Beautiful French Meadow Wedding: Kirsten and Chris

We got married in our friend’s meadow and woodland at her barn in Beaudouy in the northern Bordeaux region of France.

The theme of our day was really to celebrate our friends who have supported and loved us separately and together on our journey to marriage and to ask them to continue as part of our family going forward. It was particularly poignant for me, as my mum died 6 years ago and I keenly felt her loss on my wedding day. She never got to meet Chris. My dad died last year so there was also a moment in the ceremony.

Words by Kirsten. Photography by Mark Brown.

I had a very simple long white dress with a lace, low cut back and white silk skirt. I had it made for me by Rime D’Aroky in Paris. It was relaxed and elegant and I knew I could move around a meadow and walk down a very steep hill to the ceremony in it.

For my bouquet, I had a mix of whites and greens with white freesia as that was my mum’s favourite flower and she had that in her own wedding bouquet. There were also hints of lavender in there, which smelt amazing. The bridesmaids each had wrist corsages with natural flowers rather than big bouquets which I thought might be a bit overwhelming.

For the decor of the venue, we were initially sceptical that we needed very many at all because of how gorgeous and natural the surroundings were. However, in the end, we adorned the surroundings with wildflowers, pinks, greens, whites – complementing what I had in my own bouquet. We also bought a swing which we hung from one of the beams outside which was beautifully decorated with flowers. Also, an old cart had been filled with flowers outside the marquee. In the end, the flowers actually became one of my favourite touches.

If we could impart any words of wisdom to other couples, we would say… Get a wedding planner, especially if you’re getting married abroad – Charlotte and Emily at La Fete got us through it.