This real wedding is not about the details (although it is filled with those too!), it’s a pure dose of LOVE. Chris and Lucas‘ big day was nothing short of amazing, a celebration of the couple’s difficult journey to say “I Do”. Having met overseas, this lovely pair chose to wed in Donegal. Their Lough Eske Castle wedding included a heartfelt ceremony and was filled with overwhelming emotion. You sense it in every image, and, as the photographs by James Mcgrillis prove, this was a seriously stylish celebration to boot!
Lucas is from America, and Chris is Irish, the pair are currently based in The Gulf States in the Middle East. At this point, we’ll hand it over to Lucas to share the story. “We met in Qatar, the side of the world where being gay is punishable by jail time, in some cases, death. We had to be really careful. I was in Doha for a business meeting. Chris was based in Qatar as a teacher and I was living in Dubai. I was supposed to meet a friend for drinks at the bar in the hotel I was staying at, but he couldn’t make it. I went for drinks by myself, and this guy sat next to me, now he’s my husband!”
Lucas proposed to Chris while the couple were on holiday in The Seychelles. A nervous Lucas had the ring in his pocket the entire time, waiting for the right moment. Finally, he found the courage to do so, while relaxing poolside at their private villa at sunset. He took a red box out of his pocket and popped the question. An overwhelmed Chris cried and, of course, said Yes!
Such style! The grooms each rocked blue velvet tuxedos by designer Varoin Marwah which they paired with Shutiq smoking slippers.
Our second woman-of-honour feature in the space of 2 weeks and we’re loving it!
Chris & Lucas’s ceremony was romantic, emotional and a beautiful commitment to their future as a couple. Lucas reminisces, “The ceremony was intimate, personal and beautiful. Everyone started crying as soon as we walked down that aisle. The celebrant, Lorna Weir, made our ceremony about our love story, how we met, and how we parted ways thinking we may never meet again. Our wedding was not only a ceremony, it was a journey into our love story. And love, above all, transcends all barriers.”
The couple fell in love with the homely vibe they felt at Lough Eske Castle. Chris says, “It was a castle, but it was also intimate. Not too big, not too small. The castle felt more like a home to us.”
Describing their day, the grooms say, “It was the day of days. Sunny skies, a wedding set in a fairytale castle in the north countryside of Ireland. Lush greenery, crystal clear lakes with music and laughter filling the air. It was a black tie event, and everyone was well dressed for the occasion.”
The grooms made the most of the stunning grounds at Lough Eske for their photo session with James McGrillis.
The couple tells us it was their guests that made their day extra special and personal to them, “Seeing people who were never together at one place, all there to celebrate us was incredible. We had people from all over the world.”
These two have some perfect words of wedding wisdom to impart to other couples, “Get a great photographer and take lots of photos with loved ones. Invest in a videographer! Must have a short film of the biggest day of your life, at the very least.”
The perfect wedding cake for this travel-loving pair!
After the celebrations, the newlyweds had an extra-long, multi-stop honeymoon, which sounds epic! “We toured South America. Before that, we did the Belmond Royal Scotsman vintage train journey to the Scottish Highlands, from Scotland we flew to Mexico, then spent time in Mexico City, followed by Tulum. We flew to Havana from Cancun, Havana to Peru, Peru to Chile, Chile to Argentina, and all the way to Brazil. We spent the whole summer honeymooning. Yes, we absolutely recommend long honeymoons. I mean, how can you not?!”
Thank you so much to Chris and Lucas for sharing your wedding with us, and to James McGrillis for documenting their day so beautifully – make sure you visit the gallery below to see more details from their day.
