Romantic Outdoor: French Chateau | Real Wedding

Romantic Outdoor: French Chateau | Real Wedding

A romantic outdoor, French chateau wedding. Yes! That’s what I have to share with you all today. You just can’t get anymore romantic than that. fact.

Lisa and Yannick married in Yannick’s French family chateau, in a beautiful outdoor ceremony. Lisa chose a neutral colour scheme of soft whites, creams and pale taupe’s and wore a stunning lace mermaid bridal dress designed by Phillipa Lepley. The lovely Anne at Et Voilà helped the happy couple source, style and plan their big day, and when you’re getting married in France you definitely need an expert wedding guru on-hand to make sure everything runs smoothly…

Let’s hear a little more from our lovely bride Lisa.

© 2012 Janis Ratnieks Photography

The venue is the home of Yannick’s uncle. It was bought by Yannick’s grandfather in the 60’s who produced wines from the vineyards. At Yannick’s grandfather’s death the chateau was left uninhabited for a few years until Yannick’s uncle decided to restore it and make it his home.

I was looking for something elegant and romantic and my chosen dress really seemed to fit the bill. I also thought the lace suited the venue and after trying on dresses in various shapes quickly came to the conclusion that the mermaid style worked best on me.

I love the long train – that was very important to me! I also love the overall fit and shape of the dress – it has an internal corset which helps to suck in your waist and it also stops the dress from slipping down (which was a concern given the heavy train and numerous petticoats). I also love the pattern of the lace which was a corded lace.

We switched the original ivory belts which came with the bridesmaid dresses for taupe coloured belts to match the groom, groomsmen and flower girl outfits.

I drew most of my inspiration from the setting of our wedding venue ie. The French countryside. I’m also a big fan of whites and neutral shades so that dictated the colour scheme.     

We had a pattern that we used on different elements of the wedding. I love the Toile de Jouy pattern you frequently find in French chateaux, so we had some of this fabric in taupe colours made and used it around the venue, on the chairs and on the table we used to sign our marriage certificate…

My Dad walked me down the aisle to Pachelbel / Canon in D Major.

We had our rings custom made. Charles was recommended to us by a friend.

We originally met at business school in France so, in addition to Yannick’s uncle owning a property there, it seemed like a fitting place to get married. We also wanted a destination wedding where guests could come for the whole weekend. We organized a wine tasting on Friday afternoon followed by a welcome dinner in a beautiful nearby town called St Emilion. Then on Sunday, we organized a farewell brunch involving a hog roast back at the wedding venue.

The florist was sourced by our wedding planner (l’Atelier vert in Marmande – The owner is great as he really understands what the client is after and is very flexible and helpful). We wanted the overall décor to be simple and elegant so we decided to go for all white flower arrangements of hydrangeas, roses and gypsophila for an airy look.  

We had a large jar of sugar coated almonds/chocolates (known as dragee in France) and provided clear bags and personalized stickers for guests to make their own wedding favours.

My words of wisdom for future brides? Try not to stress about the details as your guests will have an amazing time no matter what.

Really try to get some sleep in the week running up to the wedding – I was up late until the day before our wedding (we had organised a pre wedding dinner  in St Emilion which almost all of our wedding guests attended) and after seeing the bags under my eyes in the photos, I really wished I’d slept more!

Finally, make sure you have fun on the day and take time to absorb everything around you (I didn’t even get to try the food at our cocktail reception as I kept getting side-tracked!) as it will all be over in a flash.

On a final note, I would like to add that we were so lucky to be able to hold our wedding at a place which is so special and personal to us (especially Yannick) and where we will continue to go back to. It made a huge difference to the overall atmosphere – several of our guests commented that they loved the intimate feel of our wedding.

Thank you so much Lisa and Yannick for sharing your beautiful day with WTW. Wishing you both many years of happiness!

Lisa and Yannick’s french country wedding was planned by London based wedding planners, Et Voila. They specialise in the coordination of weddings in France. Based in London they can meet with B&G anytime and as often as necessary. They also have a network of suppliers in the UK for stationery, B&G attire, engagement parties…  and being French they can opf vcourse, communicate easily and effectively with all of your wedding suppliers in France!

 

WEDDING AWESOMENESS CREDITS >>>>>>>

Photographer: Janis Ratnieks

Venue: Château de Camiran, Camiran, France

Wedding Planner: Anne-Laure Renaud, Et Voila Weddings

Brides…

Dress: Phillipa Lepley

Accessories: Veil, Cathedral silk tulle veil from Pronovias Shoes: Rachel Simpson

Grooms…

Suit: Pimabs, Bespoke Menswear, Singapore

Bridemaids…

Dresses: Dessy

Hair & Make-up: From the Et Voila Network. Romain is a young hairstylist with lots of fashion catwalk experience. Kate is a fashion make up artist.     

Florist: The florist was sourced by Et Voila – l’Atelier vert in Marmande

Music: Musique Mariages Receptions

Catering: Ossard traiteur

Rings: Charles Prior, Hatton Garden

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