A colorful garden wedding at Conti di San Bonifacio Wine Resort in Tuscany, Italy 

George Bragg (he/him/his) and Nelson Kiige (he/him/his) married on a sun-drenched afternoon at Conti di San Bonifacio Wine Resort in Tuscany, Italy, with every wooden chair on the lawn dressed in white linen and a bright Ugandan-print fan tied to its back. Guests in bold prints and vivid colors filled those chairs while colorful bunting flags hung between the towering cypress and pine trees overhead. The rolling Florentine hills stretched out behind the altar. Not a single flower arrangement in sight, by design.

The love story

“I was living in Kampala, Uganda, when I was invited by a friend to a spin class,” George says. “It was my first one and I wasn’t sure what to expect. I certainly didn’t expect the leader of the class to be the most gorgeous, beautiful man I’d ever laid eyes on. I fumbled my way through the class despite being fit and an avid cyclist.”

The gym visit that followed sealed it. “After the class I went with my friend to thank the instructor. His name was Nelly (Nelson). He said I must come again next week and I fully intended to but I hurt my toe in the gym in the following days and didn’t go to the next class.”

“A few weeks later I was back at the gym doing my own workout when Nelly spotted me on the treadmill and came and joined me by taking up the one beside me,” he says. “We chatted the afternoon away and spent far more time than planned walking on the treadmill. He boldly asked for my phone number afterwards and shortly after I took him on a date. We’ve been together ever since.”

After five years engaged, George and Nelson arrived in Tuscany as a British and Ugandan couple based in Amsterdam, already feeling, as they put it, like they had been married for a long time.

Ceremony at the wine resort

“The ceremony was outdoors in the late afternoon Tuscan sun,” Nelson says. “The guests’ seats faced the Italian countryside with vineyards and mountains as the backdrop. Each wooden chair was draped in white linen with a bright Ugandan-style fan tied to the back of it. Bright patterned flags hung above amongst the trees highlighting the ceremonial area.”

The structure of the ceremony was entirely their own. “The whole ceremony was designed by us and not particularly traditional,” he says. “The guests were asked to take their seats as the music turned up. First I (George) emerged leading a handful of guests/dancers from the pale bricked estate building into the wide courtyard. We performed in the courtyard and I danced my way down the grass aisle before Nelly did the same, dancing his way to me.”

Once both grooms stood together, two close friends took the floor. “We took a seat and two of our dear friends then spoke about us individually and as a couple, before leading guests through a special interactive moment: describing things we had each done and asking guests to stand if it applied to them. For example: you are a mother of a groom or you have gone to the gym with Nelly or you have had one of George’s special cocktails that he finishes by stirring it with his finger.”

The ring delivery had its own scene-stealer. Maya, George’s dog who originally traveled with him from Uganda, wore a flower headdress to carry the rings down the aisle. During the exchange, she wrapped herself around George and, as he tells it, tried to keep him for herself. The two turquoise-inlaid gold bands were slipped onto their fingers as confetti blasted through the air.

“We each then said our own vows and kissed as confetti was blasted around us,” Nelson says. “Then we grabbed our friends and family by the hands and danced down to the pool for aperitifs.”

An evening that kept going

“Dinner and speeches followed before we cut into our huge Tiramisù wedding cake and popped the champagne,” George says. The tiramisu, made by the chef at Conti di San Bonifacio, was layered and substantial, cut inside the resort’s rustic stone interior as the two grooms stood in contrasting looks.

Then came the reveal. “The DJ who had been enhancing the festivities throughout turned up the music and everyone hit the dance floor, except us…we snuck off to our room,” he says. “Not too much later we emerged dressed in matching sequin outfits, mine gold and Nelly’s blue. Together we strode to the dance floor and performed our own couple’s dance to Beyoncé.”

“This set the dance floor on fire and the party continued all night, with even the kids dancing throughout,” he says. “It was a truly joyous celebration.”

The purple, gold and red uplighting that washed the ancient pine trees, the string lights overhead and the DJ, Robin van Putten, who had been reading the crowd all day, kept the lawn alive well into the night. At one point both grooms dropped to the dance floor for push-ups in their sequined ensembles as the crowd formed a circle around them.

Ugandan touches in Tuscany

“We brought in Ugandan touches with the fans, flags and Nelly wore traditional Ugandan patterns in his clothes on the day,” George says.

Nelson’s ceremony look centered on those patterns: a bold black-and-white geometric print suit paired with Converse high-tops, a choice that moved between cultural reference and relaxed confidence. George wore a shimmering gold brocade short-sleeve shirt with crisp white trousers for the ceremony, then the gold sequin romper for the reception. Together they arrived at their couple’s dance in coordinating sequined looks, gold and cobalt blue, that read as both a fashion statement and a shared performance.

The invitation for guests to wear bright colors or whatever they felt comfortable in was taken seriously. The crowd arrived in yellow gowns, leopard print, floral suits, linen and bold African-inspired fabrics, their African-print hand fans in hand throughout the afternoon. Colorful triangle bunting in Ugandan-inspired prints ran across every outdoor space, tying the Florentine hillside to Kampala in a way that was specific and felt.

Flowers were never part of the plan. The fans and flags did the work that arrangements might otherwise do, giving the ceremony space color, movement and cultural meaning without a single bouquet.

Advice for engaged LGBTQ+ couples or marriers

“Having a base of friendship is just as important as love and romance for a relationship,” Nelson says.

Their own story bears that out. A spin class introduction, an afternoon on side-by-side treadmills, more than five years engaged and three years of active planning: the wedding at Conti di San Bonifacio was not a spontaneous declaration but the result of two people who had built something durable together before they ever booked a venue.

Challenges faced

“There weren’t unusual challenges for us in particular,” George says. “We just made sure to choose the right people and professionals to surround ourselves with for the occasion.”

That intentionality carried through every vendor decision. Planning a destination wedding across three countries, Uganda in the couple’s history, the Netherlands as their home and Italy as the setting, required a team that understood who they were without needing it explained. Photographer Tiffany Brophy was among those professionals, documenting the day from pre-ceremony prep through the late-night dance floor without missing a beat.

Pleasant surprises

“We loved that when the photographer was done for the night, she put away her camera and came and danced with us!” Nelson says.

That moment, a vendor stepping out of a professional role and into the celebration itself, landed as a reflection of the day’s overall spirit. George and Nelson had built a wedding that asked people to show up fully, in bright colors, dancing, present. Their photographer did exactly that. ❤️

Featured LGBTQ+ Inclusive and Queer Affirming Wedding Vendors

Photographer: Tiffany Brophy Photography
Ceremony Venue: Conti di San Bonifacio Wine Resort
Reception Venue: Conti di San Bonifacio Wine Resort
DJ: Robin van Putten
Cake Designer: Chef at Conti di San Bonifacio Wine Resort