The late summer in Tuscany carries a golden warmth that bathes the landscape in soft, glowing light, that creates the perfect backdrop for a luxury wedding. When Sebastian and Tessa chose to celebrate their love in this enchanting region, they were drawn to the magic of the Italian countryside and its idyllic scenery. Among the many extraordinary venues Tuscany has to offer, they fell in love with Il Borro, a stunning estate nestled between Arezzo and Florence.
For their wedding, they wanted to gift their loved ones a full Italian experience: an immersion in beauty and the timeless charm of the region. Guests enjoyed several unforgettable days on the estate, beginning with a relaxed welcome dinner, followed by a lively pool party the next day, and culminating in the big moment when Tessa and Sebastian said their heartfelt “I do.” Every detail was meticulously curated by the extraordinary team led by Brenda Babcock, whose expertise ensured that each moment of this remarkable celebration flowed seamlessly.
We have to express our deepest admiration for Brenda, who made the entire experience feel effortless. Even when a sudden August rain threatened to disrupt the carefully planned day, her calm and creativity ensured that nothing was lost, allowing every moment to unfold beautifully. She is a perfect example of why working with professionals of her caliber makes all the difference.
As wedding videographers, our role was to capture this story quietly and unobtrusively, allowing the couple and their guests to fully immerse themselves in every moment without feeling the pressure of the camera, while still preserving the natural spontaneity of their emotions. With Tessa and Sebastian, it felt effortless, and every shared glance and joyful smile reminded us why we love documenting weddings: because love, when lived fully and authentically, is a story worth telling in its most elegant and heartfelt form.
Why Choose Tuscany for Your Wedding
Tuscany is, without question, one of the most beautiful regions in Italy (we might even say the most beautiful, but we’ll resist, just to avoid sounding biased!). It’s a place where nature seems to choreograph every detail to celebrate love itself. Breathtaking landscapes, warm terracotta rooftops, endless rolling hills, and that signature Tuscan golden light that softly kisses your skin, this region feels romantic without even needing anything extra to shine.
Getting married in Tuscany means giving yourselves permission to slow down and soak it all in, because the beauty here is immersive, sensory, and unforgettable. It’s in the way your eyes wander across gentle hills, guided by tall, sculptural cypress trees. It’s in the earthy perfume of vineyards at sunset, the taste of exceptional local wine, and the warmth of ancient stone walls that have held centuries of whispered promises and timeless love stories. Choosing Tuscany is not simply selecting a destination, it’s turning your wedding into an experience, a shared journey your guests will carry in their hearts long after the celebrations end.
And beyond the romance, Tuscany offers something equally extraordinary: variety. Whether you picture yourselves exchanging vows in a hilltop medieval castle, celebrating in a Renaissance villa surrounded by Italian gardens, or hosting your guests in an exclusive estate entirely yours for the weekend, Tuscany holds a venue for every dream and every personality. The region’s rich tradition of hospitality ensures that everything is handled with the passion and care only Italy can deliver.
In Tuscany, the landscape doesn’t just frame your wedding, it stars in it. It becomes a graceful supporting character woven into your story, enhancing every moment with its innate elegance and fairy-tale charm. A wedding here feels cinematic, timeless, and brilliantly alive, like stepping into a romance that has always belonged to you.
Read also: 12 Reasons To Make Tuscany Your Wedding Destination
Saying I Do Near Florence: Art, Culture, and Effortless Accessibility
When planning a destination wedding in Italy, convenience matters just as much as beauty. And while every Tuscan city has its own irresistible charm, choosing the countryside near a cultural powerhouse like Florence gives you the best of both worlds. With Florence and Pisa airports both easily reached from overseas, travel suddenly feels refreshingly simple for your guests, smoothing out those logistical concerns that often come with international celebrations. And for couples planning multi-day festivities, like extended wedding weekends or full-scale experiential events, being so strategically positioned makes exploring the region seamless and stress-free.
But there’s something even more meaningful that makes Florence and its surroundings so special. This is a place known as the cradle of the Renaissance, the beating heart of Western art and beauty. Your loved ones can wander through the Uffizi Gallery, stand in awe beneath the towering Duomo, stroll hand-in-hand across Ponte Vecchio as the sun melts into the Arno, or escape into the sprawling elegance of Palazzo Pitti. The journey to celebrate your wedding becomes an opportunity to absorb culture, history, and artistic wonder, turning the trip into a once-in-a-lifetime experience all its own.
Wedding venues around Florence strike a rare balance between accessibility and enchantment. They keep you close enough to the city to enjoy convenience and cultural highlights, while also offering the tranquility and authenticity of the Tuscan countryside, where time slows down, hills roll softly into the distance, and nature quietly steals the show. It’s a setting that feeds more than the eyes, a place that touches the soul, and invites everyone who steps into it to shift into celebration mode with full hearts and unhurried steps.
To marry near Florence is to choose a backdrop that becomes part of your story, a destination that lingers long in the memories of those who share it with you, and a brilliant meeting point between elegance, emotion, and experience. A celebration here extends beyond the wedding day, becoming a gift of beauty, connection, and discovery for everyone involved.
Il Borro, Where History Meets Excellence
Picture a medieval village born more than one thousand years ago, once an impenetrable fortress in the 12th century, and now reimagined as one of Tuscany’s most exclusive and refined wedding destinations. Il Borro carries centuries of history within its stone walls, woven together with the highest standards of Italian craftsmanship, and that unmistakable Tuscan lifestyle the world has come to adore.
Spanning 1,100 hectares of organic land in the heart of the Upper Valdarno, the estate was brought back to life through the visionary dedication of the Ferragamo family, who began an ambitious restoration in the 1990s to return this extraordinary place to its original splendor. Today, Il Borro is where Italian tradition and sustainability coexist in perfect harmony. It’s not only a luxury hospitality retreat, but also a pioneering organic farm and winery, where elegant service blends effortlessly with the genuine rhythm of a living, breathing Tuscan village.
What makes Il Borro truly singular is its ability to revive the most authentic soul of Tuscany. As you wander along its cobblestone streets, you’ll discover artisan workshops where goldsmiths, shoemakers, and restoration experts continue their craft with age-old passion and meticulous skill. For couples and their guests, this means the chance to experience Italy in the most tactile, personal, and memorable way. From organic vineyard tours and horseback rides across gentle hills to traditional Tuscan cooking classes, indulgent spa moments, and exquisite farm-to-table dining, every activity tells a story rooted deeply in the land itself.
For Tessa and Sebastian, lovers of both nature and elegance, Il Borro was an instinctive choice, a place that mirrors who they are as individuals and as a couple. It offered them that rare kind of beauty that never feels staged or showy, but rather sincere, graceful, and alive. Their celebration here reflected an effortless sophistication supported by a heartfelt respect for the environment, the animals, and the landscape that surrounded them, making their wedding not only breathtaking to witness, but beautifully meaningful to capture.
Tessa & Sebastian: Three Days of True Tuscan Magic
From the moment the guests passed through the gates of Il Borro, it was clear that this would not be a simple wedding, but a journey into the most authentic essence of Italy. On the first evening, the guests were welcomed with a dinner that delighted everyone. A table was set with the warm and vibrant colors of Italian tradition, freshly baked pizza, boards overflowing with local cured meats and cheeses, and a group of folk musicians who turned the evening into a spontaneous and joyful celebration.
The second day passed with the gentle sweetness typical of Tuscan days. A relaxed morning was followed by an afternoon pool party, and in the evening, as the sun colored the surrounding hills pink, the guests gathered for another unforgettable dinner. During this dinner, Tessa and Sebastian’s closest friends and family shared heartfelt speeches that made everyone laugh and cry.
Then came the third day, the one everyone had been waiting for. In the morning, while Tessa prepared with her bridesmaids and Sebastian with his best men, the atmosphere was full of the sweet excitement that comes before great moments. When the time finally arrived, Tessa walked toward Sebastian through Il Borro’s Italian garden, a dreamlike setting enhanced by fresh and colorful floral arrangements, an utterly exquisite creation by internationally renowned floral designer Tulipina.
After the ceremony, the couple stepped aside briefly for the couple shooting, which we carried out alongside Facibeni, an extraordinary pair of photographers who are also partners in life. A wonderful synergy immediately developed with them. Working together felt natural and easy. We moved as a single team, giving Tessa and Sebastian the space to enjoy those intimate moments without ever feeling in the spotlight.
When the couple rejoined their guests for dinner, the atmosphere was filled with the quiet happiness that follows moments of pure beauty. And then, as in every proper Italian celebration, the real explosion of joy arrived in the ballroom, where a live band brought everyone, from the youngest to the oldest guests, into an overwhelming celebration of music, dancing, and the contagious spontaneity that only Italy can inspire.
Read also: Three Days of Love in Tuscany: Belmond Castello di Casole Wedding
The Importance of Preserving Your Love Story Forever
There is a moment, a few weeks after the wedding, when the emotions of that day already begin to fade from memory. The details blur, the feelings soften, and what remains are fragments. It is natural, it is human. But it is also the reason why wedding videography is not a luxury, but a gift you give to yourselves and to the people you love.
At Thirtyfive Studios, we work to ensure that the clips we include in your full wedding video do not simply capture what happens, but what is felt. It is your father’s voice breaking during his speech, it is your partner’s first look when they see you in your wedding dress, it is you walking toward them at the altar, it is the spontaneous laughter of your friends whom you met at different times in life and who are now all together celebrating you. These are the microseconds of pure joy that the human eye notices but the mind struggles to hold on to.
We like to define our approach to videography as cinematic because it comes from a deep conviction: your wedding deserves to be told as the masterpiece it is. We work discreetly, almost invisibly, because we believe the most authentic moments happen when you forget the cameras and fully immerse yourselves in the experience. We are not chroniclers; we are narrators of your love story.
And there is something profoundly moving in thinking that twenty or fifty years from now, you will be able to relive that day exactly as it happened. That your children will be able to see the love in your eyes when you said “I do,” that you will hear the voices of your loved ones, even those who may no longer be with you. A wedding video is an emotional legacy, a bridge between the present and the future, tangible proof that that perfect day truly existed.
Read also: Finding The Right Fit: Tips For Choosing A Wedding Videographer In Tuscany
How to Plan the Wedding of Your Dreams in Italy
Organizing a destination wedding in Italy, especially if you want a multi-day experience rich in details and refinement like Tessa and Sebastian’s, requires planning, vision, and above all the support of the right professionals. The key to success is never settling and trusting those who truly know the area. The first essential step is to start well in advance. The most exclusive wedding venues and top vendors are booked even one or two years ahead, especially for weddings in the most popular months such as May, June, and September. Starting early allows you not only to secure your first choices, but also to plan every detail calmly without the stress of last-minute arrangements.
The wisest choice you can make is to hire an experienced and reputable wedding planner, preferably someone with a deep knowledge of Italy. Professionals like Brenda Babcock, who flawlessly coordinated Tessa and Sebastian’s wedding, are visionaries capable of turning your wishes into reality, managing unexpected situations with grace, such as that sudden rain that would have panicked anyone, and coordinating with a trusted network of top-quality vendors. A local wedding planner knows the nuances of Italian bureaucracy, has privileged relationships with the best venues, and knows exactly who to contact for every need.
When choosing your vendors, always prioritize professionals with specific experience in destination weddings. A photographer, videographer, or florist who knows Tuscany intimately will be able to enhance every venue and create the authentic atmosphere that only someone who lives and breathes the region can achieve. Do not be afraid to invest in quality: your wedding deserves vendors who share your vision and bring passion and excellence to their work.
