Tell us a little about yourselves!
Jacob and I met in high school but didn’t start dating until college. We’ve been together for over 10 years. For our 10-year anniversary, we decided to take a trip to Tulum, Mexico, where Jacob surprised me by proposing during a private Cenote tour. We both love spending time with our family and friends, traveling, eating, spending time outdoors, playing with our dog, Ysma, and going to concerts.
Why did you decide to get married where you did?
We love to travel and always talked about having a destination wedding. Once we were able to take a trip to Italy together, we knew it would be the perfect place for us to get married. The food, culture, history, and architecture made our decision to get married there easy.
We weren’t sure about what part of Italy we wanted to get married at initially, Jacob preferred more of a mountain view, while I preferred somewhere with a sea or lake view. Lake Como became the perfect location because it had everything we both wanted, a picturesque lake and mountain views.
How many guests did you have?
We had 8 guests of our immediate families present for our wedding day. For the post-wedding celebration, we had 25 of our closest family and friends.
What was your budget?
We didn’t have a specific number in mind as we were unaware of the costs of vendors and other wedding related goods and services as we weren’t from the country. As we continued our research and planning, we knew certain aspects of the wedding were more important to us, and those were the areas we wanted to prioritize. Because our guests travelled all the way to Italy to celebrate us for our wedding, we wanted to give them a memorable experience by going on a boat tour of Lake Como. Additionally, some of our non-negotiables during planning were to have a timeless photographer, a live musician, and delicious food.
I’m very lucky to be married to a creative person because my husband is a graphic designer and designed our stationary, logo, and menu for the wedding.
Tell us about your outfits.
I wore a silk dress made by Alexandra Grecco that I purchased at a wedding dress boutique in my hometown, Lovely Bride Phoenix. It had a low back with a long train that I paired with gold Prada heels, Chanel earrings, and sheer gloves that were custom embroidered.
Jacob wore an olive green suit from J Crew, a vintage belt and tie, custom embroidered socks, and black Prada mules.
What was the most important aspect for you, in terms of planning your wedding?
The location was most important because we wanted to make sure it had all the elements that we were looking for when booking a venue for a destination wedding. Our venue checked all our boxes for having great views around the property, spectacular food, a planner that helped make our vision come to life, and remarkable service.
Were there any elements that were important for you to incorporate?
My dad passed away a few years ago and even though he wasn’t there physically, I wanted to make sure he was still a part of my wedding, which my older sister and brother made sure of by gifting me a bouquet charm with a picture of my father.
For Jacob, he wanted to wear his late grandfather’s tie clip and his late grandparents’ rings.
Any tips for couples getting married?
Whatever you decide to do for your wedding, it is solely up to you as the couple. Don’t let others sway you or pressure you to do something you don’t want to do. It is your day and you should be able to celebrate it how you want.
The day of your wedding can feel like it’s flying by, but just try to stay present, take it in, and enjoy your time with your partner.
Are there any vendors that you would like to tell us a little more about?
We loved all our vendors and couldn’t have been happier to work with such talented and incredible people.
We absolutely loved our photographer, Sarah Joy Landon. She took the time to get to know us, made us feel comfortable, and understood our style and vision. Sarah captured our wedding and wedding celebration so perfectly. We loved that she not only took posed photos but specialized in reportage style photography, taking candid photos that really captured intricate details to help us relive our wedding all over again.
Photographer: Sarah Joy Landon @sarahjoylandon | Planning & Styling: by Kristel and Grand Hotel Tremezzo | Flora: Della Bella Fiori @dellabellafiori | Videographer: The Wedding Valley @the_wedding_valley | Ceremony & Reception Location: Grand Hotel Tremezzo @ghtlakecomo | Celebrant: Rita Annunziata | Hire: Grand Hotel Tremezzo @ghtlakecomo | Makeup Artist: Noemi Lake Como Bridal Beauty @noemipescialli.mua | Hair: Merita Lake Como Bridal Beauty @merita.bridalbeauty | Catering, Cake & Beverages: Grand Hotel Tremezzo @ghtlakecomo | Stationery: Sketch Brand & Co
@designsby_sketch | Entertainment: Anastasia Kachanovskaia @violinitaly | Wedding Dress: Alexandra Grecco @alexandragrecco via Lovely Bride Phoenix @lovelybridephoenix | Pizza Party Dress: Bec & Bridge @becandbridge | Suit: J Crew @jcrew | Veil: Lovely Bride Phoenix @lovelybridephoenix | Gloves: VeilsforBrides via Etsy @etsy | Engagement & Wedding Rings: Shane Co. | Shoes: Prada @prada | Earrings: Chanel @chanel