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Wild And Colorful Week Long Villa Spadaforte Wedding

December 22, 2022 | justine

Lulu and Laurens main goal during their wedding planning journey was to bring together their loved ones from all over the world so they could get to know one another better. And what better way to do that than in the Tuscan countryside surrounded by rolling hills and olive trees? With the help of their talented team of vendors, they pulled off a Villa Spadaforte wedding that was everything they’d envisioned and more. From the whimsical florals and enchanting decor down to the carefree vibe and action-packed weeklong itinerary.

For the ceremony, they chose a clearing in the woods and marked the altar with a vintage rug and gorgeous ground arrangements. It was then followed by a magical reception among the trees. It was a sight to behold as guests dined on a long table filled with lush florals and fruit, gold accents, and candles set under a canopy of string lights.

Right from the start, the pair knew they wanted to ditch tradition and inject meaningful additions to achieve a wedding that was truly them. The personal touches and the picturesque surroundings made their woodland affair spectacular, heartfelt, and unique. To see every gorgeous detail and memorable moment of this personality-packed celebration, keep scrolling through these gorgeous images captured by Junebug member Studio Fotografico Bacci.

The Couple:

Lulu and Laurens

The Wedding:

Villa Spadaforte, Tuscany, Italy

An Action Packed Week Long Villa Spadaforte Wedding

Villa Spadaforte is a newly renovated villa tucked away in the Tuscan countryside. Its classic Tuscan facade is juxtaposed against flawless landscaping, a beautiful turquoise pool, and a robot lawnmower with an unkempt forest on one side. We rented two villas in Tuscany for ten days—one for family and one for friends, and crossed our fingers and hoped that fate would take care of the rest. We considered that traveling to Tuscany just for a weekend wedding was a big ask for all of our friends and family. So we planned a week-long extravaganza including our baby’s first birthday party, an epic neon costume party, drag queen performances, wine tours, castle dinners, the Palio di Siena practice race, pool parties, rehearsal dinners, and finally, the wedding. 

Creating An Original Ceremony To Include All Their Loved Ones

We tried to find a way for all our family and friends to be part of the ceremony. Because of them, we exist, and they should be part of the celebration, not mere bystanders. We chose “Geronimo” by Sheppard as a relatable song that was easy enough to learn, dance to, and sing along. It also gave me goosebumps whenever I thought about dancing down the aisle. Everyone gathered in a standing semi-circle around Laurens, closing the entrance to the aisle. My uncle began the song, and everyone sang during the chorus. At a certain point in the music, the circle would open just a bit to let in a few wedding party members and close around them in a joyous embrace of song and dance. I waited outside the circle between my parents and danced towards my future husband. Our good friend Ross led the ceremony with laughter, sincerity, and inside jokes that only someone who truly “gets you” as a couple could make. After our vows and being pronounced man and wife, we slow danced to a song my uncle wrote for us. Except he mixed up my name with Laurens’ daughter’s name. So it was awkwardly romantic and hilarious at the same time. It was truly original and totally us.

The Inspiration Behind Their Villa Spadaforte Wedding

We never came up with a theme for our wedding. We just went with what felt right. But looking back, I think our theme would be “wild and colorful”. We wanted the flowers to look like they had been freshly picked from grandma’s garden. Big, messy, thorny, colorful, and raw with bold colors of violet, light blue, grapefruit and tangerine alongside blush, cream and gold undertones. Our florist was absolutely incredible. The only reason we had a florist in the first place was because of our planners. They started helping us plan our week-long wedding festivities three years in advance and facilitated the setup and breakdown of most of the events.

Making DIY Place Cards To Save On Wedding Costs

I wanted to save some money by making the place cards for the wedding dinner. So I designed them on Canva and then had them printed and delivered to us ahead of time. I then ordered some stamps and golden wax online. We picked some flowers from grandma’s garden months earlier and dried them. Then I had our daughter Lolah, and her childhood friend Valentina put the place cards together the day before the wedding. She adhered the dried flowers with the golden wax, and it looked absolutely amazing.

Advice From The Newlyweds

The most memorable part of the day was watching the sunrise over the Tuscan horizon with the last stragglers of the night. We sat around talking about life, parenting, and how tired we were from such a crazy week. So many experiences, so much love, and so many new friendships. As the sun rose that morning over the olive groves, I realized that we had done everything we set out to do, and now we could just sit back and relax. Our advice: plan your wedding around activities and things that fill you as a couple with joy and laughter. It’s easy to copy and paste traditions of the past, but it’s much more exciting to design your own.

The Wedding Team:

Photography – Studio Fotografico Bacci
Ceremony Venue – Villa Spadaforte

 

Congratulations to Lulu and Laurens on their wild and colorful week-long Villa Spadaforte wedding. And a big thank you to Junebug member Studio Fotografico Bacci for capturing all the spectacular moments and beautiful details. To see more gorgeous celebrations like this, check out their profile in our directory of the world’s best wedding photographers.

Your wedding should represent who you are as a couple—much like Lulu and Laurens.  Whether it’s through the venue, decor, or itinerary—the most memorable weddings are packed with creativity, personality, and authentic details that tell a story. To get started, check out our guide and this round-up of ideas and get your creative juices flowing.

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This Couple Transformed A Vinyl Pressing Facility Into Their Dream Asheville Wedding

December 21, 2022 | riley

From pandemic lockdowns to hurricanes, Susan and Madison faced quite a few challenges when planning their wedding. Initially hoping for a micro wedding in Scotland, the two had to stay closer to home due to COVID, opting for an Asheville wedding. But when Hurricane Ian was supposed to hit three days before their big day, they were forced to change plans yet again, leading them to their Citizen Vinyl nuptials that were effortlessly cool and casual.

Taking on most of the planning themselves, their special day was full of DIY touches. From signage to colorful pampas grass that acted as their ceremony backdrop to custom corn hole boards, every detail was carefully curated by the two newlyweds. Even their stunning wedding attire was custom-made by Angela Kim Couture–talk about unique! 

Despite all the changes, the vinyl pressing facility was turned into their dream wedding venue in a pinch. So if you’re looking for modern, colorful wedding inspiration or you can’t get enough of a good DIY project, you’re going to want to see these photos, all beautifully captured by Nathan Rivers Chesky.

The Couple:

Susan and Madison

The Wedding:

Citizen Vinyl, Asheville, North Carolina

Custom Coordinating Attire For Their Asheville Wedding

We were incredibly fortunate to have our dream wedding attire custom-made by Angela Kim Couture. Neither of us saw one another’s attire until our first look, but Angela made sure we coordinated, although we have two different styles. We worked with Angela for months iterating on our perfect fit, and we could not have been happier!

COVID And A Hurricane Changed Their Plans

After getting engaged in November of 2019, we had planned to have a destination wedding with a small group of family and friends in an estate in Scotland, but COVID interrupted those plans. However, we were incredibly grateful for the opportunity to be married in Asheville with even more family and friends by our side. Our original plans were an outdoor wedding with an incredible circle across a bridge, a pavilion for dinner, an open lawn area for yard games and food trucks, and a small amphitheater with a fire pit for s’mores and stargazing. We selected gem tones for our color palette, dried pampas and flowers, rich rugs, and soft seating areas strategically placed to have a warm cozy feeling among the beautiful fall landscape. Fast forward to three days before the wedding, and Hurricane Ian decides to make a path straight for Asheville. We were forced to move our wedding indoors and found Citizen Vinyl to host our event. We quickly sprinted into creative mode, where we transformed a vinyl pressing facility/coffee & cafe bar into our dream wedding.

Advice From The Couple

Plan, plan, plan. Ensure you book the food vendors you want months ahead of time. Always have a backup plan if your wedding is outdoors. Carefully interview wedding planners and make sure they are not just day of coordinators. And if you do select day of coordination, ensure they have enough staff to make your day effortless. Additionally, make sure you have time with your significant other (even just for 5 minutes) alone before the ceremony or immediately after just to be still in the moment as a married couple before joining all your loved ones. We will never forget that time right before our ceremony when we meditated and reflected upon our journey from then until now, living that moment in such gratitude that our day had finally arrived to be married.

The DIY Touches That Brought The Day Together

We DIY’d most of our favors and created our own signage and labels, but the thing we are most proud of is we DIY’d our own florals, from the large arrangements to the small ones. We procured all of our own dried pampas and flowers, candles and stands, all the decor, etc. We also made our invitations. Susan’s Dad also made custom corn hole boards with mountains landscape and custom ring toss games that were a huge hit at the wedding.

The Biggest Surprise Of The Day? Wedding Crashers

We had wedding crashers! We have always heard about this but didn’t know if it really happens, but we can verify it does. There was a sign outside Citizen Vinyl that said “Closed for Private Event,” yet two (what appeared to be tourists) waltzed into our reception, proceeded to visit the pretzel cart, and began shoving pretzels in their mouths. When approached by our officiant and asked, “So which one of the brides are you here for?” they both quickly looked at one another and said, “Both?” Our officiant knew immediately they were wedding crashers and politely asked them to leave. They had to be asked several times with some sternness but finally left. Madison and I saw them leaving, and they did not look happy. We laughed and were amused, and it makes a great story and memory!

The Wedding Team:

Photography + Videography – Nathan Rivers Chesky
Venue – Citizen Vinyl
Catering – Sweet Cheeseus
Cake – Karen Donatelli Cakes
Snacks – Bluntz Pretzels + Asheville Charcuterie Co
DJ – Mixology
Hair Styling – Natalie Webb
Wedding Attire – Angela Kim Couture
Rings – Lauren B Jewelry
Rentals – Indigo Rentals

 

Congratulations again to Susan and Madison on their Citizen Vinyl Asheville wedding! We’re so thankful that Nathan Rivers Chesky was there to capture the beauty of the day. If you’re looking to add some DIY touches to your own special day just like these two, be sure to check out our DIY wedding guide to help you nail yours!

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What You Need To Know About Engagement Ring Insurance

December 20, 2022 | kailey

Engagement rings are a tangible representation of your forever love—so you want to ensure they last that long. When you pop the question, odds are you’re not thinking about all the potential “oopsie” moments that could happen. We’re talking about it getting lost, stolen, or even damaged. And while the sentimental value is irreplaceable, you can protect yourself by securing engagement ring insurance. 

If you’re not sure where to start, we’ve got you covered. From pricing to company options, here’s everything you need to know about purchasing engagement ring insurance. 

Engagement Ring Insurance Options 

Deciding to purchase insurance for your engagement ring is the easy part. The rest of the details are a little unclear. That’s where we come in. Here are two avenues you can take when  choosing an insurance provider: 

1. ​​Homeowner’s or Renter’s Insurance

If you have homeowner’s or renter’s insurance, your first option is to add your engagement ring to your policy. It’s important to keep in mind that most companies will have a limit of liability in place. This means they will only cover your item up to a certain price point. Typically the max price range caps off at $1500, and if your ring comes with a higher price tag, you might require more coverage—bringing us to option two. 

2. Specialized Jewelry Insurance Companies

Maybe you don’t have homeowner’s or renter’s insurance. Or perhaps you don’t want to risk changing your current premium (cost of the insurance paid monthly or annually). If you find yourself in either of these positions, there are a variety of companies that specialize in jewelry insurance specifically. These companies typically don’t have a limit and offer more customizable insurance options. 

Jewelry Insurance Companies To Consider 

If you’re looking into insurance companies that specialize in jewelry, you’ll have to find a company that meets your needs. You’ll want to consider pricing, limit of liability, claim processing, and so much more. Those critical details can be challenging to focus on when you’re met with a long, overwhelming list of company names on Google. 

To help limit your search time, we’ve rounded up some of the top-rated jewelry insurance companies you should consider: 

Average Engagement Ring Insurance Costs

The cost of engagement ring insurance will differ from person to person (or ring to ring), much like any insurance. Some of the factors that affect the price include where you live, your deductible choice (the amount of money you have to pay to file a claim), and the value of the ring. According to Jewelers Mutual, you can expect that insuring your engagement ring will cost 1-2% of its value. 

Example: 

If your engagement ring is $10,000, you can expect to pay (roughly) $100 a year for insurance. 

When Should You Purchase Engagement Ring Insurance? 

Picture this: you’ve purchased your engagement ring just in time to pop the question on your next vacation. You pack your bags, hiding the ring inside. You hop on the plane, but your bags never reach their destination. This scenario is exactly why sooner is always better when purchasing insurance. 

The second you purchase the ring, secure insurance. This will make sure you’re protected every step of the way. 

What Documents Are Required?

In order to insure your engagement ring, you’ll need to prove its value. You can prove purchase value by submitting any sales receipts that you have. If you don’t have a receipt—if your ring has been passed down or gifted—you’ll need to get an appraisal. This is an official document that places a value on your ring in the present day. 

You know everything that goes into insuring an engagement ring. Now it’s time to actually hunt down the ring. If you’re feeling lost about finding the perfect symbol of your love, check out this engagement ring guide. 

Image by Angelo Latorre.

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