Michael Vigilante flew home to London a day early from his ski trip in Val-d’Isere to go on a blind date that his friends had set up. He met Hampton King at the Dorchester Hotel, where she was staying for work, followed by dinner at Harry’s Bar. They instantly hit it off, and Michael moved to New York a year later.
After five years together, Michael proposed in a gondola filled with flowers, as they were heading up the mountain in Sun Valley. Once they reached the top, close friends who had flown in earlier that day surprised the couple with their family at Roundhouse Restaurant to celebrate. “We still wait to get chair 52 when riding the gondola together whenever we’re in town,” Hampton says.
The bride had always dreamt of an intimate destination wedding and set her sights on Brush Creek Ranch in Wyoming. “All we needed to make sure was 1. Is the food edible? and 2. Are the rooms glamourous enough for our New York friends? Both passed the test with flying colors,” Hampton says of their venue. To help bring their vision to life, the couple hired Calluna Events. And Julie King Studio and CCR Calligraphy set the tone for the weekend with a beautiful invitation suite. “It sounds cliché, but I would say our aesthetic was Western Chic.”
On Thursday evening, the bride wore an off-white Markarian crepe dress to welcome everyone to Wyoming. A Western theme was incorporated in the dinner, so Hampton paired her dress with her Stetson cowboy hat and wooden Dolce & Gabbana heels. After the meal, guests enjoyed the saloon and taking their turn at riding the mechanical bull.
The next day, everyone enjoyed activities like hiking, biking, paintball, golf, wine tasting, horseback riding, archery, and more. “The boys ended up doing a massive 30-person paintball tournament,” Hampton recalls. “Thankfully my soon-to-be-husband only got shot in the back a handful of times with his face staying safe; I would have had some words if he came back with black eyes!”
For the rehearsal barbecue dinner, Hampton chose a pink crystal heart dress from Dolce & Gabbana and paired it with Jimmy Choo heels. “Our rehearsal dinner had one long candlelit table with seats for 120 people, so I felt something sparkly would be more dramatic than any white dress I could find,” the bride shares. Michael complemented her well in a velvet green Tom Ford blazer. “We wanted to dress to our personalities on Friday, something bold and a bit eccentric.”
To walk down the aisle, Hampton chose an Ines Di Santo gown. “I wanted to have a real bride moment—big dress, train, and all—and that was the perfect choice,” she says. The bride completed her look with red Amina Muaddi heels and her “something blue,” her mother’s sapphire ring. After the first dances, the bride changed into an Eisen Stein dress that was easier to dance in. “I felt like I needed to wear something form-fitting after the grueling months of Mike Maloney workouts!”
On Friday and Saturday, Hampton got ready with Lucas Magnum, who gave the bride an updo and beached waves. The bridesmaids wore dresses from Oscar de la Renta, Johanna Ortiz, and Zimmermann. “As the wedding was outside, I wanted the girls in something floral but natural looking,” Hampton explains.
Before walking down the aisle on June 12, 2021, Hampton realized her long veil was on backwards. As everyone finished walking down the aisle, the bride quickly switched the veil around before “Conversations in the Dark” by John Legend was played by a four-piece band. “The song I picked was a surprise to Michael, so I wanted to walk out at a specific moment,” Hampton says. “With the help of a few special people, I was able to get it turned around quickly and have Lucas quickly fix my hair.”
Hampton and her father walked down the aisle, lined with flowers by The Perfect Petal. “My favorite moment of the weekend was watching Hampton walk down the aisle towards me before the ceremony,” Michael shares. “I will never forget the emotions I felt in that exact moment.”
The outdoor ceremony was officiated by Michael’s mentor, Danny, who ultimate enabled Michael to move from London to New York, so the two could be together. Before Hampton walked down the aisle, Danny handed Michael a gift from the bride—a handkerchief with their wedding date and “For Life’s Happy Tears” embroidered on it. “Michael is the crier in our relationship, but my hope was we could add dates to that same handkerchief in the future,” Hampton says.
After exchanging their vows and being announced as a married couple, the two led everyone to cocktail hour outside the farm. The reception followed in the Cheyanne Club with elegant decor from Colorado Party Rentals. The delicious multi-course meal was concluded with the peaches and cream wedding cake, decorated with wildflowers.
Taylor Pace Orchestra of Jordan Kahn Orchestra and DJ Nate of TH Entertainment kept everyone dancing for the rest of the night. The newlyweds had their first dance to “You Make My Dreams” by Hall & Oates. “My favorite part of the reception was when everyone slowly started grabbing these purple wildflowers from the arrangement around our stage…suddenly there was a sea of purple-puffed flowers in the air and the entire room felt like magic thanks to my wedding planner, Spice Jones, who had what felt like hundreds of these flowers for our guests to hold.”
Once the reception came to a formal close, the new mister and missus ran through a sea of sparklers and jumped into their vintage, electric blue Ford pick-up truck. They drove to the Western-themed after-party and made a pit stop to change outfits. “We partied the night away with a DJ and late-night food,” Hampton remembers. “The party didn’t end until the next day for many of our guests.”
Hampton + Michael | Wedding at Brush Creek Ranch in Saratoga, WY from Aflātis Films.
