Then you need to plan, plan, plan! I wish I had a picture of Kerrin’s files for you. She and Olivier planned the wedding themselves with long-distance help and encouragement from Kerrin’s parents, Lani and Steve,
and Kerrin’s color-coded, hand-written and Excel-ed spreadsheets are a marvel. Here are a few of the things Kerrin and Olivier did that you might want to snatch and make your own:
- Shuttle your out-of-town guests to and from Paris in a bus and put your friend Pierre in the front seat, so he can ask the driver to crank up the a/c, hand out water and, to help keep the crowd happy in stop-and-go holiday traffic, offer Laduree macarons in eight flavors: chocolate, vanilla, coffee, pistachio, cherry, raspberry, cassis and the sublime caramel and salted butter.
- Have your wedding in the Chateau de Baronville, which looks like it was made for a fairy tale.
- And choose just the right spot on the chateau grounds for the ceremony.
- Along with Premier Cru Pierre Gimmonet Champagne and pigs and blankets (yes, they had them and yes, both the French and the Americans made quick work of them), serve an assortment of sliders, including foie gras, tarama and smoked salmon — and make sure the bun is brioche.
- Keep the cocktail party lively with a Dixieland band.
- Don’t forget to have a foie gras station. (As the pieces of foie gras came out of the skillet, they went on small pieces of baguette and then it was up to the muncher to top the morsel with coarse salt, cracked pepper and/or onion marmalade.)
- When it’s time for everyone to come into the chateau for dinner, have each of the tables named for a pastry (Kerrin is wild about everything sweet).
- Stock the restrooms with everything anybody could possibly need and toss some Carambars (France’s favorite caramel candy) into the basket too.
- Sometime around midnight, get everyone outside by announcing that you’ve got a surprise for them and then have a spectacular fireworks show (they probably didn’t have fireworks at Versailles, but as soon as the first rocket went off, I felt like i was at one of Louis’ grand balls).
- Have bunches of wedding cakes and cake-cutters too.
- Drive off (nephew in tow) and LIVE HAPPILY EVER AFTER.
