Megan & Michael’s intimate New Year’s Eve wedding | Four Seasons George V Paris
Paris 2016
Megan & Michael’s love story began in 2016, at a travel event, in the lobby of the Four Seasons George V Paris. At the time, Megan was living in Phoenix & Michael in NYC and when they returned to their home bases, Michael asked Megan out on a date. Laughing it off, as Megan had zero plans to be in NYC anytime soon, didn’t know when that date would actually happen. True to Michael being the guy that he is, said no problem and flew to Phoenix the next day to take her to dinner. Talk about a modern day fairy tale with prince charming flying in to sweep Megan off her feet. They had an immediate connection and sparkle that neither of them had ever felt before. Cautious at first given the long distance, and Michael, founder of Smartflyer had (and still has) a very busy travel schedule, they were able to coordinate seeing each other at least twice a month. Megan moved to NYC a little over a year later and in 2019 he proposed!
The Proposal
“We were living in a temporary apartment as our future home was going through a renovation. Michael completely surprised me the night he proposed. He led me to believe we had a business dinner to attend. He wanted to stop by the future apartment and check on the new floors. When we walked into the apartment, it was covered in pink roses and candles. I knew immediately what was happening and just started crying. I couldn’t tell you what the floors looked like but I was so happy we swung by before dinner.
To top off the night, Michael said we still had the business dinner to go to. I was super annoyed that he would still put this on us with such a special occasion. However, when we walked into our favorite restaurant, Left Bank, we didn’t see his business colleagues but instead both of our parents were there (mine had flown in from Michigan that morning). It was perfect.” -Megan
Four Seasons George V Paris
The wedding planning
The sweet couple spent months going back & forth on what would be the best venue for them. Megan had envisioned a relaxed, low key wedding on a beach. Whereas, Michael was looking for something much grander – a massive affair with hundreds of people in Singapore. After many considerations, Michael was the one who came up with getting married at the hotel where they met. The Four Seasons George V Paris would be the perfect romantic backdrop for their nuptials. They chose New Year’s Eve for their wedding date, the date they originally told their family and friends they were officially an item.
“I thought this was super romantic, but NYE was only two months away,” said Megan. “I didn’t think we could possibly coordinate a destination wedding, but it is amazing what the team at the Four Seasons George V can pull together on short notice.” They decided on an intimate wedding, inviting immediate family to relieve the added pressure of gathering so many people on a tight timeline during the holiday season. “It was incredible how our families dropped everything and jumped on board to make this happen for us – especially my Grandmother who had to apply for a rush passport!”
Blending of traditions
True to Megan’s laid back, go with the flow personality, she left all of the planning details to the Four Seasons George V & the couple’s good friend, Erina Pindar Chamberlain (who performed the ceremony, might I add). Megan did specify just a few particulars. “I definitely wanted a ceremony that incorporated both of our religions as I am Catholic and Michael is Jewish. We were married under a gorgeous floral Chuppah, had my favorite bible verse included in the ceremony, and broke the glass at the end. My bouquet had my mom’s rosary wrapped around it and at dinner my six year old nephew, Giovanni, stood up and said a prayer for the table. It is hard to incorporate all the traditions of both religions, but we sure tried!”
Classic Wedding Touches
Megan also wanted to have a wedding party, an important wedding norm that she didn’t want to forego. Her maid of honor was her sister, Jackie, and Michael’s niece, Lucy. Michael chose his two younger nephews, Isaac & Henry, to be groomsmen. The last touch Megan wanted to have was to have candles in the room to represent those who couldn’t be there, but who were most certainly watching from above – their grandparents, Megan’s mother, and Michael’s best friend, Bruce.
Four thousand roses, five hundred peonies in the heart of winter.
Jeff Leatham and his incredible team at the Four Seasons George V, spared no WOW for this wedding. The flowers were epic. Jeff brought in four thousand roses and surprised the couple with 500 peonies. The only ask Megan had for flowers was that she wanted to have pink roses as they are her favorite. She also wanted to incorporate baby’s breath in her bouquet because it was her late mom’s favorite flower. “Everything from the bouquets, to the ceremony aisle, to the reception table wall of floral, was breathtaking and smelled incredible!” Megan relives the moment, “I never expected something so grand – it was MAGICAL.”
the little moments on the rooftop at the Four Seasons George V
“Two days before the wedding we went over photos and where we wanted to do our portraits. Since Paris is such a special place to us, we wanted to find a way to incorporate the Eiffel Tower. Given that we would have no privacy there, the Four Seasons offered a lookout point from the roof. Just a couple of short hours before we wed, my father helped me up a ladder and I climbed to the roof to meet Michael for our first look. We had a private moment to say our vows to each other with only the Parisian rooftops and Eiffel Tower in sight.
On our way back down, we looked out and saw my Grandmother and my Mom waving from their balcony. They realized they could see from their rooms and got a glimpse of the “first look.” It was beyond special and something we all will never forget.”
Destination wedding planning advice
“Give yourself more time!! Because we married in such a short window of planning time, I didn’t have a chance to make special touches to have everyone feel extra welcomed. I would have loved to have an events itinerary ready so everyone knew where they needed to be. We hadn’t visited Paris in over a year, so upon arriving it was a whirlwind of planning, decisions, and jet lag. I highly suggest getting to your destination several days before your guests so that you have time to tie up details and be able to enjoy your time with them when they arrive.”
Assigning a point person
“I don’t know what I would’ve done without my Dad. He was the ringleader of my family and made sure everyone was where they needed to be. There is so much to worry about just getting yourself together, vows written, wardrobe pressed, etc… and then have to worry about 23 other people, it was very stressful. To have a point person to jump in and take this stress off of you is key!!”
Paris wedding vendor guide
- Wedding Venue Paris: Four Seasons
- Groom’s Attire: Boglioli Milano
- Wedding photographer Paris: Leila Brewster
- Wedding Planner Paris: Marine Boutbien / Erina Pindar
- Music: Joel Cross
- Dress: Vera Wang
- Wedding Floral Design: Jeff Leatham
- Wedding Bands: Tiffany & Co /personal heirloom from Grandmother
- Bridal Shoes: Manolo Blahnik
Let’s Connect!
Are you planning a wedding in Paris or another destination? I’d love to hear more!
Hôtel Four Seasons George V, 31 avenue George V, Paris, 75008, France
Phone: +1-800-819-5053
Very sweetly captured