Dreaming of a magical fairytale wedding in a French château? Look no further than No 3 The Château and Jules Berry to make those dreams come true!
Loulabelle's FrancoFiles episode 128 - click here to listen
Guest: Jules Berry
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No 3 The Château is a beautiful venue in the Cognac region which hosts many weddings through the warmer months each year, as well as other “experiences”, but it has not always been that way.
After developing various properties in the UK, interior designer Julie Berry (aka Jules) decided to take up a challenge of renovating a château in France. She settled on the Cognac area and started a search which resulted in the wonderful find of the château she calls home today. No 3 The Château is surrounded on all sides with miles of cognac vines, and walking distance to the village complete with boulangerie. Even though it was in a state of disrepair, Jules could sense the potential and could see the light-filled rooms with huge windows being a beautiful place to both retreat and be calm as well as come together and celebrate.
Initially Jules made plans for all the possibilities she could imagine and had builders working full time for around 5 years. She would commute back and forth from the UK and worked tirelessly to create the exquisite spaces she now enjoys with guests. There are still more buildings in the grounds which could be developed, but for now Jules is loving the enjoyment of what they have achieved. To me it seems like it would be an idyllic spot to fill a FrancoFiler soul.
I asked Jules for her fave space which she has created there at No 3 The Château and her answer resonated with me completely! Not the huge salon or the old-style features of the bedrooms, but for Jules it is her latest project of a huge walk-in-pantry that floats her boat! I love nothing better than a space that hides the mess in an organised way with perfect labels and appliances out for use.
There have been some terrific finds in the château. Jules has repurposed an old child’s bed to create a “throne toilet” and has used the timber from the old cognac distillery in the decorating of various areas. The huge dis-used distillery has spaces they have converted into toilets for wedding guests, with more planned for use for storage and for wedding purposes.
A recommendation from Jules which I will definitely use in the future, is the program Explore Cognac. This website highlights a number of experiences that tourists can uncover in the Cognac region. There are activities such as jewelry making, bike riding, barrel making, just loads of ways to discover all there is to do in Cognac. No 3 The Chateau has 2 experiences on the site, one for bread making in their old bread oven and another to host a dinner for 12 in the château dining room with a Michelin Starred chef!
I have chatted before on the Loulabelle’s FrancoFiles podcast to Ingrid from The Château Bee, a site which showcases châteaux across France which are available for weddings. No 3 The Château is one of the highlighted châteaux on this site and is booked out for a couple of years in advance! So if you’re considering planning a wedding in France, get cracking! Booking a long way in advance is going to be a must!
Jules Berry’s links
Restore the Château on Instagram
No 3 The Château on The Château Bee
Recette
French raw oysters and pork sausage
Musique
Sacha Distel – La Belle Vie
