Our newest issue has everything you need from the latest wedding trends, endless fashion inspo, expert tips and advice and everything you need to plan your dream day… so make sure to pick up your copy in retail outlets and newsagents today!

Get your FREE Wedding Journal Show Ticket Inside

To welcome back our print annual magazine, we’re gifting all our lucky WJ readers with a FREE ticket to The Wedding Journal Show this March in Belfast or Dublin. Inside your copy you will find an exclusive code to use at our online checkouts… don’t miss out on the chance to experience the ultimate wedding planning event of the year!

Find out more about The Wedding Journal Show HERE

Fresh Fashion for 2022

If you’re looking for some fabulous fashion inspo, we’ve got everything you need from designer dresses for the bride, razor-sharp tailoring for the groom, killer bridesmaid inspo and occasionwear for those all-important mother of the brides/grooms! Here’s a sneak peak at some of the latest collections inside our glossy pages…

Ireland’s Top 50 Wedding Venues

We’ve gathered the top 50 most idyllic and picturesque wedding venues in Ireland to keep on your radar! With everything from charming castles to elegant country houses and luxurious hotels, you’re sure to find a location perfect for your unique day.

Fun & Helpful Quizzes

Take our fun and savvy quizzes in our 2022 annual magazine which covers every area from where you can save money on budgeting for the big day, all the way to spicing up your sex life for the best wedding night ever… you’ll thank us later!

Must-Have Accessories

Find all those sparkly finishing touches to perfect your bridal glam! With some real shoe stoppers to dazzling diamonds and super cute accessories for your maids, there’s something for every bride and her bridal party in our latest issue.

Sexy Numbers For The Big Night

Feel and look your best on your wedding night with these super sexy and naughty numbers for every kind of bride! We’re pretty sure your man won’t be complaining either

Your Wedding Dilemma’s SOLVED

Got a w-day worry that needs solved? You’re not alone! We answer your biggest wedding dilemma’s in our NEW Emma’s Dilemma’s advice column. In this issue we have some style stress from a newly pregnant bride, controlling mother of the brides and trouble in paradise.

Inspiring Real-Life Weddings

Get inspired with our three real-life couples who share all the dreamy details of their day. We also close our Bride Diaries series with our local beauty blogger and MUA Caitlyn Lendrum as she walks down the aisle in style the final chapter.

Modern Gift List Inspo

Treat yourself and your hubby to these hi-tech and handy items we’ve gathered for the modern couples! Take a glance through our glossy pages in our 2022 annual magazine to find some gift inspo before you draft up your final gift list copy… you won’t regret it!

Honeymoon Hotspots

Did someone say #honeymoongoals?! Inside our latest issue we reveal the world’s hottest honeymoon spots to have on your hitlist. From the Caribbean to Greece and Italy, find out which destination is calling your name next…

…and SO much more! Get your copy in retail outlets and newsagents TODAY!

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The post 10 Reasons You Need Our 2022 Annual Magazine appeared first on Wedding Journal.

From our Ultimate Wedding Countdown Planner to keep you on track with every aspect of your wedding, from engagement right through to honeymoon, to our gallery of the coolest new plus size wedding dresses, we’ve got you covered in our Winter 2021 magazine!

If you’re in the market for a wedding dress, our fabulous four-page sneak peek at the very newest 2022 collections is an absolute must-read!

Inspired by the Bridgerton girls and their Regency style? We have galleries of gorgeous Bridgerton style wedding dresses, A-list inspired looks for grooms and daring gowns that show off your very best assets.

Whether you’re planning a perfectly chic micro-wedding surrounded by your nearest and dearest or a magnificent party of the century that all your friends will remember for years to come, you have to consult our guide to your wedding budgeting journey so you don’t miss a thing!

Get inspired by our newest brides who share their unique journeys to the altar in our Real Life Weddings pages – and we’ll show you how to get the look yourself! We talk to Melissa and Barry who chose an ancient church in Co Laois for their gorgeously boho wedding, followed by a sweet back garden reception.

We meet Jade and Dean who didn’t hold back with a stylish and elegant humanist wedding at Galgorm on the very first day out of lockdown. 

Meanwhile, Melissa and Stephen didn’t let Covid stand in the way of their perfect day and rounded off their cool and classic Dublin city wedding with a good old fashioned singsong.

Will you be one of our lucky winners this issue? We’ve got some amazing competitions for all our wonderful brides and grooms to be!

• Win a luxurious two night stay with breakfast and dinner at Kinnity Castle Hotel
• Win a designer wedding dress from True Bride
• Win anti-wrinkle treatment and fillers by Eden Medical 
• Win a luxury stay  for two with breakfast, dinner and spa treatments at Radisson Blu Hotel & Spa

We join our resident beauty blogger and MUA Caitlyn Lendrum as she teases us with the dreamy details of her journey from ‘Yes!’ to ‘I do’ in our Bride Diaries.

We show you how to honeymoon like a movie star with inspirational journeys to some of the most exclusive and heavenly resorts across the globe.

Feeling frazzled with all the fuss? Don’t forget to tune into our NEW Emma’s Dilemmas feature as our undercover wedding expert solves all your wedding day worries!

Stay up to date with all the latest beauty and grooming must-haves,the perfect accessories to complement your dress shape, and pages upon pages of bridal fashion and wedding inspo.

So what are you waiting for? Click HERE to read our FREE digital winter issue!

Front cover image: Orchid by Kate Fearnley

Looking for the latest wedding inspo and ideas? Tickets for the upcoming Wedding Journal Shows are on sale NOW.

The post 9 Reasons Why You Need Our FREE Winter 2021 Issue appeared first on Wedding Journal.

For all the brides-to-be out there nervously counting down the days, just know you’re not alone. We’ve caught up with our resident beauty blogger Caitlyn Lendrum who’s going to take us on the complete journey from ‘YES’ to ‘I Do’, so buckle up and let’s get into it!

If you’re anything like us and are a big makeup lover, you’ve probably heard of Caitlyn who at just 24-years-old has built one of the most successful beauty empires in the country with her own makeup brand, accessories and much more.

Caitlyn tells us: “I started my career as a makeup artist a few years ago, not knowing where it would take me – fast forward to now and I’ve built a brand for myself, winning multiple beauty awards and growing my social media business into one of the best in Northern Ireland.

“I’m so excited to share my journey with all you WJ’s readers through the Bride Diaries and take you to the altar with me!”

Caitlyn & Tony

Before we get into the whirlwind of wedding planning, let’s find out more about the groom-to-be, Tony Hegarty – also known as T.

Caitlyn continues: “Before I dive right in, I want to tell you little more about my fiancé Tony. When people ask how Tony and I met, I always start by saying, ‘have you got five minutes?’ It’s a complicated story, I suppose it’s more of a 21st century romance.

“We were set up by my mum and his sister who thought we would be perfect for each other. The only thing stopping us actually meeting was 5,500 miles – no big deal!

“It all started back in August 2017. I was heading into town on a Saturday night after a long day of clients when I received a message from my mum in our family groupchat. She wrote, ‘My friend’s gorgeous brother sent you a friend request on Facebook – he has a fab job in California and you’ve not accepted yet…why?’”

Being a strong independent and career-driven woman, Caitlyn was more than happy being single, but sometimes love finds you when you least expect it and so, here we are – just weeks away from the big day!

She says: “I was 20 years old at the time and putting everything into my business and just enjoying going on nights out with the girls. Now, it’s important to remember I was out with my girls that night. I already had a couple of drinks at that point and the last thing on my mind was accepting a random guy on Facebook that my mum thought suited me.

“We all know they can either pick a winner (thank God she did) or it can be tragic. I found his request (through blurry eyes) but his name was spelt in Irish. I quickly replied to my mum ‘Catch a grip, I can’t even pronounce that.’ Which is why he’s now known as T; those Irish names are like tongue twisters!

“A few hours later I was standing at the bar, alone and bored, so of course I stalked every inch of his life. Within moments I knew he had lived in San Jose and New Zealand, he was working for Facebook in California and adored his family. I accepted him out of pure guilt because he now admits he deleted his request, re-added me twice and waited three weeks!

“Our first conversation is quite funny actually, I printed screenshots of it to put them in a scrap book for his first Valentines present. We started off chatting about life, our interests, our careers and our future and I instantly figured he was just what I needed. It’s tough because I’m so career driven, but I needed someone to help me build my empire, and he was just the one.”

Thank God for Facebook eh?! (and Caitlyn’s mum of course). So after hitting it off straight away, Caitlyn and Tony did six months of long distance, before Tony finally moved home in 2018.

The Proposal

Fast forward two and a half years later, Caitlyn and Tony have been through it all from buying their dream home to getting their first fur baby, Rocco. So, the only thing left to do was put a ring on it – and of course Tony pulled out all the stops!

Caitlyn says: “WOW. It really seems like forever ago now talking about the proposal – back when we were carefree and able to travel! I really am so grateful Tony was able to do his dream proposal before Covid.

“Back in September 2019 we headed off to my absolute favourite place in the world, Dubai. After spending a day at the beach in 40-degree heat, the last thing on my mind was to blow-dry my hair and get glam!

“Tony had the day planned for months – he had asked my parents, he designed the ring with my mum and strategically planned getting the ring to Dubai safely. All he now needed was to get me to dinner.

“We arrived at the stunning gardens of the Ritz Carlton for an intimate dinner over water. Tony is an old romantic so the beautiful candlelit dinner, red carpet and rose petals didn’t scream proposal to me – I think that’s why he was able to really surprise me!

“We talked a little about the week ahead of us then Tony offered to get my outfit picture (so me!). That’s when I turned to see him on his knee behind me holding a rock! I just remember continuously saying ‘Are you sure?’ ‘Are you sure?’ I was just so shocked that someone ACTUALLY wanted to make me their wife!”

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A post shared by CAITLYN | MAKEUP ARTIST (@caitlynlendrum)

Ready, Set, Plan!

Of course this was all pre-pandemic, so after Caitlyn and Tony flew back home to celebrate with family and friends, they threw themselves into wedding planning only for Covid to enter the chat…and well, we all know how that one goes.

“So let’s address the obvious – its August 2021 and we aren’t married yet!” Caitlyn says. “After the proposal, we came home and we were going at 100 miles per hour. We picked our bridal party in February and booked our date and venue in March, completely oblivious to what was coming next.

“April came around and we were one year out from the wedding as our original date was 30th April 2021 and the world was on halt. However, we are now eight weeks out as we decided to put the date off six months to 22^nd October in the hope it would bring us some ease, yet it hasn’t really at all!

“It’s a tough one planning for something that can be taken away so easily. At the moment, we’re watching the news and waiting for wedding restrictions to ease and for risk assessments to change. As of the month of August, I was pretty negative about it all.

“However, I am now in a much more positive frame of mind and I’ve decided I’m not listening to negative opinions or feeding into rumours. Instead, I’m letting myself get excited and feel like a bride-to-be for once!

“We’ve just had a meeting with the lovely Abby from The Loft, our chosen venue, to go through all the final details and set our plan in place. Prior to this, I had booked everything, bought the dresses, organised my bride tribe but still felt all over the place.

“Although now the day has some structure, there’s a massive weight off my shoulders and it’s all finally hit me… I’m getting married in 60 days!”

Stay tuned for our next Friday segment to read all about Caitlyn’s dream venue at The Loft – you don’t want to miss it!

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The post The Bride Diaries: A Catch Up With Caitlyn appeared first on Wedding Journal.

There’s no need to worry, we’ve got plenty of time to plan the wedding day of your dreams. With so much to see, do, plan and pay for, things can get a little overwhelming, so our top tip is to split your time in to manageable nuggets. We’re going to everything down into three month sections – you can thank us later.

Don’t feel like you need to stick to this exact timeline, each wedding will be different so there’s no right or wrong way to plan your own big day.

12 Month Checklist

Talk Budgets

Weddings are expensive! Recent research says couples in the UK spend over £31,000 on their big day, while Irish couples spend upwards on €25,000 on theirs. It’s best to be realistic when allocating your wedding budget, some couples get financial support from their parents – if that’s not possible, you might have to think about what you truly want and what is an unnecessary expense.

Start Your Guest-list

It’s best to try and keep things equal. Top tip – keep your ceremony and reception lists separate, it’s easier to keep of numbers that way.

Book Photographer

Some wedding suppliers can be organised a little closer to the wedding, but others book up quickly, so it’s best to get in there quickly. The day will be a blur for you both, you want to be able to look back once it’s all over and smile – check out our recommended Irish wedding photographers in our online directory.

Book Videographer

Not having a wedding videographer is often cited as being the number one wedding regret for couples after the wedding. There are a host of top-class videographers here in Ireland, trust us! Packages now include mini-highlight reels that can be easily shared on social media – we love this! Once you have secured your venue, it’s definitely time to start booking the essentials.

Choose Bridesmaids

It’s time to gather your girl squad together and choose the bridesmaids you know will bring their A-game! You need to think carefully before you make big decisions and tread carefully to ensure peace now, and for years to come. Our advice – less is always more – too many opinions can be a struggle.

Book Your Registrar

If you’re hoping to host a civil or humanist ceremony, you’ll need to book a registrar or celebrant.

You can book these any time between one year and three months before your wedding date, but it’s best just to get it out the way. They’ll be able to answer all your questions about the ceremony, and help you find suitable readings and music.

Decide On A Theme

It’s time to pull up your Pinterest boards, girls! We’ve been secretly preparing ourselves for this very day –  it’s finally time to gather inspiration, select a colour palette, and create a mood board. We’re talking décor, wedding flowers, stationery, lighting, reception trends, this is the really fun part.

Start Dress Shopping

You might already know exactly what you want, or you might not, which is okay, too.. Before you get started, why not check out our online wedding dress finder, filled with the latest world-renowned bridal designers and various styles of wedding dresses. You can filter your search to help you find your perfect fit.

Attend A Wedding Show 

For all the wedding inspiration you need under one roof, book tickets to The Wedding Journal Show; not only is it a great place to find loads of unique wedding ideas, it’s a fun day out with your other half, bridesmaids and MOBs. Complete with international catwalk shows and complimentary glasses of bubbly, you can’t beat it.

READ MORE:

How To Budget For Your Wedding During Tough Financial Times

22 Wedding Dresses For The Budget-Savvy Bride

Meet Ireland’s Best Wedding Venues & Suppliers

The post Ultimate Wedding Checklist: 12 Months To Go appeared first on Wedding Journal.