Meggie Kempner’s Gorgeous Garden Wedding in Beverly Hills

Meggie Kempner, Granddaughter of the Legendary New York Socialite, Marries Ian McLean in an Intimate Garden in Beverly Hills

Interior designer Meggie Kempner—the granddaughter of couture collector and society doyenne Nan Kempner, a woman who famously ruled the social scene in New York City in the 1950s and ’60s—was introduced to financier Ian McLean by a mutual friend in Palm Beach, Florida, over Presidents’ Day weekend in 2013. Ian was there on a boys’ golfing trip, and she was visiting the Sunshine State with a group of girlfriends. “We all met for drinks at the Tapestry Bar at the Breakers and then had dinner at Renato’s,” Meggie remembers. “We really hit it off that night!”

After that memorable meal, the two returned to New York City and went to Marc Forgione in Tribeca for their first date. “It was his favorite restaurant, but I’d never been,” Meggie recalls. “We had such a fun, delicious dinner, and then we went next door to Weather Up for a nightcap.”

Fast-forward to 2017, when Ian told Meggie he’d made a reservation for dinner at Marc Forgione. “This didn’t seem out of the ordinary, because by now it had become a favorite restaurant for both of us,” Meggie admits. “Anyway, we were on our way there when he asked if I wanted to hop out and walk since there was a bit of traffic. He led me into Duane Park, the quaint, flower-lined green space near the restaurant, and got down on one knee and proposed. Somehow we had the park to ourselves and sat there for a few minutes just enjoying the excitement.”

After the surprise had sunken in, they headed over to Marc Forgione, where Ian had requested the table where they’d had their first date. “That night, we celebrated, just the two of us,” says Meggie. “We even went next door for a cocktail at Weather Up, just as we had done on our first date.” The next morning, they met Meggie’s parents for brunch at Le Bilboquet, and that evening, Ian had planned a celebratory dinner with a few of their closest friends at the Waverly Inn.

Meggie and Ian grew up in totally different places—she’s from Connecticut, and he calls Ohio home. But it was really important to both of them that their friends and family from various parts of the world be able to spend an entire weekend together and really get to know one another at their wedding. After some back-and-forth about where to have it, they ended up choosing Los Angeles, because they’d spent a lot of time there as a couple and both have extended family in the area. “The Beverly Hills Hotel is one of our favorite places in the world, so we landed on that pretty quickly,” says Meggie. “We saw the gorgeous garden where our ceremony would take place and knew instantly. We also loved the idea of our guests being able to enjoy themselves by the pool all weekend!”

Once they’d booked their venue, it was easier for Meggie to envision what type of dress might work. “I didn’t want anything super-traditional. I had seen a dress that I loved in the Oscar de la Renta Spring collection, and I really liked the idea of wearing Oscar, because my grandmother, Nan, was very close friends with him. She had taken me to see him when I was selecting my debutante dress, so it felt right.”

Meggie reached out to the designers, Fernando Garcia and Laura Kim, and they agreed to make her a gown based off of the original that she had fallen in love with. “We worked together to create the most magical dress. I loved the airiness and slight sheerness through the leg,” says the bride. “The veil, with its cascading leaves, tied the whole look together perfectly.” For jewelry, Meggie wore diamond earrings from Betteridge, where the couple’s wedding bands and the bride’s engagement ring are also from, and a sapphire and diamond pinkie ring, which Ian had given her for Christmas, as her something blue. On her other hand, as her something borrowed, she wore a diamond ring that her grandmother had passed down to her mother. “It was originally a pair of earrings, but after losing one, my grandmother transformed it into a steel ring with a gold bezel. It’s so different and has always been my favorite piece of jewelry,” Meggie notes. She wore her hair in a low chignon and kept her makeup natural, with a rose lip.

On the day of the wedding, the weather couldn’t have been any better—the sun was shining and the temperature was just right. A string quartet set the mood as guests arrived and took their seats in a palm tree–lined garden. “We wanted it to look very green and natural, like you had stumbled into somebody’s personal garden,” says Meggie. The couple’s wedding planner, Stefanie Cove, used wooden chairs and created a plank aisle so that the entire design scheme looked organic within the space. The arbor Meggie and Ian were married under was a mixture of garden roses, Queen Anne’s lace, and snowball viburnum. Heirloom roses lay atop, as if it had all been growing there for years. Meggie and Ian wrote their own vows. “We were both a little nervous reciting them in front of everyone, but it honestly felt like it was just the two of us,” Meggie remembers.

Following the ceremony, there were cocktails and hors d’oeuvres outside, before guests moved into the crystal ballroom, where the tables were set with dark green velvet tablecloths and lined with a lush, low meandering garden of verdant foliage with ivory and white blooming flowers. Each arrangement was a little bit different from the next. Meanwhile, the ceiling was lined with smilax and Italian ruscus greenery.

Dinner began with a market garden salad topped with Pecorino, toasted hazelnuts, and a truffle vinaigrette, followed by a choice of dover sole meunière or slow-roasted lamb for the entrée. “Since my family has an obsession with ordering side dishes at every restaurant we go to, we had three different vegetable sides served to every table—brussels sprouts with pancetta, cauliflower gremolata, and twice-baked potatoes,” Meggie says, laughing. Dessert was wedding cake and an assortment of cookies, brownies, and other delicious bites. “We also had beautiful white chocolate bark infused with lavender florals on each table as part of the decor, but also to give guests something sweet to nibble on throughout dinner,” Meggie notes. “I learned this from my grandmother, who always had beautiful chocolates on her tables at her famous dinner parties.”

Meggie’s sister, father, brother, and Ian all gave unforgettable toasts during dinner. Then, after a quick change into a long-sleeved ivory beaded Naeem Khan dress, perfect for twirling, she and Ian, who switched into a white Ralph Lauren dinner jacket, hit the dance floor. “Our band, Ground Control, must have been good, because they managed to get everyone on the dance floor—even my grandfather!” says Meggie. Toward the end of the reception, the newlyweds stole away for a moment, heading upstairs to a hidden balcony overlooking the ballroom. “It was such a special moment to look out at our guests and just take it all in,” Meggie remembers.

Post-reception, dancing continued in a lounge with music by DJ Sam French. There was a neon sign with the couple’s wedding hashtag “#megsianlove,” long pink couches, and an emerald green circular dance floor. Meggie changed one last time into a white Victoria Beckham dress with a sexy criss-cross back and lavender tweed Chanel shoes, and the party began anew.