Lauren & Ben

Château Le Mouchetard wedding, Creuse

Lauren and Ben walking hand in hand across the gravel in front of the ivy-covered house

Morning light

Lauren got ready in a bright bedroom with a pale blue bed, white curtains and a window over the hills. Her dress hung under a painted lampshade, her shoes rested on a blue mirror, and her hair went up while the sun came in across the floor.

Lauren’s wedding dress hanging between white curtains under a painted lampshade

Lauren’s white wedding shoes resting on a blue mirror frame of leaves

Lauren’s feet in fluffy white slippers marked Bride on the painted floorboards

Lauren in a white robe looking out of a tall window over the green hills

Lauren in her robe having her hair pinned up by a stylist with tattooed arms

Ben in white

Across the house, Ben and his groomsmen got into black tie. Ben wore a white tuxedo jacket with a black bow tie, and it looked good everywhere we put him: by the dark blue doors, in front of a gilded mirror and at the pink front door.

Close-up of black cufflinks held in an open palm

Ben fastening his cuffs while a groomsman in braces gets ready beside him

Ben smiling as he buttons his collar, a groomsman in the foreground

Ben and his groomsmen in black tie laughing on a white sofa

Ben in his white tuxedo jacket and black bow tie by a dark blue door

Ben leaning against the dark blue panelled wall in his white jacket

Ben sitting on the edge of a white bed by a carved white screen

Ben sitting on a blue chair in front of a gilded mirror

Ben in his white tuxedo beside the pink front door framed in ivy and red roses

The bridesmaids

The bridesmaids came in wearing sage pyjamas, and there was a lot of jumping on the bed. Then they changed into green satin and helped Lauren into her gown, with a long veil and a train that filled the room.

Lauren in her robe sitting on the pale blue bed below her hanging dress

Lauren holding a white wedding shoe above her head against a pale blue door

Lauren and her bridesmaids in sage pyjamas sitting on the blue bed with drinks

Lauren and her bridesmaids in sage pyjamas jumping and laughing in the bedroom

Lauren in her robe taking her dress down from the blue painted wardrobe

Bridesmaids in green satin settling Lauren’s veil as she sits in her full gown

Lauren looking down under her veil, in black and white

Lauren touching her necklace and smiling, her hair in long soft waves

Lauren from behind in her gown and long veil, the train spread across the floor

Lauren, a flower girl and bridesmaids in green satin cheering with their bouquets

At the pink door

Ben waited outside with his back to the house while Lauren came out through the pink door. They held hands on the gravel terrace with the hills behind them, then walked over to the garden together.

Lauren stepping out of the pink door as Ben waits with his back turned

Lauren and Ben holding hands on the gravel terrace above the green hills

Lauren and Ben walking across the gravel in front of the ivy-covered house

The gazebo

The vows were under the wrought-iron gazebo, wound with white flowers and greenery, on a deck looking out over the paddocks. The bridesmaids stood on one side, the groomsmen on the other, and Lauren read her vows from a card.

Bridesmaids in green and groomsmen in black tie on either side of the gazebo

Lauren and Ben under the flowered gazebo with the officiant holding a folder

Lauren reading her vows to Ben through the greenery of the gazebo

Lauren and Ben kissing under the wrought-iron gazebo with the hills behind

Portraits in the sun

We took the wedding party photos on the gravel in front of the house, groomsmen jumping and all. Then Lauren and Ben had some time on their own on the steps by the pink door and across the courtyard, in the full afternoon sun.

Lauren with her bridesmaids in green satin in front of the ivy-covered house

Lauren and Ben with the bridesmaids and groomsmen on the gravel courtyard

The wedding party sitting together on the gravel, Lauren kissing Ben

Groomsmen jumping in the air behind the bridesmaids on the gravel

Lauren smiling with her bouquet as Ben holds her from behind

Ben and Lauren cheek to cheek under a blue sky in front of the house

Lauren and Ben embracing on the gravel, her train spread around them

Lauren resting her head on Ben’s shoulder beside a large clipped tree

Lauren and Ben sitting on the stone steps beside the pink door and the roses

Ben kissing Lauren on the steps in front of the bright pink door

Lauren from behind on the gravel, her long train and veil around her

Lauren walking across the gravel courtyard with the ivy-covered house behind

Ben and Lauren forehead to forehead below the small tower of the house

Dinner in the barn

Guests had drinks at small tables on the lawn by the ivy-covered tower. The barn was set with long tables, sage runners and white roses, under draped fabric and string lights. Lauren and Ben walked in to applause, and the speeches had them both laughing.

Guests sitting at small tables on the lawn below an ivy-covered stone tower

The seating plan pinned to a white mirror frame on an easel in the barn

White chairs tied with green ribbon along the long tables in the barn

A sage green table runner with a white rose and a table name in a gold holder

Long tables with white cloths, green runners and candles in the stone barn

A green menu card on a white plate between gold cutlery

Lauren and Ben walking into the barn as guests stand and clap

Guests at dinner along the long table under the string lights

A guest laughing at dinner with a glass of white wine

Lauren, Ben and the bridesmaids raising their glasses at the top table

Lauren and Ben laughing during the speeches at the top table

Ben kissing Lauren at the top table, a white rose arrangement in front

First dance

The first dance was on the wooden floor of the barn with everyone standing around it. Ben spun Lauren until her skirt flew out, and later she changed into a short white dress for the dancing.

Ben spinning Lauren on the wooden floor, her skirt flaring out

Lauren in a short white dress dancing with friends in the barn

Photographing at Château Le Mouchetard

The ivy-covered house at Château Le Mouchetard with its small tower and pink doors

The estate.

The main house and the reception barn combine old masonry with restored interiors. The barn, a covered pavilion, a pergola and the gardens each take one part of the day, and they sit close enough that guests move between them in minutes. For Lauren and Ben, the pink front door and the gravel courtyard were where we started.

The gazebo.

The iron gazebo stands on a wooden deck with the hills behind it. It framed Lauren and Ben without hiding the guests, so I could photograph the vows from the aisle and from the side.

Light.

The courtyard is in shade in the morning, which suits getting ready and family photos. In the evening the sun sits behind the tree lines, good for backlit portraits on the lawn.

The barn.

Stone walls and wooden beams give the dance floor texture, and the fabric ceiling softens the light. I photographed Lauren and Ben’s speeches and first dance from the edge of the floor.

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Questions

Have you photographed at Château Le Mouchetard before?

Yes: Lauren and Ben’s wedding on this page. I know the pink front door, the gravel courtyard above the hills, the gazebo in the garden and the barn with its draped ceiling, from getting ready to the last dance.

Do you travel to the Creuse?

Yes. Travel within France is included, so the drive from Bordeaux costs you nothing extra.

Which coverage suits a day here?

The 12-hour day (€3,100) runs from getting ready to the dancing in the barn; the 10-hour day (€2,800) suits a shorter evening.

How far ahead should we book?

Most couples book six to eighteen months ahead. If you are still choosing between venues, you can check my date before you sign.

I’m excited to go wherever your love story is taking me and looking forward to hearing from you!