Inside Ivy Getty’s Fantasy Wedding Weekend in San Francisco
Artist and model Ivy Love Getty, the great granddaughter of J. Paul Getty and one of the heiresses to the oil fortune he amassed, married photographer Tobias Alexander Engel in a ceremony officiated by Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi at City Hall in San Francisco. The bride first met her groom through a family member, and they eventually ran into each other again at Paris Fashion Week. “I saw this cute guy who was taking photos of the event and of me,” she remembers. “I naturally went over, and we started talking. Quickly we realized that we had met before, the year before.”
While they were dating, the New York-based couple traveled often. On one of their trips abroad, Toby asked Ivy to marry him. “After attending the Unicef Ball, we went to Capri for three days,” Getty says. “Normally, I pick where we go out to eat, but this time Toby insisted he pick. This didn’t raise any red flags, but when I got to the restaurant, I thought to myself ‘Oh he really planned this. We had a table overlooking the entire island away from the rest of the restaurant. The waitress came, and we ordered our food. As the sun was getting ready to set, we went outside to take photos of it. Toby set his iPhone timer and got down on one knee. The timer went off at the perfect moment as we have the most incredible photo.”
Toby proposed with a sapphire engagement ring on a yellow gold band that’s reminiscent of Princess Diana’s ring. Diamonds from a necklace Ivy’s grandmother gave her when she was a teenager were added around the center stone. “It is the most unique piece of jewelry and so sentimental to me,” she says. “I can’t help but smile every time I look down and see it!”
Because of the pandemic, the couple didn’t immediately start planning, instead biding their time a bit. They wanted their friends and family to be able to celebrate with them, especially as Ivy had lost both her grandmother Ann—the notable interior designer and philanthropist who raised her—and her father John Gilbert Getty in 2020. “When my beloved grandmother passed away, I knew I wanted to have the wedding in my house to honor her,” Getty says. “My grandmother interior designed each room of the house which allows me to feel as if she is there with me. I would be able to look around the room and see something that reminds me of her. Her presence is everywhere in that home. The theme of my entire wedding is the house and my grandmother.”
“I was lucky enough to have stayed in the house where Ivy and Tobias celebrated their wedding,” Vogue contributing editor Hamish Bowles (who has also recently been appointed the Editor in Chief of World of Interiors) says. “It’s one of the great treasure houses of America, suffused with Ann’s alchemical touch.”
Art and panels from the house were incorporated into the save-the-dates and invitations. “Growing up in that house and being around great parties my whole life, I never had to turn to Pinterest for inspiration,” Getty says. “I am fortunate that one of my best friends, who I’ve known my entire life, is event planner Stanlee Gatti. I also hired wedding planner Jocelyn Arelt of Arelt Events. I had the list of creatives surrounding me that I always knew would help plan my wedding. The process showed me how much planning and effort goes into a wedding, and I had so much fun doing it!”
The wedding kicked off with a British Invasion Mod Party at The Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco on Thursday night. Stanlee’s inspiration for the first night of festivities was Barberella, the 1968 sci-fi film directed by Jean-Claude Forest. It took Stanlee’s team seven days to reimagine what normally feels like an airline hanger inside into a full-fledged nightclub, complete with shiny silver walls. “I knew the walls were silver the day before, I didn’t know anything else,” Getty admits. “I didn’t tell them anything specific. Everything has been a complete surprise.”
“I don’t do storyboards, proposals, or anything that formal,” Gatti says. “I put clay on the wheel and spin.”
Guests arrived on the scene in short, sexy sequins, gogo boots, and big half up, half down hair—ready to party just as soon as their vaccination cards were checked and their phones were locked and stowed away in pouches. Dancers put on a show in clear plastic bubbles while Mark Ronson DJed. Eventually, Earth Wind Fire took the stage. Ivy wore three looks during the course of the evening, all styled by Carrie Goldberg of CLG Creative. A vintage Emanuel Ungaro dress with coral and diamond earrings from Stephen Russell, a vintage Emilio Pucci dress and D’Accori shoes, and finally a customized vintage Norman Norell from Happy Isles in L.A.
“It wasn’t hard to get inspired by each event, starting with the mod themed welcome party,” Goldberg explains. “We agreed that nothing should play it safe, and that we should focus on turning up the volume on the ‘60s vibe Ivy’s so inspired by. We referenced iconic photos of Twiggy, Mary Quant, Jean Shrimpton, and more to set the tone.”
The following day, guests joined the couple for a picnic lunch at the Log Cabin on Presidio, overlooking the city—IV drips were at the ready for anyone in need of help recovering from the night before. “Butterflies are sentimental to Ivy, and so we incorporated them wherever possible,” Goldberg says of the bride’s look for this daytime event. “This archive Alexander McQueen gown from Pre-Fall 2016 had her name all over it: A black lace gown with an open back and a mock neck featuring dozens of hand-embroidered butterflies whose wings fluttered as she walked. It was all about dark romance, something soft but with a dose of edge—we paired it with Christian Louboutin platform sandals, Stephen Russell antique earrings, Chloe sunglasses, and a cheeky Romeo and Juliet clutch by Olympia Le Tan.”
That evening, an intimate group gathered for a ceremony rehearsal at city hall, followed by an intimate dinner at Quince restaurant. Ivy collaborated with her dear friend Paul Burgo of Factory New York on a custom look—a sequin midi dress in shades of fuchsia, black, and white, paired with a custom headpiece. “Accessories were kept sleek but undeniably Ivy,” Goldberg says. “Shoulder duster earrings by Material Good, Amina Muaddi pumps, and a crystal-edged, black satin mini bag.”
The wedding day started with a pajama party. “We have the whole mezzanine level,” Getty explains. “There’s a styling room with all of the extra clothes, and there’s two hotel rooms that they removed all of the hotel furniture from and then there are these individual Margiela boxes with all of the bridesmaids’ names engraved on them.”
