Featured in People Magazine! The Fairytale Sicilian Wedding of Netflix’s Dating Around Stars Heather Rose and Ernesto Posadas
We’re thrilled to share the enchanting wedding of Netflix’s Dating Around couple, Heather Rose and Ernesto Posadas, which was just featured exclusively on PEOPLE! Their romantic three-day celebration in Sicily was nothing short of a dream, brought to life by our very own Italian wedding expert, Michelle Durpetti! See below for the feature as seen on People.com, and also stay tuned as we share more from this gorgeous couple’s Sicilian wedding getaway on our blog (see more from their wedding day here)!
As originally posted on People.com, by Kimberlee Speakman and Emily Strohm , published on September 13, 2024:
Inside Netflix Dating Around Couple Heather Rose and Ernesto Posadas’ ‘Fairytale’ Sicilian Wedding (Exclusive)
The couple, who met on the Netflix dating show, tied the knot in a romantic three-day wedding in Taormina in Sicily, Italy alongside their family and friends
Heather Rose and Ernesto Posadas from Netflix’s Dating Around have tied the knot!
After finding love on the dating show, the pair tied the knot in a romantic, three-day wedding in Taormina in Sicily, Italy. The couple tells PEOPLE was “everything we could’ve wanted and more.”
The couple’s event kicked off with a wedding welcome event at Villa Zuccaro, a local family owned restaurant in Taormina celebrated for its pizza, before continuing at a sky rooftop overlooking the ocean. The couple’s guests received welcome gifts from jewelry cleaning brand Shinery and other goodies.
The wedding party then “danced the night away” at famed night spot Morgana followed by a winery visit to Cottanera on Mt. Etna — culminating in rave reviews from their friends who noted it was “a once-in-a-lifetime event.”
Heather tells PEOPLE that she and her groom-to-be wanted to “bring to life that ‘dolce vita’ Italian summer vibe” for their nuptials and worked with their wedding planner and Italian wedding expert Michelle Durpetti to give their wedding and table decorations a “Sicilian feel.”
“The vision was always intimate and organic,” Heather tells PEOPLE. “It was important that each of the details represented the feel of Taormina, Sicily, but had an essence of both of us.”
The pair exchanged vows at the base of a beautiful cave right on the beach as their dear friend Buddy Boe officiated their wedding. They even paid homage to their loved ones by including one-of-a-kind details in the ceremony.
Ernesto tells PEOPLE, “My mother who is a floral designer actually made Heather’s bouquet and my lapel flower and that was so special for us!”
Heather walked down the aisle to one of her favorite film scores called “The Ice Dance” by composer Danny Elfman, which was featured in Edward Scissorhands. She tells PEOPLE that she is a “huge” Tim Burton fan and that the movie was her favorite so “it was super important” for her to “incorporate that part of me into my wedding day.”
That wasn’t the only important soundtrack included in the ceremony as Ernesto tells PEOPLE that he grew up “listening to Mozart and classical music” and so adding “Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons: Concerto No. 4 in F Minor” was “such a fun part of the ceremony for me.”
For the couple’s first dance, they swayed along to “Beige” by Yoke Lore — a moment that Ernesto tells PEOPLE he had been anticipating for a long time. “I had been imagining and dreaming of that moment since [the tune] became our song in 2021 while we lived in L.A.,” he said, noting that they previously danced to it “at home in our undies after a night out.”
He said another moment he was looking forward to was his dance with his mother to the song “Meditarraneo – Serrat,” which he had listened to since he “was a boy,” adding, “we finally got to dance on the shores of the Mediterranean – a dream come true.”
“For me the wedding was so much more than what I had ever dreamt of,” Ernesto says. “It was a fairytale. It was epic and it was perfect. I am so extremely happy with it all.”
Heather wore an “elegant and timeless” dress for the ceremony that she says, “fit to my body so organically and I immediately felt like a bride when I put it on.” She also found the perfect dress for their rehearsal dinner by chance on the streets of Taormina and noted it “was better than any and all dresses I ordered.”
The couple had a plated dinner with all of the Sicilian classics and a two-layered cake with traditional cannoli filling and a casata — or classic Sicilian sponge cake soaked in liqueur — at the top.
Taormina holds a special place in the hearts of the couple, as it was the location where Ernesto popped the question, exactly a year before their wedding during a wine tour on Mt. Etna. The pair even had their first looks at the location, paying tribute to the place where they decided to entwine their lives.
“The first look for me was going to be such a special moment and it was! I cried at how beautiful Heather looked in her perfect dress,” Ernesto recalls. “I feel so lucky.”
He tells PEOPLE that the ceremony was the perfect way to begin off their new life together starting with their upcoming honeymoon in Thailand and move to New York City next year.
“My parents have been married for 40 years and I have seen the life that they’ve created through commitment and sacrifice. Heather means that to me,” Ernesto says. “She and I together can and will overcome any obstacle.”
“Through quarantining together during Covid, multiple real-estate projects and everyday life, we have not only endured, but have grown stronger and more in love,” he continues. “Marriage is the ultimate commitment to Heather as my life partner and love of my life. The vows are every day commitments to make our life together better.”
Planning + Design: Michelle Durpetti Events | Photography: Collin Pierson Photography & Francesco Rimmaudo | Film: Salvo Romano Videographer | Floral, lighting, entertainment: Stars Luxury Events | Printed items: Smitten Boutique Shop | Guest Gifting: Shinery | PR: Be Inspired PR | Social content: Andrea Castagna | Location: Una Hotels, Capotaormina | Photo Booth: Phodat Booths | Bridal Glam: Heather Salvaggio, Becca Merola | Bride’s gown: Town and Country Bridal | Groom’s suit: Harper and Jones
