A Bold Multi-Day Wedding by the Seaside in Ischia, Italy

High above the shimmering waters of Ischia, Declan and Lorna’s wedding felt instinctively woven into its surroundings – a celebration where bold design, color, and atmosphere moved in effortless harmony. Leaning into the venue’s signature blue-and-white stripes, the couple built a bold visual language of layered blues punctuated with striking flashes of red, woven seamlessly through florals, stationery, and even the cake. Guests arrived by boat to a dockside ceremony that blurred the line between celebration and everyday island life, with the sea quite literally becoming part of the moment. Lorna’s bridal look echoed this balance of drama and restraint: a sculptural silk ball gown, reworked with subtle couture touches, styled with a statement veil and modern accessories that shifted effortlessly into evening. The atmosphere moved with intention – from sun-drenched aperitivo hour to an intimate, candlelit dinner overlooking the water, and into a high-energy, joy-filled party. Captured by THE WED member Sarah from Sarbo Studio, every frame reflects a wedding that felt unique, visually compelling, and romantic.

Our Love Story

^{The Day We Met}

We met on a night out on December 2nd, 2017, in a local bar in our hometown in Ireland. Declan had just moved back to Ireland a few months earlier for a new job—his family had moved there from London when he was a teenager, but he left after finishing school and spent most of his adult life in the UK. The funny thing is, his family lived just down the road from where I grew up. His sister is around my age, with lots of the same friends, yet somehow we’d never met before. Over the years, we’ve realised we have so many mutual connections—it’s wild we didn’t cross paths sooner.

^{The Proposal}

Declan proposed in London on the 27th of May, 2023—the day after my 28th birthday (to throw me off the scent). He booked a surprise birthday boat trip down the Thames, but when he insisted on putting a blazer on in 30-degree weather, I knew something was going on. Sure enough, as we sailed down the Thames past our apartment at the time (the first home we shared) towards Westminster on a gorgeous Italian speedboat, Declan proposed. It was such a special and intimate moment!

^{The Engagement Ring}

The ring is from Berganza in London, which is an absolute treasure trove of the most incredible vintage and antique jewellery. It’s a vintage five-stone ring, with an octagonal emerald-cut diamond centre stone, from circa the 1970s, but with a very Art Deco feel. I have a real love for jewellery, and rings in particular. I hadn’t tried on engagement rings before, but I knew I wanted something special, and Declan was aware of that. So, he proposed with a token ring, and we chose my forever ring together after the engagement. I found my wedding band by accident in Berganza on the first day I tried on wedding dresses with my mum. It is an antique Victorian sapphire and diamond five-stone ring from the 1890s.

Our Wedding

^{The Vision}

Our vision was to create a wedding weekend that celebrated not only our relationship, but also the friendships and family connections that shape our lives. We wanted everything to feel deeply personal, intentional, and unmistakably us—something rooted in place, full of character, and a little unexpected. From the very beginning, every decision was guided by one simple question: Have I seen this before? Rather than impose a look onto the venue, we wanted the wedding to feel like it truly belonged there. The restaurant space featured blue-and-white striped cushions, and instead of replacing them, we chose to embrace them. That became the starting point for our bold and slightly unusual color palette. We leaned fully into blue—blue tablecloths, a blue aisle, and soft blue draping in the ceremony space. Instead of pairing it with something predictable like yellow or orange, we introduced a strong, contrasting red. That pop of red ran through every detail: the florals and tablescape, my bouquet, the stationery, the cornicellos on our table plan for guests to take home, and even the cherries on top of the wedding cake. The result was a look that felt a little vintage, local, and expressive—bold but considered, playful yet grounded in place.

^{Our Team of Vendors}

I had a really clear vision for the day and meticulously thought through every visual detail, and we were so lucky to have some incredible vendors who helped bring that to life. In particular, our wedding planner, Roberto, who never took longer than an hour to respond to our queries, helped deal with lots of logistical challenges thrown at us during the planning process—planning a wedding on an island is no joke! The music and entertainment made the day feel like a party from the very beginning. I’m also huge on memories, and as a photographer and content creator myself, photo and video were super important to me. We had the most incredible team—Sarah and Bowen from Sarbo Studio for photography and videography, who outdid themselves, as well as Aine Leech from The Wedding Content Company, who was our content creator. I can’t express how special it is to wake up the morning after your wedding and have a folder filled with photos and video clips from the day—if you are even slightly considering booking a content creator, do it!

^{The Location}

We decided on Italy pretty early on. We wanted somewhere near water, with beautiful views and incredible food, where we could spend a few days celebrating with the people who mean the most to us. I spent months researching venues all around Italy when I came across Ischia. We’ve since fallen in love with the charm of the island and the people who live there. The experience for our guests was always at the forefront of our minds in planning, and we loved the idea of them experiencing a place for the first time together. We visited Giardino Eden on our first trip to the island and instantly fell in love. It’s a family-owned and run venue with incredible views over the Bay of Cartaromana and Castello Aragonese, an icon of the island. Day-to-day, it is a beach club and restaurant, but its deck, which sits directly over the water, creates the most incredible atmosphere for a wedding.

^{The Ceremony}

When we had to change our ceremony location just one month before the wedding, it initially felt daunting—but it ended up being one of those moments where everything aligns. During the winter season, our reception venue built a new dock area over the water, and they generously allowed us to use it as our ceremony space. From the very beginning of our venue search, my dream had been to get married on a dock, pier, or somewhere overlooking the ocean, so in many ways it felt like a return to the original vision. The change allowed our ceremony styling to become even more bold and beautiful. We decided to bring our guests to the venue by boat, which made for an incredibly special and memorable arrival. As we said our vows, locals floated in the water nearby, smiling, laughing, and clapping as they watched our entire ceremony—something that felt slightly comical in the moment, but has since become one of those unforgettable core memories we’ll laugh about forever.

^{The Cocktail Hour}

Our cocktail hour took place between the dock at Giardino Eden and the pool area, with Aperol Spritz flowing and a sax player setting the tone. Declan and I slipped away with our photographer and videographer and took a vintage Beetle (which I had arrived in with my dad). We drove through the streets of Ischia Ponte to get some quick photos before jumping into an Italian speedboat—an ode to our engagement—and making our way back to the venue. Our guests lined the dock as we arrived, and we couldn’t wait to get the party started. We moved up toward the pool, where tables had been set up, piled high with delicious Italian canapés for our guests to enjoy.

^{The Reception}

The reception was held in the restaurant area of Giardino Eden. The space felt small and intimate, with the backdrop of the sea behind us during sunset. Tablescaping for our reception was bold, with blue tablecloths to match the striped cushions of the venue and sculptural arrangements of red flowers and vegetables. The menus and name cards were made by me, and the napkins were sourced and styled in a way that was still impactful without the need for plates or chargers. Our planner suggested placing the table numbers on cornicellos, tying them back to the personalised cornicellos used on our table plan—one of those small details we loved. The venue uses locally sourced produce, and every piece of food was incredible, from rich bolognese to lobster pasta, seabass, and herb-crusted steak. Between courses, there were tears, laughter, and so many heartfelt moments. The speeches were incredibly special and are memories we’ll carry with us forever.

^{The Special Touches}

From the type of flowers to the tablescaping, I obsessed over every little detail of the day. I truly believe those small details are what can make an experience extra special. I decided to design and make many of the items myself—the stationery: personalised welcome magazines, menus, and beer mats for our welcome party, as well as the order-of-service fans, menus, and name cards for the wedding day. I designed custom scarves for the women and pocket squares for the men and had them printed as wedding favours. I wanted guests to have something they could use again—and could throw over their shoulders to keep warm in the evening if the temperature dropped. For our seating chart, we had everyone’s name printed onto a cornicello, which is a local lucky charm. Each person picked theirs up on the way to their table—it was another small way of embracing the local culture. I also had recovery bags printed and had a production line of family members on our balcony two days before the wedding, helping me fill each of them! We surprised our guests with fireworks during the cake cutting—an unforgettable moment. I couldn’t believe how perfectly the cake had turned out. We chose a local dessert, delizie al limone, arranged to resemble a traditional cake, with a cherry placed on each one to subtly tie back to our red color theme.

^{Our Favorite Moment}

Right after dinner, the party began immediately. On the dance floor, there was a moment when we were both lifted into the air by our friends. We were beaming at each other while also looking out at the people we love most in the world, all together in one place, in the most extraordinary setting. It was one of those rare moments where time seemed to stand still—chaos and joy all at the same time. We’ve both said since that it was a special kind of happiness—the kind you wish you could bottle forever.

Our Style

^{The Bridal Looks}

For my wedding look, I wore The Remi by Moira Hughes dress, which I found with Kirstin at The One by Sinead Corcoran in Dublin. I thought I would go for a corseted, form-fitting dress (as did everyone else), and I initially had zero interest in a ball gown. But I loved the raw silk look of Remi and the layered fabric on the hips—it had vintage elements I loved but still felt contemporary and modern. We added some padding to the hips to make the pleats more defined and paired it with a custom, dramatic layered veil and earrings from SOH Vintage. The look was finished with a Simone Rocha Pearl Egg Bag and Jimmy Choo Amita 85 Slingbacks.

Before dinner, we removed the veil and added the neck scarf. Right before our first dance, I changed into a shorter party dress with drop pearl details from Rosie Etienne. My hairstylist, Danielle, and makeup artist, Brefnie, were incredible—I flew them in from Ireland, and it was one of the best decisions I made. They made me feel so beautiful and created the calmest morning. My welcome party look was the Darling Gown from DATT, and I went with a high-waisted bikini with a chunky gold belt detail and a knit cover-up for our recovery party.

^{The Groom Looks}

Declan’s wedding suit and shirts were custom-made by Joe from Colwill Tailoring in London. His shoes were from Duke and Dexter. Initially, he was going to wear a blue shirt with the suit but decided against it, so he changed into that blue shirt for the evening. His blue welcome party suit came from Suitsupply.

^{Our Bridesmaids’ & Groomsmen’s Looks}

I wanted my bridesmaids to feel just as amazing as I did on the day. My vision was to have them in something form-fitting with a sheer shawl layer over their chest and shoulders. I came across an incredible Australian brand called ByHer, who have beautiful skirt-and-corset sets and neck scarves. We brought the vision to life by tacking the neck scarves to the back of the corsets on the wedding morning. Declan had his sister as his best woman, and it was really important to me that she matched both the groomsmen and the bridesmaids. So Yianna matched the color of the groomsmen’s suits to create a custom option for her. I had their bouquets be the same flower as mine, but in an off-white color.

Our Advice

^{For the Planning Process}

Try to be uniquely you. It’s easy to feel pressure and confusion from social media and people’s opinions on how the day should run and who should be involved in what. Book your suppliers as soon as possible! You will likely face challenges, mishaps, and stressful moments during your planning process (we certainly did), but trust that everything will work out on the day—you won’t even miss the things you worried about so much in the lead-up.

^{For On The Day}

You can prepare everything, but when the day comes, stop, let it happen, and enjoy the experience. At one point, we were around an hour and a half behind schedule, but you can’t get stressed when plans change—let go and trust that you’ll still have the best wedding experience.

^{For Post-Wedding}

Take time for just the two of you. We spent the days after with our family and friends, which was an incredible way to come down from the high of the weekend. But if you can, take some time just for yourselves. We spent a few days in Capri and Sorrento, and it was the perfect way to stay in our bubble and relive all the magical moments.