Tell us a little about yourselves!
Josh is a designer, Kitty a humanitarian. We now live in Cornwall, a gorgeous coastal region in Cornwall where we co-run Meadows Studios, a design studio and store.
Why did you decide to get married where you did?
We met whilst living either end of the world. Josh a designer in rural Cornwall, England and Kitty a humanitarian, living in the middle-east. It wasn’t ideal, but it meant that every time we met up, we could pick a new spot half way between us to pass time and get to know each other. A number of those places, were Italy. A place we fell in love with, whilst falling in love with each other. The place where Josh first asked Kitty to be his partner, then four years later, to be his wife. So, it felt, only right, that we asked our friends and family to join us to celebrate on the beautiful shores of Italy. The food, the drinks, the climate, the culture, it was everything we wanted. We had friends coming from all over, so the wedding was a melting pot of everywhere and everyone we love.
We wanted to find a private and local location on the coast, where we could officially get married ,rather than have a symbolic wedding. Somewhere with the traditional Italian glamour and architecture, but local enough to have Nonna’s cooking pasta in the village and local kids eating gelato in the square.
We initially struggled to find intimate venues in lesser-known areas, until we discovered Castello Canevaro in a tiny village on the Italian Riveria. It was grand but not too grand, had a big lawn overlooking the ocean and close to some of the coast’s best beaches, Paraggi, Camogli and San Frutusso where we could make the wedding a full weekend celebration, which we did!
For the ceremony, we wanted to legally marry in a traditional Italian villa. We chose an intimate room at the Santa Margherita Ligure’s Villa Durazzo. It was perfect. We then moved onto Castello Canevaro where we ate, we swam, we dinned and we partied. There wasn’t a foreigner in sight in this tiny village, just us and our 75 guests. The sun shone in all its Italian glory. Nothing could ever compare to that day.
How many guests did you have?
What was your budget?
£20,000.
Tell us about your outfits.
For the ceremony, Kitty wore a custom-made dress that she designed, which was made by a local seamstress Raine Studios.
I wanted it to be simple, but beautiful. I walked down the aisle with a veil, which then turned into a neck scarf. What was most important to me was the drop waist and the fabric. I chose a Japanese silk mikado which I completely fell in love with. I could move and hug my guests, and I felt like myself.
For the reception, I changed into a sheer Jacquemus dress. I ordered this a week after I got engaged and new it was the one for the evening. I added a body so it wasn’t too sheer (but the bright sunlight didn’t help in illuminating my a**) and paired it with simple sling-backs. I felt elegant and sophisticated and loved how the sheer silk floated as you walked.
In the late evening, I changed into a cowl neck Paloma Wool party dress. This was a re-wear from my hen do in Paris. I love this dress. Again, a beautiful silk that sits perfectly on your body with hand embroidered.
Josh wore a Tropical Wool Aime Leon Dore navy suit, Portuguese flannel open collar shirt, an Aime Leon Doree pocket square and Solovair shoes. It was classic and beautiful.
What was the most important aspect for you, in terms of planning your wedding?
The intimacy. We wanted a private wedding where we could drink and swim and dance until we dropped. Secondly, the legal aspect, which we achieved and found the most beautiful municipality building to do it in (with the mayor of the town marrying us!) And lastly, the food and drinks. Our caterers put on an incredible spread of fresh fish and pasta, paired with every Italian cocktail you can imagine..! We wanted to feel relaxed, and to be able to soak in everyone’s happiness. We were, and are, so grateful for every one of our friends, family, and event staff who contributed to what was the perfect day.
Any tips for couples getting married?
Budget, but then give yourself some lee-way as there will always be added costs (ours were cleaning fee’s, extra hours, taxi’s for guests, etc). You only live once..!
Enjoy yourself! You’ve put in the hard yards planning it and it’s your day. Enjoy every second of it and forget the little things as they don’t matter.
Get a wedding planner who is on the same page as you. Our planner made the day so seamless and understood how relaxed we wanted to feel, despite there being a lot of people, vendors and locations to manage in a single day. You don’t want to worry or think about timings or logistics on the day, so find a coordinator you trust.
Don’t do things because you feel like you should. One of Josh’s most important things for the wedding day was to get in the ocean. After some drinks at the reception, about 40 of the guest’s jumped in the ocean with some bottles of fizz. They all sat down at dinner with wet hair but felt so free. We’re from a coastal area, and celebrating on the Ligurian coast. We didn’t want to be too formal or stuffy and stick to a strict dress code or time schedule, so we played by our own rules. If you want a shorter ceremony, have a shorter ceremony, make your own guide book as ultimately, it’s your day, and should reflect you as a couple.
Are there any vendors that you would like to tell us a little more about?
Our wedding photographers WeWedding and videographer Duo Wedding were the best. They captured every moment and made us feel so comfortable. The wedding video was actually a surprise, and watching it back was a moment we’ll never forget. Both vendors are so talented, we’re so glad we had them.
Photographer: WeWedding @wewedding | Planning: Sara Bardola @sara.bardola | Videographer:
Duo Weddings @duoweddings | Ceremony Location: Villa Durazzo | Reception Location: Castello Canevaro @castello_canvaro | Catering & Beverages: Manuelina Catering @manuelinaricevimentiecatering | Stationery: Charlotte Evans, The Old Brick Studio @theoldbrickstudio | Dresses: Jacquemus @jacquemus & custom Raine Studios @raine_studios | Suit: Aime Leon Dore | Engagement & Wedding Rings: Kirstie Mclaren @kirstiemclarenjewellery | Shoes: Solovair @solovairuk