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An Artistic Italian Wedding in Sicily

An Artistic Italian Wedding in Sicily

A seaside celebration evocative of Boticelli's “Birth of Venus”

An Art-Inspired Italian Wedding in Sicily

Tatiana and Alvin's wedding was a breathtaking celebration of art, romance, and natural beauty, inspired by Botticelli’s iconic painting, The Birth of Venus. Set against the stunning backdrop of Tonnara di Scopello, a historic estate in the charming town of Scopello, Sicily, their special day felt like a masterpiece come to life. Perched above the sparkling Tyrrhenian Sea, the venue offered an enchanting blend of ancient architecture and dramatic coastal views. Tatiana was a vision of grace in a strapless gown by Danielle Frankel, crafted from pleated and hand-crinkled silk wool, perfectly capturing the ethereal essence of the couple’s inspiration.

An Art-Inspired Italian Wedding in Sicily

Our Love Story

^{The Day We Met}

We met in San Francisco in late 2018, and we went to a neighborhood spot called Dandelion Chocolate on Valencia Street. There was this kind of instant chemistry, and we both felt like we had a special connection. We talked about so many things that night: product design, our love for Scandinavian culture, and wanting to live in New York one day. Little did we know that all of these things would manifest in our lives one day.

^{The Proposal}

Alvin proposed in Copenhagen, one of our favorite cities. He got the ring about 2 months before our trip, and spent a ton of time planning a super special moment. He proposed at the most architecturally stunning spot, a church called Grundtvig’s Kirke which has amazing expressionist architecture. It was one of the most special moments ever.

^{The Engagement Ring}

The ring is from an incredible designer from LA named Sofia Kaman. It’s an oval champagne diamond with a hidden halo, and the band of the ring forms part of the compass prongs. We both love it so much. We got the wedding band from Sofia Kaman as well, and we went with a knife’s edge ring.

Our Wedding

^{The Vision}

Our inspiration for the wedding was Botticelli’s painting “Birth of Venus”. We knew we wanted to get married somewhere right on the water in Italy, with amazing views and Italian seafood. We both have a background in design, so getting the colors, mood board, and other details was really important to us. Likewise, we ended up custom-building our wedding website together, which was also really fun.

^{Our Team of Vendors}

We could not have pulled this off without the Gather Girls. They crushed every aspect of bringing our dream wedding to life.

^{The Location}

Our wedding was at Tonnara di Scopello, a historic estate nested on a sparkling limestone cove in the town of Scopello, Sicily. Scopello is an enchanting seaside village overlooking the Tyrrhenian Sea, with sweeping views of the dramatic rocky coastline and surrounding hillsides. We instantly fell in love with the venue when we first came across it, and we knew we had to make it happen.

An Art-Inspired Italian Wedding in Sicily

^{The Ceremony}

This was our favorite part of the day. Exchanging our vows and rings surrounded by so much love was surreal. One of our best friends, Michelle, beautifully officiated our wedding, and her Cult Gaia dress perfectly complimented the flowers.

^{The Reception}

Our reception was the dinner party of our dreams. During cocktail hour, we had seafood stations, and during dinner, we had the most spectacular pasta party with four courses of pasta! Still dreaming of the busiatr con gamberi.

An Art-Inspired Italian Wedding in Sicily

^{The Special Touches}

We have a magnificently fluffy Siberian cat named Cleo, who sadly wasn’t able to make the trip out, as her fur coat is far too thick for the hot Sicilian sun. We designed a few special touches to make it feel like she was there, including Birth of Venus inspired graphics with Cleo as Venus, which were printed on cocktail napkins and turned into a “Club Cleo” neon light for the wedding after-party.

^{Our Favorite Moment}

Tonnara di Scopello has a private beach right in front of an iconic pair of faraglioni. On the morning of our wedding, we went for a last swim together in the crystal clear water. It was an amazing way to start the day before we said our goodbyes until the ceremony.

Our Style

^{The Bridal Looks}

Because my middle name is Pearl, I always dreamed of wearing something silky, luminous, and reminiscent of sea on my wedding day. When I began my dress search, I was inspired by my favorite painting, Botticelli’s Birth of Venus, and hoped I’d find a dress with some Botticell-esque elements.

I found exactly what I was looking for at Danielle Frankel. My dress was strapless, made of pleated and hand-crinkled silk wool that made me feel like a shimmering pearl stepping out of the sea. We custom-designed the back to form two peaks that gently scooped down, like the curves of a seashell, that brought my whole vision together.

I loved my wedding dress so much that I hoped I’d want to wear it all night, but I also knew I was going to be dancing until sunrise, so I wanted to bring a dress that I knew would be much easier to dance in. The dress code for our guests was Sunset Colors, and I found the cutest sparkly, beaded Staud dress that looked like a sun setting (or rising!) over the ocean.

^{The Groom Looks}

Alvin wore a Nanushka crochet shirt and seersucker trousers from Stòffa for the welcome party. On the wedding day, he wore a custom gray suit from The Armoury and a vintage Cartier Cristallor watch. And for the after-party, he changed into a fun and comfortable Issey Miyake outfit.

Our Advice

^{For The Planning Process}

Become best friends with your planner. We loved every moment working with Cuckie from Gather Events, we felt like she really understood us, and we totally trusted her judgement. Lean into the experience in the areas you feel called to. We had so much fun personalizing many little details – our place cards and our petal bar – but only personalized moments that felt right to us. Be like Alvin and finish your vows before you arrive at your wedding destination!

An Art-Inspired Italian Wedding in Sicily

^{For On The Day}

Do what you want to do, not what you’re “supposed” to do! One of our favorite parts of the whole day was spending the morning together to go for a swim.

^{For Post-Wedding}

The morning after our wedding, we went up the hill to Hotel La Tavernetta for a pool party, and later in the day, we went on a boat outing to Zingaro Nature Reserve to celebrate the birthday of our friend and officiant, Michelle. We loved having a day to do something fun and relaxing before we took off on our honeymoon!