Real Weddings

Mahnoosh and Alessio
Markovina Estate

Photography by Proshot Photo + Video

“My story with Alessio played out just like a fairytale. He’d spotted me through the crowd at an Italian festival and said he was stunned. Unfortunately, his mutual friend, David, was unaware of what was happening and forgot to play wingman, letting the moment of a possible introduction slip by. Five months later, it was David’s partner that managed to talk to me and tried to persuade me to meet with this guy who had been asking about me for months on end. I was curious about him - but the timing was not quite right. Now, as it happens in fairytales, there was another chance encounter. This time, it was six months after the fact, on the dance floor of the Long Room and my birthday. Alessio was convinced to tag along with his friends to the bar and happened to spy me across the room. He was shocked! However, he was too nervous about approaching me. A friend of his went in his stead, coming to me instead and asking if I was single. I laughed and said, “I am, but I’m sorry, I’m not lesbian.” His friend, undeterred, laughed in return and pointed to the bar at Alessio. More skittish than ever, he’s nudged forward and, finally, hands me a business card to introduce himself. Despite the nerves, the fact that he didn’t tick any of my usual boxes ended up striking a chord with me. The conversation went on for hours, into the wee hours of the morning, and I knew a spark had been lit. The fairytale had begun. Six weeks later, after a date at Snow Planet, we’d returned home to change before heading out to dinner. Behind me, Alessio handed over a jewellery box. Inside it was a necklace with a heart pendant. He reassured me of his love and affection, reminding me we could take our relationship at our own pace. However, only so much of ‘our own pace’ can happen when a child is involved. I felt an instant connection with Alessio’s then four-year-old daughter. During the first lockdown period, our growth together as a family intensified. There were challenges and tests that we overcame together. Eventually, Alessio planned his proposal during a weekend away. However, due to the pandemic, this was delayed and changed multiple times. There were quite a few cheeky, pretend proposals from him, with him presenting me with his own ring. Eventually, date night at home rolled around, and he handed me another ring. I thought, “Oh, no! Not another joke proposal!” Then I realised it was a different ring - and it was a real proposal. There were tears, dancing, eager agreement and many questions about how it should be done. We knew we wanted a fairytale wedding, just like I had always imagined when I was little. The first trip we took together was to Italy, where we stayed in a hotel of Romeo and Juliette in Verona and walked the town like two love birds. We had the best time there and dreamt of having the wedding there one day (though Covid changed everything). However, everything was still romantic and dreamy, just like in the movies.”

Thanks to all the contributing vendors:

Photography: Proshot Photo + Video
Venue: Markovina Estate
Makeup: Sam Hart
Hair: Jaime Randell
Dress: Dell'Amore Bridal