At our first meeting with the lovely Christelle in the summer of 2012, we had no idea that we would become such an integral part of her wedding to Jean-François the following summer.  The fact that our school-day French had long been forgotten, and Christelle and Jean-François believed that they spoke only the most basic English, it was starting to look like this particular client relationship was going to be one which was would have to be filed under the ‘challenging’ label.  However thankfully, to our rescue came Florence, Christelle’s cousin, who shared her time between London and Paris and whose English was impeccable.

At that first appointment in Pimlico, yet another of our popular ‘London Roadshows‘, Christelle had come across from France to see the dresses in our twenties inspired ‘All That Jazz‘ collection, knowing that she wanted a dress which was different from the ‘norm’, a statement of her individuality.  The dress which captured her heart that evening was our little temptress, ‘Clara‘, with its fabulous 1920′s inspired drop waist and luxurious pure silk tulle handkerchief skirt.

Decision made, it was back to Poitiers for Christelle and Jean-François, and the difficult task of organising a wedding for two excited families.  However, when dealing with Christelle, nothing was ever going to be ‘normal’, and as she had never been to Scotland,  the next appointment was scheduled for a chilly autumnal night in Edinburgh.  So a few months later, there we are picking up Christelle, her mother, and Florence at the airport, before checking them into their accommodation on ‘The Royal Mile’.  A few hours  and a couple of bottles of champagne later (only the best when you’re French), Grace is finished her first fitting of Christelle’s dress and we are heading home.  But the night is only beginning for the ladies and we would hear later that they had enjoyed a wonderful evening, sampling the best of our wonderful Scottish hospitality.

Meanwhile several weeks later back in London, Grace is scheduled to meet up with an ever more excitable Christelle, who, as her wedding grows ever so near, is starting to put together the final plans for her big day.  And part of that final plan is a couple of surprises for Grace and myself.  Firstly, she would like to add a little extra to her attire for the day by wearing our twenties inspired coat,  ’Lilian‘.  She had always adored the coat since trying it on during that initial consultation, but it had taken quite a while to make the decision as the weather in Poitiers in May could be rather warm.  However her second wish totally flabbergasted us.  Would we be willing to deliver the dress and coat in person a few days before the wedding, and join them on their big day to celebrate their marriage to one another?  There was only one other stipulation, one I could not refuse.  Would I, on the day, wear my kilt to the wedding?  Finally, someone realising just how important I am to the Lindsay Fleming partnership.

Just what an amazing time was ahead of us we had no idea.  Having decided to drive the long distance to Poitiers, we even managed to deliver another of our French client’s wedding dress on the way.  How lucky was that?

I have no idea if all French weddings are as perfect (apart from the weather) as that of Christelle and Jean-François, but I doubt it.  From the Thursday when we arrived until the Monday when we left we were treated like royalty, joining the family for pre-wedding and post-wedding parties, for the big day itself, and for a wonderful brunch the day after the wedding.  It is so lucky that a kilt is so flexible and expandable, because the food and wine we were provided over the four days was both wonderful and plentiful.  Grace of course was more restrained, and there was no issue with her dress.

The actual wedding day was something to remember for a long, long time.  From the bus journey through the streets of the town, the bride and groom mingling among their guests, and the horn blasting to all the inquisitive passer-by’s; to the wonderful operatic singing at the reception; to the dancing and partying through the ‘wee-small hours’, or ‘wee petites heures’ as the say in France, Grace and I had a ball.

It’s been a while since the wedding, but we still look back fondly on an amazing week in France, and the many new friends we made in the process.  The adventure may only be just beginning for Christelle and Jean-François, but from our experience, it’s going to be one helluva’ journey.  ”Vive la différence”!

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Lindsay Fleming Couture are proud winners of The VOWS Awards, Scottish Bridal Designer, 2006, 2008, 2010, and 2013

The post Christelle and Jean-François Poitiers, France, 2013 appeared first on Lindsay Fleming Couture.

A Wedding Made in Heaven?

Once in a while we receive a client’s wedding photos which just blow us away.  In the case of Celine’s wedding, we were scooped off our feet and dropped into deepest 1920′s France in one enormous gust!  Wow, if ever there was a ‘wish we were there’ wedding, then this 1920′s themed wedding is it. Especially as I sit here writing about it in Abington on a cold Scottish winter afternoon.

Celine and Pierre were married in the summer of 2011 in a village called “Saint Just” between the cities of Nîmes and Montpellier in the “Languedoc” region of France, on Celine’s families’ land. We were absolutely thrilled to see Celine wearing our dress ‘Clara’, as she had ordered the dress using our ‘mail order’ service and we had never seen her actually wear it.

Celine came to see us early in 2011 when we visited London on one of our ‘Roadshow’ trips. She had enquired to see if we ever came to France, but we had to tell her that the nearest we unfortunately would be, was London. Determined to see the dress, Celine and her mother booked an appointment at the ‘Roadshow’, jumped on a plane, and made their way to London. When the time for the appointment came and Celine stepped through the door we knew the dress would suit her: she looked like she had stepped straight out the 1920′s. However, due to the distance, she made it clear that she could not continually travel to London for appointments, and was only interested in the dress if we could supply it by ‘Mail-Order’. Having supplied dresses using this method dozens of times to destinations all over the world, we were able to convince Celine that distance would not be a problem.

Six months later, and ‘Clara’ made her French debut. And a more beautiful bride could not have worn her on the day. The sun shone as expected, and Celine, Pierre, their family and friends had a day to remember. Magnifique!

The celebrations were photographed by a wonderfully creative photographer Nicolas Chauveau. We had never come across his work, but since receiving Celine’s images we have gone back to look at his blog on a number of occasions. It’s well worth checking out his stunning photography for ideas for your own wedding.

We hope that if a 1920′s themed wedding is part of your own plans, then Celine and Pierre’s wedding photos have given you plenty of ideas.   It certainly inspired us.

For information on Celine’s dress, Clara, take at look at her own page.

Other Twenties vintage wedding dresses in the All That Jazz Collection

Contact Lindsay Fleming Couture

Lindsay Fleming Couture are proud winners of The VOWS Awards, Scottish Bridal Designer, 2006, 2008, 2010, and 2013

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