When asked which is her favorite princess in a fairytale, Marinell always says Belle, from Beauty and the beast. On 15 September she really was Belle and she had her handsome blue eyed prince and her castle..and they danced in the sunset on “La vie en rose”, their own fairytale.

..Chateau du Doux..

(photo: Lisa Allen photography Toulouse)

..on the staircase in the chateau..

(photo: Lisa Allen photography Toulouse)

..in the library of the chateau..

(photo: Lisa Allen photography Toulouse)

Both the bride and groom wanted a traditional wedding, from the word go. The challenge was to incorporate the traditions of three different cultures. As time passed and planning was done step by step(mostly by themselves), it all naturally fell into place. The finished result was a good and fun mix of 3 cultures and even the hands that helped stretched over continents; friends and family from SA to Australia, friends and family from the UK and of courseall those good friends from France. Everyboldy pitched in happily… preparing salds for the Friday evening’s barbecue, roaming the forest for ferns and moss and branches, loading and unloading tables and chairs and pots and urns, stripping leaves from ferns for confetti, arranging flowers, setting tables, folding napkins, sweeping floors, making coffees, taxying people from the airport…and finally we all sat down together for dinner in a candle lit room, surrounded by happy chat and laughter. This is exactly how I wanted their day to end. Happy.

..flowers in the church of Le Pescher..

..”supposed” to be singing..

..signing..

..confetti made of Ferns we picked in our forest at Coin Perdu and many hands helped strip the leaves..

..confetti-time..

..Now where are you off to..?

..Resting on the bridge after walking with everybody through the little village of Le Pescher..

Like every mother, I was highly excited about this wedding of our first daughter.And like every mother, a little afraid too: of the costs, of not staying out of it( very hard!), of not being able to help them live their dream, of not being able to make the day only joyous and happy.To keep the costs down we did everything ourselves and worked quite hard, I did indeed succeed in staying out of it(sometimes), and it was a beautiful joyous and happy day on which they truly lived their dream by saying “I do”

..Striped paper straws for old fashioned coke bottles,  mailbox for letters, signing the guestbook, pouring oil into torches, lanterns and chandelles..

..Flowers, urns  and sitting corners in the garden..

Pampilles(crystals), hanging from tree branches – to find your seat..

..some fun in the garden..

..Twirling ladies..

(photo: Lisa Allen photography Toulouse)

..A first dance to Edith Piaf’s “La vie en rose”..

..Two pretty smiles..

(photo: W van Wyk)

..the dining room is ready..

..table decorations: moss and ferns and foliage from our forest at Coin Perdu; hydrangeas and grey foliage from the garden with accents of chardon and Chrysanthemum and camomiles among lanterns and some silver for sparkle.

..Entering for dinner..

(photo: Lisa Allen photography Toulouse)

..Bon appetit et bonne nuit!..

à bientôt!

Ronelle

***Photos: All images Ronelle van Wyk, unless otherwise stated.

***I have just recently started a Facebook page, which I call Café des artistes. It is an extension of my three blogs and on it I do exactly what one would do in a café around coffee..talk about art and life and food and photography..if you are interested in some of these short snippets, you can find my link in the sidebar to join. You will also find more photos of the wedding on my facebook page..as always, Ronelle