A destination wedding in Sicily
This summer I was lucky enough to travel to Sicily to work on the wedding of Irene Forte. When I pivioted my business from editorial to bridal I could never imagined I’d get to work on such an incredible job. I share details of this extra special day below.
The pandemic meant that for many brides their plans were disrupted. Irene Forte is a skincare entrepreneur who tied the know in a small ceremony in London in 2020. Super stylish in a bridal suit, Irene’s makeup look was created by karina Constantine who has acted as something of a mentor to me.
The Venue
Irene’s father, Sir Rocco Forte, is a hotelier, so Irene took the opportunity to have a larger celebration, nearly a year to the day after her first nuptials, at her family’s Verdura Resort, with a Catholic service beforehand. This time, Irene opted for and early evening church ceremony, followed by a huge reception at her father’s resort. Guests included VIP friends of the couple including Princess Eugenie and Cressida Bonas.
The wedding day
For the lavish day, Irene wore a stunning organdy gown with puff sleeves and a floral print from designer Luisa Beccaria, who is a friend of the bride. She also wore an antique veil that was originally Irene’s great-grandmother’s and had been worn by her mother, aunt, sister and grandmother.
Only a few weeks prior to the event, a space opened up in the hair and makeup team from the original London wedding and Karina asked me to join. I was whisked off to Sicily for a long weekend to create a natural makeup look for nine of Irene’s bridesmaids.
The bridemaids
The bridesmaids all wore full-length gowns which were designed by the bride’s mother. All dresses picked up on colours from the floral decoration on the day at the reception and the church. The pink handmade crochet dresses were made in collaboration with the bride’s mum and dressmakers in Sicily. Understandably, the wedding was running at a tight schedule. karina and Leila were looking after the bride, mother of the bride and sister and I had between 30-40 minutes for each bridesmaid. The day started at 11am and the bride and her party left for the chruch around 4pm.
The Makeup
The original makeup plan for the bridesmaids included lilac eyeshadow, which we ended up changing on the day to better suit each of the bridal party. Each bridesmaid had a smokey, natural eye with a slight highlight to the cheekbones using Vita Liberata Blur Luminosity Rose. The eyes were finshed with Maybelline Lash Sensational Mascara and the face was kept flawless with Charlotte Tilbury Airbush Flawless Finish Powder. To create a really natural lip, we ended up mixing two lip balms together: Dior Addict Lip Glow lip balm in 001 Pink and Glossier Generation G Sheer Matt Lipstick in Cake.
All these products created a natural look that had staying power well into the evening. I think we can all agree that the makeup used simply highlighted the natural beauty of all the bridesmaids.
After the cremony, Karina, Leila and I were on hand to some final touch-ups so that Irene could enjoy the rest of her evening and the fantastic fireworks display alongside all her guests.
The day after
On the second day, Irene wore a white, flowing gown, decorated with olives leaves, as dinner was to be served beneath the olive trees. The dress designed by her mother, paired with a beachy informal hairdo and beautiful diamond with jadeite earrings.
Later on Irene wore another of her mum’s designs. A mini dress that was hand-embroidered with coral and fish.
Although I’ve worked in fashion makeup for some time, I only started the bridal side of business in early 2021. It was therefore such an honour to work on such a high profile event and this destination wedding was a real pinch-me moment.
The day has already has been shared in Vogue. Working with such a professional team of hair and makeup professionals as well as Photographer Holly Clark, who have all worked on some high-profile weddings was a joy.
I must extend my thanks to to Irene and Vedura Resort, who all made us feel so welcome and wish her and her husband Felix a lifetime of happiness together.
If you are planning a destination wedding, and looking for a natural look for you and your bridesmaids then I’d love to talk to you.