TikTok star Sabina Blair married fellow creator Josh Larkin at Castello Xirumi Serravalle in Sicily, where an ethereal tree-lined ceremony, dramatic lace bridalwear and candlelit celebrations made for an unforgettable destination wedding.
A giant tree. White fabric floating through its branches. Candlelit courtyards. A harp playing the Interstellar soundtrack as the bride walks down the aisle.
On paper, Sabina Blair's wedding sounds like it was lifted directly from a very expensive fairytale.
And visually, it pretty much was.
The TikTok star and content creator married fellow creator Josh Larkin in Sicily, choosing Castello Xirumi Serravalle for a celebration surrounded by lush gardens, old-world architecture and an almost otherworldly atmosphere. The venue itself is a historic Sicilian estate set among extensive citrus groves, with gardens and spaces designed specifically for destination weddings.
But behind the dreamy photographs was a wedding weekend that was not exactly immune to chaos.
Yet somehow, the final result looked remarkably unbothered.
And perhaps that is what makes Blair and Larkin's wedding so interesting. It was not a perfectly controlled production. It was a beautiful celebration that had to keep adapting.
For couples planning their own destination wedding, that distinction matters. A dream venue is only the beginning. Having planners and suppliers who can handle the unexpected is just as important, which is one reason Wedded Concierge connects couples with trusted wedding professionals who can help bring a destination celebration together from the venue search to the final details.
The wedding venue was not necessarily the result of months of scrolling through destination wedding websites.
According to the couple's wedding debrief, Castello Xirumi came into the picture after a recommendation from a hairdresser. The estate eventually became the setting for a wedding that leaned heavily into its unusual atmosphere, with Arabian-inspired gardens, a pool and candlelit courtyards adding to its almost fantasy-world quality.
The property also gave the bridal and groom's parties separate accommodation spaces, with the bridal side getting the more luxurious setup.
The venue itself certainly had enough personality to carry a wedding. Castello Xirumi describes its grounds as an enchanting landscape of citrus, aromatic plants and palms, with its historic castle surrounded by gardens and multiple event spaces.
But finding the castle was only the beginning.
The wedding was professionally planned by Sicilian wedding planner Valentina Lamuri, who became particularly important once the weekend started throwing curveballs.
A destination wedding in Sicily apparently needed a little geological drama.
On the day of the pool party, Mount Etna erupted, causing substantial disruption to flights. Guests travelling from Gatwick and elsewhere faced delays and cancellations, with some having to find alternative routes involving ferries and lengthy coach journeys.
For a couple with an international guest list, this was not exactly a minor inconvenience.
There was a genuine period of uncertainty over whether everyone would even make it to the wedding. A beautifully planned destination celebration is one thing. A beautifully planned destination celebration where you are not entirely sure your guests can physically reach the venue is another.
Still, the wedding stayed on track.
Then came the ceremony, and this is where the wedding really started looking like something out of a storybook.
Castello Xirumi has an area the venue itself calls its Enchanted Forest, centred around an enormous age-old ficus with exposed roots. The space is specifically used for intimate wedding ceremonies, and the tree is described by the venue as a symbol of unity, peace and harmony.
For Blair and Larkin, that tree became the centrepiece.
Rather than hiding it behind a conventional floral arch, the design worked around its enormous trunk and sprawling branches. Long panels of sheer white fabric were draped through the canopy and allowed to fall toward the ground, creating an organic canopy that followed the natural shape of the tree.
White chandeliers hung between the branches, while candles and oversized floral arrangements gathered around the exposed roots.
The florals mixed pale blush and cream blooms with deeper burgundy tones and lush greenery. The aisle itself remained relatively restrained, lined with candles and petals so that the tree could do most of the talking.
It is a particularly good example of what happens when wedding décor works with a venue instead of trying to completely transform it.
If the ceremony was built around one very dramatic tree, Blair's wedding dress was not about to be understated either.
The gown is an intricate lace creation with a structured strapless sweetheart neckline that frames the bodice before giving way to delicate off-the-shoulder lace sleeves. The sleeves are fitted and sheer, extending down toward her hands and creating an almost glove-like effect without losing the softness of the lace.
Floral motifs cover the dress from the bodice through the skirt, giving the entire look plenty of texture. Rather than relying on crystals or heavy embellishment, the drama comes from the lace itself and the way it moves across the silhouette.
The bodice is fitted closely through the waist and hips before the skirt opens into a fuller shape, creating a long, elongated silhouette. From the back, the train spreads widely across the ground, with layers of lace creating a soft edge that trails behind her as she walks.
It is romantic without becoming overly sweet. The off-the-shoulder neckline keeps the look contemporary, while the intricate lace and sweeping train give it that unmistakable full-bridal feeling.
And against the ceremony setting, it made perfect sense. The gown's floral lace echoed the surrounding garden, while its long train looked almost designed to spill across the tree roots and stone pathways.
When the ceremony finally began, it was relatively short, lasting around ten minutes, but the music gave it plenty of emotional weight.
Blair walked down the aisle to a harp arrangement of the Interstellar soundtrack, a song choice the couple preferred over alternatives including “Married Life.”
Josh had reportedly been pacing nervously beforehand, but managed to remain composed once the ceremony began.
There were personalized vows and speeches, with humour woven into the more emotional parts of the ceremony. Even a few pronunciation mistakes from the celebrant became part of the story rather than something that derailed the mood.
And that feels fitting for a wedding that had already taught everyone to expect the unexpected.
After all, the point was never to make everything flawless. It was to get married.
After the ceremony, Blair and Larkin were photographed walking through the rain together.
The bride lifted her skirt slightly as they made their way along the wet stone path, her lace gown moving through the garden while Larkin stayed beside her in his black tuxedo.
Then they danced.
It is one of those wedding photographs that feels almost too perfectly cinematic, except the rain was not part of the original moodboard.
The wet cobblestones reflected the surrounding greenery, the lace gown picked up the texture of the landscape and the entire scene looked like a still from a romantic film.
Sometimes the weather really does have better creative direction than the wedding planner.
Before dinner, guests settled into an aperitivo that lasted more than an hour, with small snacks disappearing quickly as everyone waited for the evening to properly begin.
The dinner itself took inspiration from traditional Sicilian dining while being adapted for the couple's English guests.
There was risotto, ravioli and steak, with the food apparently exceeding expectations for a meal being served to a large wedding crowd.
Josh also kept a supply of drinks and snacks on hand, which became particularly useful as weather delays and the shifting schedule stretched the evening.
Because sometimes the difference between a stressed wedding guest and a happy one is simply having something to eat.
Once the sun disappeared, the setting became even more atmospheric.
Tables were dressed in rich caramel and bronze-toned linens, paired with rounded cane-style chairs and layered place settings. Crystal glassware caught the candlelight, while tall taper candles and smaller votives gave the tables a warm glow.
The floral arrangements brought in deeper shades of dusty pink, burgundy, rust and peach, mixed with greenery and loose, garden-inspired textures.
Palm trees surrounded the dinner space, with hanging lanterns adding pools of light throughout the grounds. The overall effect was elegant without feeling overly formal, with the natural landscape still very much part of the room.
It felt like the kind of dinner that could quietly stretch into the early hours.
Blair's wedding is easy to admire for the obvious reasons. The giant tree is spectacular. The dress is romantic. The castle is beautiful. The candlelit reception looks like an absolute dream.
But the more interesting story is what happened behind those photographs.
A venue found through a recommendation. A volcanic eruption. Guests rerouting their journeys. A dinner location changed because of rain. Bow tie drama. Suit steaming chaos. A ten-minute ceremony. A harp playing Interstellar. And, eventually, a newlywed couple dancing through the rain.
The wedding did not go perfectly. It went forward.
And perhaps that is the better destination wedding lesson. You can plan the flowers, the menu, the music and the giant tree. You cannot plan Mount Etna or the weather. What you can do is have the right people around you when the plan inevitably changes.
In Blair and Larkin's case, the backup plans became part of the story.
And judging from the photographs, the story turned out pretty beautifully.
