that Julie and Dean had for their amazing wedding day! On September 23rd they exchanged vows at the beautiful Castello Monaci in Puglia, Italy.A venue filled with warm light, historic charm, and peaceful surroundings that set the perfect mood for an intimate celebration.
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With 49 of their closest family and friends joining them, the day will be centred around connection, authenticity, and the joy of sharing such a meaningful moment with the people who know them best.
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From the quiet anticipation of the morning to the golden-hour ceremony and evening celebrations, every detail was thoughtfully captured by their photographer, Dominic Lula.
Which gown did you choose from Marrime and why?
"I wore Alena Leena White carnation. I had actually tried White Carnation on as part of her Trunk Show, it was my very first dress appointment and the second dress I had tried on that day and I loved it, but I was only starting out trying on dresses so I waited and tried other bridal boutiques and styles but I kept comparing everything to this dress. The trunk show then moved to the UK, so I had to find which boutique would have the collection next and found Marrime, and booked my flight over to try it on again."
Was it love at first sight — or a moment that surprised you?
"I kind of had this idea in my head of what I could picture myself in as a bride, I imagined something more embellished or beaded, but I was actually really thrown when that style of dress did nothing at all for me. It seemed the simpler more classic styles suited me more but I didn’t really want totally plain, I wanted something a little different. White carnation to me felt like the perfect mix of simple, romantic, classic with a twist.
I loved the ruffle details, the boned bodice and the slit."
Did you make any customisations to your gown or accessories?
"No not really, I chose to opt for split sizing as Alena Leena offers this option for her dresses and it meant that when my dress arrived it was the perfect fit so I’m glad I chose to do that because I didn’t want to have to alter the dress too much. I also just added an extra layer of lining, as I was getting married in Italy in the sun so I wanted to make sure it wasn’t in any way see-through if the sun hit it."
How did your dress influence the styling of your day?
"The week before I flew to Newcastle I drove to a bridal boutique in Belfast and also fell in love with Chosen by Kyha Kasia corset and Milford skirt, I was so torn between the two dresses as they were both so different. When I got to my appointment in Marrime, they had both dresses there so I got to try them both on in the one boutique to compare how I felt."
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"Although I loved both, my sister and I both felt that Alena Leena white carnation was just more suited to my personal style and to our Italian Castle venue. It was more ethereal and romantic, softly structured but modern. It flowed beautifully and was so comfortable and light for getting married abroad. My dress had soft romantic details and I wanted the styling of the venue and the day to reflect that vibe."
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"I had this vision in my head of wanting the castle to be adorned in pastel flowers, and my bridesmaids to choose a style and pastel colour dress that they liked themselves. The pastel tones were carried throughout the styling of the ceremony, the table settings, the flowers, I wanted soft and dreamy décor for our whimsical Italian wedding."
Describe how you felt wearing your gown.
"I honestly loved my dress so much, I think that’s why I kept comparing every dress I tried on to it, but because it was only the second dress I tried on, it was months before I got to try it on again and decide that it was the one!"
"My sister was the only person to see my dress on me before the wedding, so the rest of my bridesmaids, my mam and my nan didn’t see it until the morning of the wedding when I came down for the ceremony and they all loved it too."
What was the vision for your bridal look?
"I loved the ruffle off the shoulder neck line and detail on the dress, so I didn’t want to take from that or overpower the details of the dress by adding lots of accessories. I wanted a soft, romantic and whimsical vibe. A look that felt ethereal and modern but still timeless."
Did you change for the evening? If so, tell us about your second look.
"I had a second dress that I changed into very late that evening. It was the Rosie Etienne Lustre mini dress. I had tried lots of mini dresses on during bridal appointments but hadn’t found one I loved, and then I came across Rosie Etienne’s website, all of their dresses are so beautiful!"
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"I choose Lustre which is a structured strapless bodice adorned with pearls and bead embellishments. I ordered it online, and when it arrived I loved it even more it was so stunning, the detail was incredible. I also loved that it was a total contrast to my wedding dress. It meant I could just be a little bit more free to dance and move around later in the evening."
Tell us about your veil, shoes, and accessories — were there any meaningful pieces?
"I choose a cathedral length scattered pearl veil to pair with my dress, I had tried a pearl veil on with it during my two appointments in Marrime and it really complimented the dress without overpowering it. I also knew I would wear it for the ceremony and would remove it for the reception as it was going to be really warm in Italy."
"Shoes have always been my thing over bags, and honestly I always thought I would choose a designer pair for my wedding, but I actually came across a pair of Steve Madden heels online that I loved with a simple pearl strap at the front, that you would see with the slit in the dress but they also had a large bow on the back with the bow embellished with pearls too."
"For my accessories I booked an appointment with Lyndsey in One Dame Lane jewellery. I choose the Freya earrings which are freshwater pearls and cubic zirconia briolette’s with a large and small flower drop earring. They were just the right amount of statement and sparkle without overpowering the dress. My sister Rachael bought me a delicate twin pearl bracelet from Lulu+Belle, that she gave me as I was getting ready that morning, I love it and wore it on the day too."
Who created your hair and makeup look, and what was your brief to them?
"Marta Lula was my hair and makeup artist on the day. Her husband Dominic was our photographer, they travel the world together taking joint wedding bookings which is amazing! My brief was simple really, I just wanted bronzed glowy skin with bright eyes and a red lip and for my hair I wanted half up, half down in a loose wave and she absolutely nailed both. I was delighted with how she made me look on the day."
Three words that capture the mood or style of your day
"Romantic, emotional and magical!"
Describe your palette — were there any colours, textures or florals that anchored your design vision, from bridesmaid dresses to wedding stationary?
"My wedding palette was pastel themed. I chose sage green, pale blue, pale pink and pale lemon for the bridesmaid’s dresses and lilac for our flower girl. The girl’s bouquets were the same colour as their dresses and my bouquet was a combination of all of their colours together. The colours looked really beautiful together. I absolutely loved our flowers, we had an arrangement in a half moon shape at the top of the aisle with pastel flowers, and a gorgeous draped arrangement on our sweetheart table. Our candles also tied in with the pastel colours we choose, as did our gorgeous place settings, name cards, personalised poems etc., they all featured delicate pastel floral details. Our wedding planner Claire Clarke was incredible at helping us plan and tying everything together perfectly."
Who was your florist, and what did they create for you?
"Sarah Tappen was our florist. She has her own company The Way To Bloom. She is based in the UK and travelled to Italy to create something truly magical for us. The centre pieces, floral arrangements, candles, bouquets were all so beautiful. We had given her an idea of what we wanted and she came back with an amazing proposal. She is so creative and I love her attention to detail, she makes sure she creates exactly what you envision and we absolutely love her style. Her modern, romantic style paired perfectly with what we want to achieve."
Was your wedding aesthetic inspired by fashion, travel, art, or anything personal?
"We love Italy and when we went to view Castello Monaci as a venue we fell in love. We included some Italian songs in our wedding song choices and choose an Aperol Spritz as one of the signature cocktails. We have a little fur baby Rosie, she got a few little features throughout the day, including her very own signature cock-tail!"
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"In relation to fashion influences, I wanted to incorporate my personal style into the day, but I also wanted my bridesmaids to be able to do that too. Dean’s sister Karen was his grooms’ maid so she wore a black dress that she choose to tie in with the groomsmen. I really loved how everything came together and that everyone felt beautiful."
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"A huge part off our day was based around deeply personal elements. We wanted to honour Dean’s mam Betty, and my grandad Michael who have both passed away, we had reserved seats for them at the ceremony with their photos and a single rose to make a special seat for them. We wrote individual poems for each person that was placed at their table setting in pastel floral wax sealed envelopes and everyone really loved their little poems from us. I love little personal touches and I wanted to include some in our day."
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"One of the most important things we wanted to include in our wedding was our charity donation to Oscar’s Kids charity instead of favors for our guests. Oscars Kids is an incredible paediatric cancer charity that I work with, founded by Lar and Yavanna Keogh in honour of their wonderful son Oscar. They support some of the bravest children in Ireland and their families facing the most devastating cancer diagnosis. In my job as a Play Specialist in a children’s hospital, I have the privilege of meeting and supporting these incredible children and their families and this charity holds a very special place in our hearts that we wanted to honour all of the very special club members and hopefully enable some more magic to happen."
Any standout styling or décor moments you adored?
"We decided to do a sweetheart table, for me and Dean to be able to sit and have our dinner together and soak everything in and Sarah created the most beautiful floral arrangement that was draped off the side of the table. It was stunning. I just loved how everything came together styling wise to give a laid back romantic feel to the day."
Your most unforgettable moment of the day
"Oh that’s so hard to choose there are so many special moments with all of my favourite people throughout the day! I loved getting ready with the girls, my mam and my Nan that morning in hair and makeup sipping champagne. It was so calm and special."
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"My nephew Harry walked me down the stairs of the castle gardens, where my Nan who is 88 years old walked me down the aisle to Dean. When the doors opened and I saw Dean crying, surrounded by a sea of people we love, that was a memory I will carry forever. There was so much emotion and love sprinkled throughout the day it’s hard to choose."
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"We had a vintage car for our entrance into dinner while playing “Che la luna” while everyone was waving their napkins in the air which was amazing, and one of my favourite moments was our cake cut. We chose a traditional Italian cake, a millefoglie cake that we decorated with fruit, it was surrounded by some of our floral arrangements and then as we cut the cake we had smoke bubbles and fireworks, it was just magical! Honestly I just loved every minute of the day, I wish I could do it all again!"
What advice would you give other brides planning now?
"I would say to try to remember that your wedding day is about you and your husband, and the love that brought you together, alongside all your favourite people coming to celebrate you both."
"Don’t stress too much about minor details, there will be little things or situations that you can’t control and you have to just let them go, they don’t matter in the long run. I think make your day as personal as you can because it’s really just about you two coming together to get married and the things that are important to you both. We loved the sweetheart table because it gave us time together, just us, on what is a really busy day and it was lovely to sit and chat and take it all in!"
Would you do anything differently?
"No, I absolutely loved every minute of our day, it was perfect, the venue, the staff, the location, our vendors, the food, and our guests. Everything was amazing and I wouldn’t change a thing."
Describe your Marrime experience in three words.
"Special, emotional and personal."
What made you choose Marrime?
"I chose Marrime because when I was researching where the Alena Leena trunk show was going to be next a few cities in the uk came up, but when I saw it was going to Marrime and it was Newcastle I booked it straight away. I love Newcastle everyone is so kind and welcoming, my sister and I used to go on lots of weekend breaks to Newcastle and it was so special we got to go back together to Marrime in Newcastle to pick my dress."
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"My stylist Paola was so lovely, she really took her time helping me choose my perfect dress and offered great styling suggestions. I couldn’t recommend the Marrime bridal experience enough, it was so lovely."
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A huge thank you to our beautiful Marrime bride Julie, you were truly a vision on your wedding day and we simply love every single detail! White Carnation was a dress made for you! Such a beautiful recap of your day, we are so pleased we could play a role in your fabulous wedding day, it really is our pleasure to be able to help all of our Marrime brides find their dream gowns!
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