A castle, a bunad and ballerinas: Inside the wedding of designer Stepanka to her Norwegian prince

Introduced to each other by mutual friends, doctor and entrepreneur Inge Marshall Trangsrud knew he wanted to marry fashion and hat designer, Stepanka, after spending just one evening together bonding –  so much so that he bought a ring and concocted different scenarios on how to propose. The pandemic and travel restrictions at the time meant that whisking her off for a romantic weekend away at the last minute was out of the question, so the Norwegian kept things simple.

“I was constantly at work dealing with patients,” he says, “but we had a free day together at home and there was a special moment where everything just felt right – so I proposed at home in our living room.” The couple are very much on the same page as each other, with Stepanka saying she wouldn't swap the homely location for Paris or anywhere else in the world.

“I was feeling exhausted, relaxing on the sofa and eating, and in the least glamorous moment he proposed to me,” she says. “It was such a real, everyday moment and it showed how our love is not some artificial proposal, just the two of us in a daily life moment.”

The couple decided to get married in the bride’s hometown of Prague, and where Inge had also lived as a student. They both love the city – the atmosphere, the architecture – so it was a no-brainer.

“We were first thinking about having a small and humble wedding, but then we realised it is the perfect opportunity to do all the things we want for our wedding,” says Stepanka. “My ancestors lived in a Czech castle called Chateau Trebesice, a small and beautiful castle with a moat an hour’s drive from Prague. This was my first choice as my family legacy is important.” The chateau was too small to host the wedding guests, so 16th-century Lobkowitz Palace on the grounds of Prague Castle was the lucky runner up. The couple leaned on three wedding planners for the celebrations including the bride’s friend, Jiri Wanka (a ballet performer and wedding planner), Pavlina, and Lobkowitz Palace’s coordinator Sarka, who all worked to bring their vision for the wedding to life.

The day before the wedding, the couple hosted a cruise on the Vltava River, with a jazz band and dinner. “Seeing Prague from boat is nice way to view the city, and since we had many international guests, about half the guests travelled from Norway, we wanted to make it a little exciting for them and give them a chance to meet each other,” says Stepanka.

Music and performance played a large role throughout the celebrations, with every piece carefully chosen and executed. “It might best be described as a small concert,” says Stepanka. “Jiri was able to arrange a choir with 15 members as well as a 19-piece orchestra, and four of the best ballerinas from the Czech National Ballet dancing to Swan Lake,” says Stepanka. “We also had a harpist and flutist, and DJ Lumiere from Buddha Bar in Prague for the after party. I also really wanted a soprano to sing the Queen of the Night aria from Mozart’s The Magic Flute. She sang from a window high on the walls in the Imperial Hall in Lobkowicz Palace. Our first dance was Shostakovich’s Second Waltz, it was magical. Jiri, being a ballet dancer, taught us to dance before the wedding.”

The bride chose to walk down the aisle to Te Deum by Thomas Tallis. “It was one of the most important moments of the wedding,” she says. “For at least 20 years I had known that I wanted for my wedding. Inge’s grandfather was British, and so I also felt this was paying homage to his ancestry. We got the sheet music from a choir in Cambridge to have my preferred arrangement and had a 15-piece choir as well as the organ. It was truly a dream come true. The song was so beautiful during my walk that I almost started to cry but I pulled myself together because I wanted to be serious and graceful."

Stepanka's father, Pavel, walked her down the aisle, while several of her friends were bridesmaids and her maid of honour was her grandmother. “My two best friends served as my best men and our nieces served as flower girls and held Stepanka’s veil,” says Inge. “The priest, Tim Georg, was an old acquaintance of mine from my student days when he was serving as a priest for Norwegian students in Central Europe. I was active in student organisations, and so we cooperated on many occasions, and it was nice to have him hold the ceremony.”

When it came to wedding attire, Inge opted for a stylish morning suit, tailored in Prague, and a tuxedo for the dinner service and party. Meanwhile, given her profession, the bride designed her own dresses for the ceremony and dinner, with the Norwegian bunad crown at the centre. “For me, the most important part of my wedding dress was the crown made from silver and gold,” she says. “I wanted to wear one as a statement of respect and love for the land and family I was marrying into.”

She hired the piece from Goldsmith Aabø AS in Telemark. “I designed a very simple wedding dress to go with the big crown so that the whole outfit would not seem too busy. I designed a dress with collar and long sleeves, the collar being inspired by King Harald V of Norway’s uniform. I chose a creamy ivory colour, A-shaped dress with a tail.” A simple, stylish bun accompanied her bespoke, seven-metre-long veil, her pink shoes were Mach & Mach, and pearl earrings she borrowed from her mother-in-law.

For her dinner gown, her design again was kept simple and timeless: a long-sleeved pencil dress with long white gloves. “I had a dramatic royal blue opera coat, chosen for its aristocratic and eccentric vibe, sort of a [American-Greek soprano] Maria Callas moment, and my satin bow shoes were Christian Louboutin.”

Guests went home with a thoughtful gift bag which included the Czech tradition of taking home wedding cake, a three-level chocolate and salted caramel by master baker, Zuzana Sabacka. “The day was simply perfect. It was important for me to have the wedding in front of God, not just a signature on a piece of paper.”