Wedding of the Week: Sydney proposal sees Jane and Shane marry in Waterford and Cork
Jane O’Brien and Shane Crotty received a guard of honour from their GAA clubs. Pictures: Shane O'Neill, Aspect Photography
From Watsons Bay in Sydney to the Sunny South East back home in Waterford, Jane O’Brien and Shane Crotty had no shortage of scenic backdrops to mark their romantic milestones.
The Co Waterford couple first met in Cork, got engaged in Australia and said their “I dos” in Abbeyside, Dungarvan, with a reception where it all started — in Cork.
Jane, from Grange, near Ardmore, Co Waterford, and Shane, Abbeyside, Dungarvan, were married recently in St Augustine’s Church, by Fr Ned Hassett.
“We first met 11 years ago in college at Cork Institute of Technology when we both completed the same course in business,” says Jane.
Fast-forward almost a decade, and they’d almost rounded off 12 months living together in Australia when Shane popped the question at Wastons Bay, Sydney, on December 28, 2023.
“He proposed just before we came home. It was a surprise proposal, at our favourite place to go in Sydney,” says Jane.
At the other side of the world, Abbeyside’s beach and boardwalk beckoned for their wedding-day photoshoot with Shane O’Neill, Aspect Photography ( Aspectphotography.net), soon after they walked down the aisle as newlyweds.
Moments earlier, their GAA clubs, Ardmore (Jane) and Abbeyside/Ballinacourty (Shane), had given them guards of honour as they emerged from the church.
Next stop was Maryborough Hotel & Spa, Cork, for the reception where Jane’s parents, Breda and Kieran O’Brien, and Shane’s mother and father, Norma and Shane Crotty and his grandmother, Biddy Hourigan, raised toasts to their future happiness together.
Jane chose her sister Olive O’Donnell to be her maid of honour, and her sister April O’Donoghue, together with her friends Niamh Kiely and Michelle O’Sullivan, were her bridesmaids.
Her nieces Muireann Morris and Ava O’Donoghue were the flowergirls and her nephew Jack O’Brien was the pageboy.
Shane’s brother Josh Crotty was his best man, and his friends Stephen Kearney, Maurice Power and Patrick Houlihan were the groomsmen.
“It was an amazing day from start to finish, emphasising joy, connection, and celebration with loved ones,” says Jane. “We absolutely had the best weekend. The weather was amazing too.
“Knowing everyone was there for us made it so special.” Jane looked super-elegant in an AL Bridal Couture dress. “I bought it in Say I Do bridal boutique in Midleton, Co Cork,” she says.
The groom was dapper in a suit from Red Church, Cork, and the groomsmen were kitted out by Devereux Manshop, Dungarvan.
The bridal hairstyling was by Jenny O’Donnell Maher, New Images, with makeup by Edel Morrissey Beauty & Bridal.
Claudia Czerny at Blossom & Berry Flowers, Lismore, Co Waterford, created the floral arrangements, and Memory Lane Wedding Films was the videographer.
The newlyweds, who live in Abbeyside, Dungarvan, chose South Africa as their honeymoon destination.
- If you would like your wedding to be featured in email eve.kelliher@examiner.ie
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