Hannah & Jeremy

Elopements are something especially romantic, and when the scene is set in the beautiful seaside town of Ravelo, on Italy’s Alafi Coast, well we couldn’t be more inspired to share a tale! Hannah and Jeremy, share their life together in Italy and chose a celebration that in Jeremy’s words “was so happy that we could enjoy the day exactly as we wanted it, all about us, free from distractions and set up exactly as we had wanted”. Enlisting Gianluca & Mary Adovasio to capture the day as it unfolded, we couldn’t think of anything more special.

The lovebirds met at a party many moons ago, a budding romance completely unexpected for Hannah, who remembers “We met at Jeremy’s uncle’s 50th birthday party seven years ago. It was a New Year’s Eve Party at Dobroyd Sailing Club in Sydney. I was there with a friend and the theme was ‘fancy hat’. I was not expecting to find romance! The night I met Jeremy also met much of his extended family! We got along instantly and decided to meet up again soon after.”

The day kicked off with hair and makeup, thanks to Aussie in Italy, Zoe Graham.  “Our wedding day was very relaxed” remembers Hannah. “Gerardo, the local hairdresser, came by to do my hair followed by Zoe who did my make-up. Zoe is Australian and it was lovely to share a glass of champagne with her before the ceremony.”

Hannah and Jeremy enlisted Marry Me Abroad to plan their wedding from afar, noting “Lauren Cacciola from ‘Marry Me Abroad’ in Leichhardt planned our day and made sure we had our documents in order, venues booked and our assistant Anna waiting for us in Ravello. Lauren was a fantastic help and is very knowledgeable about getting married in Italy!”

Hannah and Jeremy exchanged words prior to the ceremony. “We had written each other a card to read beforehand, instead of vows, so we read those separately. My parents had also given me letters to read which was very special, it made it feel as though they were close-by.”

Hannah worked with Sydney designer Louise Alvarez Couture to create a chic, tea length wedding gown. She shares “Louise Alvarez designed my gorgeous dress and was delightful to work with. It was lovely to share the excitement of planning our wedding with her and her assistant Elisa (as we had decided to keep it a secret) so I looked forward to each fitting. They were very accommodating to my requests and I have had so many comments about my dress!”

Of their ceremony, which was held in Town Hall Gardens Ravello, Hannah explains  “Jeremy was waiting for me in the gardens and we had a beautiful ceremony delivered first in Italian and then in English. It was very simple and meaningful. The Italian civil code is very practical and emphasises the role of family, which is important to both of us. We were presented with a gift from the town official, a book about the history of Ravello which is a fantastic souvenir.”

“We met many great people during our time in Ravello. This includes those who made our wedding possible as well as locals and visitors who were keen to share in the happy event with their well wishes and glasses of champagne!” Hannah reminisces.

The newlyweds wandered the streets of Ravello with their photographers, stopping for champagne and gelato of course! The bride explaining “We used Gianluca and Mary Adovasio as our photographers. They are well-known in the area and shoot many weddings. Their photos were amazing and really captured the day!”

Gelato was the perfect aperitif for dinner, tells Hannah “We celebrated with drinks at Palazzo Avino and dinner at an excellent restaurant called Rossellini’s.”

And of course, this was just the beginning of the celebrations! Hannah sharing “When we arrived home we arranged a big party with our friends and family. We told our parents and siblings before we left but everyone else got a nice surprise. We weren’t planning a first dance at our party but our friends made sure it happened. We danced to “You Sexy Thing” by Hot Chocolate…be careful about joking to your friends about that, they made us do it!”

Congratulations Hannah and Jeremy! Thank you for sharing your beautiful day with us! Thank you also to Gianluca & Mary Adovasio and Louise Alvarez Couture for sharing today’s stunning day with us!