British Meets French - The Wedding of Chantal and Pascal

This summer we had the pleasure of planning Chantal and Pascal's wedding. They were such a fun couple and with Chantal being British and Pascal being French they really wanted to incorporate the two nationalities into their day.

We met Chantal and Pascal at Helen and Thomas's wedding which we planned in Studland earlier this year. After attending Helen and Thomas's wedding as guests, Chantal and Pascal realised how much they still had left to do in a relatively short space of time so decided to hire Bellissimo for our "Final Three Months" including On The Day Co-ordination to motivate them and help them finalise plans and bring everything together for their big day. 

A special thank you must go to Amanda Clay Photography who was the photographer and has very kindly given us some of the beautiful images which she captured during the day for our blog and thank you to Chantal and Pascal for allowing us to share their day.

The ceremony was conducted in a beautiful church in Western Avenue in Poole which was filled with amazing purple and cream flowers by Simply Flowers.

Stunning pew ends

The guys looking really smart and getting ready for the arrival of the Bride

The first British treat of the day was awaiting guests outside the church to take them to the wedding reception- a Big London Red Bus! It was gorgeous and during the ceremony, Melanie and Nicolle were busy putting up Union Jack and French flag bunting. The bus made a great background for a confetti shot outside the church.

All of the guests loved going on the Big Red London bus- its such a novelty and a real treat for the French guests who see the Big Red bus as being a British icon. The bus driver was given French music to play for the guests to sing along to on the journey making the journey a truly British and French union.

The reception was held at Parkstone Golf Club where guests were greeted with Kir Royale on the sunny terrace over looking the beautiful Golf course. Chantal and Pascal were blessed with a wonderfully sunny and warm day and their guests were entertained on the Terrace by the wonderful voice of Katie Francesca who sang throughout the drinks reception.

For some more personal photos, Chantal and Pascal took a golf buggy across the golf course with a 'Just married' sign tied to the back!

Chantal and Pascal chose a lilac and purple colour scheme and Busy Bee Events provided the chair covers and sashes and Balloons which we helped set up before the guests arrived together with draping to create sections within the open plan style of the venue. 

There was a traditional British fruit wedding cake decorated with more beautiful flowers from Simply flower and a Croquembouche, a traditonal French dessert served at weddings so guests could decide which they wanted to have - or both!

 

The Croquembouche by Patisserie Angelique was spectacular! It had a real 'wow' factor when guests walked into the room and looked delicious.

The guests were treated to Smoked Salmon for starters, Chicken served with a mustard and cream sauce, potatoes and seasonal vegetables for main and then a selection of English and French desserts and French cheeses. Delicious macaroons and chocolates were served with the coffee after the meal.

Then it was time for the speeches which were just brilliant. The speech by the Father of the Bride was very emotional but also very funny and he even handed out lyrics for everyone to have a sing-a-long! He also did amazingly well to not only hand around translations of his speech in French for the French guests but also translated the speech into French himself. Pascal also made a very touching speech. Chantal also said a few words and had everyone in tears by the end of it!

Beautiful cream lanterns were lit after dark to light the terrace. It looked very romantic and magical!

When the evening guests arrived, it was time to cut the cakes and the first dance! Chantal and Pascal's first dance which they had choreographed beautifully. 

 

Chantal also had a first dance with her Dad to a medley of songs which they had also choreographed together.

In the evening, the guests were treated to the amazing Photo Lounge  which was themed with British and French props. We love this Photo Lounge because its not a booth but a big back screen so loads of guests can fit in each photo. You can also personalise it for your event and you get four photos printed on each postcard on the night.

 

It was lovely to see Helen and Thomas, one of our Bellissimo couples from earlier this year. They loved the photo lounge and they even won the award for 'Photo of the night'!

 

Melanie got in on the fun with Helen and Thomas too!

We had an amazing time helping Chantal and Pascal plan their wedding and we loved being part of their wedding on the day- they were so much fun! We loved worked with Amanda Clay again and with Katie Francesca and Simon from Final Cut Film who was great fun to have on the team.  Thanks so much to everyone who worked hard to make the wedding a truly wonderful day for everyone.  We wish Chantal and Pascal lots of love and happiness for their future together.

For more information on our wedding planning packages please visit our wedding page

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Suppliers for Chantal and Pascal's Wedding:

Wedding planning- Bellissimo Wedding Planning

Venue- Parkstone Golf Club

Photographer- Amanda Clay Photography

Videographer- Final Cut Film

Church- All Saint's Church, Branksome

Flowers- Simply Flower

Venue Dressing- Busy Bees Events

Drinks reception Entertainment- Katie Francesca

Photo Lounge- The Photo Lounge

Crouquembouche- Patisserie Angelique

Here comes the sun!

So this lovely hot and sunny weather might be perfect for your wedding day but it has got me thinking that there are a few things you should consider if your wedding falls on a gorgeous day! You might not be expecting the sun, but in Britain you just never know! Its always best to be prepared! It might be your big day but you should also keep your guests in mind so that they have a fabulous time too and go home thinking its the best wedding they have ever been to!

Image courtesy of www.bigbouquet.co.uk

 Here are some of my hints and tips to ensure everyone can enjoy your day!

Number 1-  Have plenty of water on hand for your guests

This is very important if you're having an outdoor drinks reception or if your reception is going to be in a marquee. Its also important if you have children at your wedding. But lastly make sure you, the Bride and Groom drink plenty of water- its your special day and you want to enjoy - you don't want a headache for the rest of the day because you're dehydrated! Serve it in pretty glasses with lots of ice and slices of lemon and lime to add a refreshing hint.

We always try to bring with us to the ceremony a basket of bottles of water or a lovely container filled with ice and bottles to keep cool.  On a really hot day when guests come in / out of the Church or civil ceremony they are often really parched so its great for them to be able to grab some water on the day in or out and little tip - have a bottle handy for the bride before the ceremony starts with a straw so as not to spoil the lipstick!

Image courtesy of www.visualphotos.com

Number 2- Greet your guests with a refreshing drink

Alcohol is dehydrating, so rather than meeting your guests with a glass of Champagne staight away, offer a choice of refreshing soft drink such as elderflower presse, traditional cloudy lemondade or iced tea and then offer them a glass of Champagne after. This works particularly well if you are having a church service followed by your reception elsewhere as guests will be hot and bothered by the time they arrive at the venue after driving in a hot and stuffy car.

Image courtesy of www.potterybarn.com

Number 3- Provide some shade

Yes, everyone loves this weather but not everyone loves it all day long. Put some nice parasols outside to offer an escape from the sun for your guests- you'll probably appreciate it too after wearing a bridal gown all day. Alternatively, provided a selection of hand held parasols for people to help themselves to.

Image courtesy of Paradise parasols

Image courtesy of www.trendir.com

Number 3- Suncream

Be sure to buy a couple of bottles of suncream to put in the toilets. Its something your guests probably won't have thought of when leaving the house in a mad rush to leave on time in the morning. And if they have, they probably won't have put any on as they won't want to smell of suncream all day. By the time they have been stood out in the sun for a while they will have changed their minds and really wished they had put some on! As the Bride, the last thing you want is to get sunburnt on your wedding day so make sure you put some on too! You don't want red shoulders in your photos and you don't want to be peeling before you even go on your honeymoon!

Image courtesy of www.beautyandthedirt.com

Number 4- Hayfever Tablets

With the sun comes hayfever! Put a couple of boxes of hay fever tablets in the toilets so that your guests aren't sneezing and sniffing all day and can enjoy the sun rather than having to hide inside all day.

Image courtesy of www.personalpharmacy.co.uk

Number 5- Fans

Put some fans in a small basket that your guests can help themselves too. If you don't want to go for the battery operated fans, buy some really pretty paper fans that match your theme- you could even use them as favours on the tables.

Image courtesy of www.caesarsweddingfavours.co.uk

Number 6- Toiletries

Put some spay deodorant and some nice perfume in the toilets that guests can help themselves to- they will really appreciate this gesture I can guarantee you! After standing outside in the heat and then dancing the night away your guests will often feel the need for a bit of a freshen up! Add a packet of baby wipes or make up wipes too to wipe away those smudged Panda eyes from the heat! Blotting paper and a powder can also be a god send for your guests who might want to take away the shine but have forgotten their makeup bags!

Image courtesy of www.instyle.com

Number 7- Give the ladies some flip flops to change into

Chances are with the British weather, the ladies won't have bought outfits for a hot sunny day! They will probably have bought high, enclosed heels which will rub on a hot day. Give every lady a pair of comfy flip flops so they can slip off their heels and dance the night away and avoid dancing in bare feet which is not the best idea with potentially broken glass on the floor!

Image courtesy of www.iconicaphotography.com

We have recently been introduced to a company who did a great little box of flip flops so you can buy the box with x 20 pairs of flip flops inside all ready to go and your guests can take from the box and then the box can be used afterwards for a really good place to store your wedding day memorabilia.

For more information visit Heels Off

Number 8- Eat!

If its a hot day, you might not feel like eating much when you come to sit down for your wedding breakfast but it is really important that you make sure you eat something and enjoy it! If you don't you'll run out of energy and feel dizzy later. Plus you'll only regret it later when you didn't taste all of the delicious food you had on offer!

Image courtesy of www.rankinephotography.com

Number 9- Bugs!

These nasty little things come out in the sun, particularly in the evening. Light some citronella candles outside at your evening venue to keep those pesky little flys away. Also invest in some bug spray and put in your little basket of goodies for the loo to avoid you and your guests being bitten! 

Image courtesy of www.lavendarbiscuit.blospot.com

Number 10- Ice cream

Get an ice cream man or a traditional ice cream tricycle to come to your wedding either during your drinks reception (would make for some great photos!) or between your wedding breakfast and evening reception. Your guests will love it and really appreciate the ice cream to cool down! The image below is of Little Al who you can hire for your wedding at our venue on the beach in Bournemouth Beach Weddings Bournemouth

Image courtesy of IanH Photography

Or what about a refreshing watermelon lolly?
Mini Mate

Enjoy the sun and long may it stay out!

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