Keith and I are each other’s biggest fans. We honestly think the other is the coolest, hottest, funniest, most special person on the planet.
Keith is a musician from Derry City, Ireland (keithharkin.com). He moved to Los Angeles about five years ago but has been touring in America for the past 10 years. Apart from music, Keith loves to surf and build stuff. He built our pub in one of the horse stables on our property for the wedding. I am from Phoenix, Arizona, but have lived in Los Angeles for nine years. I studied fashion design and now I run my own online business, Harkin Headquarters (harkinheadquarters.com), where I sell all the things I love, like handmade tapestries, bags and jewellery from artisans all around the world and Keith’s music. We were married at our new home, which is a 100 plus year-old farmhouse on an island off the coast of Donegal, Ireland. Our whole wedding took place outside, with the exception of two horse stables. One was converted into a beautiful whitewashed buffet room, and the other was turned into a full, functioning Irish pub. It will be a pub and a wedding venue forever now! We created the entire wedding with the help of family and friends. One of my absolutely favourite things about the wedding was the altar. I envisioned it and Keith created it from tree trimmings he had saved. He bent and snapped all the branches to create a beautiful arch, and my bridesmaids and I decorated it with flowers. One of our best friends from LA made a watercolour painting of the island with a detailed map of what to do and where to go. It was so rad to be able to give that to all of our friends. I decided to have my dress custom-made by a good friend who’s an incredibly talented designer, Stephanie White, who owns Odylyne The Ceremony. We worked together to create the perfect white gown. The dress is not white anymore, though! The result of a rainy Irish wedding and lots of dancing. Marriage to me is the feeling of being with your soulmate. You can be vulnerable without feeling bad; you can be silly without feeling embarrassed; you can be open without feeling too sensitive; you can love and smother each other with kisses, without being annoying — all because your partner feels exactly the same. Yeah, you’ll get in bad moods, or annoyed, but it’s only surface stuff, and it passes. When you’re with your soulmate, you understand that.
Photography—James and Cameron at Chasewild | Bride’s dress—Custom-made by Odylyne the Ceremony | Hair—Bride’s sister, Amanda Nichols @hairbyamandanichols | Groom’s floral suit jacket—Bought in ‘The Alley’, Downtown LA | Groom’s shirt and trousers—H&M | Veil & flower crown—Kate Thompson at Amaroq Design | Processional bagpipes—Barry Kerr | Location—Couple’s home | Shoes—Custom-made by friend, Paul Kauffman | Styling, flora & makeup—DIY | Bride’s necklace—Christine Zezza | Band—The Hitmen | Catering—Friend, Rita Wild at Boxa | Bridesmaids attire—A mix of custom-made and The Reformation | Bride’s cross bracelet—Heirloom necklace from grandmother | Groomsmen’s shirts & jackets—Bought in Downtown LA | Cake—Made by friends’ bakery, Doherty’s | Velvet duster—Girl On A Vine http://girlonavine.com | First dance song—‘Harvest Moon’ by Neil Young performed by Rebecca Harkin (Groom’s sister) and Kevin Harkin (Groom’s father)
