This is a beautifully fresh and intimate summer wedding, set on a magical garden rooftop in the heart of London, that oozes style and elegance. It’s also the magical wedding of my brother, André, and my amazing sister-in-law, Lee Ann, so it has a very special place in my heart… (and if you look closely you can spot me in red Vivienne Westwood in the big group picture at the end!)
But back to the wedding – I loved Lee Ann’s idea of taking the shade of her apple green sash on her dress and using the fresh green colour throughout all kinds of details on her day.
And how did these two meet? Well it’s verrrry romantic: Lee Ann, a Floridian, and André, a born-and-bred Londoner, married after a whirlwind long-distance romance. They met on a 5-day Caribbean cruise in September 2006, were engaged 6 months later, and were married, less than a year to the day they met, in August 2007.
The Venue
Lee Ann, the Bride: Kensington Roof Gardens was our perfect venue. Towering above central London, the stunning gardens, complete with house flamingoes, seemed like the 8th wonder of the world! We wanted somewhere central as there were quite a few foreign guests in town for only a few days, but equally we wanted a beautiful, garden setting. Nothing could have been more perfect, and to top it all, Claire Vidler and her events term were superb to deal with throughout.
The magic ingredient, of which we have only the Gods to thank, was being blessed with glorious sunshine on the day.
THE DRESS WHICH LEAD TO THE THEME
My dress was by Vera Wang. I wanted something different and loved the ivory colour teamed with an apple green sash- perfect for our summer garden setting! In fact, the colour of the apple green sash set the theme of the wedding throughout, and the same shade was used on the invitation design, and all sorts of details from the sashes on the backs of the chairs to the flowers to the ribbons on the cake to the ketubah illustrations.
THE CHUPPAH + FLOWERS
We used a wonderful florist called Rebecca Fiest. I loved the idea of small arrangements all of one colour, and Rebecca interpreted my ideas sensitively and brilliantly. She also did such a beautiful job with the chuppah. I knew I wanted it to be constructed from bamboo poles with fresh spring flowers, and it couldn’t have turned out more beautifully.
A BEAUTIFUL KETUBAH
I wanted our Ketubah to reflect our garden theme, and after some intense Googling I found a wonderful illustrator in New York called Stephanie Caplan of The Ketubah who creating a stunning piece for us which we love so much that we now have it framed and hanging in our living room.
THE PHOTOGRAPHER
We were recommended our photographer, Gavin Hart by a friend, and as soon as we met up with him, it was an instant clink (excuse the pun!). Our guests ate, drank and danced, and the photos captured the ceremony and our favourite people beautifully.
LEE ANN + ANDRE’S LITTLE WHITE BOOK
Venue — Kensington Roof Gardens
Photography — Gavin Hart Photography
Bride’s dress — Vera Wang
Bride’s shoes — Stuart Weitzman
Groom’s attire: Ermenegildo Zegna
Florals — Rachel Fiest
Ketubah — Stephanie Caplan at The Ketubah
Stationery – Cinnamon Creative
What a divine venue and a ravishing Bride and Groom! And I loved the couples shots taken in the Gardens and downstairs on Kensington High Street – André and Lee Ann look like they’re having so much fun and that they got to spend a decent amount of time together to reflect upon the beautiful ceremony that they had just experienced.
