Welcome to our brand new series on our beautiful brides (and mothers too!). I'm excited to launch this series because the weddings that we do are so unique and each one has a story that makes it special.

Working with Valerie was exciting because not only was she a joy to work with, but  she was determined to have her wedding in Italy. Destination weddings are always fun, and I love seeing photos of the gowns we make in exciting locations! I only wish that I could follow each dress we make to its destination. That would be a dream!

One of the coolest things about Valerie's dress is that we made a big, dramatic train that was completely detachable so she could party after the ceremony. The main part of the gown was corded French lace.  It definitely gave me Audrey Hepburn in Sabrina vibes! Make sure you read all the way to the end of the post, I've included some behind the scenes photos of the making of the gown as well!

Q: How did you incorporate a family tradition or family heirloom to your special day?

A: The power of prayer is something that my husband’s family and mine strongly believe in, so prayer was a tradition that we brought to our special day.

Q:Did you have a wedding hashtag if so, what was it?

A: Our wedding hashtag was #ReadyToBeRamirez. Our honeymoon hashtag was #RamirezInRome

Q:How did you and your significant other meet?

A: Our story isn’t a traditional love story. Christopher and I didn’t meet and instantly fall in love, we didn’t know that we were each other’s soulmates from the very beginning. Our love story was years in the making.  In 2011, Christopher and I met at a mutual friend’s wedding, and ironically ended up sharing a hotel room with our significant others at the time. Christopher had just come back from his deployment in Afghanistan, and I was in my junior year of college. We had no interest in each other as we were already in committed relationships. We became friends on social media and went on with our lives. I like to think this was God saying, “Okay guys, just needed to make sure you all met and found a way to connect with each other in the future, I need to take care of some other stuff, but I’ll be back to check up on you all in a few.”

Fast forward to two years later, Christopher and I were both single, and God decided it was time for us to start a new chapter in our lives. Suddenly, Christopher appeared to be insanely cool to me on social media, and we started “liking” all each other’s posts.  From Star Wars posts to dog ice cream posts, Christopher and I were both secretly posting quite frequently to get each other’s attention. After about a hundred Instagram likes and flirty Twitter messages, Christopher finally got the hint and asked me for my number to ask me out on a date. For the past six years, we've been inseparable.

Q:How did your significant other propose?

A: On Sunday, September 25th, I woke up and noticed a beautiful arrangement of flowers on my nightstand and photos of Christopher and myself throughout the bedroom.  I was about to call Christopher into the bedroom, when he walked into the room and told me to stay in bed and watch television (of course, I listened). A few minutes later, he walked into the bedroom with a platter of homemade French toast (my favorite). I noticed a cup on the platter that said “Future Mrs.”, and my heart stopped. Christopher proceeded to walk toward me, got down on one knee, poured his heart out and asked me to spend the rest of our lives together. He handed me the “Future Mrs.” cup, and inside was my beautiful ring."

A: A lot of chaos happened leading up to our big day, but our wedding day was absolutely perfect.

Q: Where was your bachelorette party?

A: My bachelorette party was in Austin, TX, with 11 girlfriends, my mom and mother-in-law. My best friend from college organized the trip and it was the best time. We did a wine tasting, shopped, danced, enjoyed great food and had a lot of laughs. 

Evening Details

Wedding Site | Private Villa in the Tuscany region of Italy

Reception Site | Ristorante Antica Fonte

Event Planner | Claudia Corsi with White Events

Flowers | Flowers & Co

Food and Drink |Ristorante Antica Fonte

Cake | Pasticceria Miele Andrea

Photographer | Damiano Salvadori & Donatella Barbera with D2 Photography

Event Rentals and Décor | Claudia Corsi with White Events

Stationery | Be Sweet Ink

Beauty | Marcela Raluca Rece

Wedding Dress/Fashion | Custom David Peck