JOELLE & PHILIPP’S FAIRYTALE WEDDING IN MARBELLA
The decision to hold their wedding in Marbella was an easy one for the Zurich-based couple, given Joelle’s upbringing in Marbella, and their many vacations there that deepened their love for the place.
The couple met in Zurich during the late stages of the pandemic, brought together by chance through mutual friends. A few days later, they spontaneously flew to Mallorca to spend a week together, and the rest is history.
After getting engaged in June 2022 in the South of France, where Philipp and his family spent their summers, the couple was eager to plan their wedding in Marbella for 2023. «When Philipp proposed to me, he already knew I wanted to have our wedding in Marbella,» Joelle recalls. For them, it was clear they wanted a wedding abroad, away from the busy city life, surrounded by beautiful beaches and serene weather.
While scouting for the perfect wedding venue in Marbella, the couple fell in love with «Finca La Concepción» for the ceremony. «We looked at several locations with our wonderful wedding planner, Tucco, but the moment we entered Finca La Concepción, we knew it was the right place,» they shared.
Shortly after finalizing most of their wedding arrangements, the couple discovered they were expecting, and decided to postpone the wedding by a year. «Looking back, our pregnancy was the best thing that could have happened to our wedding planning. It gave us more time and brought a sense of ease, allowing us to trust our wedding planner, Carla, even more. Plus, it meant our precious baby girl would be present at our wedding, making the occasion even more special,» Joelle reflects.
Choosing the location for their rehearsal dinner was serendipitous. They wanted a beachside setting, considering many guests were coming from abroad, and the main ceremony was already set at the finca. During their daily walk along the Paseo Marítimo Philipp discovered Trocadero Petit and instantly fell in love with it. «We wanted an intimate wedding that reflected our relationship, creating something authentic and wonderful without being too over the top or staged,» says Joelle. «We aimed for an ‘old Hollywood chic vibe’ for the first evening, and a classic, timeless elegance with white flowers and candles for the main evening.»
After selecting the venues and finalizing most of the entertainment, Joelle found her wedding dress at Pronovias in Malaga. «I always thought I’d be excited to try different wedding dresses and might choose one from Galia Lahav, but with our daughter Gaia, priorities changed. I didn’t want to spend time going to multiple stores. When I tried on the dresses at Pronovias (three, to be exact), I knew the second one was ‘the one.’ It felt so much like me,» Joelle says. For the first evening, she quickly chose a Clio Peppiatt dress with the help of her sister and mother, perfectly fitting the evening’s scenery and vibe. For the party dress, she opted for a short Danielle Frankel dress paired with Jimmy Choo heels, allowing her to dance the night away.
Entertainment was crucial for both days. For the first evening, the couple chose a «Gipsy King» style band and a DJ to accompany dinner and drinks. Fireworks ended the evening spectacularly, lighting up the beach and leaving guests in awe. The ceremony started at 6 p.m. with strings, followed by a saxophone player during the cocktail hour, and an amazing band for dinner, reminiscent of the South of France and the «LPM-Vibe.» A close friend of the bride sang a French love song dedicated to the couple. The DJ set the perfect dance floor vibe, which the couple opened by cutting the cake and having their guests take a tequila shot before their first dance to «Home» by Michael Bublé.
The couple wanted to provide a culinary experience for their guests, and with Goyo as their caterer, they succeeded. From the canapés (caviar cans, gazpacho flutes, and snow crab tempura) at the cocktail hour, to the dinner and the after-party snacks (McGoyo’s and fries), everything exceeded their expectations.
Looking back on the weekend, the wedding was just as Joelle and Philipp had dreamed. Funnily enough, the speeches of the couple’s parents and siblings all mentioned something about them having a fairytale story, and their wedding was just that: a dreamy, “once upon a time“ start to their new beginning.
