{"id":367562,"date":"2024-07-02T07:00:13","date_gmt":"2024-07-02T06:00:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/whimsicalwonderlandweddings.com\/?p=367562"},"modified":"2024-06-20T13:13:41","modified_gmt":"2024-06-20T12:13:41","slug":"chateau-st-michel-wedding","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wedissimo.com\/blog\/chateau-st-michel-wedding\/","title":{"rendered":"Whimsical Woodland Fairy Cottagecore Pastel Wedding"},"content":{"rendered":"

We’re in beautiful Saint-Lizier, France<\/a> for the stunning Chateau St. Michel wedding<\/strong> of WWW readers Natasha and Kevin. Yay!<\/p>\n

Their day was absolutely gorgeous, with a whimsical woodland fairy theme, pastel blooms and all the cottagecore vibes. Swoon<\/em>. From the flower-lined aisle to the wedding breakfast in the gardens, the rave cave and sunset portraits, you’ll be in wedding heaven today.<\/p>\n

Natasha and Kevin looked absolutely stunning, there were rustic wedding signs, a masterpiece pi\u00e8ce mont\u00e9e cake and even personalised vow books. Every single detail was so thoughtfully considered.<\/p>\n

Thanks so much to Awardweddings<\/a> for sharing with us this super romantic and very sweet sweet day. What incredible images.<\/p>\n

\"Chateau \"Chateau<\/p>\n

Ch\u00e2teau St. Michel Wedding<\/h2>\n

The Proposal<\/h3>\n

In August 2021, we celebrated our 4 year anniversary. Kevin told Natasha he had an anniversary surprise<\/strong> planned.<\/p>\n

We arrived at the docks in the San Diego harbor and a sailboat captain came to greet us and bring us aboard for a private sunset sail<\/strong>. Kevin had brought along champagne, raspberries, and pistachios to snack on. Natasha, completely oblivious to Kevin’s plans, just thought about how lucky she was to have such a great boyfriend and how much the snacks reminded her of their second date.<\/p>\n

Around sunset, Kevin suggested they go to the bow of the boat with some champagne. Kevin began to read aloud a beautifully written proposal<\/a> and afterwards reached into his pocket and pulled out a little box with a gorgeous ring.<\/p>\n

\"Chateau \"Chateau \"Chateau<\/p>\n

The Vision<\/h3>\n

So for context, Natasha is French-American with most of her family in France. Part of the reason why we got married in France is so that her 90-year-old grandmother could attend, as well as more of her family. The other large part of our community comes from the West Coast of the US (mostly California) with other friends and family members throughout the US. So we knew from the start that we wanted to have a blend of French and English throughout our wedding. <\/p>\n

Our main goal was to create a very loving environment<\/strong> where all our guests would feel comfortable. Since this was a destination wedding<\/a> for most of our guests, we wanted to make sure to show them a good time! And to make the trip worth it, we had a beautiful rehearsal dinner at a nearby restaurant Carr\u00e9 de l\u2019Ange, and also a pool day bbq the day after the wedding. <\/p>\n

The vision for the atmosphere was woodland fairy<\/strong>: lots of flowers in colorful pastels, little golden touches (like our picture frames, candlesticks, and cutlery), and natural elements like wood. A lot of this was achieved by the venue itself. The chateau was surrounded by beautiful trees and landscaping.<\/p>\n

\"Chateau \"Chateau \"Chateau \"Chateau \"Chateau<\/p>\n

Budget<\/h3>\n

Approximately 43,000 euros<\/strong> (not including the dress\/suit or wedding rings).<\/p>\n

\"Chateau \"Chateau \"Chateau \"Chateau<\/p>\n

The Venue<\/h3>\n

Chateau St. Michel<\/strong> in St. Lizier, France.<\/p>\n

We had a total of 32 guests stay on-site in the chateau. Most of the remaining 50 guests stayed at the apartment-style hotel Le Domaine du Palais (about a 5-minute drive away). We had a shuttle to bring guests to the venue before the ceremony, and then a taxi taking trips back to the hotel between 12 and 3 am.  <\/p>\n

One of the best parts of the venue was the rave cave. It\u2019s actually a very large wine cellar underneath the chateau that spans the entire footprint with multiple rooms. We set up our dance floor here, complete with lasers, a bar area, and couches.<\/p>\n

\"Chateau \"Chateau \"Chateau \"Chateau \"Chateau \"Chateau<\/p>\n

Your Outfits<\/h3>\n

Natasha<\/h4>\n

Dress – Pronovias<\/strong>‘ Elara in color blush.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m obsessed with this dress. I actually saw it for the first time when wedding dress shopping with a friend for her wedding, before we were engaged. I was lucky enough to come across it again a year later when shopping for myself. It perfectly fits the vibe we were going for. It feels floaty, light, ethereal, and definitely like a woodland fairy would wear it. It has 3-D appliqu\u00e9 organza leaves, and clear sequins that give it a beautiful shimmer while remaining very light.<\/p>\n

Shoes – Loeffler Randall<\/strong>\u2019s Dahlia Pleated Bow Heel in the color pearl.<\/p>\n

Since I\u2019m quite tall, I opted for a low heel. And because the wedding was outdoors, I wanted to make sure the heel was thicker. The fabric and design of these felt like they complimented the dress very well, and I love that it\u2019s a style of shoe I could wear again. That was a big focus for my shoe search – I didn\u2019t want shoes that I would only wear once.<\/p>\n

Veil – Pronovias<\/strong>‘ V-2104 in the longest option they have – I think it was 3 meters? <\/p>\n

Because of the grand scale of the chateau and the venue, I wanted to add a little drama. My dress train was actually on the shorter side (which was nice because it was lighter and not as hot), so I created the drama with the veil. It had gorgeous floral applique and beading that matched the dress very well. At first, I was undecided about doing a veil at all, but I\u2019m really happy I did!<\/p>\n

Jewelry<\/strong> – From my mom.<\/p>\n

I wore opal earrings and a freshwater pearl bracelet that were both from my mom\u2019s jewelry collection. Opals are my favorite gemstone, and the color and iridescence fit that whimsical ethereal vibe. The pearl bracelet also had a beautiful sheen on the irregularly shaped pearls. Both pieces are ones I grew up seeing my mom wear, and it felt like having a little piece of her with me throughout the day. <\/p>\n

A note on our rings<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

We wanted our wedding bands to be a blend of classic and unique. We both got yellow gold to compliment our skin tones and also to have the same metal felt cute. Kevin\u2019s ring was hand-created by a small jewelry designer Luana Coonen who \u201cexpresses her deep and abiding love of nature\u2019s tiniest wonders through her artwork, finding ways to amplify the beauty of simple natural objects and to bring attention to our emotions.<\/em>\u201d The ring he chose is called Valleys and is \u201cinspired by the wine-valleys of California, and the deep, beautiful valleys of Hawaii.<\/em>\u201d To us, it reminded us of tree bark, which feels equal parts natural and protective.<\/p>\n

Natasha\u2019s ring was hand-crafted by a San Francisco based jewelry shop called Fiat Lux. Paired with her engagement ring, it reminds us of the sun. So the combination of our rings we have sunshine and nature living in harmony.<\/p>\n

Kevin<\/h4>\n

Suit – Black Lapel<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

I went with a light gray three-piece custom wool, made-to-measure, suit from Black Lapel. I added a fun olive green paisley pattern to the jacket lining and had the inside monogrammed with our names and the wedding date. I also had a custom-fit dress shirt with French cuffs made from Black Lapel. This paired great with the suit since the sleeve length was just right. Pro tip, order a second identical shirt so you have a back-up on the big day (just in case you need it). I loved the suit and it was fun to customize it to look just how I wanted. It fit perfectly and looked great on the big day.  <\/p>\n

Shoes – Magnanni <\/strong>palos oxford in brown.<\/p>\n

I wanted a light-medium brown show to pair with my light gray suit. I loved the look of these shoes and they fit great right from the start. I did spend a few weeks breaking them in before the wedding so they\u2019d be comfortable on the dance floor at the end of the night.<\/p>\n

Bowtie – Pink paisley silk bow tie (Self Tied) from Eton<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

I wanted to add a pop of color to the gray suit, and this pink bow tie hit the mark. I prefer the look of the self-tied bow tie (vs the ready-tied), plus we got some great photos of my groomsmen trying to get the bow to look just right. <\/p>\n

Cufflinks – Ox & Bull<\/strong> mother-of-pearl cufflinks in gold.<\/p>\n

I wanted a simple\/classic cufflink to finish the look. The gold matched the wedding colors and our rings, and the mother-of-pearl matched Natasha\u2019s bracelet.<\/p>\n

Bridal Party Gifts<\/strong> – One thing I love to do is to support small artisans, and when I came across the real flower jewelry by Blossom and Love, I thought it would make the perfect gift for my bridesmaids<\/a>. They are real flowers, dried in silica beads, and covered in epoxy. So when all the bridesmaids wore them, they really looked like fresh flowers!<\/p>\n

I was able to get a custom order and picked a different flower for each bridesmaid (and our officiant Paola, and Kevin\u2019s Best Woman Alicia) based on her personality. We had tulips, butterfly ranunculus, yellow daffodils, blue violas, pink daises, sunset roses, and orchids adorning everyone\u2019s ears.<\/p>\n

Groom\u2019s Party Gifts<\/strong> – Engraved Laguiole knife. I wanted my wedding party to receive a gift that would both remind them of France while also being something they could actually use. These knives achieved that balance perfectly. These knives are popular and knockoffs exist, so I ordered them through Forge de Laguiole since they actually make their knives in the French village of Laguiole. If it\u2019s not made in Laguiole, it\u2019s just a sparkling knife.<\/p>\n

\"Chateau \"Chateau \"Chateau \"Chateau \"Chateau \"Chateau \"Chateau \"Chateau \"Chateau \"Chateau \"Chateau \"Chateau \"Chateau \"Chateau<\/p>\n

The Ceremony & Music<\/h3>\n

We knew from the start that we wanted to have a blend of French and English in our ceremony and in our music. <\/p>\n

We asked one of our very best friends, Paola, to officiate our ceremony and she did a wonderful job! While most of our ceremony was in English, we did our best to include some French. Paola learned some key phrases in French (like, je vous d\u00e9clare mari\u00e9s), Natasha\u2019s mom did a reading in both English and French, Kevin recited his ring exchange in English and Natasha recited the same words in French, and while we both spoke our vows to each other in English, we also had them translated into French and printed so the French-speakers could read along as we said our vows. <\/p>\n

A special moment in our ceremony was a tree planting\/watering ritual. We both watered a small oak sapling during the ceremony, and two days later we planted it at Natasha\u2019s grandmother\u2019s house in the French countryside. <\/p>\n

Another little detail we wanted to make special was our vow cards. As we were looking for ways to memorialize and keep our vows, Kevin had the idea to have cards made with hand-drawn pictures of the chateau. We had them made by an artist that we already own a few pieces from – Mike Shisler (Drawn There). His artwork is normally created onsite as the name implies, but we reached out to him and sent him some photos of the front and back of the chateau, and he was able to create two beautiful cards for us. We have some friends who loved the cards so much, they did the same idea when they got married 6 weeks later! Maybe we\u2019ll become trendsetters haha. <\/p>\n

Music<\/h4>\n

For our ceremony music, we wanted to have only piano instrumental music. We felt this added to the sense of intimacy and romance and allows everyone to really focus on the moment with the music adding ambience without being too intrusive. <\/p>\n

But for the party we went full EDM house music! <\/p>\n