Introduction
5400 km. That is the distance which separates Hillary and Giovanni from France. Dubai, its frenzy, its artifice, its grandiosity, its heights, lead one to believe that a French expatriate couple in the desert of the Arab Emirates could only get married there. However, the lovers chose the Hexagon to celebrate their wedding.
Destination Wedding: from the East to the West
Hillary and Giovanni live and work in Dubai, but they are both French and proud of their country. She is from Lille and proud of her Ch’ti roots. He is from Paris, but whenever he can, he spends time with his family near Bordeaux. Moreover, the couple comes regularly to France to spend quality time with their relatives. This is essential to them as they are very attached to their roots. With their family and most of their friends being in France, the couple quickly chose to organize their special day in their native country. From Dubai to Bordeaux, Hillary, Giovanni and I formed a trio to make this wedding a fairy tale. Mission accomplished!
Hillary and Giovanni: meeting Melissa Wilpotte
After 4 years together and two children, Hillary and Giovanni were united in a secular ceremony at Château Gassies on June 25th. A couple of influencers, a TV couple, a united couple who wanted an elegant wedding with all their family and close friends. Giovanni is an international model and Hillary is an emblematic figure of French reality television. They both live in Dubai. I was entirely in charge of organizing their three-day wedding, with providers selected according to their quality of work and professional commitment. Both being professionals in content creation on social networks, the two influencers are used to remote communications. They were thus very responsive to our various exchanges. Whether it be via Instagram, phone or video call, even with the time difference, communication was swift and easy.
International wedding at Château Gassies
The venue was a key element and gave a strong tone to the wedding with its terrace area facing the hundred-year-old cedar of Lebanon, its oak grove for the outdoor ceremony and its various spaces that are filled with beauty. The reception room, an essential point for any wedding, was arranged with mirrors and chandeliers chosen with care, perfectly complementing the stone walls. Château Gassies is an exceptional venue in the Bordeaux region, offering a bright reception room, giving off a warm atmosphere while being very chic and refined. The high floral arrangements complementing the low centerpieces elaborated by Ludivine of LP Floral pleased the eyes of the bride and groom and their guests. Needless to mention the incredible decor of the secular ceremony which made the headlines with the flowery arch provided and its compositions in the medici vases.
The atmosphere of Hillary and Giovanni’s wedding
Secular ceremony at Chateau Gassies
The secular ceremony was created, invented, written and worked by Aurélie COUSSEAU. She is an unmistakable figure in France in the field of ceremony officiating. To be able to practice, you need to have a special understanding of feelings, of how things are felt, you need to know how to transpose into writing what the bride and groom and their families tell you. This is an art that she mastered and that allowed a very successful ceremony with a lot of emotions, laughter and tears. From the interventions of relatives, to the ritual of the ribbons, to the exchange of vows to the wedding rings brought by their Chihuahua Perle, the ceremony was a great success and ended under a shower of rose petals.
Elegant and romantic decoration of the reception hall
Roses in a palette of pastel pink and parma colors. The same colors as for the reception room, on a white background for softness and lightness. The bride and groom, like many others, opted for a variety of candles of different shapes on the tables to mix the heights. A stationery personally created in collaboration with Carteland can be found on the tables but also on the table plan. It was a floral table plan where each guest was invited to retrieve the rose corresponding to his first name to then join his table. The chandeliers, the gilded mirrors, the stone walls and all the detailed work on the tables plunged the guests into a reception room where a big meal was awaiting them within a warm environment.
Hillary and Giovanni’s wedding party at Château Gassies
The musical entrance of the bride and groom
The bride and groom entered the hall in a very animated atmosphere that the guests offered them as they cheered on the playlist composed by the DJ for the evening. The entertainment part was exceptional throughout the entire day. A harpist came to play all the different pieces requested by the bride and groom for the ceremony. Then came the saxophonist, the DJ and the percussionist, all three of them at the cocktail party to make the guests dance and to set an “Ibiza lounge” atmosphere with cocktails served by the caterer. To finish, DJ Anthony accompanied the bride and groom and his guests until the end of the night flawlessly. Everyone danced, laughed and had an unforgettable evening.
Ambiance around the wedding cake
The DJ set the tone throughout the different events, as agreed between the wedding planner and the bride and groom, that is to say the entrance in the room, the opening of the ball, but also the arrival of the cake. Needless to say, the cake really did deserve a close-up and dynamic music. One meter high, with 6 layers, decorated with white flowers and designed with golden braces, the work of the pastry chef was a great success both thanks to its delicious chocolaty flavor and exceptional visual quality.
Fireworks to conclude the wedding evening
To dazzle and please their 120 guests, the bride and groom offered an eight-minute fireworks display overlooking the Lebanese cedar and all of Bordeaux. The incredible show was perfectly immortalized by the official wedding photographer Cesarem Piaze. Cesarem, the photographer, his team and Arnaud, the videographer accompanied the bride and groom to shoot all the most beautiful moments, the details, the emotions and the exchanges that took place throughout the entire event. The final result is a perfect reflection of the moments shared by Hillary and Giovanni on their very special day.