Serena & Andrew’s Elegant Wedding at Villa Cetinale: A Story of Love, Craftsmanship, and Unexpected Drama

Love Story

Picture this: a crowded party, two painfully shy people, and that moment when the rest of the world just... disappears. That's exactly what happened when Serena and Andrew first locked eyes across a friend's living room.

"We are both very shy but somehow managed to keep the conversation with each other," Serena remembers. "It was as if every other guest at the party disappeared and it was just the two of us in the apartment." Talk about movie magic, right? Andrew, clearly smitten, didn't waste any time asking her out on a proper date. Three years of dating later, they made it official with a courthouse wedding in 2020. But here's the thing – COVID had other plans for their dream celebration. Four years. Four whole years they waited to have the wedding they'd always imagined.

When proposal time rolled around, Andrew kept it beautifully simple. No flash mobs, no skywriting – just him, Serena, and their two dogs at home. "It was a quiet and private affair, just us and our two dogs," she says. "I knew it was coming as we had gone to choose my engagement ring together, but seeing Andrew down on one knee with the ring still brought happy tears to my eyes."

These days, they're the definition of power couple goals. Serena's crushing it as a manager at a consulting company while Andrew's running the show as an engineering manager at a transportation tech company. When they're not conquering the corporate world, you'll find Serena with her hands in some creative project – knitting, sewing, painting, or getting dirt under her nails in the garden. Andrew? He's either gaming or shooting hoops.

About Your Wedding

Serena and Andrew knew exactly what they wanted. "We wanted a classy and timeless wedding, and we wanted it to be a very intimate wedding so we can spend quality time with all our guests." Villa Cetinale in Siena, Italy became their stage on April 20, 2024. Nineteen guests – that's it. Just their absolute favorite humans flying halfway across the world to witness their love story.

Two years of planning went into this masterpiece, and boy, was it worth the wait. The morning kicked off with something pretty special – a traditional Chinese tea ceremony where they served their elders and soaked up some serious marriage wisdom. Their vibe? Three words: timeless, elegant, classy. No trendy colors that'll look dated in five years, no gimmicky details. Just pure, sophisticated romance.

Morning Details

Let's talk about a bride who doesn't mess around. Serena designed every single piece of stationery herself. "From the envelope liners to the details card, I did everything," she says with the kind of pride that comes from serious DIY skills.

Wedding rings? They kept it refreshingly simple. "Just wanted something simple and timeless," they decided. No giant rocks, no complicated settings – just bands that would look as perfect in 50 years as they do today.

But here's where it gets emotional. Serena wore a bracelet engraved with their dog's name – the one who passed away in 2023. She also layered on a tennis bracelet and earrings she'd been collecting over the years. "For the tea ceremony, I was given some gold jewelry as is tradition," she adds, because honoring family traditions? That's everything.

Bride Getting Ready

Hold onto your hats, because this is where Serena becomes absolutely legendary. She didn't just buy a dress – she MADE her dress. From scratch. With silk organza shipped from Korea. "I designed and sewed my own wedding dress," she explains. What happened next is the stuff of wedding nightmares and dreams simultaneously. "I sewed day and night for all of those 3 weeks and finished the dress right before we left for our flight. It was very stressful and challenging, but the sense of accomplishment I felt was unbeatable." THREE WEEKS. She made her wedding dress in three weeks while probably also dealing with all the other wedding chaos. This woman is unstoppable.

Oh, and the veil? Also handmade. "It was very simple as I did not want it to distract from the dress," she notes. She finished the look with Amina Muaddi shoes because when you've hand-sewn perfection, you need footwear that can keep up.

Getting ready happened at the villa with all the ladies together, which sounds like the kind of morning every bride dreams of. Her bouquet featured peonies – her favorite flower that also happens to symbolize wealth, honor, prosperity, and romance in Chinese culture. Stiatti Fiori knocked it out of the park, creating what Serena calls "the most elegant flower bouquet."

Groom Getting Ready

Andrew kept things classic with a tuxedo from The Black Tux. Smart move when your bride is wearing a hand-sewn masterpiece – let her have all the spotlight. He had his getting ready shoot at the villa too, surrounded by his guys. Sometimes the best preparation is just good company and maybe a drink or two to calm those pre-ceremony nerves.

Tea Ceremony

Ceremony

The cypress alley at Villa Cetinale set the scene – imagine the most romantic tree-lined aisle you've ever seen, times a million. Serena chose "Yellow" by Coldplay for her walk down the aisle, accompanied by her nieces as flower girls (in dresses she made, because OF COURSE she did) and her nephew as ring bearer.

But Mother Nature had her own plans for this wedding. "The weather forecast kept changing leading up to the wedding. It was initially going to rain the day before, but the rain only came on our wedding day," Serena recalls. Here's where their love story gets genuinely cinematic. "We were trying to get through the ceremony before the rain came, but as we were halfway through exchanging our vows, the rain and thunder started. It was very dramatic and added to the atmosphere. We were all drenched but we will forever remember that moment!"

Andrew's take? "We saw each other during the ceremony. It was very windy and rain clouds were coming in, and Serena's veil was flying from the wind. It was incredible seeing her in her handmade dress, knowing how much time and effort she put into making it. I had seen the dress as she was making it, but had never seen it on her and with her full look. She was beautiful and I felt like the luckiest man alive."

Meanwhile, Serena was having her own moment: "I was relieved I made it down the aisle, and after putting off our wedding ceremony for 4 years, we were finally there! Andrew cleaned up very well and looked so dashing. He also looked very nervous!"

But beyond the dramatic weather, what really made their ceremony special was simpler and more profound. "Seeing the most important people in our lives all together. We were very thankful everyone traveled from so far away just to celebrate our love!"

Honestly? Getting soaked during your vows sounds like the kind of story you'd tell at every anniversary dinner for the rest of your lives. Pure magic.

Photoshoot After The Ceremony

Rain-soaked and radiantly happy, they moved to the villa's gardens for portraits. Sometimes the best photos happen when everything goes slightly wrong – the raw emotion, the "we just survived a thunderstorm during our vows" adrenaline, the pure joy of finally being married. These shots probably captured something you can't plan for – authentic, unfiltered happiness.

Wedding Venue & Decor

Here's how you know you've found The One (venue, not groom – though that too): "The venue! I sewed my own wedding dress, and once I knew what design I was going for, I knew I had to find a venue that was fitting," Serena explains.

Their venue hunt was refreshingly straightforward. "We knew we wanted a destination wedding, and we just searched for classy, elegant garden wedding venues. The cypress alley at Villa Cetinale was one of the first photos that popped up, and I knew that was it. Once I had the dress and venue in mind, everything else came easy!"

Practical meets dreamy: "I wanted a venue that could sleep all of our guests. That was the priority. The vintage, classy and elegant vibes of the venue also fit the vision of my dress and wedding."

Green dominated their color palette, which was genius – it played beautifully with the natural Italian landscape and never competed with the villa's inherent beauty.

One detail that'll give you all the feels: Serena wore Tabacco Toscano perfume from Officina Profumo-Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella in Florence. "We had gotten a candle with the same scent during our previous trip to Florence. We light that candle often in our home now and it immediately transports us back to our wedding day!"

Reception

Their first dance song? "Baby I'm Yours" by Arctic Monkeys. Perfect choice for a couple who clearly belongs together. Galateo Ricevimenti Firenze handled the feast, but the real showstopper was their wedding cake situation. Forget multi-tiered fondant sculptures – they went full Italian with a millefoglie made fresh in front of their guests. "Everyone agrees it is the best wedding cake they've had," Serena says, and honestly, watching your wedding cake being made live sounds infinitely cool.

When the rain crashed their outdoor party, their vendor team didn't miss a beat. “Everyone was so professional and efficient. Nobody was fazed by the rain and were able to go to plan B and set up our dinner and dance party indoors effortlessly! I loved every single one of our vendors."

Speaking of that dream team – photographer Elisabetta Marzetti and videographer Giulio Cantarella are apparently award-winning legends who "made us look like we belong on a cover of a magazine!" Their hair and makeup artist Giulia literally helped dry Serena's dress with a hairdryer after the ceremony downpour, which is the kind of above-and-beyond service that makes a wedding day.

Wedding planner Roberta Pizzinelli at Alfresco Wedding handled the weather curveballs like a champ, and the whole crew at Wedding Music & Lights kept the party going despite Mother Nature's dramatic intervention.

This intimate Italian celebration proves that sometimes the best weddings happen when you throw the rulebook out the window, embrace the chaos, and remember that at the end of the day, you're marrying your best friend. Rain, thunderstorms, and all – it's just another chapter in your love story.