Et Voila-Frence Luxury Wedding Planner

Et Voila ! Weddings is the first London-based wedding planning agency specialised in the coordination of weddings in France. The agency takes pride and enjoys most creating outstanding, exceptional, surprising and creative weddings in all parts of France.

Whether you are after a chateau wedding in the south west or a contemporary villa event with views on the Mediterranean, Et Voila ! Weddings provide you with ideas and experience to ensure that your wedding is as special to your guests as it is to you.

• 5 Star Weddings: How did you start Et Voila! Weddings?

Et Voila: Having worked for one of the most renowned party planning agencies in London and for luxury brands, helping the teams with the coordination of events in France, I have realised how hard it can be for a UK planner to plan an event abroad, culturally and linguistically speaking. That is why I have created a wedding planner service providing UK based couples willing to get married in France with a French wedding planner who knows lots about France, and who is close enough to get to know lots about them as well. That is for me one of the main conditions to be successful in planning tailored and therefore unique weddings.  

5 Star Weddings: What are your preferred luxury wedding venues in France?

Et Voila: If the fiances are looking for a venue with seaview, it would probably be the Kube hotel in St Tropez. The hotel can be privatised and the terrace and garden, where a marquee can be set up, have an amazing view on the bay of St Tropez. For a more classic event on the Cote d’Azur the Villa Ephrussi de Rostchild is superb. I also adore the Château de Villiers le Mahieu near Paris, which is an exceptional medieval château with amazing outside spaces, and for an intimate event with a wow factor we have just registered a stunning private villa in Provence (details upon request).  

5 Star Weddings: What are the main advantages of getting married in France compared to a UK wedding?

Et Voila: Time. For the bride and groom as well as for the guests, getting married abroad makes the whole event more than just one day. Usually the guests would arrive in France the day before the wedding, and sometimes they woud make it a whole week holiday. The bride and groom and their party would also arrive a few days before the wedding. This means that everyone is so much more relaxed on the wedding day itself, and it shows on the photos ! Also, most of the time we would organise a little gathering the day before the wedding, such as a wine tasting tour or a beach party, so all the guests get to meet in a fun environment and get to know each other better before the more formal wedding day. It is also a great opportunity for the bride and groom to really have some quality time to spend with all of their guests, as the wedding day itself goes by so quickly !

5 Star Weddings: What beautiful or meaningful French traditions can a British couple incorporate into their wedding in France?

Et Voila:I personally find the father-daughter waltz tradition in French weddings very emotional and beautiful. In France it is the bride and her father who open the ball, and the traditional dance is a waltz. It is the last dance of the father with his daughter… They waltz together alone for a couple of minutes, then the groom joins the dancefloor with his mother. After a few more minutes the father of the bride would lead his daughter to her husband and give him her hand. The bride and groom then waltz together, while the father of the bride invites the mother of the groom. This is when all the other guests can join the dancefloor ! The most traditional one: The Blue Danube from Johann Strauss.

• 5 Star Weddings: Can you source all the suppliers required to create a traditional British wedding in France?

Et Voila:Of course. From marquees to international bands and wedding cakes, there is nothing you cannot find in France. And if the couple is a little nervous about French vendors, there are plenty of British ones established in France nowadays, so you can even source your British band in France !

5 Star Weddings: The exchange rate between the Euro and the British Pound being at the advantage of the Pound, how would you advise couples to use the extra cash?

Et Voila:At the moment the exchange rate between pound and euro is at 1 to 1.27, which means that a wedding in France represents a 30% saving… or allows you to spend 30% more budget on making the day even more special ! Where you would have had a tight budget in the UK you might be able to spend a little bit more on catering, entertainment or flowers. If all of that is already well covered, you can wow your guests with some more unusual things, such as a virtual graffiti wall for the art lovers (guests use cans and virtually spray on a screen to create a unique wedding graffiti that you can print for your house) or an architectural mapping for an evening your guests will never forget !

5 Star Weddings: How do you create your couples’ weddings?

Et Voila: It all starts from the venue, the dress, and how the couple imagine their wedding day. From there (and a little insight of the couples’ history) I work on two to three « themes » that I present to the bride and groom. A theme can be a colour palette, an ambiance, an inspiration… We then develop one of the themes (or a new hybrid one !) into much more details to create the couple’s day. On some events we work with an event designer who helps us create the perfect decor and atmosphere for the day.

5 Star Weddings: Where do you take inspiration?

Et Volia:I can take some inspiration from anything, anywhere ! I love to go and look at the luxury brands windows, they are always forward thinking and most of the time very ingenious. Decoration and design blogs are also a great source of inspiration for decors, themes and trends.

• 5 Star Weddings: In your opinion, what are the most important elements in a wedding?

Et Volia:Flowers, lighting and entertainment. These are elements that are often overlooked, which is a shame as they are paramount to the atmosphere and style of the day and evening.

• 5 Star Weddings: In your opinion what makes a 5 star wedding?

Et Volia: To me this is really about having the right balance and level of details into every element of the wedding. A 5 star wedding would feature a polished groom, a beautiful and perfectly fitted wedding dress, great hair and make up, stunning flowers, amazing food and creative cocktail drinks, great entertainment for the guests throughout the day and perfect coordination so that the whole day goes smoothly for everyone. And a happy couple of course!

• To discuss your wedding in France contact Et Volia.
• Copyright 2012 5 Star Weddings.