Set before a backdrop of verdant olive groves, the lovebirds’ wedding  in Puglia at Masseria San Giovanni was a light-hearted and fun-filled affair. The goal was to offer their guests not only a weekend getaway but a lavish celebration that was filled with dancing, music and great energy. The soul mates exchanged vows in front of Masseria San Giovanni ‘s charming ancient chapel adorned with roses in blush and cream hues, the bride glowing in a dreamy Kaviar Gauche gown.

After inspecting around 15 properties last year in August, Masseria San Giovanni was our most favourite wedding venue in Puglia and everything we had hoped for. A modern farmhouse with whitewashed walls surrounded by olive trees and a cute little citrus garden. Masseria San Giovanni has been recently renovated combining Apulian tradition with a contemporary design and offered enough versatile entertaining spaces within the venue itself. It was important for us to have different locations for all our festivities to keep it dynamic and exciting for our guests – from our Apulian welcome evening on Friday in the olive tree garden by the pool, to the ceremony in front of Masseria San Giovanni ‘s little chapel, to the aperitivo on the rooftop terrace, followed by a reception dinner beneath a nostalgic vaulted ceiling inside the masseria and the party under the Apulian sky. Fun fact: Masseria San Giovanni is owned by famous Italian actor Raoul Bova. We didn’t know him, but all our Italian friends love him (especially the ladies)! 🙂

I always thought that the reception and the party afterwards was going to be the best part of the day. But despite the fact that I was so nervous about the exchange of our vows and that it started to rain shortly before the ceremony (we needed to delay it by an hour) this was my most favorite moment of the day. Standing in front of all our friends and family, feeling their love and our deep love for each other, was incredibly magical. The readings during the ceremony and also the speeches in the evening were such unforgettable and emotional moments which I will cherish forever.

the dress.

I accessorized with a Kaviar Gauche chapel-length veil, Givenchy heels, and baby’s breath pearl earrings by 14/QUATORZE.

We had dreamt of a laid-back pre-wedding get together at Masseria San Giovanni where we could truly embrace the Apulian atmosphere, so the garden around the pool set within with beautiful olive groves was the perfect setting to kick off the wedding festivities. Our Apulian Welcome Evening was a colourful celebration of the region with pink and yellow pop of colours. I wanted to keep it simple on Friday, so our wedding planner Alessandra and I did a DIY décor consisting of bougainvillea and lemons. We also used lemon leaves to decorate the pasta live cooking station and the Aperol Spritz stand which were both such lovely elements to emphasize the Apulian vibe and showcase local dishes that were famous from the region. For a relaxed atmosphere, we had picnic blankets that we styled with cushions in burgundy, yellow and cream complementing our colour theme. As dusk set in, candles and torches were lit around the pool and underneath the ancient olive tree. Also, our wedding favours were DIY; we gave our guests personalized bottles of limoncello that we made ourselves following an original recipe from an Italian friend. For the dress code, we chose “Dress fabulously in white or floral print”, which was fun and matched the vibe perfectly!

On the wedding day, we envisioned the style to be romantic with modern sophistication. We worked with florist Chiara Sperti who I absolutely adore for her aesthetics and innovative floral designs. When Anne from Kreativ Wedding showed me the breathtaking flower set up in front of the little chapel on camera, it was so surreal. I couldn’t quite grasp that this was OUR wedding! Chiara and her team created a dreamy installation of muted roses, dahlias and luminous lunaria ascending from the ground into a unique shape, that complemented the charm of the chapel perfectly. Each rose was carefully opened and rolled by hand to create the delicate look. The ceremony with all of its deep emotions and the fairytale setting surrounding us was truly magical!

In the evening, I desired a tablescape that epitomized contemporary romance – warm and inviting at the same time. The colour palette of soft hues comprised of smoked blush and cream set a consistent theme,  from the invites to the ceremony, through to the meticulous decor and embellishments of our evening dinner. To elevate the look for the reception dinner we introduced dark accents and added texture through customised elements such as precious silk napkins by Allegoria Textiles and handcrafted artisan ceramics. Tall black candles lined the centre of the long table, accompanied by versatile floral arrangements in variant heights, consisting of cappuccino and quicksand roses, black anthurium and cafe au lait dahlia. The compositions were paired with unique dried flowers and foliage such as bushy bunny tails, unexpected fern, cascading white amaranthus and ruscus, grouped with fresh local figs for a structural and ethereal look. What Chiara together with Alessandra created, exceeded my wildest dreams: a poetic balance of romantic elegance and bold simplicity – it looked incredible!

We had our wedding bands made by our friend who owns Ayura. We have the exact same rings engraved with our wedding date and a little love message; clean bands in rose gold so I can wear it together with my engagement ring without being too much “bling”. Tobi also designed my beautiful engagement ring with Ayura, an oval diamond set in a rose gold double band. Ayura not only creates the most unique designs but is also able to source the highest quality stones at a fraction of the cost compared to the bigger jewellery brands, highly recommended! 

Having each our own company, we allowed ourselves for the first time in years to take a long vacation and travelled around Italy and Greece for four weeks right after the wedding. Our first stop was Capri where our friends crashed our honeymoon. We rented a boat and spent the days relaxing on the water and unwinding at La Fontelina, followed by a few days at the Amalfi Coast eating pasta and drinking Aperol spritz all day long. As we got engaged in Santorini this couldn’t be missing on our honeymoon and so we spent a few amazing weeks hopping around the Greek islands. It was incredible, we haven’t been that relaxed in years! I’ve shared all my honeymoon tips in The Ultimate Capri Travel Guide and The Ultimate Mykonos Travel Guide, and shared more personal travel inspiration on my Instagram account @phineloves. 

Feel the vibe of our dream wedding in Puglia at Masseria San Giovanni with this amazing teaser by Julia & Gil.