Clara & Omar

This destination wedding is seriously hot and I'm not just talking about the Moroccan temperature. The grounds of the Beldi Country Club in Marrakesh made the dreamiest setting for this couple to day I do, with gorgeous French bride Clara wearing a truly stunning Celestina Agostino gown with low back and billowing skirt and her beau Omar looking equally fabulous in a light blue Faubourg Saint Sulpice suit and bow tie. Together this charming couple have embraced the culture and Lifestories has done an incredible job of documenting all the love and fun, not to mention the beautiful mauresque architecture, amazing greenery, landscapes and spaces too. Get ready to swoon and sign, as you're going to absolutely love this wedding.

Engagement

Clara the Bride: We got engaged in May 2016 in Jerusalem, holy city of God, symbolic hint of our Muslim and Jewish origins. It was at the end of a dinner in a rooftop restaurant overviewing the old town.

Venue

Omar the Groom: Clara and I had visited the Beldi Country Club back in 2014 for a lunch with my parents and we immediately knew we would get married there. Not only, Marrakesh was a convenient place to reach for our families and friends across Europe, Morocco and elsewhere, but this particular venue had the bohemian beldi chic touch we wanted. We did not even visit any other venues after our engagement. Among the many advantages and charm of the venue, it also has the advantage to be close from the airport and to have about 40 rooms. This was great as many of our guests booked the full place, which enabled us to spend a proper 3-day wedding weekend with a fantastic weather. The venue has many small intimate spots where you could chill out and read a book or just admire the marvellous cacti and multiple plants in this garden.

Bride

Clara the Bride: I spent a lot of time with my mother looking for a dress in several shops, around first Tel Aviv, Geneva and Paris, but finally felt went for the unique piece made by Celestina Agostino. She made my mother and I feel at ease when we met. Since it was a Moroccan wedding, I also had a tailor-made caftan designed in Meknes city. Although it is not conventional, I chose a white caftan with short leaves inspired by pictures in the famous Femmes du Maroc magazine, from which I showed ideas to the tailor in Morocco. My shoes were an easy choice made at Repetto, as I was mostly looking for simplicity and above all: comfort – we danced Salsa for the opening dance! Marian Filali and her assistant did my hair and makeup (also to my sister). Both of them were so sweet, and understood very well the style we were looking for. My hair accessory was made by Lizeron (Sidonie LEMAITRE) and perfectly matched the outfit. I wore simple bright earrings from Swarovski.

Groom

Omar the Groom: We chose together my light blue three piece at Faubourg Saint Sulpice. The material was an easy pick for me as it was light and perfect for the warm weather of Marrakesh. I was sceptical about the colour but it turned out to be amazing in the ochre-coloured multiple spots of the venue where we took amazing bridal shots.

Bridesmaids

Clara the Bride: For the bridesmaids’ dress the idea was not to impose anything but we wanted bright and unique colour for each of them. They picked their own colour and dresses. Omar surprised me taking the initiative to ask his bestmen to wear colourful bows from Le Papillon Léon which was very chic!

Styling & Design

The Beldi Country Club is an enchanting venue with its garden where thousands of colourful Atlas roses bloom. We simply wanted to use the roses of this garden along with some olive tree foliage to match the spirit of the venue, with the exception of the bouquet of the bride and the buttonhole which were made by Yassab Flower Design. We have asked the staff to dispose traditional Berber carpets across the alley and welcome cocktail area. We wanted to have our own logo for the wedding invitations, menus, tote bags gifts for guests etc… this was designed by Clara’s designer bridesmaid Lise Carillo. Loubna from the Beldi Country Club helped on many things; among them she arranged printing of all of these items. We also got the nice table plan set up suggestion made of a vintage wooden Moroccan doors on which were hanging artisanal pompons of multiple colours. We were very happy to see that our unique wish to guests regarding how to dress up was followed : a lot of ladies dressed up in Moroccan caftans, we have advised our guests to rent caftans at L’art de la mariée.

Wedding Day

Omar the Groom: We wanted to have a symbolic huppah which we have had designed and built by the local staff who perfectly understood what we had in mind. We wanted to hold a non-religious ceremony but we definitely wanted to give our close families and friends the opportunity to give speeches. The ceremony was directed by Clara’s sister who wrote an exquisite poem surfing on our different origins and how well they get together.

Entertainment

Clara the Bride: Along with the photographer, the entertainment was our priority. We first hired a group of typical moroccan Gnawa and Daqqa dancers and musicians which stood at the entrance of the venue and welcomed our guests. They also played a great role during the transitions between the ceremony and the cocktail and also between the cocktail and the dinner, keeping people amused and making them dance on these African inspired rhythms. We also hired a Moroccan orchestra and singer Maxime Karoutchi, who was able to play a large range of types of music. Indeed, Moroccan weddings are characterized by the phenomenal entrance of the bride and groom, each lifted in a palanquin by 4 carriers. Omar and I wanted to have the full experience and the orchestra played super Moroccan music while our guests were acclaiming us. The orchestra also played other kinds of music (judeo-andalusian, latino, rock etc…) but most amazingly they surprised our guests with a swinging jewish hora which was very much enjoyed by all!

Food & Beverages

We simply chose amongst the large choice offered by the Beldi Country Club. They can make all kinds of food and we could not make our mind during the tasting round. Eventually, Omar and I opted for an assortment of delicious Moroccan salads and stuffed mini-vegetables for the first course, followed with a caramelized tender lamb shank to stay in the pure Moroccan tradition with an innovative touch. Finally, the buffet of desserts came with a champagne bar, a cream puffs pyramid and various chocolate mousses, caramelized pears, fruit salad and tarts.

Photography

As mentioned, the photographer was one of the most important things and we are so glad we chose Lifestories Wedding! Yann was very professional, discreet and yet flexible and comprehensive of the kind of pictures we wanted. His work is so representative of how our day was and we really recommend him. He captured the best Marrakech light that we came for and that was offered to us that day.