A jewel in Ireland's Ancient East, Waterford Castle Hotel is set on an enchanted 310-acre Private Island accessable only by ferry. Exclusively private, this historic 16th-century castle was the venue for the wedding of Sarah Rogers to Craig Doolan on the 4th of August 2025. Shot by Diana Pokusai Photography, this intimate celebration was the perfect prelude to the couple's Barcelona celebration later this year!
The couple are childhood sweethearts, having met through mutual friends when they were just teenagers. The rest, as they say, is history.
"I knew it would be difficult to surprise Sarah after over 10 years together. I decided to pop the question while we were away on a surprise trip for my 30th birthday, which she had organised. I had no idea where we were going, but knowing Sarah, I knew it would be somewhere special, and most of all, I knew she would never suspect a reverse surprise. As I had no idea where we were going or what we were doing, I had to keep the ring with me at all times. Constantly trying to figure out when the best time would be to go down on one knee and pop the question, which was pretty stressful to say the least. Sarah had planned the most magical weekend in Glasson Lakehouse, staying in their private cabin in the woods. The minute we checked into the room, I knew that was where I was going to ask her to marry me."
"I would love to tell you we had a 12-month skincare regimen, but in reality, there was a lot of last-minute water drank and some of hydra-facials for an instant glow. We promise to be more organised this year for our big wedding celebration in Barcelona."
Sarah enjoyed the wedding dress process so much that she couldn’t settle for just one! "I attended the Kildare Village Bridal Edit Event about this time last year with my Mom, and I would highly recommend it. It was such a lovely day, and I first spotted my ceremony dress and shoes at their fashion show. I also picked out outfits for our rehearsal dinner and for our celebration in Spain later this year. They had an amazing selection of outfits for all of your bridal occasions!"
She wore a two-piece suit dress from Self-Portrait for the church ceremony. Her birdcage veil was sourced from Everly in Naas, which really brought the whole vision to life. "I knew I wanted to change into something more glam for later in the evening. I found my evening dress one night while scrolling on ASOS, and I loved it. I bought the neck scarf separately."
"We both love the timelessness of black tie. We wanted to keep that theme for both of our outfits, but with a modern twist. I was scrolling through Instagram stories one evening when an ad for Reiss popped up. When I followed the link, a very classy-looking tuxedo caught my eye. I went for a dark navy/midnight blue double-breasted two-piece tuxedo with black satin lapels from Reiss. I knew buying something like that online would be risky, but I thought it was worth the risk. I brought it to a tailor for some minor alterations, and it fit me perfectly."
Sarah's little sister Naomi was her only bridesmaid and witness. She had free rein to pick a dress she loved and chose a beautiful blue silk dress from Meshki.
"We are having our main wedding celebration in Barcelona later this summer with all of our friends and extended families. We knew we would be getting legally married here in Ireland, ahead of our wedding abroad, so we decided that we really wanted to mark that incredible, special moment too. We are so glad that we did. We really wanted our grandparents to be with us to celebrate our wedding, so it was so special to have them with us on the day in Waterford. We had our wedding ceremony in a small local church in Crooke, Co. Waterford, overlooking the sea. After the ceremony, our driver took us down to the village of Dunmore East, where we had some of our favourite wedding photographs taken. We were so lucky with absolutely stunning weather on the day, so the sunny south east was truly living up to its reputation! Dunmore East is a really special place for both of us, and we’ve spent so much time there, and we have celebrated so many special moments with family and friends down there over the years."
"From the beginning, we knew we wanted the day to feel personal and meaningful, so celebrating in private with just our immediate family members felt really special. We are so looking forward to our much bigger wedding celebration in Barcelona later this year, but this day was all about slowing down and marking this special moment together. The ceremony itself was perfect and felt really true to how we wanted to celebrate this moment."
Suir Strings performed throughout the ceremony and the reception, filling the church and making every moment feel even more meaningful, especially when the couple first locked eyes as Sarah walked up the aisle. "Our favourite part was probably afterwards, returning to Waterford Castle and sitting down for dinner and drinks together. It felt so lovely to relax, reflect on the ceremony and celebrate such a big moment with the people closest to us. The whole day felt very intimate, personal and full of love, which is exactly what we had hoped for."
Sarah’s parents celebrated their own wedding at Waterford Castle over 30 years ago, so it was extra special for the couple to host their Ireland celebration in the same hallowed halls. "From the moment we arrived, everything felt calm and private, almost as if the rest of the world had paused for a while. The Castle itself is so full of character and history, which made the whole experience feel even more special."
"We knew when we were choosing the music for the ceremony that we wanted it to be in keeping with the grandeur of the castle. We went with acoustic string music performed by Suir Strings, a violin-cello duo. Roger from Suir Strings was great and arranged everything perfectly. We gave him a list of songs, both contemporary and classic, that we wanted to play and sort of left the rest to him. The acoustics in the church were great and really added to the atmosphere. Back in the castle, they played at the front entrance, where we had our drinks reception, which again made the day feel really timeless and elegant."
- Gráinne