Jodie and Mike List, both from New Zealand but living in London, met over a game of football with friends on Clapham Common five years ago.
Once engaged the thought of going home for the wedding and planning everything from the UK seemed seriously stressful so instead, on the advice of a friend, they asked Erica Bellini, wedding organiser for Tuscan Dreams, to create the perfect week away for themselves and their friends in Italy.
Jodie says: “The main objective was to have a relaxing enjoyable week with everyone, including our parents, family and our friends. We haven’t had the opportunity to spend that amount of time with everyone for years so it was fantastic.
“My bridesmaids insisted on bringing over a suitcase full of pink fur items form New Zealand but apart from that the whole experience was so much better than we ever imagined possible!”
The couple held a beautiful reception and four course dinner for 50 people at the Villa Gambassi in Tuscany following their wedding in the grounds with an Italian priest. Babysitters were on hand for those who needed one for the evening disco and the cost included a personal hairdresser; beautician, fabulous flowers, heaps of outdoor candles and a photographer.
Erica Bellini, who has organised more than 150 weddings, says: “Jodie and Mike were a dream to work with, very relaxed and great fun. We arranged a wine tasting evening with canapés the night before the wedding and made sure everything went smoothly on the day, which of course it did”.