Justin Viel & Valerie Wu

June 11, 2025

After dating throughout high school and college, Justin Viel proposed to Valerie Wu following a graduation celebration with Valerie’s family. The couple knew early on that they wanted a destination wedding. “We knew we wanted it to be intimate and dreamy,” says the bride. Justin’s love of Star Wars and James Bond movies led him to the idea of getting married along the shores of Italy’s Lake Como—where both franchises have filmed—and Valerie was easily convinced. The day was full of love, family, and friends that feel like family. “Each one of our guests have known Justin and I for years, so they knew our story, every up and down, and everything that led up to this special moment in our lives,” says Valerie. “That feeling is something we will never forget!”

Keep reading to learn more about Valerie and Justin’s love story and wedding-planning process.

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D Weddings: Briefly, tell us the story of how you met and got engaged.

Valerie: We met in 6th grade and grew up with one another. We started dating freshman year of high school! High school Sweethearts!

I went to dinner with my family to celebrate graduating college. My mom told me she had a graduation gift back at her house for me. I went to my parent’s house and saw a path of rose petals leading me to the outdoor pavilion in my parent’s backyard with a huge balloon arch set up and decor and florals everywhere and Justin was waiting for me there and proposed! And when I walked back into the house, I was surprised with all our friends and family waiting for us to celebrate!

D Weddings:What was your vision for your wedding day?

Valerie: We knew early on that we wanted a destination wedding. We toured several wedding venues in the DFW area, but nothing jumped out at us. We knew it would most likely be a large wedding if we had it in Dallas and we were not keen on that either. From the start, we knew immediately if we had a destination wedding it would be somewhere in Europe. Justin already had a specific location and venue in mind: Lake Como, Italy! He had always loved Villa Del Balbianello as so many iconic films were shot there and as soon as I saw pictures I fell in love with the venue as well. It was dreamy, romantic, and I’m never going to say no to Lake Como- ha! We knew we wanted it to be intimate and dreamy. I actually did not have any specifics in mind but I had an overall, general Pinterest board that I had made for my planners, Alexis and Brittney from Gathered Events. They did the most amazing job and made all of my wildest dreams come true!

D Weddings: What did you learn from the wedding-planning process?

Valerie: If I could give one tip to any bride, it would be to hire a wedding planner! Wedding-planning can be super stressful, especially when it comes to a destination wedding. I would consider myself very Type-A, but I knew this was out of my expertise and would need help. We found Dallas based destination planners and it was the best decision we made. Also, the vendors you choose are so important. I made sure to not rush myself when it came to picking out our vendors for the day. We had a 2 year long engagement, which is longer than most but it was the best decision we made especially when it came to planning an overseas wedding. It worked out perfect and we had the absolute best team when it came to our wedding! I wouldn’t do anything differently.

D Weddings: What were the most important or meaningful elements of your wedding? Why were they significant?

Valerie: Justin’s mom passed away when he was 14 years old. We wanted to try to remember and honor her during our wedding. We had a seat saved in the front row of our ceremony with a custom sign made that honored Justin’s mom. In lieu of a Mother/Son dance, we had a video of fond memories between Justin and his mom playing to the song “My Wish” by Rascal Flatts, which is the song that they would have danced to.

D Weddings: What personal touches, if any, did you incorporate?

Valerie: We tried to incorporate our family into our wedding as much as possible. My sister-in-law did my makeup and Justin’s dad officiated our wedding.

D Weddings: What were some of your favorite moments from the day?

Valerie: Our first look was one of our favorite moments! We knew that the wedding day and the wedding weekend in general was going to feel like such a blur and we wanted to intentionally make time for just us during the big day. Our hotel we booked for our guests was right across the lake from our venue, so the entire time we could see our wedding venue from our balcony. Since we did a first look, we were able to ride the boat to the venue with just one another and explore the venue together before the guests arrived. It was the best decision we made by far! Another one of my favorite moments was getting to see our Ceremony and Reception reveal. I feel like it’s more typical for people to see their reception reveal during cocktail hour, but Alexis and Brittney had been there since the early morning and everything was ready and perfect. Since we got married on a historical landmark, the setup of the space was more unique. Our wedding was set up kind of like a tour of Villa Del Balbianello in a way. A big boat brought all our guests and they walked up the path to our ceremony space, Loggia Durini, then followed the path to the garden for our cocktail hour, and then our reception area in Loggia Segre.

D Weddings: What do you remember the most from the day?

Valerie: I just remember everyone feeling so emotional and just crying the entire time from our vows and throughout every speech. We only invited 30 people, which is considered to be a very small wedding. It was difficult narrowing down who we were going to invite but each one of our guests have known Justin and I for years, so they knew our story, every up and down, and everything that led up to this special moment in our lives. That feeling is something we will never forget! Everyone we had there we loved so much and we knew it was reciprocated. The cherry on top was that we were all at Lake Como and it all was just so magical and truly a dream come true.

ATTIRE:

Valerie: I got my dress from Alice in Ivory and it was made by Jane Hill. I knew I wanted my dress to be very timeless and elegant. The dress was absolutely what I dreamed of. It had this gorgeous bow that I wore during the ceremony and then during our reception I took the bow and veil off and wore a long neck scarf.

INVITATIONS:

Valerie: Our invitation suite and all the stationary during our wedding day was made locally by Betty Tran Jameson of Scribbles and Swirls. My planner, Brittney, worked with her as she is the visionary behind my wedding and they did a phenomenal job!

RECEPTION FLORALS:

Valerie: The florals were by Lake Como Florist, but Brittney with Gathered Events designed the whole thing. It was absolutely stunning! The tables were 8 feet across and it was filled with florals. Brittney brought in fresh limes, lemons, and oranges that she spread throughout the florals and the candles were such a dream as the sunset! It made the reception feel so dreamy and romantic…our venue was so special and beautiful that I didn’t know what else could make it better, but boy was I proven wrong!

CAKE:

Valerie: Our cake was a no brainer for us and we didn’t even think twice about it! We went with a traditional Italian wedding cake: Millefogile. The name means “a thousand layers,” and it has layers of crispy puff pastry and Chantilly cream with fresh berries and powdered

sugar. It was unreal! Justin and I ordered a Millefogile for dessert every time we saw it on the menu during our honeymoon, but nothing will compare to the one Sunlake made for our wedding!

PHOTOGRAPHER:

Valerie: Megan Kay Photography was our photographer. She was the first vendor we secured and I could go on for days about how much Justin, our families, and I love her. She is a visionary, pure talent, and the absolute kindest soul. She didn’t miss a single detail and her work is truly impeccable. She was hands down the best decision I or anyone could make for a wedding photographer.

How many guests did you have? 30

What was your specialty cocktail? Marry Me Mule (a Moscow mule—Justin’s favorite drink!)

What was your first dance song: “It’s Been a Long, Long Time” by Henry James & His Orchestra, featuring Kitty Kallen