The real showstopper, though, was the dress for the main ceremony held with a wider group at Castiglion del Bosco on the Saturday—and for Dove, her first choice was always Valentino. Thankfully, the house and its creative director, Alessandro Michele, quickly said yes. “I wanted a drapey, ethereal vibe, something that would have some movement while I walked, but wasn’t too much fabric,” says Dove. The four-meter-long veil, which was intricately embroidered with crystals and micro-beads forming star constellations, was a nod to Dove’s middle name, Celeste. “I wanted something celestial to complement part of the wedding theme,” says the bride. “We wanted something that shone when the sun hit it, creating surrealism as I walked down the aisle. The full look is just so romantic and special.” For her hair—which was embedded with further crystal stars for the after-party—Dove worked with stylist Jacob Rozenberg, and for her “sculpted and refined” beauty look, she turned to makeup artist Kale Teter.
Damiano, meanwhile, was just as focused when it came to putting his looks together, working with his long-time stylist Michele Potenza. For the civil ceremony in Montalcino, he wore a double-breasted ivory suit by the cult-favorite Roman tailoring house Giuliva Heritage, while for the welcome ceremony, he also wore a Valentino by Alessandro Michele look consisting of a cream jacket, navy pants, and a dramatic burgundy foulard around the neck. For the main ceremony, though, there was only one choice: Giorgio Armani. “I wanted a very classic groom’s suit,” Damiano says. “Three-piece, single-breasted, with cufflinks and everything, and Armani was the perfect partner for this.” (To complete the look, Damiano accessorized with a high-jewellery Bvlgari brooch on the lapel, Bvlgari cufflinks, and an Audemars Piguet watch that had been lent from the brand’s private museum especially for the occasion.)
The wedding weekend began on Thursday, September 24—exactly three years after their first real date—with the civil ceremony in Montalcino, which was attended only by their closest family and friends. Taking place at the city’s medieval town hall, they drove a vintage white Lancia convertible up the winding, cobblestoned streets, then walked down the aisle of the Palazzo dei Priori to a three-string version of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” and signed their papers with Dove’s best friend, Veronica St. Clair, serving as witness. After heading back to Castiglion del Bosco, they descended into the resort’s moody, library-like secret cellar, where they dined on risotto and danced late into the night with a live band.
The official welcome dinner for all the guests followed on Friday, with a breathtaking long table running down the center of the vineyards laden with wine-red satin linens, cherub statues, silver candelabras, and overflowing red grapes—a gothic, romantic vision that Damiano describes as “Dove’s dream table,” and upon which fresh knots of buffalo mozzarella and enormous bowls of paccheri al pomodoro were served.
Finally, on Saturday, it was time for the main ceremony—and for the occasion, Alessandra Grillo and her team decorated the ruins of the original 12th-century castle at Castiglion del Bosco with a cascade of sheer white fabric running down the stone terraces and steps, lined with clusters of green foliage mixed with white hydrangeas and calla lilies. After guests (including all of Damiano’s Måneskin bandmates) took their seats, Dove walked up the aisle with her mom, Bonnie, to meet an emotional Damiano at the altar. Kenny Ortega, who directed Dove in the first trilogy of Descendants films, officiated the ceremony, and the couple recited their vows to one another, including a phrase that has recurred throughout their romance: “The best part of being alive.” (The line is engraved within both their engagement rings, and was even embroidered inside her Valentino corset.) “It’s a lot of nerves when you’re about to walk after all the build-up, but once you’re up there, there’s nothing else to think about,” Dove says of her moment at the altar. “It’s true presence and joy.” Her only frustration? “It all went by so quickly, and I never wanted it to end!”
Afterwards, guests gathered in the town square of the historic medieval hamlet where long, candlelit tables heaving with candles and clusters of white roses had been set for dinner, with the mother of the bride and sister of the bride making “emotional” speeches and the cutting of a towering cake covered in fresh fruit and flowers devised by the Milanese baker Mami Louise. “I have never felt joy and love like that in my life,” Dove says. “It was a long, beautiful dinner filled with speeches and amazing food and drinks and dancing.” Then, it was time for the bride to change into her Roberto Cavalli after-party dress—with its coordinating lace-up socks and a pair of Jimmy Choo heels—and head to a greenhouse on the property for Martini vermouth cocktails and dancing very late into the night to DJ Nicky Macha.
As for how the couple is feeling in the days afterward? To put it simply: “Over the moon.”
