Italian Romance in Autumn at the Incomparable La Foce

[section title=”The Planning”]
[field title=”Wedding Colors”]

Since the wedding ceremony was to be held outside in a historic garden in October, we wanted to play into the beautiful cypress hedges surrounding La Foce’s enchanting estate, so we kept our color palette simple with a nod to our beloved Tuscany in sage green and white tones. The groom, Andrea Berti, was born and raised in a small village in Tuscany near Arezzo where his family still resides and has become home for the bride, Ann Wang, as well since we come back to visit at least once a year since 2015, so it only made sense for us to celebrate our love in a place that was meaningful to us both.

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[field title=”Design / Vibe / Vision”]

Because our venue, La Foce (@lafoce), was stunning in itself, it was really the only vision we needed to plan the rest of our wedding. It was actually the only venue we visited before we made our decision. The groom’s cousin’s husband’s brother recommended it during a chance encounter in town and since it was only about 40 minutes away from home, it made for an ideal location for the groom’s family and friends to get to. Additionally, the 3-day minimum requirement to rent the villa had the exact amount of rooms we were looking for for our family and bridal party to stay in and the perfect amount of days needed for our destination wedding. The estate conveniently had other properties available to rent nearby as well. Our remaining guests stayed at La Foce’s Palazzolo B&B, a farmhouse only 1km away from the main villa making it easy for the guests to get between the two points. Once the decision was made, it was easy to lean into a romantic Italian garden formal theme. We wanted to keep it simple but chic with a touch of Tuscan country charm. A total of 50 people including the bride and groom made for an ideal amount of guests for an intimate, fairytale wedding in an enchanting garden in the countryside. A welcome dinner was hosted on the first evening at the estate’s neighboring restaurant, Dopolavoro. Our photographer Sergio Sorrentino (@sergiosorrentino_photography) and videographer Katia Casprini (@katiacasprinifilms) captured portraits of the bride and the groom in the gardens as well as family portraits inside before heading to the restaurant. Finally, a farewell dinner was held at Podere il Casale, a charming farm-to-table restaurant in Pienza, a town in Siena that the couple frequents for its famous pecorino cheese.

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[field title=”Proposal Story”][/field]
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[board_carousel title=”Getting Ready”]

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[board_carousel title=”Bridal Portraits”]

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[board_carousel title=”Flat Lays”]

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[section title=”The Fashion”]
[field title=”Wedding Gown”]

The bride was previously a fashion editor at Hearst magazines and covered the bridal market at one point. A PR friend of mine kindly connected me with a friend of her’s at Theia @theiacouture who helped me find the dress of my dreams – something chic, effortless, and timeless – an off-the-shoulder crepe column dress with a detachable train that made me feel like an elegant Bridgerton queen. I added a cathedral-length veil with laser-cut satin floral petals and hand-sewn pearls to elevate the classic dress. I loved how light my dress was and that I was able to add a detachable train for a more dramatic look down the aisle of La Foce’s stunning garden without having to carry excess weight. I didn’t want to have to worry about traveling internationally hauling a dress around uncomfortably. To complete the look, I wore a matching pearl choker and bracelet set that my mother and both my sisters wore on their wedding day.

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[field title=”Bridesmaid Dresses”]

The bridesmaids wore complementing sage green and floral printed dresses mainly from Reformation in different styles and silhouettes paired with complimenting gold accessories.

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[field title=”Groomsman Attire”]

The groomsmen wore a classic black suit, white button-down shirt, black dress shoes, and matching black bow ties gifted from The Tie Bar (@thetiebar).

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[board_carousel title=”Wedding Party”]

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[board_carousel title=”Ceremony”]

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[board_carousel title=”Cocktail Hour”]

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[section title=”The Details”]
[field title=”Food & Drink”]We worked with a local caterer, Italian Taste (@italiantastelodovichi), who both catered and produced our big day. From the very beginning to the very end, they truly handled it all. They made the planning process for our destination wedding so easy, seamless, and stress-free – all at an extremely reasonable price point. Their services include a wedding coordinator/planner who will not only direct and produce your wedding day, but will work with you from the very beginning in your selection of setting and mise en place, furniture, lighting, menu, drinks, and cake.
During the cocktail hour, Aperol Spritz, Italian prosecco, rosé wine, and soft drinks were served as guests grazed from a variety of stations including a butcher station with cured meats, porchetta, hard Italian cheeses, fresh Italian vegetable tempura, a selection of traditional crostini and bruschette, oysters and shrimp crudité, meat and fish carpaccio, as well as traditional Tuscan finger foods such as panzanella, pappa al pomodoro, and minipinzimonio.
At the reception, glasses of Vermentino and Montalcino were poured as eggplant parmigianino with buffalo mozzarella, pachino tomatoes and basil pesto were served as the starter. Fresh, handmade pastas came next. Guests were able to choose either tortelli with ricotta and cedar with Piccadilly tomato fillets, burrata and Bronte pistachios, or papperdelle with wild boar, or both – with as many servings as you wished. The main course was a Florentine tagliata steak with rosemary alongside grilled vegetables and golden potatoes. After the cake cutting, sweet stations were added for the guests to enjoy between dancing and drinking. A chocolate tasting station and a grand buffet with fruit and cakes such as single servings of tiramisu, panna cotta, and torta della nonna spread alongside the dance floor next to the international open cocktail bar.[/field]
[field title=”Florals & Decor”]

We worked with Marisa at Le Petit Jardin (@lepetitjardinitaly) who went above and beyond turning our vision into a masterpiece, helping us create something we loved that worked well within our budget by repurposing our flowers from the ceremony to our reception. Sticking to our sage green and white color palette, we wanted in-season greenery and white florals to be incorporated and specifically, calla lilies for the bridal bouquet and groom buttonhole and baby’s breath for the bridesmaids’ bouquets. We also requested to incorporate olive leaves throughout to not only represent Tuscany but pay tribute to my husband’s late father who passed away unexpectedly 2 years ago on his beloved ranch where his olive trees were his pride and joy. Marisa took our inspiration and created a green and white floral composition that climbed up and around the stone altar. She then repurposed the ceremony flowers and utilized them for the reception room, tables, and cake-cutting moment. Marisa and her team also created beautiful invitations for us depicting La Foce’s stunning lower garden and altar, which added such a nice touch to the special details that were photographed throughout our wedding day.

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[field title=”Wedding Cake”]

Our wedding cake was a millefoglie made by our caterer Italian Taste – a traditional Italian wedding cake made of layers of puff pastry, chantilly cream, strawberries, and meringue. It was probably one of the best-tasting things we served at our wedding – I regret having only the bite my husband fed me when cutting the cake. The cake-cutting moment was also one of our favorite memories. After dinner, our caterer brought the cake out for us to decorate with strawberries and powdered sugar which we then turned into a fun activity for our nieces and nephew that brought everyone so much joy as the DJ set the vibes transitioning the reception into an after-party. We danced away as we decorated, cut, and passed out slices of millefoglie that magically disappeared in seconds. If I could eat one thing again from my wedding day, the cake would be it – a cake that was literally made with pure love.

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[field title=”Readings, Ceremony Music, Reception Songs”]

Because I love meaningful connections, we chose to work with Michele at Sorrento Live Music (@sorrentolivemusic) who also played at my twin sister’s wedding in Positano 7 years ago. It felt like a mini reunion for all of us – including our photographer, Sergio! For the ceremony, we went with a live violin and cello duo in acoustic who played, “Can’t Help Falling in Love” by Elvis Presley for the groom and bridal party’s entrance and “Perfect” by Ed Sheeran as the bride walked down the aisle. For the exit, I secretly chose my husband’s favorite song, “Bittersweet Symphony” by The Verve as a surprise for him. I actually completely forgot that I did – he lit up as we walked down the aisle and couldn’t believe his favorite song was playing and I couldn’t believe I forgot! The violin and cello duo continued to play live into the cocktail hour. Once the sun had set and guests were ushered indoors to The Orangerie where the reception was held, Michele and his partner played as a guitar and mandolin duo in acoustic, stopping table by table playing guests’ requests and keeping the energy alive throughout the evening. They weren’t just background music – they were true entertainers who joined people together in song, dance, and laughter. Once the cake-cutting moment began, the live DJ took over for the rest of the evening as everyone danced the night away.

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[field title=”Special Detail #1″]Our photographer, Sergio (@sergiosorrentino_photography), was also my twin sister’s wedding photographer and I always knew I wanted him to photograph my wedding some day. His work is impeccable and it felt so special knowing my twin sister and I get to share the same wedding photographer as we share so many things and are extremely close. Funnily, my twin sister’s name is Andrea and she is also married to an Italian man named Andrea. We love how bizarre it is that we ended up with Italian men with the same name, who we both met at work, who were our seniors. and who shared other comically identical qualities. Having Sergio be a part of both
our love stories was the cherry on top of the most magical wedding weekend that truly was a dream come true.[/field]
[field title=”Special Detail #2″][/field]
[field title=”Special Detail #3″][/field]
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[board_carousel title=”Couple Portraits”]

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[board_carousel title=”Reception”]

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[board_carousel title=”Wedding Weekend Events”]

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