Yana & Alexander

Goals:

to organize an intimate ceremony for only two in a mix of discreet Sicilian and garden wedding style.

The guys planned to get legally married in Russia, to celebrate the event with relatives and friends, and afterwards to combine a honeymoon with an elopement in Sicily. They purchased the elopement package “Magic Sicily” (click the link to see what was included).

Preparations:

For Yana and Alexander, a symbolic ceremony was organized in a private garden on the volcano Etna slope with photo shooting in 3 locations by the sea, including the charismatic Arab-Norman castle at Aci Castello. In the decor of the venue, I used some classical elements (transparent veil of the arch, classic white roses) with Sicilian style decor: white Moors heads, lemons, yellow and white lisianthus and fragrant eucalyptus with leaves in the form of hearts. White candles and garlands created an intimate atmosphere during a personalized ceremony with my branded unity sand ritual during sunset.

The bride’s bouquet was created to suit the general decor style with the addition of delicate pale pink roses in contrast to the burgundy callas which highlighted the bride’s personality. The bride did not want to use too many strong colours, but at the same time, she wanted Sicilian particularity and a lot, a lot of greenery. Therefore, the choice of the white, more neutral, traditional Sicilian flower pots “Head of the Moor” for the decor of the site was very successful and fit perfectly into the context.

According to the concept of the wedding, the rings holder was painted by local artists in Sicilian style with stylized lemons and greens. The rings were put on olives collected in the garden, where the ceremony was held. After all, it was the beginning of September, a month before the start of the vendemmia and the collection of the first crops, before the extraction of the first olive oil from olives from the slopes of the largest active volcano in Europe!

Result:

I will not forget this couple for a long time. That sparkling energy, openness and tender soul of the bride, jokes and esprit of the groom. And when they get together, it’s just become holly “fire”, worse than the Etna’s one. Thank you for your trust and those emotions you gifted me during the planning.

P.S. During the writing of the personalised text of the ceremony, some magic happened, as a result of which not two, but three persons took part in the ceremony in Sicily :). The final chord was Alexander’s joke about the fact that they felt the fertility of Sicily and of the mt Etna particularly  already in Moscow while preparing for the wedding)

Planning, officiant, decor and flowers: Etnamare Wedding and events, Anastasia Leonova in Carastro

Photographer: Tatiana Costantino

Venue : Etnamare secret garden