Maxine & Thomas: a beautiful Parisian-style forest wedding

On 28 June 2025, Maxine and Thomas celebrated their wedding at a hidden location in the middle of a forest near Roeselare. A secret address, shuttles that took their guests deep into the forest, and a dress code of blue tones gave their day a magical Parisian atmosphere. Their wedding day was a series of surprises and personal touches. Read below how Maxine and Thomas celebrated their love with class, character and a good dose of fun!

Photos (above): Real Wedding: Maxine & Thomas - Photographer: Anaïs Lesy

Marriage proposal plus Paris!

On 21 June 2024, Thomas asked “his” Maxine to marry him. Maxine recounts enthusiastically: "I was working that Sunday, and we have a little ritual where we go out for dinner together after my work on Sunday evenings. When I came home that evening, however, there were candles everywhere. Thomas asked me to marry him, and of course my answer was a resounding “Yes!”. Thomas then told me to pack my suitcase and that we would be leaving immediately. The destination was a complete surprise to me. We ended up driving to Paris and having dinner at the Parisian restaurant Costes. Thomas had even arranged for me to take time off work for the following days. It was a really lovely surprise!​​​​​​​

Photos: Real Wedding: Maxine & Thomas - Photographer: Anaïs Lesy

Getting married in a forest... with Geoff to the rescue

Maxine and Thomas knew immediately who would cater their wedding reception: "Bistro 't Verschil is our favourite restaurant. We definitely wanted them to provide the food for our party. Because we also wanted to get married in a forest, a wedding planner was indispensable. In a forest, you have to provide everything yourself: a tent, all kinds of materials, equipment and furniture, electricity, and so on. That's why we chose to work with wedding planner Geoff. We found him through House of Weddings, and my sister had also had positive experiences with Geoff's parties. Geoffrey took care of the entire styling and coordination of our wedding party. We are so happy we chose him; we were so carefree that day. Everything was perfect!"

Photo: Real Wedding: Maxine & Thomas - Wedding Planner: Geoff - Tent: Stretched - Decoration & Furniture: Picobello - Photographer: Anaïs Lesy

They had the invitations for their wedding party made at Drukkerij Baert: ‘We are extremely satisfied with Drukkerij Baert! The next time I need printed matter, I will definitely go back to them,’ says Maxine.

Photos: Real Wedding: Maxine & Thomas - Printing: Drukkerij Baert - Photographer: Anaïs Lesy

Parisian style with blue tones

Maxine and Thomas chose a theme that is close to their hearts. Maxine explains: ‘We wanted a Parisian-style celebration; think of Ralph Lauren's elegant style with shades of blue. Because we often travel to Paris and also celebrated our engagement there, it suits us perfectly. That's why we asked all our guests to come dressed in blue, in any shade of blue. The end result looked beautiful in the photos!’

Photos: Real Wedding: Maxine & Thomas - Photographer: Anaïs Lesy

Dream dress at JPC Collection

Maxine found her wedding dress at JPC Collection in Antwerp, even though that wasn't her initial plan. Maxine: "I was actually planning to design a dress myself. I took a lot of photos of all kinds of dresses I liked to the bridal shop. To my surprise, the shop assistant at JPC Collection said that there was a common thread running through the different dresses. She then brought me five dresses, and the second one I tried on was immediately my dream dress! With the veil added, I knew for sure: this is the dress. I didn't need to look any further, let alone design my own dress."

Thomas rented his wedding suit from Vanwynsberghe in Kuurne.

Photo: Real Wedding: Maxine & Thomas - Wedding dress: JPC Collection - Photographer: Anaïs Lesy

Photo: Real Wedding: Maxine & Thomas - Wedding dress: JPC Collection - Photographer: Anaïs Lesy

Wedding rings from Scaldis

Maxine and Thomas had their wedding rings made by jeweller Scaldis in Kortrijk. Maxine: "I wear both white gold and yellow gold. The team at Scaldis therefore created a design that combined both colours. My ring is based on Thomas's, with extra diamonds added. We visited the shop a few times and tried on all kinds of rings until we found exactly what we wanted with the design that Scaldis customised for us. It was really great!"

Photos: Real Wedding: Maxine & Thomas - Wedding rings: Scaldis - Photographer: Anaïs Lesy

Also Maxine's mum had a ring made at Scaldis. It was chosen especially for the wedding and is set with a blue sapphire, perfect for the theme.

Civil wedding

Maxine and Thomas were already married in a civil ceremony in Roeselare on 19 April 2025, exactly five years after they became a couple. Maxine: ‘We really wanted to get married on that date. However, we didn't have enough time to organise our wedding party. That's why we planned our civil wedding on 19 April and our church wedding and party on 28 June 2025.’

Photos: Real Wedding: Maxine & Thomas - Photographer: Anaïs Lesy

Church ceremony with live music

On 28 June 2025, Maxine and Thomas' big day finally arrived! Their church wedding took place in Oostnieuwkerke. Maxine recounts: ‘The most beautiful moment of our day was when I entered the church. Thomas and I saw each other for the first time in our wedding outfits, and all our loved ones around us were so enthusiastic. It was truly very special.’

Photo: Real Wedding: Maxine & Thomas - Photographer: Anaïs Lesy

Live music made the service even more intense: ‘Singer Steffi Vertriest and her pianist performed beautiful live music. The songs we chose ourselves made our ceremony very personal.’

Photo: Real Wedding: Maxine & Thomas - Photographer: Anaïs Lesy

Lunch & picture break

After the church ceremony, Maxine and Thomas enjoyed lunch with their close family. They also opted for a short photo shoot with photographer Anaïs Lesy. Maxine explains: ‘We wanted to experience our wedding day to the fullest and not miss a moment of the party. That's why we mainly opted for atmospheric photos and a short photo shoot during lunch.’

Photo: Real Wedding: Maxine & Thomas - Photographer: Anaïs Lesy

Secret party location in the woods

After lunch and the photo shoot, the bride and groom and their friends and family headed to the party location. Maxine and Thomas kept this location a secret from their guests until the very last moment. "The invitation only included the address of a car park. Some people thought we were going to put up a tent there. However, someone was waiting to escort the guests to shuttles. The shuttles then drove down a long tree-lined avenue, after which the guests had to walk another hundred metres through the woods. They still couldn't see anything of the party until they suddenly came to a clearing in the woods, where the beautiful tent from Stretched greeted them. It was a really impressive arrival!", laughs Maxine.

Photo: Real Wedding: Maxine & Thomas - Photographer: Anaïs Lesy

Photos: Real Wedding: Maxine & Thomas - Wedding Planner: Geoff - Tent: Stretched - Decoration & Furniture: Picobello - Photographer: Anaïs Lesy

Two receptions, twice the atmosphere

Because the venue was limited in space, Maxine and Thomas organised two receptions. The first reception took place after the church ceremony and lunch for the day guests, and the second took place afterwards, for the evening guests who also stayed for dinner. Maxine: "During both receptions, there was a “cortador” from Joka present to cut delicious Spanish jamón. We love going to Spain and thought this was a personal and atmospheric element to add. During the second reception, a speech was given, followed by a fun song. Everyone spontaneously started dancing, creating a great atmosphere even before we sat down to eat."

Photos: Real Wedding: Maxine & Thomas - Photographer: Anaïs Lesy

Photos: Real Wedding: Maxine & Thomas - Photographer: Anaïs Lesy

Original entrance

Maxine and Thomas made a very original entrance before dinner. ‘Thomas didn't want to just walk in. Geoff came up with the idea that I could sit on Thomas's shoulders as we entered together. It was a super fun moment, full of atmosphere!’ laughs Maxine.

Photo: Real Wedding: Maxine & Thomas - Photographer: Anaïs Lesy

During dinner, the catering was provided by Bistro 't Verschil. Maxine shares: ‘We love good food, but we didn't want to make the menu too special. Our menu was actually quite classic, with a chic twist. That suited us perfectly.’

Photos: Real Wedding: Maxine & Thomas - Photographer: Anaïs Lesy

Dessert on the dance floor

After dinner, it was time for Maxine and Thomas's first dance. They had taken dance lessons at Dansschool Dançar for this. ‘Our opening dance was so special. We sometimes re-enact the choreography at home and relive that fantastic moment all over again. Everyone stood around us and was extremely enthusiastic. We could hardly eat our dessert because everyone was already dancing!’ laughs Maxine. The party then really got going, with DJ Thomas Vermandere behind the turntables.

Photo: Real Wedding: Maxine & Thomas - Photographer: Anaïs Les

Photo: Real Wedding: Maxine & Thomas - Photographer: Anaïs Lesy

Maxine's top tips

Maxine is happy to share her golden advice for future bridal couples: ‘Enjoy it, because it goes by so quickly. Everyone has an opinion, but listen to yourself and choose what suits you. It helps to have a common thread or theme, so that everything comes together beautifully. Afterwards, everyone said that our wedding party suited us perfectly. That was the best compliment we could have received.’

Photo: Real Wedding: Maxine & Thomas - Photographer: Anaïs Lesy

The entire House of Weddings team would like to congratulate Maxine and Thomas and wish them much love and happiness in the future! Thank you for sharing your story with us.

Would you also like to be assisted by reliable and high-quality wedding suppliers? Book them now via House of Weddings.

Wedding planning & styling: Geoff / Location: private / Tent: Stretched / Photographer: Anaïs Lesy / Content creator: Bymel Bridal Content / Graphic design & printing: Drukkerij Baert / Wedding dress: JPC Collection (brand: Pronovias) / Wedding suit: Vanwynsberghe / Shoes Maxine: Azur Shoes Knokke (brand: Casadei), Thomas: Paul Smith / Wedding rings: Scaldis / Engagement ring: Neslany Jewels / Catering & dessert: Cortador van Joka + Bistro ’t Verschil / Flowers: Maison Julie / Master of ceremonies: Davy Delem / Decoration & furniture: Picobello + Options via Geoff / DJ: Thomas Vermandere / Lighting & sound: via Geoff / Live music: Steffi Vertriest / Make-up & hairstyling: Mint Make-up + Hairstyling Sabine / Wedding transport: wedding bus via Sima Tours + family vintage car / Opening dance: Dansschool Dançar