It didn’t take long for the couple to realize that the planner’s lack of expertise with the Balearic Island, and Es Racó’s relative inexperience with weddings (theirs would only be the third thrown there), would make plotting the celebration an uphill battle. “They’re incredible, but don’t have a wedding planning business.” Des says, “They run a resort.”
The couple struggled to decide on a date and what vendors they needed (such as an AV team or furniture rentals) and how to best use different locations and layouts for each event. They finally decided to fly from New York, to Mallorca, to finalize the plan in person. This was to take place in April 2024. “Our wedding planner was unprepared. Des says, “She took me to a florist that had no clue what they were doing even though I sent inspiration over multiple times.” We fired our wedding planner three days into the planning.
With the wedding only six weeks away, they started over by asking Es Racó about the event planners that had worked on the two previous weddings held there, and ended up hiring Pauline de Saussure at Saussure EventsThis was a game changer. Des explains, “They were able to provide the necessary information about the wedding venue, contact and logistics, as well as the person who would be able to deliver a cake in the middle of the mountain range.” “She was able to bring to the table many things I did not know were needed for the wedding.”
Keep your vision in mind
While that first florist the couple saw had put forth dainty little blooms, Des and Shane had a bigger statement in mind for their florals—which is that there would barely be florals at all. The decor was chosen to compliment the Mallorcan surroundings, not compete with them. It included warm wooden chair, white candles placed in glass containers, and sparse palm leaf explosions. Enesencia Design. “We did a lot more candles than we normally would to keep the lights low. I think it looks stunning when you have the light at eye-level. “It gives you that golden glow,” Des says. We used these tall greens in order to give the tent some height.
Although vendors kept pushing for string lights, they wanted something that was more commanding. They looked to James Turrell’s fine-art installation as a guide. “Our AV team figured out how to do LED tube lights and string them up in the tent, which made the perfect golden orange color—a strong request of Shane’s,” Des says of their work with Velvet Productions. “It was not necessarily adding a functional light but a glow that felt like an art installation to the height the tent.”
Hire your friends
They did, however, call upon some of their creative friends to help with the celebrations. Shane’s friend Tal owns a store and a fashion label Colbo In New York, the photographer friend created custom suits for both the bride and groom’s son. Andrew Bayda Everett Bouwer, who shoots under Everett Bouwer Ill Gander) captured the wedding. The wedding band was not a wedding group at all but an ambient rock band called The Zenmenn Friends of the couple, based in Berlin. Francis Davis, Shane’s Public Records cofounder and vinyl collector, DJed at the show after the band finished.
