Whimsical Romance by The Lake of Como

Weddings

Dec 11

This couple movie-like romance started with a dating app match and a wrong train trip to Verona. Years later, they tied the knot in the lakeside garden of Hotel Villa Cipressi with the help of Elleffe Events. From the magical view to the Bride's radiant smile, this wedding sets a tone of whimsical romance. Read the whole story and see all the pin-worthy pictures by Emmy Shoots.

Our Story

Name: Aimee and James

Wedding Date: 25 September 2022

Guest Number: 70

Location: Varenna, Lake Como

James and I met in London on an infamous dating app where we happened to live across the road from each other. From the very first date at our now favorite pub, we knew we had found a love worth fighting for. Being from Australia, I didn’t have plans to stay in the UK for longer than a year. However, falling in love with James made that decision much easier as we grew closer and closer and began having more adventures together. Our very first one was a spontaneous 1 year anniversary (of dating) to Milan - a surprise from James. We had both never been to Italy and began researching and stumbling across scenic photos of Lake Como. With only a weekend stay planned we knew we had to make time to visit the lake. After getting on the wrong train to Verona instead of Varenna we knew we had found our special place (I even joked to James that we should get married here - a bit of a premature joke for a new relationship!).

The Proposal

Low and behold 3 years later, shortly after moving in together - as another surprise for my birthday I whisked away again to Lake Como (this time Bellagio) where James got down on one knee in I Giardini di Villa Melzi and where we made the decision that day that this is where we would make our happily ever after official with all of our friends and family from around the world.

The Venue

We chose Hotel Villa Cipressi during covid via a video call with Marco because it was the venue that spoke to us most in terms of embodying true Italian style and timelessness - both inside and outside the hotel. Oh and the view of course. We also fell in love with the courtyard and how we could have our ceremony right by the water, it was truly magical.

The Concept

We wanted to bring a modern romantic atmosphere to contrast against the natural beauty of Lake Como and the historical architecture of Villa Cipressi. Being an Australian girl I wanted the utmost modern elegance and effortless streams of roses and sharp contrast blacks and golds to bring a bit of glamour to the day.

The Bridal Look

I really struggled to find a brand that ticked all my boxes - I wanted a dress that said “that is so Aimee” so I sought to design my own gown and have it made couture in Melbourne by one of the most talented ladies in the industry - Eva Tomala. Eva helped not only bring my dress to life but gave me professional advice on how to make the dress I wanted suit me and speak for itself. I drew up a modern silhouette with fun but timeless details that were all about showing off the hand-beaded embroidery made in Paris. I wanted this lace to glisten and almost feel as if it were growing from the bottom of my dress and up like a vine. And of course, I needed the biggest bow on the back to “tie” it all together. I finished off with a custom teardrop veil which I had embroidered with our favorite quote and our initials.

The Wedding Day

It felt so surreal when the day finally came. After waiting 2 years during the pandemic and rescheduling once, we were so excited we finally got to see all our hard work come to life, but most importantly to be reunited with so many friends and family after so long apart was truly magical. We both felt really calm knowing it was our favorite people here to celebrate with us. As soon as I was in my dress (early than scheduled!) I was so ready to go.

James and the boys got to enjoy a pre-ceremony boat ride which helped ease any nerves. Once all 8 couples (yes 8!) were down the aisle we couldn’t wipe the smiles off our faces and just felt like we were living in a dream - a general sentiment from the whole guest list actually. Everyone was just so happy to be together sharing this special moment.

The Entertainment

I organized a surprise saxophonist to play "Il cielo in una stanza" by Mina - an Italian song from James’ favorite movie Goodfellas as we cut the cake lakeside which carried on to an impromptu dance party before moving it to the dance floor to get the party going.

DJ Luca provided us with exceptional tunes - a mix of all of my and James’ music tastes but the crowd-pleaser was the American Pie Wedding Mashup which we performed as a surprise choreographed first dance! It was so fun!

The Highlight

For speeches we gathered in the courtyard for 20 minutes to listen to our favorite people share wonderful stories. But the most memorable moment was when my dad pointed out how extraordinary it was to have so many people from every corner of the world in the same place at the same time to celebrate love. The space was so wonderfully laid out that everyone could share the smiles, tears and expressions to each other as if we were having a lovely chat around a giant dinner table. To have everyone feel so connected was priceless.

Something I wish I know before

To have someone put aside canapés for you during cocktail hour! The guest enjoyed it so much it was gone before we got to it after our photos and boat ride!

How was your experience of planning an Italy destination wedding?

It came with challenges naturally however it was so reassuring having our planned Natalie from Elleff Events to support us with all our needs and of course translation! We trusted her fully and it was amazing to work with her.

Advice for Italian Bride-to-Be

Do your research and ask lots of questions for every vendor, try to meet in person and establish a connection so you know that the trust is there.