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Alyssa & Nate
Lake Garda, Italy
Glamour and Elegance at a Five Star Villa
With an incredible guest experience as the key priority, this beautiful celebration was full of thoughtful touches that celebrated its unique location and allowed guests to relax in the splendor of a 5 star palace hotel. Each event was designed to feel unique, unified only by exceptional cuisine and good company.
From local dinners in the town center to bringing all guests together at one long candlelit table stretching into Lake Garda on Villa Cortine's private dock, to high-elegance on the sunset terrace for the wedding feast, each meal centered around appreciating local Italian food in a surreal and stunning setting.
Personal touches included personalized limocellos made with local Lake Garda lemons, which served as both escort cards and favors; family photos to fill every surface of the villa to make it feel like home; personalized luggage tags for each guest as a placecard and keepsake; stationery that reflected the colors and textures of the wedding venue, and a high-touch guest experience to help everyone feel welcome.
The wedding week included multiple events:
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A welcome boat tour of Lake Garda with aperitivo on board, followed by a dinner at a local osteria for the immediate family.
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A multi-course feast in the historic city center of Sirmione on Thursday for all guests who arrived before the festivities officially began.
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An opportunity for an escape and a photo op for the couple with a private boat ride together at sunset on Friday.
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Dinner for all guests on Villa Cortine's private dock under the stars.
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Ceremony and Reception on Saturday. With a leisurely aperitivo (with custom-made lawn games, pizza truck, and fresh mozzarella station), a five course dinner with sunset views, live cake assembly, and after-party with a custom photo booth, popcorn station, and more.
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A farewell brunch Sunday morning.
Photographer: ManiSol Wedding
Jane & Tyler
Cape Cod, Massachusetts
Coastal Luxury Meets New England Charm
For Jane and Tyler's gorgeous private-estate wedding, we honored the beautiful Cape Cod seaside setting with hydrangeas en masse. Their ceremony (officiated by Jane's mother, who is a minister), took place in a serene, tree-ringed garden on the property.We transformed the pool house into the ultimate reception area, covering the pool with clear panels, which gave a sort of sea-glass effect. Greenery crawled across the beams above, offering a natural and whimsical element, accentuated with more hydrangeas.
The couple, passionate animal rights advocates, opted for a vegetarian + shellfish menu, and selected "his and hers" charitable organizations in lieu of gifts. They also honored their pets, Jo Jo and Gary, with bespoke craft cocktails - the Watermelon Mo-Jo-ito, and Mar-Gary-ta! Other thoughtful touches included the wedding stationery, featuring the Ospreys that fly over the property, using a piece of a family heirloom veil to wrap the wedding bouquet, and hand-made wedding favors for all the guests, crafted from oyster shells by the mother of the groom.
What is a Sand Ceremony?
A sand ceremony (or "unity sand ceremony") is a symbolic way to represent two lives joining to one. Jane and Tyler incorporated a sand ceremony into their wedding ceremony as a way to honor their respective coasts, as well as their parents.
First, Tyler's parents poured sand from California into a new vessel, while Jane's parents did the same with Massachusetts sand.
Jane and Tyler then each poured their home-state sand into a new vessel, etched with their names.
Joined together, the bi-coastal sand is now impossible to separate.
Photographer: Annmarie Swift
Florence, Italy
A taste of Southern Italy in Tuscany
For many guests at this gorgeous wedding in Florence, this trip was the first to Europe, let alone Italy. The couple gave their guests the gift of a seamless experience and an opportunity to experience different facets of the beautiful setting.
With a relaxed elegance, this event design worked in elements of Southern Italy, where the bride's family is from, while honoring the Tuscan setting. The bride created handmade tile placecards and coasters as a keepsake and to add a touch of Sicilian flare to the table, while the florals incorporated fresh lemons. The rest was rooted in the Tuscan setting, with generous olive garlands, fine silk napkins, and a bust of Michelangelo's David in lieu of a Moor's head.
The wedding events included:
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Day One: An arrival celebration at Villa Agape, complete with sunset views, a pizza truck, and traditional aperitivo snacks and drinks.
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Day Two: Guests had the day free to explore Florence, and in the evening, enjoyed a wine tour and full tasting (including six wines, olive oil, and two sweet wines) and traditional dinner overlooking the vineyards and golden sunset at a winery in Chianti.
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Day Three: Ceremony & Reception at Villa Agape, complete with a leisurely aperitivo and dinner, a live cake assembly, and first dance surrounded by gardens lit with fairy lights.
Photographer: Stepan Vrzala
Maud & Ryan
Ginestas, France
A multi-day château celebration
Maud and Ryan wanted to make sure their guests, who came from the US and France felt welcome, included, and happy despite language barriers.
We created a fully bi-lingual celebration to ensure everyone could enjoy each beautiful moment. Their brothers officiated their château garden ceremony in English and in French, and guests got to enjoy traditional French and American candies!
Throughout the week, guests enjoyed an elegant-yet-relaxed setting, full of thoughtful touches and lots of fun, from a hand-illustrated guide to the area to an an introvert-lover's corner: historic wine barrel big enough to fill with board games and laughter.
With a full château takeover, M&R treated their guests to a multi-day destination wedding celebration that married their cultures.
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Guests arrived to welcome drinks and a welcome dinner decorated with more than 300 family and friend photos.
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The ceremony and reception took place on the second day, with an intimate garden ceremony followed by a romantic dinner in the courtyard. Flowers from the ceremony were repurposed to fill the fountain!
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On the third day, guests enjoyed breakfast followed by lawn games. A farewell barbecue brought the games inside, with ping pong, and a barrel full of board games.
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Guests said goodbye on the fourth day, with a beautiful brunch in the historic barn.
Photographer: FelicyDaze Weddings
Bianca & Francesco
Lake Garda, Italy
A sea of purple in Sirmione
The inspiration here was a monochromatic celebration of soft purple shades, with a whimsical, romantic, and ethereal vibe to match the elegance and fairytale nature of the space.
With a venue as spectacular and opulent as Villa Cortine, we wanted to create a feeling of quiet luxury. We leaned into a lavender haze, which helped unite the different spaces throughout the property without distracting from the natural beauty of the setting and surroundings.
About Villa Cortine Palace Hotel
Villa Cortine Palace Hotel is uniquely situated on a tiny historical peninsula, Sirmione, in Lake Garda. With sweeping views in all directions, the hotel gardens enjoy sunrises over Lake Garda to the east, and glowy, golden sunsets to the west over the water. Tropical trees, hidden garden spaces, ancient Roman ruins, and luxury give this venue an opulent oasis feeling.
Photographer: MaMa Photo, FelicyDaze Weddings
Catherine & Peyton
Santorini, Greece
Modern elegance meets sunset hues
The inspiration for this design was to honor the skyline and place, while adding a burst of joyous color. With clear open skies, stark whitewashed buildings, and those deeply saturated blue domes, the deep pink hues of this palette really popped. Oia Mansion is perched at the very height of Oia (it's the tallest spot) so the views are uninterrupted and absolutely stunning.
We kept the floral low and chairs clear, so they wouldn't obstruct the view, mixed in bright citrus (nothing says "Greece!" like lemons!) and added soft luxurious touches to contrast the more modern elements. The cake design, modern and simple, was meant to evoke the rough edges of the skyline, while domed elements worked their way into the stationery suite.
Proudly featured on Style Me Pretty
About Oia Mansion
For intimate elopements, Oia Mansion is the perfect spot for sweeping views, stunning photos, and a beautifully private feel. The mansion is at the very highest point in Oia, with a gorgeous panoramic terrace suitable for a ceremony with stunning Santorini views, and a dinner overlooking the sunset. Built in the late 1800s, Oia Mansion remains family-owned and operated.
Photographer: FelicyDaze Weddings
Molly & Steve
Brooklyn, NY
A cozy, intimate, and joyous party for 140
For M&S, we had the opportunity to turn a completely blank, industrial canvas into a cozy, glowy, personalized space.
This wonderful couple wanted their wedding to feel warm and welcoming, with an intimate dinner party vibe (but for nearly 140 guests). So, we prioritized outstanding food (served family style) and with a little creative arranging, even managed to get every single guest at the same table using an E-shaped configuration.
We also brought in warm, natural elements (like wooden tables and chairs), lots of fall florals and greenery to make the space feel more organic and soften the hard surfaces, and Indian block print napkins for added color and personality.
Molly and Steve have such a gift of bringing people together and making all feel welcome and loved – and their wedding completely reflected that.
In a raw industrial space with hard, cold surfaces, a little candlelight alone wasn’t going to do the trick. So, we got to work to make the space feel super personal and warm. Here are some of the elements used to warm it all up:
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Uplighting to show off the space and add a cozy glow, and bistro lighting to capture those Brooklyn restaurant vibes
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Whimsy vine installation along the industrial beams and crawling down the brick walls, to make the space feel more intimate and organic
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A wall of family photos helped personalize the space and created visual interest for guests and honor loved ones
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Indian block print napkins, a staple on the couple's own table, added color and personality, and an opportunity to package sets of the napkins post event to gift to family
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Warm, natural elements like wood and eclectic vintage frames, plus gold touches for extra glow
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Re-use of ceremony florals to fill in the ultra-tall bookshelves added color and gave florals a second life
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A more intimate, narrow dance floor (which ALWAYS felt packed), complete with mirror ball
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Lots of jungle plants to add greenery and depth to the space
Photographer: Isabelle Selby Photography
Kara & Felicia
New York, NY
Old New York Meets Modern Glam
K&F picked the HousingWorks Bookstore for the setting for their winter wedding for its mission, and for its cameo in a Taylor Swift music video. They wanted an event design that was modern, minimalist, glamorous, and touched on that classic, NYC elegance, yet their wedding venue is an inherently warm, glowy, and cozy space. The books that line the walls offer a cacophony of color; the worn wood interior is hygge but not exactly glam. We wanted to create an event design that honored the space and setting, while capturing the more modern and sleek elements that resonated with the couples.
So, we took inspiration from the books themselves. Words on the page became our palette: black and white. We kept it simple and sleek with these two colors, adding different textural elements to add intrigue without adding distraction.
Surrounded by all the greatest love stories, they began to write their next chapter together.
Here's how we incorporated the black-and-white of words on a page to glam up this beautiful bookstore love story:
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In a candle-free venue, we brought in sleek black table lamps, which lent a modern library vibe.
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Lush, monochrome white flowers created a modern entrance to transport guests into the space and to set the tone
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Table numbers came to life on vintage book pages, with modern black frames, uniting the past with the present
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Signage and stationery incorporated both bold, modern fonts, with the flourished ampersand nodding back to antique typefaces.
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We replaced books with family portraits to further personalize the space, unified by white mats and black frames
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We also added a touch of green via sage green napkins, to complement the stems of the florals and to add a touch of warmth to tie into the glowiness of the space.
Photographer: Isabelle Selby Photography
Paola & Samuel
Florence, Italy
A feathered fête for early fall
High/low, old/new, vintage/modern, this design is a playful juxtaposition of contrasts, mixing ultra luxurious, ornate touches with clean, slim-line modern stationery and touches of feathers throughout.
For the reception decor, I loved pairing the modern-art style chairs and minimalist, sleek menus with the more classic silk napkins and brass candlesticks, playing off the old-meets-new contrast. The etched glassware featured twisting vines that added that organic element, contrasting the crisp, clean lines of the place cards. These series of little push/pull contrasts created their own design element! We also took advantage of the beautiful, raw concrete table up in the hidden loggia at Villa Agape. Paired with the ultra-traditional gilded Florentine under plates, we created yet another high/low, elegant/organic contrast that let both elements shine.
Feathered touches included:
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Feathered cuffs on Paola's getting ready outfit
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Delicate white feathers on the bodice of her Ida Torez gown
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Feathery grasses incorporated into the ceremony aisle decor
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The playful skirt on the second-look party dress
Photographer: MaMa Photo
Jane & Dan
Florence, Italy
A magical affair with Florentine flair
The vision for this wedding was to deliver a seamless and outstanding guest experience. As many guests were visiting Florence (and even Italy) for the first time, welcome kits included local treats and a custom-printed guide to the city, replete with favorite spots to eat, things to do, and hidden gems, as well as tips for common connection cities Rome and Milan.
The focus for the wedding was on bringing the families and friends together, doing away with many traditions and embracing others, for a magical, fairytale experience.
With an emphasis on outstanding food and on hand-made, bespoke design elements, this wedding was one of a kind, and full of thoughtful touches and beautiful details.
The wedding week included five events:
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A welcome pizza party Monday night to give villa guests stunning sunset views, a chance to mingle, and delicious pizzas (served hot from a vintage truck-turned-pizza oven).
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Guided walking tours of the heart of Florence Tuesday morning, which gave guests a chance to connect in small groups of 10-12.
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Dinner for all guests Tuesday evening at a charming local restaurant in the artsy San Niccolò neighborhood, on an intimate private terrace.
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Ceremony and Reception on Wednesday. Included an aperitivo to linger over with custom-made lawn games, a multi-course feast, surprise dance performance and live cake assembly, pyrotechnics, and more. An evening to remember.
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A full brunch Thursday morning, complete with an artisanal gelato cart.
Photographer: Voyteck Photography
The best is yet to come!
The gallery page is a work in progress!
More beautiful weddings will be uploaded soon.
In the meantime, let's talk about planning your dream wedding – whether at a classic villa in Italy, charming château in France, intimate rooftop garden in New York City, nestled in California wine country, perched on the cliffs of Santorini, or anywhere in the world your heart desires.
Let's start planning!