Yasmin + William
Thursday 4th July 2019︱Castello il Palagio, Tuscany, Italy
Instagram: @lifelike_gigi︱Photos: Francesco Spighi
Blogger Yasmin and partner William decided to tie the knot in Italy, with dreamy Tuscany as their backdrop. We are absolutely obsessed with this wedding, from the bride's soft tulle Essence of Australia dress, the stunning florals and decor, and the most gorgeous champagne silk bridesmaids dresses. The romantic Italian golden light and this neutral colour palette were made for each other...
Tell us your proposal story...
We had been together for five years so on our fifth anniversary, Liam (nickname for William lol) planned a picnic in Loch Lomond. As it wasn’t anything unusual for us to do together, and Loch Lomond being a place we regularly visited, I didn’t think anything of it. After a few hours of eating bread, cheese and cupcakes, and sipping down a bottle of Prosecco on the beach, we noticed a couple posing for photos with a photographer. Five minutes into watching their photoshoot, their photographer approached us to explain he was on an engagement photoshoot with the couple and admired our picnic set-up, so ask if we would mind letting the couple use our set-up for a quick picture. Unbeknown to me, this was actually our proposal picnic but I just didn’t know this yet. About half an hour passed, and as the beach quietened down, I turned to find Liam on one knee giving me his ‘will you marry me’ speech. I’ve actually shared photos of our proposal on my blog - read it here!
Tell us about your wedding theme...
When I started to plan the wedding I knew I wanted my wedding to feel romantic, whimsical, and magical. That was the theme for my wedding throughout and inspired choices like a violinist for the ceremony, a candle-lit meal outdoors and relaxed styling with my dress and bridesmaids.
I wanted my wedding to be quite neutral so went for a cream/gold mix. Gold is my favourite colour so all accents of colour were gold from the bridesmaid dresses to the charger plates, candelabras, invites, place settings etc.
Were there any surprises on the day?
My husband and I gave each other gifts on the wedding morning. I bought him Creed Aftershave which he asked for but I had no idea what he planned to buy me. He gifted me a stunning gold necklace with the date of our wedding in Roman numerals (IV VII). Apart from my engagement ring, I have never loved a piece of jewellery more. I’ve never taken it off and love the constant reminder of our big day through another piece of jewellery.
Music
- Song you walked down the aisle to: 1000 years - Christina Perri (violin instrumental). This has always been ‘our song’ as I am a huge Twilight fan. As we got closer to the wedding day I realised how common this was for weddings so we decided to have this played without the lyrics on the violin to be a little different.
- Signing of the paperwork: violinist I won’t give up - Jason Mraz
- Walking back up the aisle as a married couple: Feel so Close – Calvin Harris
- As we walked into the meal we had: Passionfruit - Drake
- Cutting the cake: More Than Words - Extreme
What was your favourite wedding planning moment?
Meal tasting. A year before the wedding, Liam and I went out to Italy for three days of planning and meeting with our suppliers. As part of this, we arranged two wedding menu tasting sessions and it was the most amazing experience. We were given an insane amount of delicious food to try. It was such an exciting and fun experience that we will remember forever.
What was the worst wedding planning moment?
A couple days before the wedding, Liam and I went to see the florist to have one last chat about the plans and pay the remaining costs. When we arrived the cost to be paid didn’t match up with what we understood in emails and we had to make the decision to take away the end of aisle arch or pay more than what we budgeted for. We decided to take away the flower arch and now looking back, I am happy with that decision as the location was so beautiful it didn’t really need it. The florist were amazing and their table design honestly took my breath away on the wedding day however, to any brides planning an abroad wedding, be aware that language barriers can make planning a little trickier than normal...
Did you make any Wedding DIYs?
I made my wedding invites from hand-made paper, gold gilding flakes and finished off the envelope with a wax seal stamp. I shared a video of the process of making my invites here. I also follow the same style/theme for our place settings.
Tell us all about the food...
We used a brilliant caterer from a local restaurant, I Vecchi Amici. All of our guests couldn’t stop raving about how amazing the food was and they weren’t wrong. When I found this supplier I remember reading a review from an American bride who even after a year, their guests still talk about how tasty the food was and she was so right. We had a huge buffet after the ceremony with a selection of canapes including fresh breads, meats, caprese salad, crostini and fried vegetables cooked fresh. For the main meal, we had Risotto with pear fruit, Pecorino cheeses and Vin Santo for our starter, slow cooked pork with timbale of potatoes and onions on a sweet and sour sauce for the main, and desert was our wedding cake – a typical Italian Millefoglie cake.
What was your favourite part of the day?
My favourite part of the day was 100% the meal. We had our wedding tables set in a ‘U’ shape around a small fountain that overlooked vineyards. As the sun set, it created the most stunning golden light across everyone and later the area was lit only by candles covering the tables . I loved how relaxed and easy-going this part of the day was. We didn’t rush or keep our dinner to a specific time-scale which is traditionally Italian as the meal is the most important part of their weddings. It makes sense as the food is insanely delicious!
Tell us all about the dress...
I bought my dress from Eleganza. I attended a trunk show they were running by Martina Liana/Essense of Australia. All of the dresses were stunning and as soon as I arrived, I knew I was going to find my dress that day. Trunk shows carry dresses that aren’t always put in to full production so I loved the idea that my dress might not even be mass produced as it made it feel more unique. I was drawn to the soft tulle bottom of the dress and the way it came out from the body at different parts. I then added shoulder veils to the dress (something I had previously seen on an Australian bride) and had the bust area altered slightly to suit my shape.
Tell us about your Honeymoon...
A few days after the wedding, my husband and I packed our bags and got a train to the South coast of Italy. We spent a week exploring the Amalfi Coast and Capri. We took things easy and just enjoyed days at the beach, long lunches, dinners and exploring the locations by foot. For the final few days of our Honeymoon we headed to Rome to meet my sister, husband and nephew and spent a couple days together celebrating my 30th and exploring the tourist sights. I loved how relaxed the first few days of our honeymoon were, perfect after a busy and exciting wedding week. We stayed in four very different hotels during our honeymoon and I loved the mixture. We stayed two nights in a small Cove in Praiano, Hotel al Fonso, one night at the stunning Casa Angelina in Postiano, three nights at Hotel Weber in Capri and H10 in Rome.
What was your first dance song?
Marry Me - Train. It has been a song we’ve both loved for years and Liam has always wanted to get a tattoo of the lyrics so now when he does it will be even more meaningful.
Tell us about your hen do...
My sister (chief bridesmaid) and my bridesmaids planned a surprise hen party for our first full day in Italy. We got a train from Florence to Cinque Terre and enjoyed drinks and games on the train journey. When we arrived, the bridal squad headed off ahead of me to set up as my mum and I grabbed some lunch. Heading to the surprise location, I arrived blind-folded to a boat pier with my bridal squad all chanting our wedding hashtag, wearing coordinated white bikinis. I couldn’t believe what we were doing! We enjoyed a few hours exploring the waters around Cinque Terre in the most stunning yacht with games, food and drinks a plenty. Later that evening, the bridal party also met up with the groom and all of the boys and went to a club in Florence.
Venue: Castello il PalagioPhotographer: Francesco SpighiVideographer: Jordan SummersStationery: DIYMUA: The Backstage Artist (Bride's cousin + best friend)Hair: BrideShoes: ASOSRings: Chisholm Hunter (His) Katie Lees Jewellery (Hers)Dress: Essense of Australia @ Eleganza SposaSuits: ASOS (Twisted Tailor)Bridesmaids dresses: Rat and Boa - Sofia DressCatering + Cake: I Vecchi AmiciViolinist: Music & CoDJ + Lighting: Gaetano Sicari DJ
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