We Chose Us: Our Romantic Elopement in Positano, Italy

By Connie Butera — Professional Event Planner & Licensed Wedding Officiant, Ontario

Why We Eloped

This wasn’t our first marriage. We didn’t need an audience, a big guest list, or all the noise — we needed a moment.

After more than 15 years in the bridal industry as a multi-award-winning professional event planner and licensed wedding officiant, I’ve seen every kind of celebration. This time, what mattered most was the ceremony, the commitment, and creating a space where our little family — our children, our dog Blue, and the two of us — could honour our love in a way that felt true.

With limited support from family for our relationship, it became even clearer: this needed to be about us.



A Planner’s Tip: Do the Legal Work at Home First

If you’re dreaming of a destination wedding or elopement, one of the smartest decisions you can make is to do the legal signing in Ontario first.

Here’s why: having a marriage legally recognized in Ontario when performed abroad can be complicated and costly. Extra paperwork, legal translators, and sometimes government delays. Instead, keep it simple — sign here, then celebrate anywhere.

My team offers:

  • $150 legal signings at my Newmarket office

  • $350 on-site signings across the GTA & Muskoka

📩 Book through @perfectlyplannedpartiesbyCB | connie@conniebutera.com

For our own signing, my good friend and colleague Nicole (Perfectly Planned Parties & Officiating by Connie Butera & Associates) officiated. It was the perfect way to set the tone for our elopement adventure.

Our Love Story

We found love later in life — not the flashy, look-at-us kind, but the steady, grateful, “thank God we met” kind. Our story isn’t about spectacle; it’s about choosing each other every day, building a family unit that feels strong, safe, and loving.

That’s what we carried with us to Positano: a ceremony that was intimate, symbolic, and profoundly personal.




The Look

Bride
For our little backyard signing before Italy, I wore a simple white dress from Amazon that I customized with a dramatic bow by the amazing seamstress @Rosie (Holland Landing). Rosie is a bridal alterations expert with incredible attention to detail — she also handled my bridal gown for Italy.

For Positano, I wore the Alexandria Rose gown from @graceloveslace. I had seen this dress years ago on another bride, long before I ever imagined remarrying, and something about it stayed with me. When the time came, I discovered that Grace Loves Lace had just one left in Toronto, in my exact size, in the chai underlay I wanted. Fate. It was meant to be by dress!

Rosie tailored it to perfection — lightweight, breathable for Amalfi heat, and a seamless blend of classy and sexy.

Groom
His attire came from Heigh Ashbury (Vaughan Mills): a light blue blazer, oatmeal trousers, a crisp white fitted shirt, and suspenders (he’s not a tie guy). The look was inspired by the Amalfi palette — breezy, European, handsome, and comfortable.


Backyard Rentals

The backyard legal signing was not our main point of focus.   Actually - the original plan was to just do something sweet and simple at our kitchen table.  But in true event planner fashion, with the amazing fall weather we were having I last-minute did a little upgrade to our set up and I could not be happier.

@elemental_eventz_ (Nicole’s Bridal Closet) — arbour & décor

@ewgbouncycastlerentals — tables & chairs

Private Ceremony In The Garden

Our home base for the elopement was our Air BNB @il_monticello in Montepertuso, Positano. Hosts Teresa and Fabrizio were extraordinary, allowing us the option to have the ceremony in either the Garden Area or Terrace.  We opted for the garden for the beautiful Positano backdrop as our needed needed decor. Their insider connections helped us secure florals, music, and officiating at much more affordable rates than I found online.

Pro tip: always ask your Airbnb host for vendor referrals — it’s a hidden planning hack.

Our symbolic ceremony overlooked the sea at 3 p.m. The Amalfi Coast itself was our décor.

Officiant: @giovanna_damato — warm, heartfelt, and bilingual. She felt like family, and crafted a deeply personal service without scripts.



Music: @ericamoffaviolinista surprised my groom with a live piece that blended Canon in D into “Thank God” by Kane Brown. A moment I’ll never forget.  It's our song. 

Florals: Flora Garden Positano — a bouquet, boutonniere, and hair blooms. Simple, beautiful, and budget-friendly.

Photography & Videography: @positano_photographers, a husband-and-wife duo with a bright, cinematic style. We splurged on six hours of coverage plus drone footage to capture the spirit of the day. This was the largest but the best investment in our special day.  The photos and video turned out fantastic and they even accommodated a quick turn around time for us. 


Dinner & Celebration

After photos winding through Positano’s cliffside alleys and the golden-hour beach, we ended the night with aperitivo at Aldo's Bar, followed by the best meal I've ever had at La Sponda, Le Sirenuse. It’s indulgent (€150 pp minimum), but every note of the experience — the candlelight, the mandolin, the views — was perfection. We even ended the night back at Aldo's bar for late night champagne and dancing with this live DJ who actually spins music off old school records! 

Beauty

Bridal glam came to me thanks to:

Yes, prices in Italy for wedding-day glam can be steep (€600+), but the convenience of a professional duo on-site was worth every euro.

Getting Around

Everyone warns not to drive in Positano. We did it anyway — and loved it.

We rented the tiniest car from @sixt at Naples Airport. It ended up being cheaper than a round-trip private transfer, and it gave us the flexibility we wanted for photos and errands. (A little nerve-wracking, yes — but also a story we’ll never forget.)


Rings That Tell a Story

Our rings were custom designed by @cirellijewelers (Thornhill). They’re not just bands, but family rings: my April diamond, his September sapphire, and our children’s birthstones set on each side.

When I first saw them, I cried — much like when you slip into the dress and just know. These rings will tell our story every day we wear them. Tyer and Nadia made our custom design experience from concept to completion a breeze and their affordability even allowed me to upgrade my center pear-cut diamond and sapphire *wink*. 

Honeymoon

We sailed away on @msccruisesofficial’s MSC Divina, exploring Rome, Mykonos, Kusadasi, and Santorini. With Aurea Experience perks — balcony suite, spa access, premium beverages — it was the perfect continuation of our Italian love story.




The Investment

Instead of planning a large wedding that didn’t reflect our reality or our support system, we chose intimacy. We invested in our dream elopement rather than a big production — a celebration about us, in one of the most beautiful places on earth.

And I wouldn’t change a thing. If you have specific questions about costs, feel free to DM me and I am happy to share what I paid in 2025; however acknowledge that rates may change by the time you read this post.    

Let's just say that I spent the same on this vacation + elopement as we likely would have spent on a traditional banquet hall wedding back home with about 100.  Cost wasn't the deciding factor for us - it was investing in US. 

Vendor Credits

Thinking of Eloping Abroad?

If you’re dreaming of vows abroad but want the easy button on the legalities here at home, I can help — from ceremony design and legal signings to stress-free planning support.

📩 DM @perfectlyplannedpartiesbyCB or email connie@conniebutera.com.

Because the best weddings don’t need the biggest audience — they need the truest love. ❤️