Here at Rock My Wedding we showcase all sorts of styles of wedding, from vintage-inspired to ulta modern, from rustic rural to city chic. Weddings with a handful of guests right up to mammoth sized ceremonies. I don’t think we have ever had a ceremony with zero guests though… Until today.
Leading up to the wedding, Stephen and Julia were stressing about saying their vows in front of even a small number of friends and family, so they made the decision to have no guests at this part of their day, and simply have the minister marry them. navyblur their photographers became their two witnesses.
Afterwards, Stephen and Julia threw confetti over each other as there was no-one else there to do it…… genius.
Made In Belfast.
We married on Monday 10th October 2011 at Willowfield Parish Church, Belfast. Our reception for close family and friends was at Made In Belfast Cathedral Quarter restaurant. We then had an evening party with a dj and acoustic live music at The Black Box, Belfast.
Decisive And Laid Back.
My wedding dress was by Claudine for Alyce designs. I picked it from the 2nd shop I went to and within a few days of getting engaged. We only had a 6 month engagement so I was just very decisive and laid back about entire process. For a girl who’s perfect dress would come in the form of jeans and T-shirt, I didn’t want to get too hung up on looking for something I wasn’t going to be really particular about.
I’m planning to sell it and buy something that we will use all the time and have that as a reminder of our day as opposed to letting the dress go to waste hanging in a wardrobe. The bridesmaids dresses were by the Dessy Group. They were also picked in the 2nd shop! My favourite thing was probably the navy cardigan I wore that I’d bought two days before the wedding.
Silver With Pearls.
I wore a tiara and veil that came from the same shop as the wedding dress… They were the only ones I tried on and I hadn’t really planned to get either. The jewellery was very simple, mostly silver with pearls. The pearls worked really well with the navy bridesmaids dresses and the necklace I wore was one I already owned and just decided that morning to put it on.
Rocketdog Pumps.
My shoes were from the Next Occasions collection, as were the bridesmaids. We tried to do the wedding well but without spending a fortune for the sake of it. I eventually changed into my comfortable Rocketdog pumps.
The Vintage Bride.
The Vintage Bride (Kelly McClean and Claire McEvoy) did our hair and make up. I found them by chance, went for a trial and booked them there and then. They were really great on the day and just added to the laid back atmosphere that morning.
Copper Broccoli.
The Bouquets, hair pieces, button holes, tiered cake stand, dessert and lemonade display for the evening reception were all done by the fabulous Copper Broccoli. We could not have done the majority of wedding without them. The entire evening reception was pretty much orchestrated by them! They also did a lot of running about on the day for us. Incredible! I also love that the fabric bouquets can be kept forever.
Grey And Navy.
The groom and groomsmen, Stephen’s brother Chris and two friends Martin and Jamie, were suited by Remus Uomo. They were grey suits with navy ties. The bridesmaids, my sister Lyndsey and my two friends Ashley and Beulah, wore navy Dessy dresses by Alfred Sung. I wanted the dresses to be quite plain but also something that the girls would love and be able to wear again.
All The Wee Details.
We had navyblur as our photographers. We love their work and felt they were perfect for the entire feel of our very laid back wedding! They put two people who really hate getting photos taken very much at ease. We knew they would capture all the wee details that were important to us, like family and friends present, the cake pops, whoopie pies, lemonade in jam jars, acoustic open mic sessions, quirky decor in the Made In Belfast restaurant. They are super friendly AND were also very excited to be our witnesses for the ceremony! They were more than photographers on the day and were so willing to help out with whatever needed done.
Sweets And Soups.
Neither of us wanted to do the traditional ‘cutting the cake’. We got cake pops and whoopie pies instead made by Cupcakes and Fairycakes, Belfast. We also had The Soup Kitchen Belfast (whom we met at St Georges Market) provide amazing homemade soups at the start of the evening reception.
Personal Performances.
We had an acoustic open mike set up in the cafe area of the Black Box. Musician Ruth Trimble performed, along with family and friends. David MacDermott DJ’d for us. We loved that everything was so personal and tailored to us.
This Is A Party, Not A Dance.
We didn’t want a first dance. Our aim was to throw a big party to celebrate our marriage rather than specifically focus on the ‘wedding day’ part. All of the guests commented on how relaxed the whole day was and they liked that it was very personal to us.
Stripey Straws.
We decided not to have any specific favours, Stephen made the name places, which were flags on red and white stripey paper straws.
The Black Box.
We decorated The Black Box with bunting, we had lemonade served in jam jars, copper broccoli bouquets on the tables in cafe, photos of me and Stephen as kids and growing up. We mostly wanted to allow the amazing venues to speak for themselves.
Home Made Desgins.
We would like to think our wedding was very us. We planned it the way we wanted it yet didn’t spend an unnecessary amount of money. Stephen did the invites, table plan, name places etc. We were very laid back about most things, almost anti-bridezilla! I think that the most important thing for us was just being married after the 10th. We didn’t want to get sucked into forgetting that its just one day in your life. A big thank you to our families who supported us and really did let us do whatever we wanted, including having a completely private and empty church to accommodate a shy bride!
Venue Made In Belfast and The Black Box
Dress Alyce designs
Shoes Next
Bouquets and decor Copper Broccoli
Suits Remus Uomo
Photography navyblur
Stationery The Groom
Lemonade served in jam jars with stripey straws! stickers with silly sayings, whoopie pies, flying saucers, kinder eggs, Top Hat light shades… I could go on. There are so many lovely retro elements to this wedding.
The venue is really what catches my eye here – I can understand why Stephen and Julia decided to be reserved on the additional decorating – Made In Belfast is so retro cool – it really is a complete package. The odd little personal touch here and there, including Stephen’s kick-ass design skills did just enough to put their personal stamp on things and truly make it their day, their way.
I do have a quick Heath & Safety point to raise today about using naked flames at your wedding reception… they don’t mix well with tissue wrapped bouquets…
Lucky after a bit of huffing and puffing the inferno was safely contained without incident. (It was probably a good time to have about 100 jam jars of lemonade lying around the place too…)
Leave a comment for us today and you might just win a Rad, Fab, retro camera or notebook from lomography.com.
Adam.
It’s so exciting to see a Belfast wedding on RMW! I used to live just opposite that church, and Claire McEvoy did my wedding make up too! It’s also great to see such an individual wedding come out of Northern Ireland – we got funny looks because we were having a civil ceremony, so I can’t imagine what people would have said if we’d told them we weren’t having any guests to the vows part of the day!
Good on you Julia and Stephen, your wedding looks like so much fun and is really cool too. I am especially jealous of the Soup Kitchen! Oh, and Julia’s cardigan. And I love the Black Box… [makes self shut up].
Love the laid back feel of this wedding and the venue is superb! Any idea where the bride’s cardigan is from? I think I need to have it in my wardrobe! x
What a fab wedding. Love the laid back style. Stephen & Julia look happy and relaxed – just what you want. Congratulations
I <3 Navyblur. I want them as my wedding photographers!
I love this wedding…there’s something very ‘Romeo & Juliet’ about the ceremony. This wedding for me puts everything back into perspective…the important thing is at the end of the day you’re husband and wife. We’re having only a handful of our close friends and family to our ceremony with everyone arriving to celebrate with us at our reception after. Throwing confetti over each other is genius! And the cardy…need I say anymore! xxx
This wedding is going down as evidence to my friends as to why I still read RMW religiously, even after becoming Mrs G…it provides inspiration for wifely life too and now our weekend of Rugby watching will be beautified with silly jam jar sitckered drinking vessels
GOOD. FOR. THEM.
CONGRATULATIONS!
Love all the personal details – and that cardigan is lovely! Where’s it from? X
I think this is probably one of my favourite ever RMW Weddings.
It actually made me sigh out loud in contentment because for me it just epitomises what a wedding should be about – The Bride, The Groom and The Togetherness.
That said, the party afterwards looks bloomin’ amazing! The venue is fantastic and the jam jars are just a touch of genius.
Congratulations guys!
xx
This is one of my favourite RMW weddings too! I really really really love the photo of the groom smiling at his wedding ring with the guests all hugging around them! I’d frame that one. ( if he was my husband I mean, otherwise it’d be a bit weird!)
Great wedding , beautiful church, lovely colours at the reception.. Very happy people. Perfect. X
What a gorgeous personal, full of love wedding this is one I would like to attend!!
I love the brides hair and her cute cardigan and all the DIY pieces, very cool! xx
Cannot beat a bride in a cardi!
wow wow wow! Talk about doing it your own way!
This really warms my heart as its all too easy to conform to pressure about what a wedding should be like and how you should do it and Stephan and Julia clearly listened to themselves and it worked perfectly. Everyone looks so happy and you can feel the love and laughter ooze from the fab photos. xxx
Woooooooooow I LOVE the fabric bouquet with all the cute buttons and stuff, forever flowers are such a wonderful idea
OH MY RUDDY GOODNESS!!!!!!!!
THAT VENUE IS SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO AMAZING!!!!! IT ACTUALLY MADE ME CRY A TINY BIT!!!!!
And yes I’m sat in class with my GCSE class!
SO brave to get married in private like that, I think my Mum would KILL me! But luckly for her I’m the opposite to shy!
But please please please can I steal the jam jar with stickers idea???? I’d love to do it with G ‘n’ T’s for first drinkies instead of bubbly!!!!
Oh and your hairs AMAZING too!
Right I’m going to start to ‘pin it’! And tell the boy we NEED to go to Belfast!
This is a very Adam wedding
For a bride who wasn’t particularly fussed about her dress, she looks bloomin’ amazing!!!!
It’s lovely to see couples who go their own way and don’t adhere to restraining traditions – I’m a little envious!
xx
Loving the fact that a wedding from Belfast has appeared on RMW! The Cathedral Quarter setting is so unique and intimate. Made in Belfast & the Black Box would have made for a most memorable day out for all. Very jealous of this wedding altogether as its in my home town.
My favourite touch is the button holes – gorgeous!
All the best for the future!
um I love a cardigan and that one is gorgeous. This is one of my fav RMW weddings ever x
Loving the intimacy of the ceremony…. It reminds me of the wedding of the couple that had eloped from Hong Kong that the wonderful Emma Case featured on her blog last year, which was quite simply one of the most awe-inspiing weddings I’ve ever seen… Belfast looks stunning in the photos, and the restaurant seems the perfect setting for a laid back affair. If only I’d seen these photos before I started planning my own wedding….
I really really love this!
I totally effing love this wedding, shizz like this is exactly why I still read RMW even though i am a smug married
mrs r x x x
Oh and Celine – I know what you mean, definitely an ‘Adam’ wedding!!
This was one of our favourite weddings of the year! Loved being part of it. It was when he came to pick her up…it was the cutest thing in the world.
Hope they r well.
Kelly
The Vintage Bride xx
This really made me smile – these guys made this a truly unique event. Loved the little touches like the buttonholes and the pictures capture a very happy couple really well.
Wow! This one’s giving me a bit to think about this morning…
I love this venue, so very much. It is incredibly cool, and reminds me about the awesomeness of city weddings.
I’m also pinning a few things, especially the proof of how a bride can totally rock a cardigan, which my sister simply will not believe!
Right, better go get my stuff together for my trip to Oxford this afternoon to see a potential venue (our favourite, preferred, completely in love with the idea of venue, if I’m honest)!
How very wonderful!! Absolutely love this wedding. Congratulations xx
Oh, and I completely forgot to say – love all the bits with the confetti
Hands down my RMW favourite!! Go Julia & Stephen for utterly doing things their way & for keeping such level heads & perspective about what the day’s really all about. I loved all the really fun, unique & personal additions. Made in Belfast and the Black Box are two home-grown favourites & the caterers & musicians just makes this a super super cool wedding that I think we all wish we’d been at!! Absolute knock out!
Exchange the church for a registry office and this is pretty much my fiancé’s ideal wedding!
We got engaged on NYE and have been told many many many times………..do what YOU want. Have it YOUR way. It’s YOUR day.
It’s so hard to do that and you get so caught up in what you ‘think’ you should do.
Thank You to Stephen and Julia for keeping it real, and making sure it really is about the ‘marriage’ and not the ‘wedding’.
Wishing you happy happy times together xx
These people sound like my cup of tea, or glass of lemonade, whatever you prefer!
I love this wedding! So much colour! This is exactly how I hope my wedding turns out, complete and utter fun-fest! Congratulations xx
Love a cardigan with the wedding dress! Such an intimate and personal wedding. Congratulations! x
Wow! what an amazing wedding…I love that it was such a laid back day… just the way I want it! x
This has made my day!! Been looking for a Belfast wedding venue from the comfort of my home (in Hampshire!). I love Made in Belfast. What a fab wedding. Congrats to the happy couple. I’m off to email the venue right now
My favourite wedding so far…! i just love everything about it! the boquets are amazing!! everything is amazing!
Yay Belfast! I’m also getting married in Norn Iron and organising it from Manchester, which will be great on the day but adds an extra complication to the planning piece.
Everything looks beautiful as well, amazing!
Carrie
Thank you for all your lovely comments! Have a huge grin on my face reading them, hah! The cardigan was £16 from Peacocks.
I envy 6 months engagements. Especially beautiful ones like this. I have been slogging for 3 years! 3 months to go!!! Really love the reception venue. Looks like my living room!
Definitely one of my favourite ever RMW weddings, totally love this! It’s a toss up between the cardie (which completely finishes Julia’s outfit) and the Made in Belfast venue as to which is my favourite thing about this wedding. And the bouquets, buttonholes and hair things, totally amazing! And you’ve gotta love the jam jars and stripey straws – girl after my own heart!
And this is some fantastic photography!
All so good.
xXx
OMG…….this wedding is quite simply BRILLIANT. it ooooozes character, and style. What else can I say other than in true TOWIE style – i am well jel lol xx
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Almost the epitomy of “your day, your way”. Love everything about it. Congrats guys xxx
I really admire the stripped back ceremony and the balls to do what was really really right for you. Its something that everyone tells you to do, but is actually pretty difficult to do, so well done for sticking to your guns!!
I particularly like the buttonholes and hair accessories, but I could also add the bridesmaids dresses, bouquets, brides cardigan, venue, top hat light etc etc to the list!! Congratulations!!
Wow to have the guts and really go for what you both want, to the point of having no guests at the ceremony really takes some balls so bravo to you both for sticking to your guns….love the jars with the stickers and the bowler hat lighting…Im now off to buy a kinder egg
I am in love with this wedding! Well done to them for doing it their way. Too many amazing details, I’m literally gorging myself on these photos!!!
I’ve just linked to it on my blog so that others can ooh and ahh at it
xx
So much to love about this wedding it would be impossible to list here. Most of all that your personalities just seem to shine through in every little touch. Looks like you had the most awesome time!
Made in Belfast is now a must visit next time I’m over xx
Ah! My wedding lunch is also in made in belfast, albeit the other one!
Lovely
awwww….what a sweet couple! a lovely, relaxed, retro & cool day. Personally i wouldn’t get married without my family present but, hey, it was their day, their way!
What a brave decision for the bride and groom to make, I imagine it can’t be easy to decide to do the ceremony completely alone. Good on them.
I’m loving the stationary and super cool venue. And a bride in a cardi – brilliant!
Navy Blur knock out yet another beautiful wedding!
So stunning and creative! Love it xx
WOW…….. the celebrations look amazing. What a venue and all the little extras really did make for a unique day. Congratulations Julia and Stephen you certainly had a day to remember.
OH YEAH! Possibly our favourite’est’est’est wedding of 2011, and ok yes, i know all our brides and grooms can’t ask us to be their only witnesses at every ceremony, but man did we love it so!
Stephen and Julia rocked our photography world and we had such a fun time with them and their bridal party around Belfast – we’re LOVING the love they’re getting on here from you lovely lot, and rightly so, they put on an amazing wedding to be proud of.
Lots of Love,
Witness Extraordinaires by day/Wedding Photographers by night(and day) Xander and Christine xo
There’s such a lovely warm vibe that comes through with this wedding. It’s so relaxed but fun. It felt like a hug just looking at the pictures
is it weird the way sometimes you read a post and think “I wish they were our friends..”? Well, I wish they were. Not least cos then I could borrow that cardie…:p
Errrr I think I love ALL the detail in thus wedding. LOVE.
Navy cardigan + lace collar = LOVE!
Such a pretty wedding, I’m LOVING the blue accents and the bouquet is immense!
Thank you for sharing
What a lovely, laidback wedding…and a reminder you can do everything simply and still get those details perfect! super!
This has got to be the most genius venue ever!!! Bowler hat and teapot lampshades…winners!
I love the fact there was just the two of them at the ceremony- how cute!
Also loving the knitwear xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
adore the navy dresses with the white flowers and vice versa with the bride! Beautiful 3rd to last pic in the street xx
Could comment on the lovely navy colours, the button bouquet etc etc but what I really love is the big pot of Kinder eggs!!! haha x
I love her hair! As well as all the beautiful typography everywhere. So lovely!
I was at this wedding!!! It was so much fun and the food at Made in Belfast was the most amazing food ever as we got a choice for each course. These 2 are loads of fun and we all had a great day celebrating with them
I sometimes so wish that I had the courage to take a whole heap of leaves out of this lady’s book!
I’ll take just a couple and make sure I don’t go one bit bridezilla, and buy myself a stupidly gorgeous cardigan.
Looks like an awesome wedding! I’m definately considering a cardigan for my chilly October wedding now!
Wowzers how beautiful, I am sitting in that exact same cardigan right now although mine has an attractive orange spaghetti hoop stain down the front! Gorgeous gorgeous wedding with especially good taste in cardys
x x
Well, that was a bit blo*dy cool, wasn’t it?!
Loving this wedding for so many reasons! Will be pinching a few of these ideas (including the cardi – lush!)
x
If anyone is mad enough to propose to me at the end of this month I might just accept …but only if I can have a button buttonhole like the groom’s here
Inspired!
Definitely making soup for the evening
Definitely making soup for the evening. Awesome idea!
Ahhhh, I just LOVE a city wedding.
Beautiful shots and I thought the wedding stationery was fabulous!!!
Thanks for sharing
Great details and I absolutely love the venue – Made in Belfast and the Black Box look awesome! So so great for photography with beautiful moments captured in a great relaxed style. Kudos!
Congrats guys! I’ve been trying to get my mum to think outside of the box with my wedding plans but it’s not been happening… Until I showed her this wedding and I think she can finally understand. Beautiful day guys xxx
That button bouquet is gorgeous! Love love love it
Not commenting for the rad fab camera, I just wanted to stop by and say I ADORE this wedding!!! It’s amaze-balls!!
Jam jars for the drinks. excellent idea. Now I know what to do with all these jars I’ve been saving! Steal! x x x
Beautiful wedding – so laid back and chilled. You can see so much of them both in every aspect – love it! And I shall be stealing the jam jar idea myself!
Best man looks cracker, when do I get my camera Steve?
Lots of love
Chris the best man
Wow – I think this might be the first time I’ve seen a real wedding where you really can see the bride and groom in every single detail! Fabulous! …and what great photographers too!
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Love a lot about this Wedding. This was one of those days that you look over and see lots of things that just make you smile.. love the hand made hair pieces, the venue exudes warmth and the bride and groom are really having a good time
x nice one RMW x
Wow, so simple, laid-back and lovely. Refreshing!