Lauren Sánchez made an unusual bridal choice at her Venice wedding to Jeff Bezos that broke with tradition — inspired by a recent life-changing experience.
Lauren Sánchez and Jeff Bezos got married on Friday June 27, 2025 in a star-studded ceremony in Venice, Italy. Among many personal touches at the romantic event, the bride walked down the aisle without a traditional bouquet.
The reason for the missing bouquet is both straightforward and deeply personal. At a basic level, a bouquet simply failed to match her sources of inspiration for her wedding look, as Sánchez told Vogue:
“I researched pictures of brides in the 1950s (…) I wanted to reflect back, and I saw Sophia Loren and her hands were [in a prayer position] and she was in high lace, up to the neck, and I said, ‘That’s it. That’s the dress.'”
Cary Grant and Sophia Loren in a still image from ‘Houseboat’ (1958). | Source: Getty Images
On a deeper level, though, Sánchez was making conscious choices — inspired in part by her age and experiences, and in part by her recent trip to space aboard a Bezos-owned Blue Origin rocket.
“We don’t have a lot of traditions that we’re keeping (…) I mean, I love traditions, but for a 55-year-old woman, it’s a little different,” said Sánchez to Vogue.
Lauren Sánchez wearing a Dior dress as she leaves the Aman Hotel in Venice on June 27, 2025. | Source: Getty Images
Sánchez explained that her journey to the Karman line, 62 miles above the ground, was “literally one of the most profound experiences I’ve ever had,” adding that it has changed her “visually, spiritually.” This led her to reconsider her dress:
“It went from ‘I want a simple, sexy modern dress’ to ‘I want something that evokes a moment,’ and where I am right now. I am a different person than I was five years ago,” Sánchez told Vogue.
Jeff Bezos helps his wife Lauren Sánchez, in a Versace dress, board a water taxi in Venice on June 28, 2025. | Source: Getty Images
Sánchez started planning for her wedding well in advance — preparations for her dress alone began more than a year and a half before the wedding, in close coordination with Dolce & Gabbana’s own Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana.
The Sophia Loren inspiration came by way of ‘Houseboat‘, a 1958 romantic comedy featuring the actress and Cary Grant. In the movie’s wedding scene, Loren wears a gorgeous white dress with lace covering her arms and chest.
Jeff Bezos helps fiancée Lauren Sánchez, wearing a Schiaparelli couture gown, board a water taxi in Venice on June 26, 2025. | Source: Getty Images
While Sánchez and Bezos did away with some conventions, like the bouquet, they did choose to honor a few — such as the groom not seeing the bride before the wedding day, or the “something borrowed, something blue” tradition.
For her “something borrowed,” Sánchez wore a pair of Dolce white gold earrings, each with four inlaid diamonds cut from the same stone. Her “something blue” was an item she took to space in her Blue Origin flight.
Lauren Sánchez, wearing a vintage Alexander McQueen dress, in Venice, Italy on June 25, 2025. | Source: Getty Images
While the ceremony took place on Friday, the wedding was a multi-day affair that gave Sánchez ample opportunity to show off many different gowns.
Among them was a dress inspired by Rita Hayworth’s 1946 ‘Gilda,’ as well as an Oscar de la Renta cocktail dress with 175,000 crystals, and various outfits designed by the likes of Dior, Alexander McQueen, Schiaparelli, and Versace
