This High-Fashion Perfumer’s Lake Como Elopement Was a Celebration of Fragrance and Scent
A love of scents helped San Francisco native Ashley Santiago find love on the other side of the world. She first moved to Paris in 2016 to pursue her dream of becoming a perfumer, then spent a year living in Singapore to study the fragrance culture of Southeast Asia. Ashley later returned to France to become a perfumer at Givaudan, the world’s leading fragrance creation company, where she works alongside a number of major fashion houses. At the same time, Versailles-born investment banker Adrien Ollat was returning to Paris from a two-year stint working at Goldman Sachs in London. “Unbeknownst to us, we had a mutual friend who was hosting a small housewarming dinner to which we were both invited,” shares Ashley. “Adrien immediately looked familiar to me, and it turns out we worked on the same street right next to the Arc de Triomphe. Our connection was instant, and we’ve been together ever since.”
A year after they met, Adrien booked a romantic getaway for the pair in the Six Senses Zil Pasyon Seychelles. “I was sure that was where he would propose,” says Ashley. However since Adrien’s birthday was a week before the tropical vacation, Ashley surprised him with a wine-tasting trip around the Champagne region of France followed by a Michelin-star meal. “While I was trying to keep everything a surprise for his birthday, Adrien had another surprise in store for me,” she remembers. “He contacted our private tour guide who helped him find a secluded vineyard with gorgeous views of the surrounding hills and countryside. As I was taking in the scenery, he got down on one knee. It was the most beautiful and unexpected romantic gesture of my life! Then, he opened the Chaumet box with my dream ring—a Josephine solitaire—and I instantly said yes. In that moment, Adrien made my French fairytale come true.”
While some brides dream of a big white wedding, Ashley always wanted to elope. “Having grown up in a large Latino family, I have attended many an elaborate wedding. While beautiful, I never felt was right for me,” she shares. “Adrien and I are both hopeless romantics and wanted something adventurous but intimate to reflect our vision of love.” The couple decided that Lake Como, Italy would be the perfect destination for them to tie the knot, as the country was the location of their first trip together. “We wanted our wedding to be classic and cinematic, accentuated by the vibrancy of the Italian dolce vita that makes Lake Como magic. This is how we picked the Villa Balbianello and Grand Hotel Tremezzo for our ceremony and reception,” says the bride.
Planning the international nuptial adventure for two was an easy experience thanks to the help of Andrea Naar Alba of Italian Weddings and Events. “Neither of us speaks Italian, so we found a local planner who had done several stunning weddings in the Lake Como area,” shares Ashley. “I had a very specific vision, which she understood immediately and took charge of everything, doing all in her power to ensure it was the best day of our lives with no fuss or stress—before, during, or after.”
The bride and groom both wanted to match the elegant and cinematic aura of their destination with their fashion choices. Adrien had a custom cream suit designed in Paris by Maison Artling. Ashley notes, “There is a James Bond-esque feel to it, which was perfect for Villa Balbianello as one of the 007 films was shot there.” The perfumer, meanwhile, chose two gowns to wear on her wedding day. “For the first dress, I chose a classic ivory ball gown with the kind of long train you really only get to wear on your wedding day,” she shares. She found the Milla Nova dress at a boutique in Paris that features gowns from Ukrainian designers. “As we got engaged shortly after the war in Ukraine had broken out, and I wanted to show support in any way I could,” she adds.
At first, Ashley didn’t intend to wear a second dress—but she found one by surprise while looking for a veil at her cousin’s bridal shop, Nelly’s Bridal Boutique, in South San Francisco. “As they couldn’t be a part of my dress shopping in Paris, my cousin had a party for me in her boutique where I tried on dresses in front of friends and family while we drank champagne and ate hors d oeuvres. I had already ordered my first dress and was modeling similar styles to give them an idea of what to expect,” she remembers. “At some point, however, my mom found a form-fitting stunner covered in sequins, which is not normally my style. But when I tried it on, everyone in the room just knew I had to have it on my big day.” Ashley describes the Morilee dress as timeless, sexy, and reflective of another side of her personality.
To accessorize for the day, Ashley wore a pair of European-cut diamond earrings she received as a gift from her mother. “We both collect antique jewelry and she felt these would bring me luck on my first move to France,” she shares. “I wanted to carry this sweet sentiment into my marriage, and they were also my ‘something old.’” The bride and groom did share one final touch to both their looks: a custom-designed fragrance by Dior’s in-house perfumer Francis Kurkdjian. ”When we were dating, Adrien saw how much I loved perfume and commissioned a bespoke couple’s fragrance for us,” Ashley says. “It is my all-time favorite and an incredibly thoughtful gift."
While a signature scent was undoubtedly an important choice for the couple, they also made sure to consider the aroma of their venues. “As a perfumer, flowers are incredibly important to me—not only their beauty, but their fragrance," says the bride. “Our outstanding florist [Riccardo Ciceri] didn’t disappoint, with custom arrangements of roses, tulips, peonies, iris, and ranunculus. All but the ranunculus are also fragrant flowers, and it was spellbinding to be surrounded by their scent.” She adds, “Since my husband also loves color, we opted for vivid arrangements mixed with fruits that embodied the spirit we had in mind.”
