Montreal Wedding Planner, An English Rose Blog
Luxury Lifestyle Weddings

J & S’s Lavender Inspired Wedding

Posted on 14 May 2012 | 1 response

Although J and S both live and work in the Far East, they wanted to hold their wedding here in the Eastern Township close to S’s family and we chose an intimate setting for their 30+ guests in one of the private cottages on the Ripplecove Estate in Ayres Cliff!

The colours and design for the wedding were very important to the couple to incorporate their favourite colours of Purple’s and Yellow into the day and as such we created a county wedding with lavender, herbs and lots of colour!

The wedding ceremony took place in the morning sunshine and guests celebrated in the private gardens of one of the cottages at
the Auberge Ripplecove.  At the front of the ceremony area we had two large birch stands either side of the signing table with purple and yellow trailing flowers and just behind in the flower beds more purple & yellow flowers with herbs and spices filled the spaces to give a very beautiful backdrop to a very special ceremony, and just blended with all the natural countryside.

The couple were married and the celebrations began with Champagne and Canapés flowing in the gardens of the cottage in the wonderful morning sunshine with a trio from the Sherbrooke Symphony Orchestra serenading the guests.

The lunch room was decorated with more beautiful centre pieces filled again with the couple’s favourite flowers and touches of Lavender around the room.  The stunning Purple Wedding Cake took centre stage in the room for everyone to see and the guests were treated to a wonderful 4 course menu, each paired with a different wine to spoil their palettes.

A beautiful intimate wedding in the heart of Quebec’s countryside, overlooking the waterfront with the couples closest family and friends, how idyllic!

“Planning our wedding from far, we were really glad we found Rachel. Her creativity and experience helped to shape our initial ideas into a day that was truly memorable. She handled all details with aplomb and always went the extra mile, including arrangements for a last-minute change in venue! Ultimately, Rachel loves what she does and that’s what helped make our wedding so special.”

Photography Credit: IPI Studio, Flowers by Flora International & Cake by Décor Gateau Montreal

Meliza & Laurent’s Midsummers’ Night Wedding

Posted on 23 April 2012 | 2 responses

Meliza and Laurent had the most stunning country style wedding on the waterfronts of Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue just 40 minutes from downtown Montreal.  When we first met with Meliza she told us she wanted a magical garden wedding where guests could enjoy a relaxed atmosphere and when the sun set the garden would light up for guests to dance under the fairy lights and numerous candles in the warm air….

The ceremony was set up to face the waterfront with an aisle created of country flowers in cans with an arch decorated in flowers and branches.  The couple asked all guests to wear white to the wedding to create the natural relaxed mid-summer look and even their son Bastien wore a very cute linen suit with ‘shorts’!

After the ceremony the couple took off with their best man and maid of honor to walk in the fields nearby and I think you will admit captured some amazing pictures, while guests enjoyed the first round of cocktails and canapés!

Upon arrival back Champagne and speeches flowed and the children then had the opportunity to break the ‘piñata’ – another fabulous idea for an outdoor wedding and nice touch to make the children feel really included in this special day.

Fingers foods flowed all night long as well as an amazing dessert table with numerous Cakes, Macaroons and more!  Guests had a fabulous evening dancing under the ‘stars’ in the warm evening air and I know Meliza and Laurent truly had the mid-summers night wedding they were looking for!

Photo Credit:  Annalie Young & Flowers by Flora International

Ingrid & Scotts Country Estate Wedding

Posted on 9 April 2012 | No responses

Ingrid’s family have the most stunning Estate in the Laurentians near to St Sauveur with a private lake making it the perfect backdrop to their beautiful wedding this past summer.

Friday night over 100 guests gathered at the property for the Rehearsal Dinner BBQ which included elements of the Brides Mothers background with a ‘Polterabend’ which is a German Wedding Tradition whereby the night before the wedding the wedding guests break porcelain to bring luck to the couple’s marriage, which was a lot of fun.  The evening finished with an amazing fireworks display, just in time as after the final explosion of fireworks came an explosion of Thunder & Lightening – all perfectly timed of course!

The next morning and sun shone brightly and guests walked from the house to an opening overlooking the lake and surrounded by trees for a ceremony ‘with a view’ and waited for the arrival of the Bride, which was well worth waiting for.  Out of no-where came the sounds of a Scottish Piper, who led the Bridesmaids from the house to the ceremony location, followed by the Bride and her father in a ‘Calesh’, transported in from Old Montreal to everyone’s surprise including the Grooms – and believe me hiding a Horse and Carriage on the side of a mountain is no small feat – well done Chris!!  Ingrid also wanted to bring in many different cultural traditions including a ‘Salt Ceremony’ using 2 different types of Salt and to finish the ceremony the ‘Jumping of the Broom’!

Ingrid has an absolute love of India, so her wedding colours were inspired by the richness of Fuchsia and bright Orange to give a strong look and feel to the wedding.  Cocktails took place in front of the family house while guests enjoyed getting a chance to meet both the Bag Piper and Horse!

Dinner was announced and guests were then directed into the tent where each table alternated in Fuchsia and Orange Linens and high floral centre pieces giving the room an array of colour!  The guests then had fun with Wedding Crackers and were in awe of the stunning Indian Inspired Wedding Cake.

Just before the cutting of the cake Ingrid sneaked away to change into her evening dress which was the most beautiful Orange and Gold Indian Sari!  The party started and guests danced the night away – what we loved about this wedding was that it was totally unique, bringing in the couples heritage and a few of their favourite things…. We caught up with Ingrid recently who told us that the ‘patter of tiny feet’ will be blessing their lives this coming August – Congratulations to you both!

Photography Credit: Serge Grenier and Cake by Les Fins Gourmets du Nord

 

Montreal Wedding Planners check out the new look Holiday Inn

Posted on 20 March 2012 | 2 responses

The Montreal Wedding Planners of the AMPWD were out last week checking out another Montreal Wedding Venue at the newly renovated Holiday Inn in Pointe-Claire where they have invested over $20M in the hotel, representing a whopping $64K per room on average!!

I must admit I was very pleasantly surprised, the inside almost has a very relaxing Spa feel to it with its soft green walls coverings, very modern trendy fireplace, new bar, new restaurant, gym, pool and coming soon a wonderful Spa.

They have over 311 rooms, including 4 Jacuzzi suites  and 34 1-bedroom suites and offer great group rates varying between $109.00 if you are holding your Montreal Wedding or Event there, or $139.00 per room if you are just looking for a group booking.

So onto the event space – their new ‘Champagne Ballroom’ can hold up to 450 guests with a dance floor and has an integrated sound system  and amazing pin spot lighting with moving heads… they have 7 built in screens with projectors and an in-house technician to take care of it all for you – so not  fiddling around with those laptops anymore!

The other great thing about the Montreal Holiday Inn, Pointe-Claire is that you can also bring in your own catering company at $45.00 per guest (rental feel) which ‘includes’ a 3 hour open bar!  So great flexibility for some amazing food ideas for your Montreal Wedding or Event and next year… wait for it they are also (fingers crossed) building an outdoor patio area which will be perfect for ceremonies and cocktail’s.

With over 800 free parking spaces, free wireless throughout the hotel and some great wedding packages starting at $85.00 per person – I think the West Island has found itself another great Montreal Wedding Venue!

Coming soon, is their new independent website for the ‘Champagne Ballrooms’

Photo’s courtesy of the Montreal Holiday Inn, Pointe-Claire.

 

 

Shannon & Mark’s Fairytale Wedding

Posted on 6 March 2012 | 3 responses

Planning a wedding for most should be the happiest time of your life and for Shannon and Mark it was, but it also bought some challenges they weren’t expecting, but overcame them together which is why in my heart this wedding will always be a fairy tale come true!

Shannon and Mark chose to have a photo shoot before they were married and they met for the very first time on their wedding day on the rooftop of the Place D’Armes Hotel in Old Montreal on a beautiful hot August afternoon… with pictures taken they then headed off to become Husband and Wife.

The ceremony was very personal with their closest friends & family in the wedding party and the most cutest ring bearer, not carrying the rings.. but a sign saying ‘Here comes the Bride’ which had all the guests smile with amusement and lead into a very emotional ceremony with the couple being married by another of their close friends.

So Shannon & Mark were ready to celebrate and what an amazing Reception it was, Shannon had chosen a very soft romantic feel for her wedding with pale pinks and whites, with some centrepieces high and some low and clusters of flowers for the Table of honor.

After being a part of so many weddings, you normally get a good feel of how the evening is going to progress and I must say as speeches go, the MoH (Maid of Honor) speech was brilliant… semi-sung to a Gloria Gaynor’s ‘I will survive’ with a twist on the words to honor the groom it was excellent, but of course the poor BM (Best Man) then had to follow LOL!

Now this was a crowd to party and a crowd who liked their shot’s so of course what else would we toast the happy couple with but their favourite Vodka Shots.   Schwartz’s came in at midnight for our Smoked Meat Sandwiches, Mini Poutine and an array of cupcakes and sweets kept the energy going and the crowd partying the night away in the very good hands of DJ Yo-Ci until the early hours of the next day!

Photo Credit: Blushing Bride Studio, Floral Credit: Luluthia,Videography: La V Cinema

Old Montreal Wedding Venue – Auberge du Vieux Port

Posted on 21 February 2012 | 4 responses

Having recently moved into our Old Montreal Office, we have decided to take full advantage of its location and visiting Old Montreal Wedding Venues nearby; the first being the Auberge du Vieux Port which is perfect for Intimate Weddings.

With its renovations having finished in October 2011 we were excited to see what new things they had done including the addition of a banquet room and a restaurant!

The Auberge du Vieux Port is located in Old Montreal on De La Commune Street facing the river which is perfect as just think of the beautiful pictures you could take just outside of your venue!  Not just that, but the décor of the Auberge reflects Old Montreal perfectly with its stone walls and high ceilings and with its small size, the Auberge is perfect for not only smaller Intimate Weddings, but a great place for a private Rehearsal Dinners or even possibly Sunday Brunch!

The Auberge offers a choice of three different areas of which you can have your cocktails: their lounge, their restaurant, or their rooftop terrace!  Afterwards, you can head downstairs for your reception in their newly opened Les Remparts Room, complete with stone walls, wooden floors and chandeliers – this room is beautiful!

To top it all off, the Auberge has 48 newly renovated rooms available along with 24 lofts!  What a great place for you and your guests to stay before or after your wedding! Each room has a stunning view of either the river or Saint Paul Street and you can feel right in the heart of Old Montreal just by looking out your window, for more information please do contact us or visit their website at www.aubergeduvieuxport.com

This weeks’ blog was brought to you by ‘Carly Gunther’ of An English Rose, Luxury Lifestyle Weddings

An English Rose: New Year, New Office, New Web Site!!

Posted on 1 February 2012 | 4 responses

Last year was a phenomenal year for An English Rose, not only did we plan some amazing weddings and got to work with wonderful couples, but we also took some time out each quarter to work on our company to ensure we were on top of our game!

We spent time in Vegas, Chicago and Niagara working with like-minded Wedding Designers from across North America brainstorming new ideas and enhancing our client’s experience of working with us!

As most of you know Montreal Wedding Butler is a division of An English Rose and we spent some time re-aligning the two businesses’ so that An English Rose can focus on more Full Wedding Designs, while Montreal Wedding Butler specialises more on smaller “A La Carte” Wedding Planning and offers a resource centre on the Butler website for Destination Montreal Wedding clients and local clients who need some additional support.

As with any business we are continuously evolving and as such have now launched our new web site which profiles Video’s and Weddings we have designed, we love the fresh new look and hope you do too!

In December we also moved into our new office premises in Vieux-Montreal, just one block over from the Chateau Ramezey and must say – ‘WE LOVE IT”!!

Needless to say we are very happy, enjoying life, loving our weddings and looking forward to a fantastic 2012 with you all!!

Thank you for all your support

Rachel, Chris and the Team

 An English Rose - Luxury Lifestyle Weddings

 Montreal Wedding Butler – Dream It, Create It, Experience it

 

 

Photo Credit: IPI Studio

 

 

Montreal Wedding Planners are spoilt at the Fairmont Chateau Montebello!

Posted on 25 January 2012 | No responses

For those of you who have been there before, you know what a stunning and magical place it is… and for those of you who haven’t been you HAVE to have a visit… Go for a glass of wine around their gigantic 5-sided fireplace or Brunch on Sunday is amazing and we’ll be coming back to that a little later!

What we love about the Fairmont Chateau Montebello is regardless of whether you are looking for a Winter Wonderland or a Sizzling Summer Wedding there are so many activities to include for your guests it will certainly impress and be the most incredible ‘Weekend Wedding’ location.

There are also a number of different options and rooms to have your destination weddings there whether you are looking for the traditional Logs with Stone Fireplaces, a Modern Large Ballroom with a beautiful glassed foyer and terrace area and not forgetting the option for a wonderful tented wedding too!

Ladies (and Gents) there is a wonderful Spa with couples treatment rooms, which I can confirm firsthand is pure luxury.. plus there is also a manicure/pedicure room which could be hired privately for some ‘girl’ time…. Within the sports complex they also have an Indoor Swimming Pool, Gym and Squash Court and outside there is also a great Pool with gardens overlooking the River. I am sure that I have forgotten many things – but you get the feel! Oh yes and just up the road there is a golf club with a club house that again has a beautiful log banquet room!

So Food.. well need we say more it is a ‘Fairmont’ after all and the Brunch was amazing.. so much so that I know myself I had 5 courses and I think a little Butler next to me may have had more.. but who could resist with the many many array’s of food on offer – and really it was all in the name of research!

Thank you Diane, for a wonderful visit at the Chateau Montebello and we certainly can’t wait to be back again with our couples planning some amazing weddings!

 

 

 

 

Gina & Phil’s Luxury Loft Wedding

Posted on 20 December 2011 | 5 responses

Gina & Phil | July 16, 2011 from International Photo Imaging on Vimeo.

Now you may remember Gina and Phil from back in March when we showcased their first Grand Canyon Wedding, now for part two, their incredible luxury wedding at the Loft Boutique Hotel in Montreal!

Interestingly it took only one visit and one look at the Montreal wedding venue and Gina fell in love with the space and it was booked.

Gina’s was stunning in her Kleinfeld’s Wedding Dress from NY as she walked down the aisle with her brother and youngest stepson, holding a beautiful bouquet of trailing white Phalaenopsis blooms to the sound of Harpists which she had been dreaming of, candles adorned the aisle and it was just a glow of whiteness all around.

Being July, we all know what a super hot summer it was so cocktails were outside on the terrace to the sound great Montreal Jazz Musicians and a Jazz singer which I must admit the sound was amazing, cocktails and canapés flowed and I am sure everyone could have enjoyed a lazy afternoon on the terrace….

However, now for the wedding decor and design which was incredible – Gina had really clear ideas on what she liked and we created a design which incorporated Black Linens with Silver & Purple influences and each table alternated with high and low centre piece balls of flowers, wedding favors were Bride & Groom Cake Pops, which linked in with the Cake Pop Wedding Cake and Candy Bar.

The caricature cake topper was just the greatest as we had it specially made and shipped in from the US to include Gina, Phil, their 3 boys and the dog & cat!

As with most weddings, shots at the bar were a must followed by some crazy photo booth pictures and wild dancing all night long!

“I just wanted to take the time and say thank you for everything you had done to help make my wedding a dream come true! We have been told that it was the best wedding that the guests have ever been too! They thought the ceremony, the music that was played by the Harpist, the Jazz Band, the reception room, the terrace area, the Photo booth, the fireworks (LOL), the dinner and the midnight poutine and mini burgers were over the top!!!!!!!! OHHHHHHH! The Cake Topper and the Cake Pops were a hit!!!!!

Many more words were said but you get the jist! The guests thought you were amazing! You and your husband and I told them you were the best Wedding Planner and I was extremely lucky to have had you!”

Video Credit: International Photo Imaging (IPI) Photo Credit: Christina Esteban, Flowers by Flora International, Cake by Luisa Galuppo, Cake Pops by Gateaulogie

The Montreal Wedding Planners have been at it again!

Posted on 23 November 2011 | 1 response

The Association of Montreal Professional Wedding Designers were out and about again last week checking out new venue’s in the Montreal area and this time they were at the newly renovated ‘Sheraton Montreal Airport’ Hotel and what a delight it was!

There are over 470 Guest Rooms, 20 Conference and Banquet Rooms including a Ballroom which can accommodate up to 400 for Weddings, an Outside Terrace & Gardens which can also hold up to 300 for a Ceremony and even a Tent can be installed in their 2 acres of gardens - what a hidden gem!!  For the Wedding party there is even a full service SPA on site including hair, plus there is a Gym, Indoor/Outdoor Swimming Pool, Hot Tubs, Sauna’s you name it, they’ve got it!

Now for those of us who love our food, we were kindly offered to sample some food in the newly renovated Eclipse Restaurant which also has a private dining area perfect for Rehearsal Dinners.  The food was amazing and I am now thinking when I have all those UK pick up’s to do at the airport, my family can come and find me here in the restaurant instead LOL!

However we did do more than eat.. we had the most inspiring guest speaker present to us – Annie Young and Sharlene Young from Annie Young Cosmetics at Avanti Spa on Decarie.  Annie’s story is one of hard work, determination, courage and success and showing that if you put your mind to it anything is possible, we were all moved by her story and motivated even more in our own businesses.  It was also lovely to see the great Mother/Daughter relationship and huge respect Annie and Sharlene have for each other… and with those of you who have daughters, that is not always easy to achieve.

Now talking of daughters…… we did have a very special guest at our meeting, the lovely 4 week old Adrianna, the daughter of our great friend Maddy, who is looking fantastic by the way!

We finished the meeting off as always with a great ’round table’ discussion with the Association members which as always is thought provoking and highly interesting!

Until next time…. have a great December!

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