[:en]Same Sex wedding in Italy - Danilo and Paolo[:]

I am so emotional about the wedding I am about to show you. Not only it was my first same sex wedding in Italy, it is also special to me for so many other reasons. It was this June, the 25th, a very hot day, on the beautiful cliffs of Riviera Ligure, when I had the honor to assist Danilo and Paolo in making their dream wedding come to life. It was also Pride day… could a date be more perfect?

In the months preceding the wedding I worked side by side with them to complete the project they were already putting together, but that they were having a hard time refining, since living in Germany. During our phone calls, emails, frequent Skype calls, I grew fonder and fonder of these two. Participating to their wedding, though the job was quite a challenge, felt like attending an old friend’s celebration. Danilo and Paolo, or Dan and Paul, as their friends call them, are a super madly in love couple of artists, of gentle and considerate, fun and loving people. Their love for one another is so pure that I cannot define them anything else than soulmates. And their love must be contagious, because it felt like it was spreading through their guests like a happy virus.

They had a spiritual ceremony in the morning, attended by about 100 guests coming from all over Europe, followed by a lunch in the shadow of the villa’s terraces overlooking the sea. Later, an afternoon of relax and surprises and music and emotional speeches went by in the blink of an eye. A snack at sunset and a wild dance party that went on and on at night ended such a beautiful day.

Their venue was a very picturesque restaurant on the side of a hill in the Italian Riviera Ligure, Il Paradiso di Manu in Noli, with a fantastic view over the Tirrenian sea. The theme for the day was simply what defines Danilo and Paolo: some nods to India and their yoga practice, happy colors, delicate flowers, rich fabrics, simplicity and elegance. Dan and Paul had purchased most of the decor, I put some finishing touches and styled it all for them.

The best thing about this day was the emotion and the love in the air: between the grooms and between them and their loved ones, it was such a joyful and emotional atmosphere. I can’t describe it so well, bit the pictures from Carla Penoncelli and the video from 2become1 do a better job. Grab some tissues!

What I know is that I am so proud of having made these two happy and that I am so grateful that I have had the chance to know and have them in my life somehow. Love you guys!