Giannina Gibelli sparkles in crystal reception dress after Croatia wedding

Giannina Gibelli saved the flashiest look for after the vows. After marrying Blake Horstmann on Saturday, June 20, at Mauzolej on St. Andrew’s Island off the coast of Rovinj, Croatia, the Love Is Blind alum changed out of her Galia Lahav Couture Opéra gown and into a long-sleeve crystal reception dress built for movement, light and a packed dance floor.

The reception dress did the exact job a modern second look is supposed to do. It had a plunging neckline, a semi-sheer silhouette and lace embellishments at the cuffs and shoulders, with crystal details that flashed every time Giannina Gibelli moved. The ceremony look was proper bridal grandeur, but the reception piece carried the personality. It was looser, sexier and far more social-media ready, the kind of dress that makes the after-party feel like the main event.

The setting gave the wardrobe change even more charge. Nearly 100 guests made the trip for the destination wedding, which folded Venice, Italy, into the celebrations before the Croatia ceremony. Heath, the couple’s 2-year-old son, served as ring bearer, and the guest list pulled in a reality-TV crowd that included Jason Tartick, Astrid Loch, Alexa Lemieux, Colleen Reed, Raven Ross and Kathryn Hurley. It was a crossover wedding with serious fan-service energy, the kind of guest mix that turns one couple’s celebration into a full culture moment.

Giannina Gibelli later posted a wedding carousel with the caption “Together forever,” and said the celebration “exceeded every single expectation.” That crystal reception dress was the part made to live beyond the aisle: it shimmered, photographed beautifully and gave the night its most memorable fashion hit, which is exactly why the second dress has become bridal fashion’s real battleground.