Wedding in the Lille countryside – Sarah + Alex
CONTENTS
Absolute favorite for this wedding in the north of France. He from Lille, she from Paris, it was in Australia that they met and decided to love each other forever. For the anecdote, Sarah is also the talented photographer of Sarah Couturier and between you and me, I'm a bit of an ultra fan of his work. They imagined this wedding with all their heart and down to the smallest details.
With the beautiful images of her photographer friends, Joséphine de Rohan Chabot, Pascale Arnaud, Adeline Carrère, Emmeline Eteneau, Sarah tells us…
The initial meeting
“We met almost 5 years ago, not just around the corner, but exactly 16.290 km from France. He had just flown off for 6 months with his best friend to Australia, I arrived alone, 3 months after him.
After several fruit picking missions, 400 crates of tomatoes and sweet potatoes later, the " what if we loved each other forever? » falls on us in a shabby backpacker in a small town on the outskirts of Brisbane.
Six months later we had travelled the length and breadth of Australia and even Thailand, before finally ending up in France. He from Lille, me from Paris, we decide to choose the capital and settle there.
Wedding in the Lille countryside © Joséphine de Rohan Chabot, Pascale Arnaud, Adeline Carrère, Emmeline Eteneau
Wedding in the Lille countryside © Joséphine de Rohan Chabot, Pascale Arnaud, Adeline Carrère, Emmeline Eteneau
Wedding in the Lille countryside © Joséphine de Rohan Chabot, Pascale Arnaud, Adeline Carrère, Emmeline Eteneau
The marriage proposal
"We are lovers of Spain and the idea of living there one day has always tickled our minds. Even when we met in Australia, we could not stop thinking about Spain and its exoticism fascinated us.
It was therefore quite natural that Alex chose Barcelona to propose.
We gave ourselves a 10-day break and he took advantage of a little walk at the end of the day to take me to a discreet cove (crowded during the day but luckily no one there that evening except for a diver who must have loved the scene!).
A few days before, he had managed to pick up a small shell and slip the ring into it. We were sitting on the sand when I saw this small shell lying on the edge of a rock not far from me. Inside, my grandmother's engagement ring that she had given him a few weeks before.
I turned around, he knelt down and…you know the rest! A moment full of emotion, which I remember perfectly, down to the smallest detail!”
Wedding in the Lille countryside © Joséphine de Rohan Chabot, Pascale Arnaud, Adeline Carrère, Emmeline Eteneau
Wedding in the Lille countryside © Joséphine de Rohan Chabot, Pascale Arnaud, Adeline Carrère, Emmeline Eteneau
Wedding in the Lille countryside © Joséphine de Rohan Chabot, Pascale Arnaud, Adeline Carrère, Emmeline Eteneau
Wedding in the Lille countryside © Joséphine de Rohan Chabot, Pascale Arnaud, Adeline Carrère, Emmeline Eteneau
Wedding in the Lille countryside © Joséphine de Rohan Chabot, Pascale Arnaud, Adeline Carrère, Emmeline Eteneau
A wedding in the countryside
“We had some hesitation about where to have the wedding. Alexandre comes from a larger family than mine, so it was easier, logistically speaking, to all meet up in the north of France.
We found a pretty farm about 30 km from Lille, I wanted something typical of the north, a raw and rustic place and if there were red bricks it would be even better! Luckily, the barn of The Sensée Farm in Gouy sous Bellonne met all these criteria.
There were some disappointments from the owners of the venue (to put it mildly!) but I took a deep breath and thanks to this outpouring of love around us, we managed to achieve everything I had in mind.
Wedding in the Lille countryside © Joséphine de Rohan Chabot, Pascale Arnaud, Adeline Carrère, Emmeline Eteneau
Wedding in the Lille countryside © Joséphine de Rohan Chabot, Pascale Arnaud, Adeline Carrère, Emmeline Eteneau
Wedding in the Lille countryside © Joséphine de Rohan Chabot, Pascale Arnaud, Adeline Carrère, Emmeline Eteneau
Wedding in the Lille countryside © Joséphine de Rohan Chabot, Pascale Arnaud, Adeline Carrère, Emmeline Eteneau
Wedding planning
“As a wedding photographer myself, I knew exactly what I wanted and what I didn’t want, what worked brilliantly and the things that worked a little less well.
I wanted to manage the entire organization from A to Z, from choosing the flowers to the final decoration (but with an armada of little magic hands, without whom I wouldn't have been able to do anything!!).
The days leading up to the wedding were trying but so full of love that I remember them as vividly as the wedding itself."
Wedding decoration
"It was difficult for us to be satisfied with the round tables and purple chairs with yellow polka dots that the hall offered. It was an additional budget but we had to have these banquet tables, no matter what.
We had the encounter (of the century), in the person of Bambi, an Australian who now lives in the suburbs of Rouen and makes with magic hands her large tables that can accommodate 8 to 10 people. We also took the chairs, the garlands and some additional decorative elements that she offered (Bambi, you are the best).
Wedding in the Lille countryside © Joséphine de Rohan Chabot, Pascale Arnaud, Adeline Carrère, Emmeline Eteneau
Wedding in the Lille countryside © Joséphine de Rohan Chabot, Pascale Arnaud, Adeline Carrère, Emmeline Eteneau
Wedding in the Lille countryside © Joséphine de Rohan Chabot, Pascale Arnaud, Adeline Carrère, Emmeline Eteneau
Wedding in the Lille countryside © Joséphine de Rohan Chabot, Pascale Arnaud, Adeline Carrère, Emmeline Eteneau
Wedding in the Lille countryside © Joséphine de Rohan Chabot, Pascale Arnaud, Adeline Carrère, Emmeline Eteneau
The wedding budget
"I am lucky to have great friends who are photographers and videographers, whose work I love, who agreed to make this day an unforgettable memory, which considerably reduced the bill. By splitting the tasks, they were able to enjoy themselves fully and in exchange I got photos in very different styles that I love dearly!
It was very important to me to have wedding photos of people I hold dear. My mother-in-law being a florist, we were also able to get some pretty good prices.
But a wedding remains a significant budget that should not be overlooked when embarking on the adventure!”
Their best memory
"When we found ourselves at church. It was the most memorable moment for both of them.
We were applauded by all our friends and family, I still get chills just writing this (even though I was a few long minutes late and Alex thought I would never get through the church doors!).
Wedding in the Lille countryside © Joséphine de Rohan Chabot, Pascale Arnaud, Adeline Carrère, Emmeline Eteneau
Advice from the newlyweds
"When you're doing all the decorating and organizing yourself, the key is to delegate as much as possible! We're lucky to have great family and friends who are willing to move mountains for us and that's what saved our lives!"
Wedding Suppliers
Venue - Sensée Farm
Caterer – Fred
Bridal Attire – Velvetine Paris
Groom's Attire – Sandro
Hair and Makeup – Laura, one of my bridesmaids for makeup and Jennifer for hair.
Golden Crown – Mignonne
Dj – Tonight we dance
Orchestra – Swingin Paris
Photographers, my talented friends:
Josephine of Rohan Chabot
Pascale Arnaud
Adeline Carrère
Emmeline Eteneau
Videographers
The shooting was carried out by Splendid Wedding,
Editing and calibration by the talented Michèle Thiemann (Thanks to her!!)
Flowers – Sophie, the groom’s mother
Announcements and stationery – the brilliant Max & Joe
Decoration – Marbo in love
TO BE CONTINUED…
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A WORD FROM THE EDITOR
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Martin
Hello,
I am allowing myself to comment on this article because we are getting married in the fall of 2020, probably at the sensible woman's farm.
We had a very clear idea of the atmosphere we wanted to give to our wedding, and of all the services, and in particular those revolving around the caterer. These seem quite close to those carried out by Sarah and Alex.
In fact, we would like to serve a suckling pig as a main course, with accompaniments not provided by the caterer supplying the pig, using different service providers.
I was wondering if it was possible to get some information from the bride and groom on how they went about it, how they managed the meal service, etc.
Thanks in advance
Pauline
Arnaud Laurent
Superb photos, very inspiring