Heather is a writer in Vancouver, who was so happy with the Celtic pearl pendant she bought from Irish Celtic Jewels, worn at her wedding, that she wanted to write about it…Writing is Heather’s passion, and her first novel will be published in January of 2009. We wanted to put her story on our blog, and we hope you enjoy it.

Lustrous, opaque, milky-white…pearls are pure pleasure, to look at, and to touch: they feel cool and heavy in your hand, then they warm against your skin…they are mysterious and substantial at the same time.

In childhood, I would play with “pretend” pearls, long ropes of them, looping them three times around my neck, as though I were Elizabeth, the Virgin Queen. In the back of my mind, I always knew the pearls were artificial: they were too light in weight, too shiny, and they did not feel nice on my skin. Someday, I told myself, I will have real pearls, grown inside of a real oyster, instead of this costume jewelry.

When my wedding day approached, I found myself longing for pearls earrings to wear on my special day. Not the overstatement of ropes of pearls; like those in my childhood jewelry box, but a simple, classically beautiful pair of drop earrings, to make me feel like a queen for a day.

Since I am of Irish ancestry, I leaned towards the Celtic patterns and symbols I’d always admired: they had simplicity and intricacy at the same time. I decided to order a pearl Celtic pendant and earrings from Irish Celtic Jewels, to go with my ivory lace dress. From the first moment I pulled my hair up, and admired my reflection, the earrings dancing as I moved my head, I knew I had found the accessory that would truly make me feel special, and I wanted the wedding to happen as soon as possible.

Tags: pearls, celtic, pendant, celtic, knots, trinity

I was updating the information on this diamond gold shamrock pendant a while ago and I was suddenly reminded about one of our customers right back when we began in 2003. That’s nearly five years ago now. I know it’s a cliché but it seems like only yesterday!

So I received an email from a woman from the US who was getting married in Ireland and wanted something unique to give to all her guests. It was to be a wedding favor/gift to thank all those who travelled from the US.

She loved the silver Shamrock pendant that we had on the website and thought this would be perfect for the ladies but not so much for the gents. I didn’t know what to suggest, as she wanted the same thing for ladies and gents. Then she came back with a great idea “how about putting the shamrock on a key ring instead of a chain for the gents?”

Key rings aren’t something that the manufacturer normally offers, so I immediately got onto them to see what they could do. The next day they called and said it wouldn’t be a problem. Then I called the customer with the good news and took her order over the phone.

The best part was going to meet the couple where they were staying, the Shelbourne Hotel in the center of Dublin. They were really pleased with the product and the key ring idea had worked a charm. They also really appreciated the fact that I’d hand delivered the Shamrocks. It was great for me too, as I had never met a customer face to face before.

Tags: gold, diamond, shamrock, pendant, celtic, irish

When John and Maureen decided to marry in 2006, they talked about their plans for a traditional Irish celebration. Maureen met John at University, and they’ve been together since they were nineteen. Maureen is of Irish heritage, and she wanted to show her love for Ireland during the ceremony and reception.

John and Maureen purchased Maureen’s emerald Celtic pendant through Irish Celtic Jewels, the one she wore on her wedding day. They were so happy with the results that they wanted to tell us about their wedding day: how everything went, and how they incorporated Irish traditions into the wedding and reception.

When they discussed their plans with friends and family, everyone was happy to help them think up some fun and subtle ways to put a little Irish feeling in their wedding.

As Maureen said of the big day, “It wasn’t all Irish…we had an informal wedding where we mixed a lot of different traditions. But the wedding had little touches throughout that were Irish, and everyone enjoyed it.”

John listed some examples of things they did on the big day. “My favorite was Maureen herself. The emerald pendant was beautiful, and so was she.” Here are some other things John and Maureen did to create an Irish feeling on the big day:

• Special Drinks: Irish coffee was served in the wee hours, to keep everyone awake and happy.
• Bridesmaids – the bridesmaids wore dresses in different shades of green.
• Toasts – traditional Irish blessings were quoted during the toasts
• Thank you cards – after the wedding, they sent handmade thank you cards with Celtic script, and decorative designs like love knots and shamrocks on the front of the card.

Tags: celtic, pendants, wedding, traditional, irish

“Lauraine Harper emailed me a few weeks back. She read that we love to tell peoples stories and told us she was eager to tell us her marriage proposal story. I can see why. This is truly a touching story. Thank you Lauraine for sharing this with us“

We would like to share our Ireland Trip story with you, for it is charged with two very different types of emotion.

Billy’s Mom, JoAnne Dunlevy was not feeling well when we started out for our very first trip to Ireland. We stopped to see her on the way to the airport. We told her we would cancel our plans and in her usual unselfish way she said to us “You kids get on that plane and don’t look back”. She always spoke of her desire to go back to her roots in her family’s County Clare. We promised her we would go there and have a toast in her honor.

Early on September 1, 2003 we went to the oldest pub in Ireland, in County Clare and had the toast while we read a poem we had given to her a few months prior, which reads:

“May the road rise up to meet you. May the wind be always at your back. May the sunshine warm upon your face, the rains fall soft upon your fields and until we meet again, may God hold you in the palm of his hand. “

That same night we had a spectacular medieval dinner at Bunratty Castle. At the completion of dinner, Billy got up in front of 200 people and said “My name is Billy Harper; I am from Hobe Sound FL. I don’t own a castle and I don’t play the harp, but I have lovely Lauraine in my life and tonight I would like to ask her to marry me”. He got down on his knee and everyone in the castle applauded and cheered!!! We met a lovely couple from Galway as we left the castle, and discovered they have a second home just a few miles from us in Florida. We heard the whole story the next day on a local radio station as we were driving to Limerick. Apparently, Billy’s proposal was the first to happen at Bunratty Castle!

We found the most beautiful church called Mt. St. Alphonsus. We lit a candle and when we knelt down, there was a “Prayer for a Mother” posted right in front of Billy.

That evening, JoAnne passed away.

We received the news as we were going to a very special dinner show in Dublin. As we sat down, they started to sing “I’ll take you home again, Kathleen”. That was JoAnne’s mother’s name and it was also her favorite song of all time. We both cried and realized it was her way of saying goodbye. She would not have wanted it any other way.

On St. Valentine’s Day 2004 we got married at sunset and had a Traditional Irish Ceili in Florida. The couple we met at Bunratty Castle attended and danced all night. Their wedding gift to us was a beautiful painting of Connemara. Of course our wedding cake was a replica of Bunratty Castle!

Our visit to Ireland will always be that one special moment in time that has stood still and will never leave us. The people, the flowers, the fragrance of the land, the history, the music are beyond words. There, I received the gift of my husband, the most wonderful person I have ever known, in the most wonderful place I have ever been.

Lauraine Harper, Hobe Sound, Florida