When Lorenzo Lanteri, founder of renewable energy company FuGen, proposed to Sophie Caulcutt on a moonlit walk in St. Moritz, the pair immediately knew they didn’t want a traditional English wedding. The bride-to-be, who is the co-founder of luxury travel and fashion concierge company Voyager Club, set out to host a celebration, inspired by her travels and that shared both her British roots and Lorenzo’s Italian heritage, at her family’s home in the English countryside.
To bring their vision to life, House of Party Planning took the planning reins. Angelika Dupuis, who lensed the couple’s civil ceremony, photographed the weekend immaculately. “She has an incredible eye and followed our story from the beginning,” Sophie says. Stefania of PaperSuites used delicate Italian watercolors to create a custom invitation suite.
The weekend began with Friday’s “Swiss Night” welcome party–a nod to the mountains, where Sophie and Lorenzo first met. Serendipitously enough, a hotel with Swiss-style “hutte” is near Sophie’s family home in Hampshire. The moment she saw it, the bride knew it would be an idyllic space for a pre-wedding soirée. “Lots of gingham, pretzels, wild flowers and of course schnitzel! I wore a bespoke dirndl by Annina Dirndl,” she notes
“I always knew I wanted to wear a British designer,” Sophie shares of her wedding look. Ultimately, she chose Emilia Wickstead, and worked with the London-based team to create a semi-bespoke dress made from Italian double duchess satin. She paired the dress with a headpiece by Jess Collett Milliner—a friend of the bride and the designer who created Princess Charlotte’s tiara for the coronation. “I knew I didn’t want to wear a traditional tiara and my dress had a slight medieval feeling about it, so I wanted to honor that.” She finalized the ensemble with an Anya Hindmarch bag and 1950s Cartier earrings.
The mother of the bride looked elegant in an Etro dress also complete with a custom Jess Collett Milliner headband. The flower girls and page boys dressed in Atelier La Nonna, while Sophie’s maid of honor donned a vintage Vivienne Westwood style. On the day-of, Rachel Signer Clarke applied radiant makeup, while Adam Embleton styled her hair in a low bun.
On July 1, 2023, Sophie and Lorenzo wed before the altar of a “small quintessentially English church” surrounded by Tattie Rose white florals and wild oak leaves. As soon as she saw him, the nerves fluttered away, and the pair exchanged vows as loved ones beamed from their seats. Once pronounced as officially married, a school children’s choir—that the bride was once apart of—sang “Stand By Me,” as the newlyweds exited the ceremony.
In the wild and organic-feeling cocktail hour space that was meant to emulate the rose gardens, guests indulged in curated Italian aperitivos while Campari Spritzes made their way to each guest. The London Essentials set the mood with soft melodies.
After aperitivo, everyone gathered for a candlelit dinner, by Jacaranda, featuring traditional Italian fare. “The dining tent had vibrant voyager painted lines, covered with flowers, hanging bougainvillea, baskets, and hessian, and we created a bespoke trellis wall which opened later in the evening to reveal another world, our dancing tent,” Sophie explains. “The tablescape was a labor of love. The plates were bespoke which we designed with Maison Margaux. The menus, placements, table names, and even the hand towels were designed by the very talented Rosie Harbottle who did each one by hand.”
Following the toasts, Sophie and Lorenzo danced to Van Morrison’s “Crazy In Love.” And the nightclub revealed itself—an after-party space inspired by Villa Palladio in Jaipur. Signature cocktails, English gardens, Negroni Sbagliatos and Pisco Sours flowed all evening.
Famed John Isley from rock band Dire Straits had guests animated on their feet, and Sophie’s father, who is a musician in his own right, even joined them on stage. “It was incredible and everyone was in awe!” she recalls. Then, DJ Sam Young, who also mixed beats for both Elton John’s and George Clooney’s weddings, kept the party going all night long.
The next day, the newlyweds bid goodbye to their nearest and dearest at a poolside “recovery brunch.” Everyone cured their hangover on pizza served straight out of the oven of a vintage Land Rover and then faced off in “a very English tennis match,” Sophie laughs. “We ate our wedding cake from the night before, laughed, and cried. It felt very relaxed and [was] one of my favorite parts of the wedding weekend.”
