A Castle Wedding with Something Irish, Something Italian and Something Indian

A Closer Look

Manny and Greg's wedding brought together Indian, Irish and Italian heritage, and nobody had to choose between them. At Dromoland Castle in County Clare, Tara Fay Events gave each tradition its own chapter of the day, with its own palette and its own mood. Guests traveled through all three without ever leaving the estate.

Ireland came first, in the castle's walled garden. Under an open-sided stretch tent, The Garden banked the aisle with cloud-like florals in pastel pink, lilac, green and white and climbed them up both sides of the altar. Manny wore an off-the-shoulder lace gown with a sheer corset bodice and long lace sleeves, and her cathedral-length veil, edged in lace, pooled across the aisle behind her. Greg wore a white dinner jacket. Her bridesmaids stood in blush satin with white and pale pink bouquets. The garden kept everything soft and quiet, which left the rest of the day room to turn up the color.

Then the day crossed to Italy. Cocktail hour borrowed from Sorrento, where the couple got engaged. Round tables wore blue-and-white floral linens, with lemons gathered at the base of ribbed glass vases. The bar was wrapped in hand-painted panels of lemon trees in majolica urns, and more lemons were heaped on top beside the spritzes. The garden suddenly had sunshine in it.

As the light dropped, dhol players in red turbans and embroidered jackets took the lead, their drums swinging with bright tassels, and walked the couple through the castle grounds as guests danced behind them. Greg had changed into a black tuxedo. The boldest setting came at dinner. Long tables in pink toile ran the length of a candlelit ballroom with Gothic arched windows. Brass candelabras were tied with long terracotta ribbons that hung like the torans framing doorways at Indian celebrations. The Garden switched to dahlias, celosia, pincushion protea and red currants in deep red and orange, and every napkin was embroidered with a guest's name in green script. The colors spoke of India while the menu stayed Italian. Antipasto and fresh pasta came out on scalloped pink plates, and when guests found the lyrics to Bella Ciao hidden beneath them, the whole room broke into song.

Greg had planned several surprises, and the biggest waited by the lake. Manny changed into a sleek long-sleeved gown for a first dance on a platform ringed by 1,200 candles. A close friend sang live, and fireworks lit up the water behind them. It was the one moment of the day that belonged to no tradition but theirs.

For the party, Manny switched to a strapless white mini with a full skirt, and the night moved under a ceiling of fairy lights and crystal chandeliers. The couple cut a traditional millefoglie layered with cream and crowned with berries, and the bar poured Irish whiskey. Then a line of Irish drummers in kilts took the floor. Hours earlier, the dhol had led the couple across the grounds. Now Ireland answered with drums of its own.