Canadian citizen getting married in Italy.

Town hall of Siena

Photo by Edoardo Agresti

Couples celebrating a civil wedding in Italy are surprised at the stateliness of the civil ceremony. The Representative of the state wearing the traditional Italian red, white and green sash reads the articles of law governing the rights and responsibilities of married couples in Italian and is simultaneously translated into English.

Irish legal requirements for civil wedding in Italy

Irish wedding in Italy

Couples getting legally married in Italy are amazed at the stateliness of the civil ceremony. The Representative of the state wearing the traditional Italian red, white and green sash reads the articles of law governing the rights and responsibilities of married couples in Italian and is simultaneously translated into English.

Brazilian blow dry

A couple of weeks ago I discovered a revelation in hair care which will change how I care for my hair forever!

Treviso Airport

Photo by Adrian Pingstone.

Treviso airport is going to be closed in the summer of 2011 for essential runway maintenance and possibly the installation of technology which will allow landings in heavy fog. Those of you who fly in to Treviso during the winter will be jumping for joy at the prospect of no diversions to airports on the other side of the country. Unfortunately those of you who have their wedding booked in the months of June, July and August (possibly September) and have plans to use Treviso airport for your guests, will be effected by this closure.

Favourite stilettos or torture device...

Ever leave a bar or a club after a night of dancing and festivities in your favourite stilettos only to find your feet feel as if they've been smashed bruised and as if you have been walking on fire?

Catholic wedding in Italy

photo by Marco Ficili

The final location test for your destination wedding is making sure that you can not only be legally married there but that the Church permits foreigners to get married there!

Italy is predominantly a Catholic country and as such you would expect that the Catholic Church would have one rule throughout the land, unfortunately you are forgetting this is Italy!

Designer wedding dresses on a budget

Today as I web dreamed I came across a site for almost new wedding dresses, perfect for brides on a budget but who dreams of that perfect Caroline Castigliano; Amanda Wakeley; Jenny Packham; Suzanne Neville or Vera Wang wedding dress... 

Click here for more information.

Italian wedding tradition

I have been told that there is a age old tradition in Italy of brides wearing green, which is apparently a colour of fertility, the night before their wedding. So if you are planning your wedding in Italy or you are marrying in to an Italian family or maybe you are an Italian bride... why not bow to Italian wedding traditions and go green!

Keira Knightley in "Atonment''

American legal requirements for citizens getting married in Italy

Photo by Alfonso Longobardi

Paperwork Required for US Citizens getting marry in Italy

Katie and Ben's engagement photos

I have had the honour of working with Katie at The Italian Wedding Planner and she is one of the kindest, full of fun, hardworking, intelligent people I have ever had on my team. Now back in the USA Katie is in the throes of organising her wedding to Ben.

Winter wedding's in Italy

Amanda Holden's winter wedding

Weddings in Italy are predominately in the summer. People think warm weather, al fresco dinning, summer dresses etc, but in recent years we have been called in to help organise and design winter weddings in Italy.

Guide to a weekend long extravaganza!

photo courtesy Thorsen Photography

Hosting your wedding in Italy allows you to offer your family and friends a fun filled mini holiday! Remember it's no longer just a wedding -- it's a weekend-long extravaganza. Here's a Friday to Sunday guide to keeping guests out of trouble.

Dawn and Darren part 2

The wedding of Darren and Dawn in the heart of the Prosseco region...

British citizens getting married in Italy

Civil ceremony in Italy

Photo by Joanne Dunn

Couples getting legally married in Italy are amazed at the stateliness of the civil ceremony. The Representative of the state wearing the traditional Italian red, white and green sash reads the articles of law governing the rights and responsibilities of married couples in Italian and is simultaneously translated into English.

Kate & Neil: the Trailer

Kate & Neil: the Trailer

Our fantastic videographer put together this trailer for Kate and Neil after their wedding in Tuscany last week as a little joke. It has made us all laugh here at The Italian Wedding Planner so I am delighted to share it with you. Please click on the trailer link to watch this preview.Enjoy!

Classic Italian style!

After MANY MANY years together Dawn and Darren finally walked down the aisle!
In a weekend celebration they kept the focus firmly on why they were there. Making a decision to invest their energies in the things that are important to them and have managed to cement themselves in my mind as the couple who’s wedding day was not only a true reflection of their personalities but very much about their commitment to each other in front of their friends and families. It was a honour to have translated at their wedding and to have been a part of their very personal weekend of food, wine and much laughter!

Flower girls

Daisy Champagne Baby Bridesmaid Dress

Flower girls always brings up the dilemma of what to dress these little tots in that allows them to run around ( you try stop them!) and look angelic...

Long tables ideas

Apparently one of the biggest trends this year is for hosting your wedding meal on one long table...

Words of wisdom from a past Bride

It is another beautiful day here in Italy and this morning a recieved an lovely e-mail from one of our brides guiding me to the following post:

Wedding in Tuscany

Hi everyone, we have just returned from our weddingmoon in Italy! WOW I can not say enough to describe how totally awesome it was!! I want to pass on some words of wisdom:

THE DESTINATION GUEST

Information packs for your wedding in Italy

Your wedding guests are the most important people in your life. They will be there to witness one of the most memorable moments of your lives and celebrate with you afterward. For couples celebrating their marriage in Italy and have invite guests from all over the globe will have “Destination Guests”. It is not a common term, but that is precisely what they are. Why not make the experience even more exceptional for those that travel the distance to be part of your special day?

Bride ideas and frock ups!

When Amanda Lockhart, Susannah Frieze and the wonderful Sim Canetty-Clarke  published their book last year I was delighted. Full of funny stories and stunning photographs!

A must read for any bride to be!

http://www.brideideasandfrockups.com/

Jenny Packham Brides

A Jenny Packham bride radiant in the Tuscan sunshine...

Many congratulations Peter and Kate who were married last Saturday near Siena....

Viva la sposa!: Kelly Hayes The Italian wedding planner

Viva la sposa!: Kelly Hayes The Italian wedding planner

Kelly Hayes The Italian wedding planner

A small selection of photos of past weddings in Italy that make me smile!  Hope you enjoy!

Cocktails!

With the wedding season well and truly under way there are evenings when I enjoy sitting in my garden relaxing in the hammock sipping a summer cocktail!

Compliments of  web coist

Personally for weddings in Italy I think it is best to stick with Prosecco for the welcome cocktails and offer a selection of fun cocktails for after dinner when the dancing starts and you will need to quench your thirst! It also sets the scene for a kicking off your shoes and letting your hair down!

Brides just want to have fun!

I just adore this trend of matching a pair of beautiful heels with your wedding dress, but I am a shoe girl! So just in case  you need a reasons to buy a pair of jaw dropping stunning bridal shoes...

Short wedding dresses

www.pronovias.com

2010 / 2011 short wedding dresses are voguish in every manner thereby pleasing the number of brides for a wide variety of reasons. It can range from the very obvious convenience to the wedding dress cost. Whatever may be the reason the result is the ever increasing fondness of the short wedding dress styles. To your delight there are number of wedding gown designers who have dedicated an entire line of bridal dresses to it.

Wedding dress trends for 2011

www.verawangonweddings.com

2011 might seem like a long way off, but bridal gown designers are already hard at work creating the beautiful styles which brides next year will all be coveting. Set to debut in a few months, the first crop of 2011 gowns are embellished with many dimensional details, lots of hand stitched crystals, and large floral appliqués. Take a sneak peek into the romantic style of the latest wedding gown trends.

15 good reasons to get married in Italy

                                          Wedding's in Italy

I read the following list in Joanne Dunn’s wedding photographer’s blog and well could not have put it better so I am borrowing it!


15 good reasons to get married in Italy...
1. Weddings are an institution in Italy and therefore are super organised. Large Italian weddings are notorious all over the world (they take their traditions with them where ever they go). So everybody from wedding planners, venues, hairdressers and florists work a lot. Practise makes perfect and so it’s safe to say Italy offers some of the world’s finest wedding service providers.

Italian weddings... Curiosities and superstitions

The Italian wedding planner

Italy has a very long history and with every region maintaining their own traditions there are many to choose from should you wish to incorporate some in to your wedding day in Italy.

Why get married in Italy?

Maybe the question should not be why you should go to Italy, the birthplace of the phrase la dolce vita (the sweet life), but where in this country of art, ancient history, ethereal vistas, top-notch cuisine, and abundant wine (Italy leads the world with more than four million acres of vineyards) is the ideal destination for you!

                                                                       photo by Edoardo Agresti  

Caroline Castigliano ~ A New Website and a Bespoke Wedding Dress Giveaway!

### Hot Off The Press ###
Caroline Castigliano, internationally renowned designer of luxurious bridal and evening gowns,  unveils her new website, http://www.carolinecastigliano.co.uk/.

SAVE THE DATE CARDS!

WINSLET SAVE THE DATE CARDS BY EB1 WEDDING INVITATIONS

Sending out 'Save the Date' cards to your guests are a wonderful way to generate excitement and, most importantly, allow your loved ones plenty of time to make arrangements to share in your special day. Especially important for friends and family who will be traveling to your wedding in Italy, Save the Dates encourage travelers to take advantage of travel deals, book flights, and make any other necessary plans sooner than later.

Wedding in Treviso part 1

 Wedding in Treviso part 1!
Sue and James celebrated their civil marriage in the town hall of Treviso before traveling to a nearby castle for part 2 of their marriage ceremony!

Wedding in Amalfi

Tiffany and Mike were married in a very romantic ceremony on the Amalfi coast

   

All photo's taken by Kelly Hayes

   

Wedding in Siena

Janine and Ashley were married in a beautiful ceremony in Siena followed by a lavish reception in a Tuscan castle... 

Janine and Ashley were married on a beautiful summer’s day in my favorite Tuscan city of Siena.

Wedding in Venice

Molly and Dave were married in the beautiful city of Venice

Beautiful wedding photography in Italy

Photographers...

Almost as important as the wedding itself, quality wedding photographs help your memories last a lifetime. Long after the ceremony is over and as you spend the rest of your lives together, you'll gaze fondly at the pictures taken on your wedding day. You'll want photos to share with friends and family, to display in your home, and to fill your wedding album which you may share with future generations...

Since photographs are such an important and lasting keepsake, you want them handled well. With such an important occasion as your wedding, you cannot afford any slipups, mistakes, or mishaps. Poorly taken wedding photographs are not just a disappointment; they can ruin your chances of revisiting the many beautiful details of your wedding day, long after your memory has begun to fade.

Over the years we have composed a list of wonderful photographers. We like to create a TEAM with solid and trusted partners and all the photographers we recommend have a long and successful relationship with us: we enjoy their friendship as much as we love their photos!

Photo by Sim

Kelly Hayes The Italian Wedding Planner

I have lived and worked in Italy since 2004. I set up the business in June 2005 and have rapidly increased our profile in the wedding industry here in Italy not only by hard work, but mostly by being so passionate about what we do.

I started by thinking about why I wanted to jump off my career path in the UK. And the conclusion I came to was that I had lost the passion for what I was doing.

Then I thought about what made me feel passionate – and I decided that anything to do with people and organising really excited me. Anything to do with weddings appealed to my romantic side and anything to do with Italy makes me happy.

I had seen friends, colleagues and associates rushing around like mad things planning their weddings and not always getting ‘stuff’ done. I heard so many people complaining there just weren’t enough hours in the day. And I also noticed that people getting married in Italy found it a minefield of paperwork on top of the stress of dealing with Italians and their unique quirky ways!

I knew I couldn’t physically make the day longer, make the paperwork go away or make the Italians work faster. But I could offer practical help. Someone to do everything for them, organise things, make things happen; someone who they could trust 100% and who had a passion for getting things right – first time, every time; someone who was not going to put mark up’s on the quotes but who would be honest with them and work to organise their wedding as if it were my own.

With a father who was an executive head chef and mother a florist, I feel as if I have grown up in this business, managing 'on-the-day' is what I have done my whole life. My passion for the designing and planning never dims; add to this, my cheeky side and my outspoken and honest nature...and you can be sure I get the job done with ease and a smile. My team and I excel at it... it gives us a buzz. And so the ideas develop…

We believe every wedding is unique and it is for this reason we do not offer ‘wedding packages’. We help the bride and groom achieve a wedding day that is as unique as they are. 
 

As a wedding planner it is not about my personal style, it is about being able to recognise the style, tastes and wishes of any prospective couple and bring them into being. Consequently my styling may sometimes be very traditional; other times I may style a wedding in a modern and contemporary manner. If I had to sum up my preferred style for a wedding I would say: elegant, simple and timeless.
Italy the perfect backdrop for your wedding all year round...