Robin and Jenny’s Intimate, Blush Pink Wedding at Le Manoir de L’Etang

Set within verdant greenery and an abundance of blossoming flowers in the South of France countryside, Robin and Jenny chose to get married at the beautiful Le Manoir de L’Etang in Mougins. A beautiful 19th century sandstone French home away from home, it served as the perfect backdrop for the couple’s intimate wedding day. Featuring a beautiful dappled light woodlands to host their ceremony within, gorgeous grounds for the reception along with a lovely swimming pool that was very much enjoyed by the wedding party before and after the wedding, the whole wedding evoked that relaxed, pretty, French feel that they really hoped for.

As the CEO of WeddingPlanner.co.uk and Co-Founder of this very website you’re on, it’s fair to say Robin did things a little bit differently when it came to getting married. As a couple who didn’t love the ‘all eyes on you’ aspect of a wedding, which I think many of us can sympathise with, they decided to have an intimate wedding in France with their nearest and dearest, followed by a big wedding party on a London rooftop when they returned. We’ll be sure to share that wedding with you shortly, but for now we can’t wait to share with you this first part!

We chatted to Robin and Jenny to find out more about the whole day…

How did you both meet and how did you get engaged?

Both: We're both musicians and we actually originally met whilst playing as part of a string quartet that happened to be playing at a wedding!

Robin: For the engagement, I booked a 3-day getaway trip to Bruton in Somerset in October. At a secluded lodge on a private lake, I got down on one knee and proposed with a fortune cookie, which is a bit of an "in" joke we have!

Why did you choose to get married in France?

Both: We felt we knew a little bit too much about the UK wedding industry and wanted to explore something a bit different. Robin's family have had a longstanding connection to the Côte D'Azur and we wanted to try and guarantee good weather as much as we could.

Tell us a little bit about getting ready in the morning. Did you feel nervous, what was your favourite part?

Robin: The wedding didn't start until 6pm due to the heat. This gave Jenny time to go the gym which she wouldn't dream of missing!

Jenny: That’s very true! Robin got to enjoy some time in the pool with his brothers and nephews whilst I got my hair and makeup done with the rest of my bridal party. As we kept the wedding small, I think that helped us both with our nerves.

What did you wear?

Jenny: I wore a lovely Pronovias dress with a lace bodice and full skirt, plus a delicate lace veil to match. I paired this with Jimmy Choo shoes and Vashi earrings.

Robin: I wore a beige suit jacket and navy waistcoat and trousers from Edit Suits. I wanted a lighter colour jacket to fit the South of France and general style of the wedding venue.

Tell us more about the ceremony…

Jenny: We wrote our own vows and asked Robin's brother Daniel to act as the celebrant on the day. This gave us full control over the ceremony and we could include all the bits we wanted.

Robin: We flew our friend Ben McGettigan out to France to play the piano and he played Bogoshipda which is a Korean song as Jenny walked down the aisle. Lucy who is actually the other Co-Founder of Luxury Weddings styled the whole wedding from the UK and worked with local suppliers to create a magical setting. Following some initial guidance from us, she designed a romantic blush pink colour scheme, with lots of beautiful seasonal blooms, delicate fabrics and a distinct look and feel for the day . As Lucy also has her own stationery brand Love Letters London, she was able to design us bespoke wedding stationery to perfectly complement the overall wedding design.

What was your favourite part of the day?

Robin: This is tough! The ceremony was incredibly special and so was the meal. We also had a really fun night out in Cannes after... but we probably have to go with the moment we saw each other when Jenny was walking down the aisle. That brought tears to both of us!

What did you drink and serve at your cocktail reception?

Robin: Being in France, we had to serve champagne of course! Ben moved over from the ceremony to continue playing more laid back jazz and pop tunes on the piano.

Tell us a bit about your suppliers…

We couldn't have been more impressed with our suppliers from the whole wedding. Camilla who runs Le Manoir was incredible throughout our planning journey. Floriane was our local florist who did a fantastic job of following Lucy's design brief. Having Lucy arrange the styling and our stationery made the planning so much easier! Cal Macbeth, our photographer did a brilliant job and we're delighted with how the photographs have turned out!

Dinner time! Tell us about the food, the styling, what your favourite bit was about this portion of the day.

Jenny: One of the reasons for choosing France was for the food. We had an incredible 5-course meal. We offered guests multiple options for each course but the fresh ceviche was probably our favourite!

Robin: Lucy and the florist continued with the same styling theme from the ceremony and as it got darker, beautiful lighting only enhanced the amazing setting. We also brought over all our wedding stationery from the UK which looked lovely the rest of the styling.

How did the speeches go? Who did speeches and which were particularly memorable?

Jenny: As Robin is half-Swedish we went with a slightly different tradition. We asked every guest to give a toast. This could be as short or as long as they liked and we also got the guests to move places between each course. It gave us the opportunity to have a course with each couple, and we definitely felt that having a smaller wedding allowed us to spend quality time with each guest over the dinner and the weekend as a whole.

If you had any advice for future newlyweds what would it be?

Both: Planning a wedding really doesn't need to be that stressful. Try to not feel pressured into doing anything you don't want to do. Lean on your suppliers who are experts in their specific fields. Try and get some quality time alone on the day as a couple to take it all on. It goes by way too quickly!