An Outdoor Wedding at California’s Rancho Sol del Pacifico
When Davide presented Laura with a ring box on her birthday, she balked. Doesn’t he know it’s not nice to give a girl a ring unless it’s the ring? she thought to herself. “Then I looked over at him and saw his face, and I realized that he was about to propose,” she says. “It was the happiest surprise of my life.”
The engagement ring was not just any ring—it was a gift from Davide’s grandmother, who asked that he one day present it to his future wife. “She looked at me and I just simply expressed my biggest wish: Do you want to spend the rest of your life with me?” he recalls. “Those were the longest three seconds of my life waiting for her reply, but she said yes.”
The couple’s Malibu, California wedding would be as intimate and romantic as Davide’s proposal. Held at the Rancho Sol del Pacifico, the couple’s ceremony offered a sweeping view of the Pacific Ocean from its mountain-top perch. “One of the first decisions that we made was that we would get married in Southern California and share the beauty of the place where we have made our home together,” Laura says.
Surrounded by lush greens and grounds in bloom, the bride and groom “kept the decor natural and soft,” Laura says. A dramatic arch was draped in sheer white fabric and locally-grown dahlias, statice and amaranth, while wildflowers were tied with ribbon to white chairs.
At 5 p.m., the bride’s father, Frank, walked her down an aisle that was lined with white rose petals.
The couple exchanged rings purchased in Davide’s hometown of Torino, Italy. “We have each other’s names and the wedding date engraved on the inside of the rings,” Laura says.
The couple said their wedding vows in both English and Italian. “For my husband, it was really touching to hear those few sentences spoken in his native language,” Laura recalls.
“My husband and I wrote the entire ceremony together—with some advice from our Reverend—and it was the most special part of the entire wedding for us both,” the bride says. “We wanted the ceremony to be very intimate and reflect our personal feelings, hopes and promises for our future.”
Laura sought “elegance and simplicity” when it came to her wedding dress—and she found it in layered organza gown from Watters. “My favorite element of the gown was the way all of the layers seemed to float when I walked and danced,” Laura says. “And it moved beautifully in the wind during the outdoor ceremony.”
The bride also wore “a charm bracelet from my grandma that all of the brides in my family wear, and small white roses in my hair,” she says.
Three bridesmaids wore full-length chiffon dresses from The Dessy Group “in a color called suede rose,” the bride says.
“I imagined that the bouquets would look like we had just picked them from the most beautiful field of wildflowers,” the bride says of her purple and white bouquet made of stock, larkspur and snapdragons.
The couple’s four-year-old niece, Mia, served as their flower girl. “She practiced at home with feathers, so she did a wonderful job and placed each petal one by one on the ground,” Laura recalls.
The groom and his groomsmen sported navy blue suits and wore white gardenias on their lapels. Davide’s French-cuff shirt was pinned with Hermes cufflinks.
The couple’s 75 guests signed an iGuestbook on the pair’s iPad. “The guests could take their own pictures and write us a little note as they arrived,” Laura explains.
“We wanted everything to be simple and elegant—white linens with a classic table setting and Chivari chairs,” Laura says of their reception decor. Hydrangea and geranium filled round centerpieces, while the bride and groom “tucked a wildflower into each napkin fold and placed a wedding favor at each setting.”
Pierre’s Catering served filet mignon and barramundi fish with orange sauce for dinner. The meal was “a combination of buffet and served courses,” the bride says.
Refreshing mint and basil martinis were served alongside hors d’oeuvres, including grilled kobe beef and spicy sashimi tuna, the bride says.
The bride describes their reception as “very festive, lovely and intimate.” White lanterns hung in the courtyard where the reception was held.
The couple’s three-tiered white wedding cake “had an accident as it was being delivered to the venue,” the bride says. “When it arrived, my mom told me that it resembled a mountain of mashed potatoes.” Family members rushed to the rescue, adding flowers from the bridesmaids’ bouquets to cover the cake’s newfound flaws.
The couple’s fete ended with Kyle Andrews’ You Always Make Me Smile. “Everyone was dancing and passing around bottles of Champagne,” the bride recalls.
—Jillian Kramer
Ceremony Venue: Rancho Sol del Pacifico || Reception Venue: Rancho Sol del Pacifico || Bride’s Wedding Dress: Watters || Bride’s Shoes: Capezio || Groom’s Tux: Etro || Bridesmaids’ Dresses: The Dessy Group || Flower Girl Dress: Gap || Florist: Flour LA, Inc. || Caterer: Pierre’s Catering || Stationery: Bella Figura || Cake Baker: Sweet and Saucy Shop || Rentals: Pierre’s Catering || Entertainment: Dash Entertainment || Photography: Beautiful Day Photography