If you are interested in seeing my dream wedding, in my dream city with my dream photographer – you are looking at it right now. And if you were drooling over part I of the Parisian party, you are going to fall out of your chair for part II. Because what’s happening in this post is nothing short of magic, and it’s all made even more beautiful by the stunning work of KT Merry. See every chic moment here.
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From the Bride (cont.)…After the ceremony and family pictures were finished, guests boarded a private, champagne-stocked, double decker bus. This took them all around Paris to the major sights – we were told this was one of the highlights of the entire trip! This gave us time to wander the city taking bridal portraits.
Our reception was broken into 3 different segments, and a different room for each part of the evening. All three rooms were connected by french doors. Cocktail Hour was held in the Marie Antoinette salon (where she took piano lessons) and included champagne colored sequin linens, a vintage French jazz band, glossy white signature signature bubbly bar featuring sugar-rimmed cocktails and frozen fruit skewers. Some of our amazing hors d’oeuvres included parmesan and truffle oil frites, raspberry and brie grilled cheese with butternut squash soup and pumpkin terrines. The balcony off of the salon had amazing views of buzzing Place de la Concorde and the Eiffel Tower. Guests located their seats via a custom designed seating chart – a tall wall of greenery (boxwood, ivy, moss) displayed antique gold gilded mirrors with lightbulbs (like you would find on the carousel in the Tuileries) and ornate white calligraphy.
Dinner was a multi-course tasting menu held in the Batailles Salon, and started off with an amuse bouche of deconstructed french onion soup, which the chef came out to explain to guests in French, accompanied by an English translation. I loved that it felt like such an intimate, foodie dinner party…with a Michelin starred chef! First course was Canadian Lobster in a Vanilla Beurre Blanc Sauce, then refreshing Apricot Sorbet Intermezzo followed by the Main Entree – prime cuts of beef with color blocked vegetables.
After dinner and toasts were complete, everyone moved into the 3rd and largest salon (Aigles) for dessert and dancing. The Laduree Dessert bar was a huge hit, which featured a large gold leaf tower of dark chocolate macarons, complete with sparklers coming out the top during cake cutting. Other highlights of the reception included Sofia Coppola’s ‘Marie Antoinette’ playing on the big screen as a backdrop to set the mood, our first dance to La Vie en Rose, dancing with our parents, and our family surprising us with a hilarious secret video they had filmed at Versailles the previous day.
Other Events: I rented a lovely private Paris apartment for the week next to Opera Garnier, where I stayed with my mother and my bridesmaids. To kick off the festivities, we hosted a welcome dessert reception at the apartment the first night all guests were in town, featuring a private chef who made the most delicious dessert crêpes and did an interactive cooking demonstration. He also set up a beautiful table in the dining room with a lavish cheese, fruit, wine and espresso display. There were tons of candles scattered on tables, mantles and in fireplaces, and my hubby to be picked up the biggest, most gorgeous hydrangeas at a nearby flower shop to decorate the apartment for the party. The next day, we coordinated a group day trip and excursion to Versailles and returned just in time for our wedding rehearsal, followed by a rehearsal dinner on a private floor of Le Pharamond – a cozy 18th century belle époque style bistro in Les Halles district that used to be frequented by the likes of Ernest Hemingway. The rain that night made it even more romantic…(think Midnight in Paris) but I am so glad I woke up the next morning (wedding day!) to birds chirping and 73 degrees of pure sunshine…magic. The day after our wedding, Eric and I hosted a farewell breakfast for our guests at Cafe Marly at the Louvre – the cafe overlooks the famous glass pyramid in the courtyard and also has huge windows to sculptures inside the museum.
The Honeymoon: We stayed in Paris an extra night and had dinner at Jules Verne on top of the Eiffel Tower (bucket list item!) and then traveled around Europe on a Eurail pass to Switzerland, Italy and Spain.
Photography: KT Merry | Videography: MG Image | Wedding Dress: Vera Wang Via Vera Wang On Madison Ave., NYC | Florist: Soly Flor | Stationary: Little Bit Heart | Ceremony Venue: Chapelle Expiatoire | Reception Venue: Hotel Crillon | Brides Shoes: Sergio Rossi | Planner: Julie of Strawberry Milk Events | Hair: Sonja Stein | Calligraphy: Trial By Cupcakes | Groom’s Shoes: Ferragamo | Grooms Attire: Hugo Boss | Ceremony Music: Ivana Strings | Band : Jazz Around Midnight | Linens : La Tavola