There’s one thing I noticed, after sharing the news that I got engaged: people love weddings. I was not expecting such an enthusiastic reaction, and I was not even thinking that I would be so excited about organising my own. I guess in my mind I always had the idea of getting married, eventually, but it was never really a priority. I’ve definitely given more attention to my career than to everything else in life, but it’s now a good moment to focus on something else, besides work. I’m happy to organise a big party with my closest friends and family, something joyful to look forward to. Also: there’s a lot of design work involved, in organising a wedding. That’s probably the reason why I love it so much. It’s like furnishing a new house, you have to start from an idea, a theme, a colour palette… and then trust the process, and make it happen.
The proposal
…and so it happened! At the end of May, Patrick organised a weekend away for us; it was a belated birthday gift, a SPA weekend. I had no big expectations, as we were supposed to leave for holidays just a few weeks later. The day started in a very suspicious way: when I opened the hotel room, I realised he booked a majestic suite, and there were flower petals all over the bed. Wow! I thought, that’s really sweet. The program for the day included relax at the pool and sauna, followed by a couple massage. The biggest surprise arrived when we came back to the room: there was a super romantic bath full of bubbles, candles, and prosecco. At that point I said… “Omg Patrick! I only miss the ring now!” I was joking but… he really had that! Patrick started reading a letter and proposed, I cried like a baby. He had to stop and calm me down before giving me the ring.
This was probably the happiest day of my life, so far.
Where to start
I was not able to sleep, in the first week! My brain was working day and night, searching for all possible locations. I’m still doing that, but at least now I have something figured out and I feel better. Organising a wedding it’s a big mess, especially if you do it abroad. And if you don’t have unlimited budget. We decided (after some negotiation) to celebrate the wedding in Italy. It was clear to me that I needed some help, and I did not want to stress family and friends too much, so I opted for hiring a wedding planner.
I’ve considered different ones: the first one I liked was Confetti a Colazione but she’s not from my area (and I prefer having someone who knows the providers we will work with); so the other two options I had in mind were Chapeau Eventi and Un giorno su Misura, as they both collaborated with Giada (my web designer) so I believe we have similar taste. I opted for the last one, Elisabetta, because she organised the wedding of La tazzina blu, Camilla, and I loved it. Having Elisabetta by my side is really precious: every time I have an idea or provider in mind, she is able to give me specific feedback and say if that’s a good option or not – and why.
Could I organize this wedding by myself? Of course yes – I’m also pretty good at these things. But it’s like furnishing a house, with or without an interior designer. You can do it without, but the result will never be the same. A designer is able to connect the dots, to tell a story, to create and experience. When you look online or talk with a provider, everything seems perfect! But I trust more someone who does this for work, and goes to weddings every week.
The location
This was the biggest challenge so far. So our initial idea was to get married in the Prosecco area, something like a winery. We started looking at all the possible options, but I couldn’t find one where I felt 100% convinced. Most of them are beautiful from the outside, but not so spacious inside. Plus, the Prosecco area is not so easy to reach – you have to go there by car. Now, with a lot of people coming from abroad, my options were to: either oblige them to rent one, or organise bus transfer for the whole weekend – too stressful. Ideally we would have wanted a location where everyone (or most of us) could also sleep together, but it was really hard to find. A few options we considered, if you are interested in the wine-mood: Rechsteiner, Tenuta delle mele, Ca’ Milione, Tenuta Sant’Eufemia, Tenuta Polvaro.
Once we agreed that accessibility to the location was a priority for us (we would like our gest to have the autonomy to decide how to reach the location, either rent a car, or take the train, or come by taxi) we moved our search closer to the Venice airport. The first place I felt in love with was the Aranceria di Villa Zoppolato. I thought that the orange theme was perfect, a great connection to The Netherlands. The only downside of this place was that the inside space is not very big, and in case of rain you cannot move much. We also looked at the other places around there (in Mogliano Veneto, easy accessible from the airport): Villa Coldumer and Villa Braida. But nothing I was really impressed by, and Elisabetta was not in favour either.
So she came out with another proposal: Ca’ Marcello. The first time I opened the link I thought: not my thing, too posh. Going from a winery to a Palladian Villa, no way. But Elisabetta was very positive about it, so I did some extra research. I saw this gallery and I really liked the mood. Then I realised the Villa is located in Piombino Dese, town where there’s also another place I love: Ca’ de Memi. I immediately messaged my friend Elena, who owns the B&B and she was extremely positive about Ca’ Marcello, plus she said we could stay at Ca’ de Memi with our families, if we wanted to. Wow! I trust Elena style, so the idea started growing on me. Ca’ Marcello + Ca’ de Memi, what a great combo, we could show our guests the two sides of Veneto: the rustic and the elegant one. I’m sold, we booked it.
Our idea is to organise a welcome drink at Ca’ de Memi on Thursday night, for closest family and friends from abroad. And we booked all Ca’ de Memi for our families and wedding witnesses. This means that for us it will be a weekend-wedding, not just one day. And I love that! Spend extra time with our families together, I could not wish for more.
The date
Ok so Patrick proposed on May 27. Next year is on a Saturday, during a long weekend – perfect, right? So this was our target date. But of course, life is never easy, and the location was already booked for that day. So we decided to move it to the week before, which is also a long weekend in the Netherlands, Thursday-Sunday. The date will be Friday, 19 May 2023. This will allow people who are travelling from abroad to leave on Thursday morning, enjoy the wedding on Friday, and have a couple of days left to visit the area.
May is not an easy month, there is a chance of rain. The advantage is a beautiful light, long days, and not too warm. I would have opted for May or September, but September is too far. So May it is! Also I like to be on of the first wedding of the season, providers are probably less tired and more enthusiastic. What do you think?
Moodboard time
Finally, I can start visualise this wedding now. The last step I want to show you (for today) is the mood board I created. I wanted to have some inspiration that could help me define the mood. Rustic Elegance is the theme: we would like to show our guests the real Venetian countryside, and its traditions. I imagine elements of wood and wine. Maybe some dutch details, like the bike. And soft colours, my palette. How do you like it?
Credits images:
- Abito: https://www.ideasposatorino.it/collezione-abiti-da-sposa-torino-modello/abito-jess/
- Bouquet: https://www.instagram.com/fiorieparole_/
- Tableau de marriage: https://www.pinterest.it/pin/30258628728073633/
- Bike: https://www.pinterest.it/pin/102949541468943980/
- Bread buffet: https://www.pinterest.it/pin/36521446968124390/
- Villa Ca’ Marcello: https://www.camarcello.it/
That’s all for today, I hope you enjoyed this first chapter. I have a lot more to organise, so I’ll keep you posted. If you have tips, ideas or feedback, let me know! Love, S.