Michael and Lindsay dreamed of an intimate, romantic wedding in a unique location that would create lasting memories for the guests who had travelled to be with them. Their choice of location made this dream a reality: high atop a mountainside along Italy's Amalfi Coast sits the small town of Ravello. With streets too small for cars and amazing views of the Mediterranean Sea from every angle, it's beauty is hard to rival, as these images by Janelle Elise Photography demonstrate. We love Lindsay and Michael's sophisticated celebration that proves you don't have to cut out the glamour to have a destination wedding!

"We met in college through mutual friends that lived together. Michael strategically set his beer down near the area my girlfriends and I were polishing our nails. Having never met before, he strutted over to introduce himself and we hit it off right away. We stayed awake the rest of the night talking and getting to know each other. We started going on regular dates and grew closer, but fell in love in the back of a rented Toyota Camry. No, not parked, but with his parents driving us through wine country on a trip six months later to Napa, CA. We exchanged a glance and I could tell we both knew we were going to spend the rest of our lives together.

Four years later on a trip to Vail, Colorado, Michael proposed. The proposal was one of those things that was great in concept but better as it unraveled. Michael had arranged for a private sleigh ride through the mountains near the resort we were staying at. On the way there, we got stuck in a blizzard and were stuck for a an hour or so before we could continue on our way. I could tell Michael was a bit nervous, but didn't think anything of it at the time. When we got there, the man my husband had been arranging this with shouted across the parking lot, "You the guy with the private ride doing the thing?" After I probed my husband for clarification on that strange comment, we took a magical ride though the snowy mountains. Towards the end of the sleigh ride, the driver stopped and asked if we wanted a photo. I of course said yes and just as I got off the sleigh to take the photo, I turned around and Michael was on one knee! I was ecstatic and jumped up and down for at least five minutes. The best part was, our sleigh driver was a professional photographer and captured our engagement perfectly!

DESTINATION DECISION

Being a wedding and event director myself in Minnesota, I wanted to give myself a "challenge" when planning my own wedding. While I love every part of the city I live in and planning weddings here, I wanted something very different for our wedding. It helps that as a couple we constantly have a bad case of wanderlust and have a true passion for traveling around the world. Having attended a few destination weddings already, I knew the advantages: all our closest friends and family, a spectacular location and authentic details we wouldn't get at home. We chose Italy because we have always loved everything about the country and traveling to the Amalfi Coast was always a dream of ours.

PLANNING

Knowing the importance of hiring a wedding planner, we hired Marianna and Laura of La Calla Events. I can't recommend anything more highly then hiring at least a "day-of" coordinator for your big day! I plan weddings for a living and there was no way I was going without one. Marianna and Laura were absolutely fantastic and made all of my crazy ideas and dreams a reality. Planning our wedding from Minnesota was a bit stressful, particularly not being able to meet all of my vendors in person or check in regularly for updates. These ladies responded to all my emails within one day and everything they helped us with went without a hitch. I did extensive research online to find my vendors, along with recommendations from La Calla. Planners, florists, DJs and ceremony and reception vendors were fairly easy to find. Surprisingly my hair stylist was my toughest challenge. I found most to be quite overpriced, but ended up finding Piero Mansi who was absolutely wonderful! He allowed me to do a trial two days before the wedding, was prompt and did a great job on my hair and a few of my bridesmaids.

The vision for our wedding was for an intimate, romantic day in a unique location. Ravello definitely did not disappoint! We really wanted our wedding to evoke everlasting memories for our guests and to incorporate the authentic Italian experience in every detail. We started off our wedding weekend with a welcome dinner and an authentic Napoli pizza party. The next day we took our guests on a boat cruise along the Amalfi coast to the quaint town of Positano for a gelato pit stop, followed by our rehearsal dinner in the small town of Maiori at an ancient tower the "Torre Normanna" which was built in 1250.

MOST MEMORABLE

One of the best parts of our wedding day was just moments after saying "I do", an authentic Neapolitan band duo led us through the streets of Ravello, right into the town square where our closest friends and family toasted to our new married life and showered us with confetti. Other standout details for us included a private "getaway" vespa ride, taking photos in the famous Villa Rufolo gardens, and quite possibly the best party of the day was having Michael's father perform our ceremony and pronounce us husband and wife!"

Photography: Janelle Elise Photography | Event Coordination: La Calla | Event Design & Planning: Lindsay Taylor Weddings | Hotel: Palazzo Avino | Ceremony & Reception: Villa Eva | Videography: Story Of Us Films | Florals: Malafronte Flowers | Wedding Dress: Vera Wang | Veil: Che Bella | Bride's Shoes: Jimmy Choo | Bridesmaids' Dresses: Adrianna Papell | Groomsmen's Attire: J.Crew | Hair: Piero Mansi | Welcome Bags, Place Cards & Programs: Luci Kandler Designs | Bridesmaids' Rompers: Plum Pretty Sugar