Moody Tuscan Wedding With A Blush & Ruby Palette
No setting seems more fitting for a moody Tuscan wedding than an old stone borgo nestled amidst sun-kissed hills. And Nick and Mallory took this classic Italian aesthetic in their stride, enlivening the landscape with tones of blush and ruby that suited their own styles and love story exquisitely. Weddings in Tuscany brought their Anna Leibovitz-esque vision to life through a rustic chic ceremony framed with fluffy plumes of pampas grass to an al fresco family-style reception with no shortage of ambient light. And yes. There was, of course, a stallion standing guard at the borgo to level up the already spectacular portraits from Quattro Studio (in a way that only Italian stallions can.) As for the floral artistry? Count on Chiara Sperti to deliver sculptural arrangements with just the right balance of interest and timelessness. Bottom line: Nick and Mallory’s moody Tuscan wedding was plucked straight from the pages of a storybook, and we want to give this one prime placement on our shelves. Ready to see what we mean?
Nick and Mallory grew up in the same town Chadds Ford, about 45 minutes outside of Philadelphia, in Chester County, PA. They were elementary school classmates and graduated from high school together. They both attended the same college in Philadelphia where they eventually became close friends. After a year of friendship, they started dating. Eight years later, Nick proposed on their favorite holiday – Halloween.
From the Couple, Mallory & Nick: We began brainstorming ideas for our ideal wedding shortly after our engagement. We both love and value travel, and since we are both from Italian-American families, we really started daydreaming about having a small, intimate destination wedding in Tuscany. A wedding seemed to be the perfect opportunity to plan a trip and experience Italy with our closest families and friends. So, we floated the idea to those closest to us, and got everyone on board. So, I (Mallory) started researching wedding planners based in Tuscany. In my first search, I found luxury wedding planner, Chiara Sernesi, of Weddings in Tuscany. I reached out and we scheduled a Skype call to talk details. In our first meeting with Chiara, we fell in love and knew she was the perfect choice. She invited us out to Florence two months later to get started on scouting locations and meeting with vendors.
On that initial trip, Chiara and her team connected us with most of our amazing vendors. I was fortunate enough to find our incredible videographers and photographers on Instagram, so we jumped on booking them as well. During that trip we also selected the location and venue for our wedding weekend: Borgo Di Castelvecchio, in Val D’Orcia. The Borgo had everything we could have ever wanted, plus some. Classic Tuscan villa architecture, three pools, sprawling views, amazing accommodations… plus the countryside and the onsite equestrian center reminded us so much of home.
We got the availability options from the Borgo and selected our date – August 1, 2020. Flash forward one year later, it’s early March of 2020 and the world goes into lock down. Like the rest of the world, we held out hope that COVID-19 would end as quickly as it started. It wasn’t until about late April that we decided to postpone the wedding. Heartbroken but still hopeful, we pushed the wedding off almost exactly a year later – our new date was August 7, 2021. To our excitement, most of our original vendors were available for the new date and kindly agreed to reschedule us. Chiara and her team graciously worked with us for an additional year to ensure that we still had our day – they worked tirelessly to make sure it was even better than we had been planning in the year prior.
In the year that followed, we worked so hard to ensure that our wedding could take place. We and our 32 guests prioritized every safety requirement and adapted to fulfill any and all travel mandates. Everyone’s efforts paid off in the end, as we all made it safely and happily from the East Coast to Tuscany that first week of August 2021. We FINALLY were married after 10 years together.
The wedding weekend was absolutely perfect. From the classic pizza party welcome dinner, to the relaxed mornings by the pools, to our amazing wedding ceremony, the exquisite coursed dinner, the all nighter dance party, and the amazing goodbye brunch, the experience couldn’t have been more worth the wait.
We are so incredibly thankful for Chiara and Weddings in Tuscany. She and her team made everything possible for us. Their willingness to help us plan for that additional year during Covid touched us deeply. We felt so supported and taken care of! Not only are they amazing and meticulous in their work, but they are a group of the sweetest, most lovely women you’ll ever have the pleasure of working with. They made sure to work with our style to curate a vibe that most accurately reflected us as a couple; their eye for detail and design is perfection. We just love them!!
To take a cue from Moira Rose, we are absolutely bedeviled with in-house meetings about how this moody Tuscan wedding sets the precedent for destination weddings to come. Don’t worry. We’ve already done our homework on the best wedding venues in Italy to help you get started with making these Italian wedding dreams a reality. So start here, then let Nick and Mallory’s classic Tuscan aesthetic lead the way for all things design inspiration to follow!
Wedding Vendors:
Planning and design: Weddings in Tuscany
Florals: Chiara Sperti Floral Events
Venue: Borgo Di Castelvecchio
Photography: Quattro Studio
Video: Anker Prod
Catering: Galateo Ricevementi
Music: Homeward Duo
DJ: Fabio Dex
Hair & Makeup: Giulia Cresci
Bridal gown: Pronovias
Reception Gown: Fame and Partners
Bridal Jewels: Jennifer Behr, Alexis Russell, Desideria Collection
Shoes: Stuart Weitzman
Bridesmaids: BHLDN
Groom: Suit Supply
Groomsmen: Mango Man