Authentic, bright and joyful! Today’s real wedding in the heart of Dublin city was one for the books. Alyssa and Carlos are based in the Hudson Valley in New York and they whisked 90 of their treasured people to the Irish capital for an unforgettably unique celebration.
They wanted their guests to feel what it was like to spend a perfect day adventuring around Dublin and they painted the city in joy with their sunny spring bash. With artistic and emotional photos from John Gillooley, the style left us breathless with the bride wearing a bewitching black wedding dress (with cowboy boots) while the groom donned a hot pink suit. Swoon!
Colourpop decor and flowers made their ceremony at Smock Alley a dazzling affair and afterwards the newlyweds and their loved ones marched through the streets to The Stag’s Head for drinks. The reception at Isabelle’s included cocktail-style dining that married Italian and Irish cuisine and they danced the night away to trad music. Strap in for one unbelievably chic ride!
Alyssa is from New York and Carlos is from North Carolina and they met through their mutual best friends 12 years ago at a party. While they were friends for years they started dating in 2016. They tell us, “We went on a walk through Prospect Park in Brooklyn, NY and throughout the day we kept wanting to continue spending time together. First we extended the day by going to lunch, then to grab a beer, then to a movie. It’s fitting that our wedding day also involved frolicking through another one of our favourite cities.”
Carlos popped the question during a sunset boat ride off the Amalfi Coast, talk about romantic! Alyssa reminisces, “He had to sneak in the question while our delightfully talkative boat captain was taking a very brief break between showing us every picture in his phone and explaining in detail how to cook the perfect zucchini pasta.”
The bright and bold wedding aesthetic was driven by Alyssa’s dress! “I had an untraditional and maybe slightly crazy vision from the start, so it really came down to execution. I knew I wanted to wear a black wedding dress since I was young – it was actually my mom who reminded me of this early on in the planning. In photos of weddings where the bride wore a black dress, the aesthetic is often more gothic or autumnal, which I didn’t want, so I knew I’d need to incorporate a lot of bright, bold colours and textures to keep the vibe uplifting, joyful, and whimsical.”
She continues, “Incorporating that many bold colours could easily become tacky if not done right, so I relied heavily on my stylist, Grace Cahill of Studio Grace, and my florist, Heather Condren of Flowerpop, to help bring the vision to life flawlessly. The two are a dream team. It was remarkable to see it all come together against the backdrop of Smock Alley’s elegance – it took our breaths away.”
Black wedding dresses are show-stoppingly beautiful as Alyssa’s wedding day look proves. She was mesmerising in her Maggie Sottero gown which boasts sparkling embellishment, sheer accents and floral embroidery. She accessorised with shoes from Tevocas and accessories from Kate Spade with a pop of colour coming from her drop earrings and the pretty dark green ribbon she wore in her hair.
As real travel lovers, the couple knew very early on in the planning process that they wanted a destination wedding. While they had a short list of locations Dublin was the perfect spot to tie the knot. Alyssa had studied there and it is a city they adore and had travelled to together.
They had first seen their wedding band, The Buskin Bandits, play during their first trip to Dublin together. “We were planning to catch some live music for a little bit before a dinner reservation, and we loved them so much we kept postponing and then completely cancelling the dinner plans to stay and listen to them. That night, before we were even engaged, Alyssa jokingly said, ‘They’re going to be my wedding band.’ Having them perform at both our ceremony and reception was really special. And they were the life of the party!” Alyssa made her entrance to Cyndi Lauper’s Time After Time which perfectly matched their playful and fun wedding vibe.
Their dear friend Dimas officiated their ceremony. He is a talented writer and he had the perfect relaxed demeanour to keep them feeling present and calm at the altar. “His speech was personal and thoughtful with a mix of humour and beauty that was raved about by our guests the whole night.”
We can’t get enough of this epically stylish couple!
Their top priority was ensuring a unique, fun, and stress-free experience for their guests who made the long journey to celebrate with them. “We wanted our guests to walk away appreciating the charm and beauty of Ireland and understanding why we chose Dublin,” she shares.
After they exchanged vows, the newlyweds took their loved ones on an adventure through the bustling heart of the city centre. They marched down the historic cobblestone streets of Temple Bar and across Dame Street to The Stag’s Head for gorgeous pints of Guinness.
Alyssa sheds more light on the atmosphere of their city bash, “It felt like a perfect, sunny spring day we’d plan for ourselves while visiting Dublin, but this time we invited our favourite people to come along for the ride.”
Planning a destination wedding can come with its own set of unique challenges but they surrounded themselves with the perfect suppliers to make their wedding dreams a reality. “We had a ton of help from our amazing vendors, and we couldn’t have done it without them, but we managed a lot of the planning ourselves from start to finish – mostly from abroad – so seeing it come to life was special and incredibly rewarding. The relief and joy we felt when everything worked out just as we planned was so satisfying.”
The bride adores colour-blocking and that set the tone for the mix and match forest green bridesmaids dresses from Birdy Grey and the bright suits for the groom and groomsmen from Alton Lane.
Peonies, bachelors buttons, romantic roses… The drop-dead gorgeous bouquets were brimming with joyful hues.
The floral print ties were a genius styling addition as they drew on the colours of their suits and buttonholes beautifully.
Also serving up stellar style was Alyssa’s niece Lily who was the flower girl. She wore a baby pink frothy tulle dress from Lola and the Boys and glitter cowboy boots.
They have lots of wonderful tips to share after planning their fairytale wedding abroad. Start early, they advise! “It took us about 18 months to plan the wedding. We gave ourselves plenty of time so we wouldn’t feel too stressed or like it was a full-time job (although it still did sometimes!).” It is vital to prioritise what you want as a couple, not what other people want. “Your wedding should be representative of who you are. It’s hard not to get lost in worrying about other people, but the end it’s so rewarding when you’re true to yourselves.”
Their final tip is to listen to each other’s ideas and contribute to the planning. “We leaned on each other a lot and split up responsibilities but included each other in the decision making. We both have our planning strengths, so in the end our wedding was truly a perfect mix of our personalities and styles.”
On the way to their reception at Isabelle’s the newlyweds had an inpromptu dance on Grafton Street. So magical!
With a modern and eclectic interior and a warm and inviting vibe, Isabelle’s had the character they wanted while offering enough of a blank slate for their aesthetic which included bright and colourful linens, candles and flowers. “Isabelle’s didn’t feel we were sacrificing anything to fit into a standard wedding mould – they were willing to bring our vision to life and customise the evening for us.”
“They have enough space to accommodate a crowd without being so big that it would feel empty. They also have several distinct areas that allowed people to mingle – a band and dancing area, front and back patio spaces outdoors, ample seating nooks and a quieter area near the bar,” they add.
Instead of a sit-down meal they opted for cocktail-style dining throughout the evening. “They offered an array of delicious food with a nod to Irish cuisine, and their chef was happy to work with us to create a menu that was fun and unique so our guests could have small bites throughout the evening but didn’t go home feeling hungry.”
They wanted the food to marry their engagement experience in Italy with hosting their wedding in Ireland and the results were seriously scrumptious. “We started off with a charcuterie table and a raw bar with oysters, prawns, and smoked salmon with Guinness bread. We then served arancini, aubergine croute and gnocchi alongside corned beef sliders, pulled beef and champ mash, and fish & chips.”
They had an array of smaller-scale sweets with macaron towers in the place of a traditional cake along with sticky toffee pudding, passion fruit tart, and chocolate mousse.
The best man’s speech at the reception was absolutely unforgettable. “Having grown up with Carlos and knowing Alyssa for years, he had everyone cracking up and crying all at once.”
Their first dance paid tribute to their early dating days. “We spent an evening drinking whiskey and blasting the emo songs we both loved from the early 2000s, so our first dance was an excerpt from I’ll Catch You by The Get Up Kids.
They had an unforgettable week in Ireland entertaining and hosting with their nearest and dearest. “It was so much fun to introduce everyone to a city we love. After that, we were exhausted! We spent a few days on the West Coast, staying in Galway and decompressing. After that, we were ready to head home to see our cats (Portabella and Limoncello). As such, we decided not to plan a big honeymoon immediately after the wedding, but we’re hoping to plan a trip in 2026. We’re thinking Portugal, but TBC!”
A very special thanks to Alyssa, Carlos and John Gillooley for sharing this wonderfully chic Dublin City wedding with One Fab Day! You can check out more gorgeous images in the gallery below!
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