Colletta di Castelbianco Wedding
When I received Alessandra's call, she told me that she had just received the marriage proposal. She and Andrea had heard good things about me, that is why they decided to entrust me with their vision. Andrea is a landscape architect, so he had already identified a Ligurian village as the perfect location for his wedding. The couple’s choice fell on Colletta di Castelbianco, a group of ancient houses that have been restored but, despite this, they have not lost their essence, ending up with representing a flagship of conservative restoration.
The Chiesa dell'Assunta, which hosted the wedding ceremony, is a beautiful example of Ligurian Baroque with a single nave, set on the main part of the hamlet. In Alessandra and Andrea's dreams, nature was the protagonist: hence the choice of using olive trees and foliage to decorate everything, from the church pews to the Atelier Emé wedding dress Alessandra chose, which featured embroidered olive blossoms!
A corner with aromatised waters was set up in the churchyard to allow guests to freshen up before the ceremony; as Andrea and Alessandra came out of the church as husband and wife, after the rice-throwing ritual, a first joyous toast was given and then off in procession to the reception.
The aperitif took place on the terraces of the village, each of which was used for a different type of show cooking. Upon arrival, guests found a comfortable bench where to sit in order to change their shoes.
The dinner location surprised even the newlyweds: an area usually employed for parking had been set up with a central imperial table and round tables around it; catenaries festively illuminated the whole area, while olive trees were placed here and there - and so a bare area became an incredibly atmospheric location.
To reach this area, guests were asked to follow a light path made of battery-operated spotlights projecting beams of light in various shades; the colour theme also returned in the naming of the tables, which were named after the various shades of green. The cake was instead set under a wisteria pergola embellished with a crystal chandelier.
Ph credits: Nicolò Puppo
