Celebrating Love and Artistry: Rachael and Charlotte's Unique Wedding Ceremony at Drenagh Estate.

Tattoo shop owners Rachael and Charlotte celebrated their love with a deeply personal and personalised wedding ceremony in The Moon Garden at Drenagh Estate, Limavady. In the first of a series of #MarriedByJean couples, The Lees reminisce with me about their inclusive and creative celebration.

Tell me what you remember about your wedding day!

Our wedding day was the definition of our relationship; full of surprises and chaos! Of course Rach decided last minute to change our vows to private and keep our guests waiting! We were so lucky to get a wind and rain storm in our outdoor August ceremony but in the end it was the best day full of so much love and all of our favourite people. 

What does Humanism mean to you?

Humanism to us means 'equality' and that is obviously something very important to us as a same sex couple. The emphasis on human rights was also something we were both really drawn to. Having a humanist ceremony gave us the opportunity to concentrate on our own individual love story. Every human should be treated with respect, choose what they believe and think based off reason and equality of all people. Humanists focus on seeing the happiness in life and not an after life.

Why did you choose to have a Humanist Wedding Ceremony?

We choose a humanist ceremony because it’s what worked for us. A humanist wedding is much more personal and focuses specifically on the couple. Promises made at our wedding are to each other and not a higher power. Because of the absence of religion, nobody was excluded from our day and we also got to include our family and friends.

Why did you choose Jean as your celebrant?

Easiest decision of the wedding planning! Jean is an absolute gem, just from her vibes on social media and all the great stories we heard about her we knew she was the one for us. Having someone who doesn’t hide away from their beliefs as a business is empowering. You can tell how much she loves what she does and how much she cares about her couples. Having a super stylish celebrant is also a big plus! (Note from JBQ: Promise I didn't pay them to say this!)

How did you incorporate friends and family into your ceremony in a meaningful way?

Having our mums do the hand fasting was so beautiful and really special to us both. We got to include every single guest with warming of the rings which was great! We had family and friends also read some personalised pieces. A special auntie wrote a custom poem too. Plus our 30+ year old brothers made the cutest flower boys! 

You had quite dramatic weather for an August wedding! Did this impact your enjoyment of the day? How did you navigate this?

We live in Ireland! Are we not always guaranteed four seasons in a day!? Plus it made for some very dramatic photos and video! Weather is weather, we were on a love buzz we didn’t care!

*For highlights of THE MOST DRAMATIC and atmospheric ceremony video check out She Makes Movies Instagram.'

You had a last minute change to the wedding order. How did this benefit your enjoyment of the ceremony?

Having private vows was a really beautiful and unexpected aspect of the day and is now probably one of our big highlights! It made both of us super relaxed for the official bits!

How did you choose your wedding suppliers?

Our suppliers were either queer or women, easy decision! The more we could support other women or members of the community as fellow business owners the better. *Rachael also designed and made the ceremony stationary and signage, hand painted leather jackets, wedding day signage and bespoke wedding favours among many, many other things!

Tell me one thing you love most about your wife!

Rachael: I really love Charlotte’s ambition, she is so driven and anything she puts her mind to, she works hard to achieve. Charlotte managed to start her own business during covid and has created the most wonderful work environment. I am so proud of her.

Charlotte: I love Rachael’s empathy and kindness. She is just the best human and always has others on her mind. Watching her blossom as our daughter’s mother has been truly extraordinary. How she juggles it all is beyond me, very inspiring!

"It was a million tiny little things that, when you added them all up, they meant we were supposed to be together...and I knew it. I knew it the very first time I touched her. It was like coming home, only to no home I'd ever known. I was just taking her hand to help her out of a car, and I knew. It was like...magic." - Sleepless in Seattle (A quote from Rachael and Charlotte's wedding ceremony.)

If wedding planning became overwhelming, how did you find your centre or feel calm and in control?

We were very lucky, never had a point where it was difficult or overwhelming. But we do run a business together so it was easy and really enjoyable! We got to create a lot of the extra touches ourselves too.

Tell me one 'stand out memory' from the ceremony.

Rachael: I loved how Jean told our love story. She absolutely nailed what we meant to each other. She brought humour where appropriate and really highlighted special moments for us. Everything felt so personal and it felt like all our guests got to be part of our story.

Charlotte: Really couldn’t have put it any better myself, exactly what Rach said! It was probably the first time a lot of people were hearing our love story and couldn’t have asked for it to have gone any better! 

Rachael and Charlotte's supplier team:

Venue: Drenagh Estate

Photographer: Pop Photography

Videographer: She Makes Movies

Florist: Tortraits

Dresses: Asos and Coast

Leather jackets: Leopard and Luna (Rachael)

Signage and stationery: Leopard and Luna (Rachael)

Cake: LilyPink Bakery

Charlotte and Rachael are the owners of Croí Dubh, an all Womxn Tattoo Studio in Belfast, Northern Ireland. They are a mix of women and non binary artists. Charlotte is a tattoo artist and Rachael is the studio manager. Rachael is also the founder of Leopard and Luna, a wonderful space for joyful, edgy and creative crafts!