Hello my lovelies! How’s this gorgeous month treating you so far? We love this time of year….with the blues of January over, and the whirls of Valentine’s romance right around the corner, we’re feeling delightfully warm and fuzzy here on the blog this morning!
On to today’s real wedding which is set in the beautifully serene Rimini Valley in Italy at a family-run winery. Podere Bianchi played host to Alberto and Federica’s laid back and free-spirited wedding – the couple infused their love of everything boho, gypsy and vintage into their open air DIY wedding. They collected vintage plates, chairs and street market treasures during the months leading up to their big day, and lovingly turned an old forgotten 1970’s caravan into a quaintly restored wedding bar.
The whole day was simply centered around true love, featuring an array of florals and impressive arrangements with minimal decor and detailing. Federica, draped in Sottero and Midgley, and Alberto, dressed in his own DIY self-made wedding outfit, needed only their love story, their friends and family, and a perfect starry night to become Mr and Mrs….
We held our entire wedding and reception outside. We really wanted to see the stars at night, so we erected a wooden beam in the middle of the space and hung some simple lights.
Photographed by the super talented Paolo Manzi, this hazy hemp field wedding is bursting with romance and sentiment – it’s totally captured our hearts! And how pretty is Federica’s circular floral hollow basket bouquet?! Hats off to Mirtilla Flowers for injecting the perfect amount of bold, bohemian flair to the arrangements – the flowers really do pitch the theme effortlessly.
Here’s Federica to tell you all about her hemp-filled hillside union to Alberto….
Romantic Meeting at Drama School
We were attending the same acting school in Milan for more than a year without knowing one another. One day, we found ourselves in the same class and the teacher asked us to perform together. We fell in love instantly and after 9 months, our first child Viola was born.
Wed in an Italian Hemp Field
We always imagined our dream wedding to be an intimate ceremony in Ibiza, our most beloved place. But after alot of thought, we realised that this would create many problems for all the friends and families we wanted there. So we started to look for an intimate, boho and unconventional location close to home. We viewed the venue when it was just empty fields, so we had to use our imagination! With the help and creativity of Marco (the Winery landlord from Podere Bianchi) we designed a beautiful wedding space.
We were married at Podere Bianchi in Rimini, Italy. The venue has a giant field and each year the cultivation is different. The summer season that we were married, it was a hemp field!
Maggie Sottero Gown, Greek Sandals and DIY Groom Outfit
I wore a beautiful Sottero and Midgley gown and swapped between two pairs of shoes from Ancient Greek Sandals and a pair of Italian-made heels from Anniel. I did all of my own makeup and styled my own hair!
Alberto wore a stunning custom made outfit, put together by himself!
Candid Italian Photography by Paolo Manzi
We found Paolo Manzi online and immediately fell in love with his work. His style, his mix of fashion and candid photography was exactly what we were looking for. There was immediate connection between us all and our instincts told us upon meeting him that he was our perfect match!
Bohemian Street Band
We really wanted a band who could match our wedding style; something bohemian…we found a band called the OCTOPUS. They are a really cool street band that I’ve known since starting my acting career in theater and nouveau cirque. I just fell in love with their sounds.
Open Air Wedding and Restored Caravan Bar
We held our entire wedding outside in the open air. All that was needed to create a warm ambiance was a couple of rows of strung up fairy lights.
We bought a caravan and restored it to make it a bar for our guests. We sought help from our Grandmothers to make things and often visited vintage street markets to collect bits and pieces for the wedding, including the Emmanuelle chairs.
More than 20 types of Florals!
Our florist was the wonderful Mirtilla Flowers and they arranged an amazing selection of florals for us. We featured Peonies, Wax Flowers, Dalias, Achillea and Freesias as well as around 20 other types of flowers!
First Dance
Our first dance was to Damien Rice’s ‘The Blower’s Daughter’. It was the first song we ever danced to the very first time we met during acting class. It was love at first sight!
Favourite Moment
The ceremony was the most touching moment. I start crying from the very first moment that I saw Alberto stood there waiting for me. The fireworks were also incredible. Everyone was in the moment, everything was so magical and simple and true….there was just so much love.
Any Advice?
I would suggest future brides to follow their hearts and go with what they like.
The Line Up
Photographer: Paolo Manzi; Venue: Podere Bianchi; Bride’s Dress: Sottero and Midgley; Bride’s Shoes: Ancient Greek Sandals | Anniel; Catering: Podere Bianchi | Scollina; Stationery: Duplika Mente; Flowers: Mirtilla Flowers
The outdoor ceremony is truly spectacular! Having fireworks, really takes advantage of the outdoor space!
beautiful colours combined with natural materials
Amazing wedding, love love love the styling, incredible images!
Beautiful combination