Jess Jacobs was at the bar of her favorite NYC restaurant, Il Buco, when she noticed the new sommelier on the floor, Bryan Keller. A lovely friendship blossomed. However, one day, Jess noticed that it had been a while since Bryan had come over to her for a chat. Jess asked the bartender, who had also become a friend, what the deal was. “She revealed—somewhat intentionally, as I later found out—that he had a crush on me,” Jess shares. “I thought he was partnered, so I told her to tell him to please get over it and come say hi. It turns out, he was newly single.” A few weeks later, she visited the spot with friends, and a group of them went out for drinks after their shifts. Jess and Bryan went out on a first official date a week after that.
After around three-and-a-half years together, Bryan proposed at the New York Botanical Garden in Yayoi Kusama’s Narcissus Garden exhibition—a recreation of her 1966 work. “To be in that garden, with the beauty of the natural world up against the work of this incredible artist, felt like the balance we’re striking in our relationship,” Jess reflects. Bryan chimes in, “I dropped to a knee, looked up at her, and basically blacked out. We came to with someone nearby, who had witnessed the whole thing, yelling, ‘Answer him!’ and that was that!” Once engaged, they celebrated with friends at the restaurant where it all began.
The couple had visited Capofaro Locanda & Malvasia on their first trip abroad together in 20919 and knew they wanted to share the island of Salina with their loved ones. “The place itself has this great aesthetic, not unlike the garden where we got engaged, brimming with life and stewarded with care,” Jess says. To help bring their vision to life, Tory Smith of smith + james took hold of the planning reins for the multiple days of events, and Sarah Falugo was expertly behind the lens, capturing it all. Amber Moon set the tone for the weekend with a bright invitation suite.
“I’m not going to lie, our wedding was a bit of a fashion show,” Jess states. “With the priceless help of Gabrielle Hurwitz, we pulled together a welcome party look that we wanted to set the tone—all white bridal from Christie Nicole but. . .not your traditional bridal. It was a high fashion nod, a strapless, shapeless, flowing feathered number.” To complete the look, Jess stacked different Lelet NY pearl headbands and put in mod pearl earrings from Jade Ruzzo. Bryan looked equally chic in a custom One/Of ensemble by Patricia Voto.
The boat party sported a La Dolce Vita theme, and Jess looked beautiful in a Carolina Herrera dress featuring a flowing cape. Bryan was handsome in Bode. For the rehearsal dinner, the couple worked with Patricia to design cobalt blue outfits, as guests all wore white.
“My wedding dress was Galia Lahav, and I felt like a cloud floating over the Aeolian Sea,” Jess says. “I decided I wanted to wear the dress and not have the dress wearing me. It was a lightly corseted bodice with sheer sleeves—detachable for the cocktail hour—and a sheer tulle skirt.” On the morning-of, Jess got glam with Claire Balest, and Nancy Newberg diamond drop earrings completed the look. Bryan was ready to exchange vows in a custom linen High Society suit.
The bridal complemented Jess well in custom Kamperett organza dresses. “My two maids of honor were in the forest green, and the rest of my bridesmaids were a mix of beige and olive,” the bride explains. Groomsmen each wore a brown suit with custom floral ties by One/Of.
On May 28, 2023, Jess and her father walked down the aisle lined with organic-feeling florals and surrounded by drapery by Studio Mondine. “To be honest, I barely remember what any of it looked like,” the bride recalls. “I saw Bryan’s face and that is seared into my mind’s eye forever.”
Rabbi Paul Glanz led the ceremony which honored many Jewish traditions and featured a chuppah with Jess’s grandfather’s tallit. “The journey was long to get to Salina, so none of our grandparents could join us,” Jess explains. “It was so special to feel like we had a touch of their presence through his tallit.” Friends and family read the Seven Humanist Blessings, and two of Jess’s brothers chose to read excerpts from contemporary works. After exchanging vows and the Ketubah text, Bryan stomped on the glass, and the two shared a sweet kiss.
The reception was set up on three long tables, as delicious Sicilian fare was served with local wine. The father-daughter and mother-son dance was simultaneous to the tune of “What a Wonderful World,” sung live by Fire & Ice of Scarlett Entertainment. Moving speeches and toasts were given by loved ones, and for dessert, the couple cut their traditional Cassata cake and moved to the dance floor.
“My favorite look of the weekend was my reception and dinner outfit, an epic three piece suit from Cucculelli Shaheen,” Jess gushes. The cream embroidered jacket, pant, and bralette set was what the bride describes as “abstract expressionism meets rock-and-roll, all tailored by Sara Rothan to fit perfectly.”
Jess ended the night in a custom Hermione de Paula dress. “Hermione even managed to sneak in some of the beautiful drawings Julie Song made and the date of our wedding into the design,” the bride explains. Jess’s favorite part of the look was the matching statement gloves which featured bejeweled jellyfish—an animal the bride loves—with free-flowing tentacles that swung around as she danced the hora and celebrated with the deejay through the night. Bryan adds, “Jess and I walked back up to our room so filled with everyone’s love. I [briefly] fell asleep on a bench outside on our porch staring at the stars by the vineyard, happier than I have ever been.”
On Monday, Jess partied and said goodbye to guests by the pool in an orange bikini and skirt by by La DoubleJ with fish-shaped earrings from Rebecca de Ravenel. The newlywed concludes, “We all recovered with spritzes in hand, which matched the look perfectly.”
