Wedding | Lexie & Jarrett

Tell us a little about yourselves!

We’ve been together for 5 years leading up to our wedding. We actually met at work (scandalous, I know)! Getting to know each other as colleagues and friends before sparking up a romance was such a refreshing way to get to really know someone. When Covid hit and our office went remote, I went over to Jarrett’s house one day and kind of never left - we have been inseparable ever since. 

Why did you decide to get married where you did?

Travel has been a huge part of our relationship. It’s something that we both prioritize and brings us so much joy, and adventure and inspiration. We (and our friends and family) always knew that our wedding would be a destination wedding. We actually scouted in Mexico before narrowing down on Europe, and finally landing on Italy. We had taken a trip to Sicily together a few years prior and fell in love with the Italian way of life: the food, the architecture, the people, the dolce far niente of it all. I (Lexie) had been to northern Italy many years ago, and Jarrett had never had the pleasure. When we started our venue search, Tuscany came up and felt right. It was the perfect blend of relaxed yet chic, naturally beautiful without needing much fuss. Plus, if anything went very wrong, at least we would have Tuscan food and wine! We actually chose the venue sight unseen, only via pictures and videos online. 

We especially wanted to provide a one-of-a-kind experience for our friends and family coming all the way from Canada, the kind that you’re talking about many years later. We searched for a venue that could house our entire guest list for 2-3 days, all on the same property together. We wanted our people to arrive, unwind and connect with us and each other over the weekend and that’s exactly what we did! We frolicked around the estate barefoot all weekend to each other’s rooms, sang impromptu karaoke in the garden courtyard, and spent uninterrupted (quite literally, the wifi was non existent ha!) quality time with our loved ones.

How many guests did you have?

We had 35 guests. It ended up being the most perfect number, intimate enough where everyone left with really good new friends. Jarrett and I were able to spend time with each and every person, making it feel much more relaxed than your average wedding.

What was your budget? 

We naively had a very modest budget and let’s just say we exceeded it…by nearly double.

Tell us about your outfits.

My morning was spent getting ready in a butter yellow vintage nightgown that I had found the day before in Rome, for a grand total of 3 euro. I’m an avid thrifter and I knew I wanted to incorporate a vintage element into my wardrobe, so I was giddy to find this just the day before we left for the villa. 

My wedding dress was a top to bottom crochet lace gown, with a high neck, long sleeves, and a sexy open back. I never knew a dress could ooze such romance while showing little to no skin on its front. It exudes elegance with its vintage inspired lace and long sweeping train, along with matching veil. I had spotted the Daughters Of Simone dress much before we were ever engaged, and it spoke to me. I paired it with 4 inch Steve Madden satin block heels with bows on the straps, because short girls with tall husbands need all the help they can get. As my something blue, my sister gifted me a beautiful aquamarine ring and matching necklace, a family heirloom passed down from my grandmother, which completed my look. 

I loved my dress so much that I wasn’t sure if I’d do an after dinner outfit change, which ended up being an in-the-moment decision. This decision was heavily due to the out-of-season Italian heatwave that had seen 40 degrees celsius all day, so you could say I was happy to swap my long skin tight sleeves for a more breathable moment. I changed into a short, one sleeve asymmetrical dress by Mare Mare (sourced at Anthropologie weddings) to dance the night away. 

Jarrett wore a custom tailor made tuxedo, coupled with all of the classic accessories, bow tie, pocket square, cufflinks…etc along with black velvet loafers.

What was the most important aspect for you, in terms of planning your wedding?

The most important aspect to us was to stay true to ourselves, and not get swept up in the details, or let the outside world weigh too heavily on our decisions. When choices were overwhelming or we had a WTF-are-we-even-doing moment (planning a destination wedding remotely will do that for you), we’d try to come back to the why behind it all, which was to celebrate our love and becoming one. A big piece of it was having faith that we were very lucky, blessed people whose grandiose (sometimes crazy) plans always worked out for us in the end, and did they ever. The people we chose to work with had a major impact on this faith and execution, more to come on them.

Were there any elements that were important for you to incorporate?

Jarrett is our in-house chef at home, and we are known for his delicious dinners that bring our family and friends to our table (specifically, his Bolognese). Food was huge for us. We can confidently say that our own wedding food was the best wedding food we’ve ever had. Music was also very important, with a musician as a husband. We chose a duet that truly did it all: learning “Do you Realize” by the Flaming Lips on cello and guitar for my entrance down the aisle, singing classic Italian songs during our Aperitif, and DJing into the evening. Guest experience was also very top of mind for us during planning. We wanted to make sure our guests saw their return on investment ten fold. Part of that guest experience was having our dear friend officiate and marry us for our symbolic ceremony. 

Any tips for couples getting married?

Slow down, and enjoy the journey! Half of the joy is the build up and anticipation of planning a totally unique and beautiful event with your best friend. No wedding day will be flawless, and it’s actually in those small slip up/ unplanned moments that end up creating the sweetest and playful memories. 

Are there any vendors that you would like to tell us a little more about?

Honorable mention to Erica Markert and her team at Follia Delle Rose, our planners. From the moment we spoke, I knew we were in amazing hands. Erica’s exceptional guidance, attention to detail, creativity and eye for beauty truly made the process of planning our wedding abroad and the day itself a complete success. We’re so grateful to have found them!

Our photographers and videographers We.Wedding Photography and Three Seconds Film were so professional and lovely to work with, and delivered a stunning mix of film and digital photos as well as digital video that takes us right back in time. 

Spazio Floreale designed the flowers of our dreams. She took our brief of whimsical, Tuscan romanticism and brought it to life with a mix of whimsy seasonal flowers, vegetable strewn table scapes, and vintage candelabras. I had no words. 

Beats and Cello set the tone for the day with the wonderful and moving cello and guitar renditions of some of our favourites including our ceremony songs “Do you realize” by the Flaming Lips, “Wouldn’t it be nice” by The Beach Boys and Coldplay’s “The Scientist”. They continued on during cocktail hour as the Tuscan sun began to set and when the party started to come alive they kept the energy flowing and everyone danced until they literally couldn’t anymore. 

Anastasia Garba made me feel like myself but elevated, with the loveliest makeup and French twist. She is an expert at what she does. 

We hired a Tuscan painter, Patrizia Gozzini to bring our menus to life! We wanted our menus to be less disposable, and more art-like. Patrizia hand painted each menu which brought an air of elegance to the table. We’ll have this piece of art on display forever.

Photographer: We. Wedding Photography @we.weddingphotography | Planning, Styling & Design: 

Follia Delle Rose @folliadellerose | Flora: Spazio Floreale @spazio.floreale | Videographer: Three

Seconds Film @threeseconds_film | Ceremony & Reception Location: Villa Castelletto @villacastelletto_ | Celebrant: A friend | HMUA: Anastasia Garba @weddingstylist_garba | Cake, Catering & Beverages: 

Glicine @glicine_foodlab | Menus: Of Courses @ofcoursesmenu | Artist: Patrizia Gozzini @patriziagozzini | Entertainment: Beats & Cello @fixthemusic, @legioiedicesare_musicplanner | Ceremony Dress: Rituals of Love @ritualsoflovebridal, (Designer) Daughters of Simone @daughtersofsimone | Reception Dress: Mare Mare at Anthropologie Weddings @anthropologieweddings | Suit: Indochino @indochino | | Plates & Napkins: AF Opening @af_opening | Aperitif Silver Trays:  Ristorent @ristorent | Brass Trolley: Tableset Luxury Rentals @tablesetrentals | Engagement Ring: Evorden Jewellery @evordenjewellery | Wedding Rings: Cavalier Gastown @cavaliergastown | Shoes: Steve Madden @stevemadden | Ring: Vintage Aquamarine