Watermelon, Vintage Rackets and a Pool Morning at La Porte d'Arcy

Margaux's wardrobe changed with each part of the weekend, and none of the three looks overlapped. For the formal portraits she wore a minimalist off-the-shoulder gown with couture draping, and a long lace-edged veil that trailed onto the gravel behind her.

Her bouquet combined anthuriums, orchids and a single burgundy calla lily, cut for the formal portraits. Trailing amaranthus and a burgundy ribbon extended well below the stems, and the shape was loose and asymmetric, heavier on one side than the other.

For the welcome reception she changed into a short white dress with sheer dotted sleeves, inspired by vintage tennis clothing. In place of her bouquet she held a vintage tennis racket decorated with flowers. Antoine changed too, replacing his classic tuxedo with a beige suit, loafers and cropped trousers.

The final look belonged to the morning after. Margaux wore a hot pink swimsuit beside the pool and held a small posy out over the water. It was the last of her three changes, and the only one photographed away from the house and the court.

The final morning was set beside La Porte d'Arcy's swimming pool. Margaux wore her hot pink swimsuit and Antoine a white shirt and shorts. Both sat at the stone edge with their feet in the water, a small draped table beside them holding pastries and two champagne flutes.

Hydrangea heads floated on the water, and along the stone coping pink anthuriums and small whole watermelons were arranged beside the champagne. The pink of the swimsuit repeated the pink of the flowers almost exactly, which is the clearest sign of how closely the styling was planned.

Earlier in the sequence the couple had faced each other across the tennis net with vintage wooden rackets. The formal portraits were made against the front of the house. Between them, the pool completed a three-part arrangement of welcome reception, outdoor dinner and a slow morning after.

The welcome reception was arranged directly on the tennis court. Tables covered in white and pink fabric were positioned across the green surface, with the court markings left visible. In front of the net stood a large white urn of pink hydrangeas and anthuriums, on a draped table.

Tennis details ran through the food and the styling, with iced biscuits by Biscuitella cut into racket shapes and lettered with a scoring term. On the court surface itself, three vintage wooden rackets and two balls were arranged with flowers.

So Layers created the white cake, decorated with anthurium, sliced pear and red berries and displayed on a pink-draped table. Silver dishes held canapés and raspberries. At one end of the court, a tower of champagne flutes was stacked, and the couple poured it together before taking the rackets out across the net.

Dinner was set on the gravel directly in front of La Porte d'Arcy's white stone facade. Covered in white linen, one long table was surrounded by cane-backed chairs, while a second setting was laid among the garden planting on bentwood chairs.

The flowers went deeper for the evening, with burgundy joining the coral and blush. Green glassware and green and white striped placemats continued the green used earlier in the stationery, and unlit taper candles stood between the low arrangements, ready for the evening the design imagined.

Along the centre of the table, pears were placed whole and halved, with grapes among the flowers and the place settings. Luvi provided the catering. Un Chouette Event kept the arrangements low, so the view across the table stayed clear, a detail worth borrowing for any destination wedding in Hauts-de-France.

Erwan Auvy built the arrangements from hydrangeas, anthuriums and calla lilies, with lighter seasonal flowers through them. Hydrangeas were grouped low in the urns and along the table. Above them, coral and pale pink anthuriums rose on longer stems, and burgundy calla lilies gave the darkest note anywhere on the table.

Seasonal fruit appeared everywhere across the three settings. Beside the swimming pool, small whole watermelons were set out among the flowers. Pears ran along the dinner table and onto the cake, and raspberries were served in vintage silver cups beside the iced biscuits.

Vintage silverware was used across the welcome reception: cups for the raspberries, shallow dishes for the biscuits and the canapés, and a bucket for the champagne. The pieces were mixed rather than taken from one matching set, which is how the silver reads across every table.

Chamade Communication created the stationery, and soft yellow and white stripes ran across the paper goods. Among them were a scalloped bar menu, an RSVP card and a printed programme listing a civil ceremony, a vin d'honneur, a first dance, the wedding dinner and a cake.

The stationery introduced several colours that continued through the weekend: soft yellow, absinthe green, coral and pink. For the flat lays, sweet peas, dahlias and a halved pear were arranged around the suite, with two gold rings set among them.

Fruit then reappeared throughout the editorial, with pears at dinner and on the cake, raspberries at the welcome reception and watermelon beside the pool. On the green court, vintage wooden tennis rackets and balls were arranged with flowers, introducing the tennis references used across the welcome party.