Villa Cimbrone, an 11th-Century Mansion, Set the Stage for This Wedding in Ravello, Italy

Karoline and Luke wed in a romantic celebration filled with vintage-inspired details at Villa Vimbrone, an 11th-century mansion along the Amalfi Coast in Ravello, Italy. Though the couple didn't connect until a chance run-in as adults when Karoline was in Los Angeles, the idea for an Amalfi Coast wedding was something Karoline had been marinating on since she was six. "When I was 6, I watched a film called 'Only You' with Marisa Tomei and Robert Downey Jr. It is until this day my favorite movie of all time. And it took place on the Amalfi Coast. It was the first time in my life that I realized two very important things: First, even from a young age, I was a hopeless romantic! Second, I needed to not only visit the Amalfi Coast, but at some point in my life have an important life experience there. In my adult life, I promised myself I would only go to the Amalfi Coast when and with the person I hoped to spend the rest of my life with. The moment Luke and I became engaged, it was like he already knew. He suggested we should get married there and boom! Everything from that moment on just came together so perfectly. The planning, the venue, the theme, the childhood dream, it all made perfect sense."

After settling on the Amalfi Coast as their dream wedding locale, Karoline and Luke set about planning their wedding. For them, it was paramount that they make decisions about the wedding, "not because we felt like we had to, but because we wanted to. A lot of typical traditions were things we skipped: we had a joint bachelor/bachelorette party, no bridal parties, I walked down the aisle by myself, and rather than a rehearsal dinner we had a welcome party with everyone invited," recalls Karoline. "For us, those things felt divisive—like they were suggesting some people were more important than others. Our wedding was about celebrating our love with all of the people who were closest to us, and we wanted that experience to be inclusive, welcoming, and loving."

Bespoke fashion selections were a big part of what made Karoline and Luke's romantic wedding along the Amalfi Coast so stunning. "The creative director of Neiman Marcus once gave me the best possible wedding advice, he said 'When you get married, make sure you choose a dress that you could not wear for any other occasion. You can always wear a long white dress or something more basic for a red carpet event but you can’t ever wear a true wedding gown to any other occasion. Make sure you enjoy this fashion opportunity to the fullest!' And I took that to heart," explains Karoline. "So for my wedding, I was lucky to wear my dream dress that I probably could not wear to any other event, designed by someone I have admired for my entire fashion career, Reem Acra. As for Luke's wedding attire, he was always very set on wearing head-to-toe Tom Ford from the very beginning. For us to find the perfect tuxedo it took multiple trips to England's Harrods and Selfridges and video calls with the Tom Ford team in Milan. After, many months of searching for the perfect look he found 'the one' by Tom Ford in New York City."

Looking back on the wedding, Karoline notes that one of the most cherished things for her was that the wedding was able to take place at all. "Like many people who got married in 2020, we had to reschedule our wedding three times before the actual date," she explains. "There was a certain point I think we wondered whether it would actually happen… it was just so special to finally be there because it was also the first time that I had been able to see my family from Brazil since COVID started. It was surreal in so many ways to finally be celebrating there with everyone, after three years of waiting for the day to come." For couples in the midst of planning their own wedding right now, Karoline encourages to-be-weds to remember that "when the day finally comes though, the details are going to be so less important than the person standing in front of you. Focus on that person—both on your wedding day and every day thereafter—and both your wedding and lives will be happier for it."