Finding herself at a fancy holiday party where she knew no one, venture capitalist Sarah Kunst started chatting with an older man and asked if he knew anyone single. The man pointed across the room at his son, Will Richards, with a description: “He’s 6’5" and has a PhD from MIT.” “As I was walking away to introduce myself,” Sarah remembers, “I told Will’s dad, ‘You’re going to tell this story at our wedding.’” He sure did. A year and a half later, Sarah and Will were engaged.
“Will wanted a cold-weather wedding—we met during the holidays and have always loved all things Christmas,” Sarah says. “For me, that meant one thing—winter wonderland. We were picturing winter markets, mulled wine, the works. I had spent time in Prague for work and considered it the most beautiful city in the world, so when I found a gorgeous baroque trompe l’oeil palace in the city, we had to go see it.” Troja turned out to be the perfect place, but it was something outside the palace that sealed the deal. “We knew the Prague Christmas marts were world-class and would be the perfect welcome night activity, so everything just came together,” Sarah says. “I’ve watched an embarrassing amount of Hallmark Christmas movies, so I went full send on the holiday vibes.”
The vision was maximalism in every way. “We wanted the ceremony to feel very joyful, ecclesiastical, and transcendent before shifting into the ultimate reception night out: speakeasy meets Vegas, complete with a casino, nightclub, and epic end-of-night party bus,” Sarah describes. “My biggest source of aesthetic inspo was Prague itself—the history, indulgence, beauty, craftsmanship. Mix that with a little Baz Luhrmann, and we had a romantic maximalist fever dream with just the right amount of Christmas camp.”
For her wardrobe, the bride wanted “high fashion and high sustainability,” she says. “For our Christmas Mart welcome dinner, I sourced an amazing silk corset dress made by Royal Ballet courtier Rossetti Couture and added a red velvet Mokuba ribbon. . . For the wedding ceremony, I wanted a look that matched the romantic, life-changing mood of the moment. I found a vintage Givenchy cap-sleeve ballgown with a low back and drop waist. It was new with tags and perfectly on-trend—20-some years after it was made.” She worked with an alterationist from Oscar De La Renta to add boning and extra tulle, and paired the dress with a lace-trimmed cathedral veil.
Post-ceremony, she changed into her take on a party dress. “I found a 2010s ivory Oscar De La Renta silk faille gown and we added ostrich feathers around the bottom and down the sash, and we also added a pickup,” Sarah says. “My goal was to recreate the end-of-night alterations we all make when we want to be able to dance and move, so we made a weightless, fun dancing dress that still looked like a wedding gown. I adore Oscar, and being able to wear a customized look was a fashion highlight.”
Accessorizing was even more fun. “I’m an avid collector of jewelry, and it was a fun place to really let loose since these are pieces that are infinitely rewearable,” Sarah says. “Will got me an antique engagement ring and canary diamond earrings, and I kept the theme going with an 1800s Bohemian garnet necklace. Will got in on the diamonds, too, with Edwardian diamond tux studs I found at auction and a Victorian diamond brooch.”
The morning of the wedding, Sarah got ready in a white Hill House nap dress (she’s an investor in the brand) and feathery slides, as Alina Vagner brought her ’90s supermodel glam vision to life. “We did a soft smokey eye, a little red blush, and a sheer red lip," the bride notes.
She was ready for a walk down the runway, and that’s essentially what she did. “Somewhere along the way, I got an idea in my head about a really unique processional idea,” Sarah says. “What if there was a spotlight? And the room was dark? And it felt a little like a fashion show? Our venue was perfect for this, so we were able to pull off a magical moment for our guests.”
On Dec 7, 2024, Sarah’s dad walked her down the dramatic aisle to the “I’ll Cover You” reprise from “Rent.” “I felt like my dreams were literally coming true,” Sarah remembers. “The smartest, funniest, most patient husband of my dreams and so many of our closest friends and family, the ceremony I had designed and choreographed for over a year, the dress, a literal palace—truly a peak life moment.”
After the ceremony, guests moved into the palace stables for dinner. “I wanted one long table with only candles to give a romantic, cozy feeling in the middle of this grand place,” Sarah says. INSPIRITO Flowers added finishing touches. While guests were being seated, Sarah changed into her second dress, and the newlyweds made their grand entrance to do their first dance—after a minor blip when the music didn’t start—to “All I Want for Christmas Is You.” “We love music, but we didn’t have a song we wanted to dance to,” Sarah remembers. “I kept joking that, given the holiday vibes, we should turn to the queen of Christmas and go full Mariah. Will agreed, and we did a sweet dance choreographed by Foxtrot Oscar; then, when the beat dropped, all our guests rushed onto the dance floor to join us. It was such a fun moment that really started the reception off on a high note.”
Maximum Services served a family-style dinner of Czech food. “I hate being hungry at fancy dinners, so we had all the steak, porchetta, mashed potatoes, spaetzle, and more!” Sarah says. “After dinner, we moved back to the main palace hall, which had been transformed into a nightclub complete with casino, dance floor, lounge areas, and a dessert bar.”
The party continued even after it was technically over. “We found the craziest post-wedding transport—a double-length party bus complete with full bar and DJ, so we all piled in and had a party on the way back to the hotel,” Sarah says. There, a former bank vault-turned-bar hosted the after-hours. “We had traditional Czech Christmas cookies, and we were up until 3 a.m. with our guests snacking and celebrating. . . It was the perfect high note to end the weekend on.”
