We are over the moon!
We have been invited to this beautiful authentic French castle - Hattonchatel Chateau for a wedding.
The bride is going to wear a pink dress. And my wife doesn't know what to wear - a fantastic castle / pink weddingdress etc.
So I need help!

Hi S,

>a fantastic castle / pink weddingdress etc.

I suggest that she wear whatever she would wear to a wedding at Disneyland.

PS,

>We are over the moon!

Calm down.

Does the invitation include RT tickets and rooms, or are you expected to pay your own way?

You can look up the wedding venue at www.ritz-resorts.com.

Guest rooms are 250-440E/nite

Hi Ira

Thank you very much.
Yes we have to pay our own way - but never mind. This is something special.
Do you like the castle?
My wife says that she will properbly wear something brown - cos. that goes with the castle.

slot

I see that it is possible to make an entrance to this castle by hot air balloon, but I think they run out of hot air before going over the moon.

The old stones of the castle seem to be a nice neutral color (khaki?) that would go well with anything.

I need to get invited to some better weddings.

Are the wedding couple French? Are most the guests French? What time of the year is the wedding? How formal is it going to be? Is it a daytime or night time event?

We went to our friend's wedding in the Loire Valley last fall. It was at a chateau. No one is French as it was a destination wedding. All the guests ended up wearing what they would have worn in the US anyway. It was an outdoor afternoon ceremony, so the men wore suits and women wore dresses (some full lengths, some calf lengths). I recall dress colors range from black to green to red...

The castle looks absolutely beautiful- I haven't seen it in person, but it looks amazing. As for your wife's outfit for the night (assuming it's an evening wedding)- she can wear whatever she likes! I would steer clear of white and pink- the last thing you want to do is take away from the bride! Also, if she knows what the bridesmaids are wearing, she may not want to look too much like a bridesmaid... otherwise, I think the floor is wide open and she can wear whatever she thinks she'll feel comfortable in.
I'd love to hear more details- as I'm planning my own wedding in Europe- let us know how the festivities go!

Hi
The couple that is going to get married at Hattonchatel Chateau is Danish.
The wedding is on the 26 of April in the authentic chapel next door to tha castle.
After woods their will be a wedding reception and the party will take place in the evening in the knights hall "La Salle de Burgraves". The dress code is suits and long evening dresses - so just normal!
And yes khaki sounds great - Nikki.
Ok - shormk2, but how do you want me to keep you posted ?

Wow - have you seen that an American woman, Belle Skinner, rebuilt the castle after the 1.world war?

Feel free to email me: [email protected] or you could always do a trip report when you get back... either way, I'd love to hear what you think of the Chateau...

Slot

I don't like khaki as a color for evening wear; do you?

What color does your wife like best?

I don't feel comfortable in much formal wear (I don't think it suits me) so for my DD's formal wedding, I wore a calf length skirt in dusty rose tulle, and a matching knit top with a pearl collar. Pearl accessories. Fabulous shoes.

I felt like I was just formal enough, but still looked like "me."

Also, something like that would be easy to pack.

For out of the box cocktail type wear, I love Anthropologie.com.

My wife prefer red, but that's not realy a "castle color".
On the other hand - the contrast is very cool!
We will see if we can find something by looking at the pictures of Hattonchatel Chateau.

And thank you for the advice.

<My wife says that she will properbly wear something brown - cos. that goes with the castle>


She wants to blend in to the walls? Definitely she should take her cues for formality, etc., from the venue, but trying to actually match the castle strikes me as a little unusual.

People, I was not suggesting the guest wear khaki. I was just saying the walls are khaki-colored and would go with anything. I must try to stop myself before attempting humor. My husband has been telling me for years it doesn't work.

Is this a joke? It really sounds like it regarding the comments about colors. Wearing brown, for example, because it's a castle and saying that red "isn't a castle color." Red is an excellent color and more flattering on most women than brown.

If they are Danish, this isn't a real wedding, I am speculating, but the couple playing dress-up and inviting easily impressionable people to their dress-up party, because you cannot marry legally in France unless you are a French resident. There are a zillion chateaux in France where you can go on vacation, if that's all you want to do.

wear any colour that isn't pink - you don't want to upset the bride.

Christina

Er are you sure about only French residents being allowed to marry? That's an interesting complication.

The minimum residence requirement is only one month, and who is to say the couple both don't live in France anyway.

The wedding at the church will in either case not be official or legal in France, as only certain state officials can performs marriages, such as the mayor.

Hi

Since the engaged couple is Danish they can't get married in France - officially!
What you do is going to town Hall at home - signing the papers.
And then you do the wedding ceremony abroad - in a chapel, in a park, on the beach or whereever you want.
You are able to get married official in France if you want to stay 40 days in there etc., but that is very time consuming and complicated - and you have no guarantees!
Other laws are applying for other european countries.

slot

Posh French weddings are very formal. I learned this three French weddings ago.

I think your wife will have to have day wear for the wedding itself. But posh day wear, and DEFINITELY a hat.

You might get away with the same suit afternoon and evening. Are you sure it's suits for evening? If it's long dresses it's more likely to be black tie.

We have one in Paris the week before, and, just for us, it says "or kilts" everywhere it says "black tie" or "suits"

Hmmmm...I can't imagine wearing a brown or khaki (Nikki, I didn't think you were serious!) formal to an April wedding. How boring! Especially if your wife prefers red. I also don't understand that idea that "red isn't a castle color." What do you consider to be a castle color? Are there only certain colors that are acceptable at a castle? Surely you're not serious?

That castle looks absolutely amazing. Check out that picture of the wedding chapel:
http://www.ritz-resorts.com/content/view/15/29/lang,en/

Very romantic. Would like to hear from you after you come back from that trip.
I too need some inspiration for my wedding!