Saturday 7 July 2018

Hannah and James - Châteaux, sunshine and celebrants - Joey style

Oh France, how I love thee. Your rolling hills, your wine, your sunshine, your promised romance… the undisputed king of the chateau… your ability to entice young lovers into your warm embrace and conjure visions of wedding day bliss! And Lordy you do not disappoint. All hail the mighty France! And all hail the mighty Hannah and James for choosing you. C’est tres bien. Incroyable!

So, off to Chateau du Puits es Pratx in Ginestas. A gem of a venue. Dusky blue shutters, aged walls, ornate mouldings, the most magical courtyard ala ‘Ello Ello’ stylie, a vineyard (of course I got stuck into the local produce, OF COURSE), plus it had a pool. BOOM. Postcard pretty with small-scale grandeur and a big heart, this venue provided the most beautifully intimate and incredibly impressive playground for a gorgeous gaggle of young and old (barely) to party like crazies and celebrate the newly appointed Mr. and Mrs. March.

Mais oui, enough about the bricked beauty, onto the real beauties, Hannah and James. What a pair of heaven sent lovelies. They conjure images of Ken and Barbie in my 5-year-old self. So perfect together and so gawd-darn beautiful. Hannah wore the most exquisite dress by Monique Lhuillier and looked utterly breathtaking. I can actually remember hearing ‘I don’t think I’ve ever seen such a beautiful bride’ uttered from the mouth of an enamored guest… it was such a romantic, whimsical dream of a number, so perfectly matched for Hannah. Kinda like her man there in his snazzy Hugo Boss white get-up, he looked so gorgeous too. Everyone had a couple crush that day. E.V.E.R.Y.O.N.E.

This wedding had a little extra too … a little BA-ZING (it is a word, I use it all the time). It’s not every day one of your best friends can marry you, and with the powers vested in Dominic Arnall (he has many powers, vested, in him) he tore the ceremony script up and created a whole new world of celebrant BA-ZING. He conducted a hero of a service. He cried. He even had the congregation promise to drink like loons, become best friends and do things they would never normally contemplate. Bravo Dom, you smashed it. A beautiful service for a beautiful couple, given by a beautiful human being. Et voila, c’est magnifique. Who needs Olivier when you have moi 'ey?

Now, all great weddings have to have one or two cracking speeches, but this one had four! Hannah (well-done lady - totally partial to a bride-speech me), James', best man Luke's, and Hannah’s dad all had their turn on the mic and entertained, evoked tears, laughter and produced just one or two open-mouthed ‘NOOO WAAAAY'’ embarrassed looks, they were hilarious and perfectly executed. There was something finger-tingling, hair-on-the-back-of-your-neck feeling about seeing James draped in his Welsh flag and hearing Luke speak with Land of my Fathers and the national anthem playing in the background. The Welsh contingent was on their feet, hands waving… it was a pretty mighty punch to the heart - emotion bubbled. And along with a pile of mildly abusive love and good humor, Luke did what all good best men should - the best bud thing, brilliantly. BANTS.

There is a huge amount I could say about this glorious day, stories I could recount, a mishap or two - a lady never tells! I'll let the pictures speak for themselves and hopefully they will shout out what a remarkable day it was, peppered with love, laughter, bright colours, blue skies, dreamy surroundings, yum food and amazing people. It felt like the stars had alligned... two people were coming together, made for each other... like the Welsh and the baa baas. Like Doll and the Kicks (awesome set the night before by the way) like me and my camera… things that are just meant to be… and by God were these two meant to be. Like Ken and Barbie.
Tidy.

So go forth my lovelies, shine bright, sing loud, love deeply and don’t stay up too late y'hear.

My love, hugs, and ramblings to you both.

Loukie xx



The Fab Suppliers....

The Venue: Chateau du Puits es Pratx
The Dress: Monique Lhuillier
The Suit: Hugo Boss
Hair and Make-up: Ariana from Makeup By Jodie
The Caterers: Chateau du Puits es Pratx
The Flowers: Chateau du Puits es Pratx
The Music: El Compardre and Band followed by Northern Soul DJ's Stuart and Paul





















































































































































No comments: