If Maria of Duet Friday hadn?t introduced us to Russian couple Maxim and Ksenia?s story, we?d have quickly filed these images under ?editorial??that?s how dreamy their destination wedding in Italy was. The bride always thought of Lake Como as *the* ultimate spot for a fairytale wedding?but not for an everyday couple like them! Then, one day after the engagement, they both thought?wait, why not"! And guess what" They. Made. It. Happen.

Research led them to the gorgeous Villa del Balbianello, at the tippy top of a peninsula overlooking Lake Como, with history dating back to the 13th century!

Wow.

A fairytale venue deserves a fairytale gown, yes" The lace top, open back dress with a fluffy skirt (and two meter long floral train!) by Russian designer Katerina Klimkin was the first and only gown she tried on.
Fiorigraphia kept the attention on the dress with a simple, romantic rose bridal bouquet.
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The most important thing to research was how to pull off a wedding ceremony in Italy, which needs to be held in a town hall. They were the first Russian couple to be married at nearby Varenna’s town hall, a short boat ride from the villa.

On finding the dress? My image of the bride as I imagined it for myself seemed very stylish, unusual, romantic, to some extent even royal. Because that’s how I felt next to my fiancé. I was very inspired by the movie Sex and the City. The scene where happy Carrie Bradshaw in...