Real Weddings: Tabitha of La Bougie ties the knot in a dreamy Tuscan ceremony

by Shayna Sappington
09th Aug 2024

Tabitha and Tony's magical ceremony was held at the picturesque Poppi Castle in the Italian countryside, adorned with silk flowers, fairy lights and a special scent as an ode to the bride's mum.

THE COUPLE
Tabitha Millar Hagerty, La Bougie Candles, and Tony Kennedy, international event rider and farmer.

THEY LIVE
in Co Meath.

THE VENUE
Poppi Castle, followed by La Vecchia Quercia Villa in Tuscany, Italy.

PHOTOGRAPHER
Francesca Donatelli.

THEY MET
We both knew each other through horses, but we officially met in Mickey Ryan’s Pub in Cashel – the rest was history!

THE PROPOSAL
We were at a dressage show in Wicklow all weekend so he caught me totally off guard, and then on the bank holiday Monday he took me to The K Club as a surprise night away. We went for a walk in the hotel’s garden and he got down on one knee!

THE DRESS & THE SUIT
My dress was a simple Stephanie Allin dress from The One in Rathmines. The dress was so amazing; it had two looks – one for the ceremony where we added a tulle overskirt and a pearl belt. Then after dinner, the overskirt came off and it was a simple elegant dress with pearl buttons up the back. I also had a pearl veil from The One by Moira Hughes Couture.

Tony just wore a simple linen suit; the fit was the part I loved best about it and the lightness of the fabric. His shoes were Fairfax & Favour Suede Driving Shoes and his Bremont watch was his accessory. We opted for no ties.

THE CEREMONY
The ceremony was completely in Italian and done the Italian way. It was quite quick and simple, but it was a really beautiful ceremony with our closest friends and family in the gorgeous walls of the ancient medieval castle.

THE RECEPTION
The reception was at La Vecchia Quercia Villa. We started with canapés and champagne beside the pool with a saxophonist. The weather was just so beautiful… dinner was then at around 7pm, and all the beautiful lights came on in the trees and it felt like Wonderland!

We had incredible traditional Italian food from a local caterer and a traditional Tuscan wedding cake called millefoglie. It was so delicious! Then the La Bougie Desert Rose Candles twinkled away and the most gorgeous smell filled the valley.

THE ENTERTAINMENT
A friend of ours Padraig Flanagan flew over to sing throughout the three days; it was so fab! He sang the night before, the aisle song and the first dance song on the wedding day and then he did an amazing pool party performance. We also had a saxophonist and a DJ.

THE DECOR
We had gorgeous table runners to match the dusky pink of the La Bougie Desert Rose candles. We had silk roses made from JoJo Macnamara in the UK, and then garlands of roses around the tables. We also had low-hanging fairy lights to light up the garden, and ‘dandelion’ lights on all tables. It was magical! We called all our tables after famous racehorses, something quite close to Tony’s heart and our place names were done by Calligraphy by Laura from Dublin. This added a real personal touch.

I have always adored roses, so when my mother Lucy created our Desert Rose fragrance I knew this would be my favourite and she was touched that I chose to wear it on my wedding day. The day of the wedding was so warm with a rose pink glow from the Sahara sand in the sky. Then into the evening, the twinkling candles dotted around the gardens not only created a magical wonderland but threw a sublime fragrance across the valley.

THEIR TOP TIPS
Keep it simple… if you’re worried about adding something, more than likely you don’t need it. Less is more and I am so glad I listened to advice on this. Everybody will enjoy the wedding and probably won’t notice any small things you might think they will. Once the music, food and good company is there, everything else follows!

THEY WISH THEY HAD
Sometimes we wish we could have brought over extended family and friends but we kept the number quite small due to the venue. Other than that, we honestly wouldn’t have changed a thing!

THEIR BEST MOMENTS
There were so many special moments from that day, however, walking up the aisle and seeing Tony for the first time was really nice. We both loved the entrance to dinner too, the speeches and then the cutting of the cake. It was all just really fun!

THE FIRST DANCE SONG
“Hearts on Fire” by Passenger. We also had a very special dance to a song called “To Build A Home” – both sung by Padraig.

THE CREW
Wedding Dress: Stephanie Allin from The One. Veil: Moira Hughes Couture. Wedding shoes: Jimmy Choo. Bridal jewellery: Azure Jewellery & One Dame Lane. Make-up: Andrea Moore. Bridal robe: HA designs. Flowers: JoJo Macnamara & Fiori Di Paola. Night before dress: Rebecca Vallance. Perfume, wedding scent and candles: Desert Rose by La Bougie.