Canadian couple's stunning French wedding after meeting on MSN

Jeannine and Octavian, originally from Canada but living in Cork, had a fairytale wedding in Normandy after 21 years together. The pair originally met via MSN messenger and the rest is history

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Life

Kathy Prendeville

15:41, 10 JUN 2023
Updated16:07, 10 JUN 2023

Jeannine and Octavian's wedding (Image: Ann Kelly Photography)

THE HAPPY COUPLE

Jeannine and Octavian, from Canada, living in Cork.

THE PROPOSAL

The proposal happened in 2018.

We have been planning this wedding for so long and have cancelled twice due to Covid!

We are quite simple and quiet people and he proposed in the comfort of our family home in Toronto, Canada. It was very romantic and very personal with just us in the room.

THE FIRST GLANCE

We met on MSN Messenger in January 2002 so it has been a long 21 years! It started off as a puppy love and slowly grew into a real life relationship.

We broke up for three years after secondary school as Octavian moved to France for University but when I moved to France in 2012 to be an au pair, the love was rekindled.

We spent almost seven years together in France before Octavian moved to Ireland and I moved to Manchester to do my Masters Degree. We then moved to Ireland after having our first baby, Noah.

THE RECEPTION

The Château de Carsix is located in the department of Eure in the region of Haute Normandie near Paris. We privatised the property for an entire weekend to allow for extreme comfort of our family and friends attending from all over the world.

A perfect and exclusive destination wedding venue!

The Chateau de Carsix combines the charm of a rural location with the nobility of a typical 18th century brick and stonework. It was erected at the end of the reign of Louis XV by Philippe du Fay and has its own chapel as well as side pavilions. Before you reach the château, you will be greeted by a broad perspective framed by linden trees.

The coat of arms of the family of Faÿ adorn the pediment of the entrance gate leading to the chateau. The entire restoration work respected the 18th century taste.

The superb cellars of the chateau house game rooms such as billiard, table football and table tennis. Thanks to our four annexs, we can host up to 95 guests sleeping on the premises. We lived in France for 10+ years and having our wedding in France really means the world to us.

We needed to find a location that was in close proximity to Paris as we had family and friends traveling from 15+ countries. Additionally, we were able to privatise the chateau to sleep 100 people. This was important as we have a lot of friends with young children. The chateau was just a beautiful backdrop for our celebration.

Additionally, we decided to get married in an old French church that was a 10 minute walk from the chateau. After the ceremony, we had a marching band and walked back to the venue.

THE DRESS

I got my dress from Memories Bridal Boutique in Cork City and my dress was from Modeca. I am a visionary and I knew exactly what I wanted.

It was the first dress I tried on and I knew right away. I wanted something with simple lines, elegant, chic and yet perfectly in sync with the venue.

THE PHOTOGRAPHER

Ann Kelly Photography.

THE BAND

Our band was a custom band put together especially for our wedding.

The band normally plays for big events in Monaco and royal weddings like the Prince of Brunei’s wedding recently.

They were absolutely incredible. They played during our marching band from the church to the chateau, an hour during the cocktail and two live sets during the party and even included a DJ set.

THE FIRST DANCE

We opted out of a first dance song as we are not a traditional couple. Instead, we wrote our own lyrics and sang each other a song to Adam Sandler’s “Grow Old With You”

THE HIGHLIGHTS

We loved the live band performing Alicia Keys and having everyone sing along. I also provided sunglasses for everyone with handwritten names on them as name place cards and the guests' reaction was priceless. The entire room took a tequila shot to start the evening!

I especially loved walking down the aisle and our food and dessert table was spectacular as was having the chateau in the background.

Our church wedding singer was incredible and had everyone in tears.

THE STRESS FACTOR

Not a single thing was stressful. Not to exaggerate, but it was perfection. We have been together for 21 years so this was a long time coming and it was perfect.

The organisation could have been a lot more stressful due to all the aspects of travel and such, but our wedding planner was a dream.

She was everything and more. She also happens to be the venue’s manager so she knew everything inside and out.

THE ADVICE

My advice is to have a vision and stay true to it. Hyper focus on what exactly you want and how you make it a reality. Do everything you can a week before the wedding to ensure that you are truly present and enjoying the day of you wedding

Meditate and do a breathing exercise the morning of the wedding. If budget allows, try to create at least a two day event because the wedding night time passes by so fast, you barely have time to speak to anyone

Would you like to have your wedding featured in RSVP Magazine and on our website RSVP Live? Get in touch with kathy.prendeville@reachplc.com