At the Variety Power of Women Event, Oscar-winning actor George Clooney walked up to the podium and said, “Hi, I’m George, and I’m Amal Clooney’s husband.” The proud spouse feels lucky to have married Amal Alamuddin, a renowned Lebanese-British barrister, on September 27, 2014. Now mother and father to twins, the couple exchanged vows at their star-studded wedding in Italy. Let’s revisit their incredible Venetian nuptials and reminisce over every glittering detail.

The Love Story

A mutual friend connected the actor with the human rights activist at a dinner party at Clooney’s home in Lake Como. Clooney’s agent predestined the couple’s fate, telling him that Alamuddin would be the woman he’d marry. She serendipitously met Clooney and his parents at the same time, charming them all with one encounter.

Three months of emailing and calling later, they began dating. Clooney soon fell in love, noting Alamuddin’s beauty, humor, and incredible intelligence as just a few of the things that endeared him to her. Meanwhile, Alamuddin recalls that before meeting Clooney at age 35, she was “quite resigned to the idea that [she] was going to be a spinster.” But then she found herself enamored and “very soon it felt like no matter what happened, [she] would never want to be with anyone else.”

Just nine months after they first met, Clooney proposed to Alamuddin with an ethically mined emerald-cut diamond. She made him wait twenty minutes—perched on his knee—before she said yes.

The Destination

Considering that the two first met in Italy and share a house there, they knew they would have to say “I do” in the country. Clooney considers Venice to be “the most romantic city” in the world, making it a more-than-suitable locale for their vows. They decided on the Aman Canal Grand Hotel for the wedding venue.

The Guest List

A hundred of the couple’s nearest and dearest arrived for the wedding weekend. The attendees include the likes of Anna Wintour and Bill Murray. Not to mention power couples aplenty: Emily Blunt and John Krasinski, Cindy Crawford and Rande Gerber, Matt Damon and Luciana Barroso. We wonder what registry gifts they bought for the newlyweds. . .

A cadre of George Clooney’s closest friends, like Brad Pitt and Ben Affleck, were unable to attend due to prior commitments. As Affleck joked ahead of  the premiere of Gone Girl, “Some of us have to work!”

The Dress

To complement her classic style, Alamuddin chose Oscar de la Renta for a custom dress. Made with fourteen yards of ivory French Chantilly lace and layers of tulle, the off-the-shoulder dress was embroidered with pearls and diamante stones. “George and I wanted a wedding that was romantic and elegant, and I can’t imagine anyone more able than Oscar to capture this mood in a dress,” Amal shared with Vogue. She visited the Bryant Park atelier with her mother and sister to try on the final version.

The Suit

Clooney turned to his good friend Giorgio Armani for a suit from the Made to Measure collection. His black tuxedo was crafted from ultra-fine wool and cashmere and paired with a white shirt, black bow tie, and leather shoes. His bride presented him with custom cufflinks inscribed with “George” in Arabic.

The Bachelor and Bachelorette Parties

The three-day celebration was jam-packed with cocktails, dinner, and dancing. Guests took water taxis to and from every occasion, while the soon-to-be weds boarded a boat named, wait for it, the Amore.

The bride and groom divided the wedding party between their respective bachelorette and bachelor parties. Alamuddin donned a red cocktail dress by Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen and went with a few close friends and family members to the Aman Canal Grande Venice.

The groom and his friends journeyed on a boat to Ristorante Da Ivo. Apparently, Clooney called the restaurant moments before to let the owner know he and his group were hungry and fastly approaching. The owner and team wasted no time rearranging the restaurant and redirecting customers to set up screens over the windows and anti-paparazzi the venue. Clooney and friends ate tortellini and black truffle and risotto all night long, along with three bottles of Clooney’s Casamigos, of course.

The Wedding

Guests arrived at the Aman Canal Grand Hotel for the ceremony that was officiated by the former Mayor of Rome, Walter Veltroni. White flowers were the main design element and motif throughout the venue. Alamuddin and Clooney asked their friends’ daughter Nora Sagal to sing his parents’ first dance tune, Irving Berlin’s “Always,” at the ceremony. The thirty-minute ceremony concluded with a long kiss from the newlyweds.

The Reception

The party kicked off with a five-course meal and the cutting of the four-tiered art deco cake. Later in the evening, Alamuddin was ready to dance and changed into a tiered fringe minidress, also by Oscar de la Renta. For their first dance, the newlyweds danced to Cole Porter’s “Why Shouldn’t I?” The party lasted well into the next morning with over 250 bottles of Champagne and 100 cases of Casamigos to fuel the revelry.

Poolside Party

The next afternoon, everyone recuperated with hangover food at a picnic-style buffet at the Hotel Ciprani and took a dip in the water. Alamuddin wowed in her lace Giambattista Valli mini dress. Passersby could hear the funky music and cheering from the nearby streets.

The Civil Ceremony

Never ones to follow convention, Alamuddin and Clooney reversed the typical order of events and hosted their civil ceremony last. The bride donned a custom-made Stella McCartney pantsuit and a wide-brimmed hat to make their marriage official.