Saying ‘yes to the dress’ is one of the most magical parts of wedding planning. With so many incredible bridal designers and dress styles to choose from, it’s understandable that dress shopping can feel like quite the challenge but it will be an unforgettable experience that you will cherish forever.
In our new series The Dress we ask stylish real brides to share their journey to finding ‘the one’ to help inspire your quest. Here we’re diving into the breathtaking wedding day style of Irish stylist Justine King who married her love Conor in an ultra-chic Dublin city wedding.
The fashion broadcaster sourced her dream dress second-hand, a serendipitous path led to her stunning bridal look that married sustainability and timeless sophistication. Enjoy!
Bride Bio
Name: Justine King
Profession: Fashion Stylist
From: Dublin
Wedding Date: 30/5/25
Wedding Venue: The Merrion
Instagram: @justinekingxx
The Love Story
We met at a mutual friend’s party in 2016. We hit it off right away, went on a first date a few days later and have been together ever since. We have two kids and a house already so getting married was kind of last on our list of big life priorities. We mutually decided the timing felt right late 2024 but we didn’t want a traditional wedding and definitely didn’t want to spend years planning it. So we secretly planned the necessary details – booked the venue, celebrant etc… Then we officially got engaged in March 2025, about eight weeks before the planned wedding. We were out for a child-free walk on our favourite Bull Island and it started hailstoning but Conor was adamant we would get to the end and it was there he got down on one knee. He had recorded a video with our two little boys where they asked me if I’d marry Daddy. Adorable!
The Journey
I had never seen a wedding dress that felt like ‘me’ before. They were all gorgeous on the bride wearing them but I couldn’t see myself in any of them so when I spotted my dress online long before we were planning the wedding I said that would be what I’d rent when the time comes. Then once we were wedding planning I came across it on ReBride!
The Vision
I wanted it to feel like me but also fit the occasion of a small city wedding so I knew I didn’t want a big princess dress.
The Decision
As a stylist I have a really good sense of whether something works or not and I just knew from the first picture of it this was my dress. I adored the dramatic sleeve. So I took a chance, bought it from a gorgeous girl in Cork without trying it on and she posted it to me with a bottle of bubbly and a beautiful note wishing me happy memories in our dress.
I didn’t ever try on another wedding dress so the process was stress-free, just one phone call with the seller from ReBride and the dress was mine. I was six months postpartum and had just started a fitness journey so while the dress was about two sizes too small for me I was determined I’d rock it by May. I didn’t even try my dress on for anyone until the week of the wedding when I showed my mum and best friend. I had bought my dresses before most people knew we were getting married which suited me, zero opinions other than my own.
The Accessories
My dress didn’t need alterations but I needed to alter shapewear as it was very low backed but needed a strapless bra and Spanx, so it was an arduous task. The sleeve was voluminous but the dress itself is quite minimalist so I knew it could carry a statement earring and the pair I got from Parfois kind of mirrored the sleeve shape which I love. I’m also a sucker for a beautiful shoe so my Jimmy Choo Averly’s kindly gifted by my sister were the perfect shoe choice.
The Wedding Party
For the wedding party a few weeks later I had two dresses, the first was a silk Zimmermann wrap dress which I wanted to wear for speeches and the meal then change into a party dress for dancing, which was from Aje via ReBride too. I didn’t wear anything blue for the wedding day but I wore blue satin shoes at the wedding party.
The Advice
Don’t feel you have to spend a fortune on it, there are so many high street and lower cost designer options (Aje, Rixo etc.) now selling bridal. Look at preloved sites like Vinted, ReBride, Vestiaire Collective etc. for your dress and/or wedding accessories too.
A massive thank you to our fabulous bride Justine, you can see even more of her stunning style over on her Instagram @justinekingxx.
Check out our My Wedding Wardrobe series for more fabulous wedding style inspiration from real brides.
