Here are photos of Lauren Sanchez and Jeff Bezos on Thursday in Venice, attending one of their pre-wedding parties. Lauren wore a god-awful Schiaparelli dress with a crazy cinched waist. That dress was so tight, you know Lauren was probably nauseous. Anyway, I have some updates and stories about this fakakta wedding. First off, the pre-wedding “welcome party” on Thursday night was hilariously rained out. Drenched celebrity guests fled the event at Madonna dell’Orto church like drowning rats and everyone tried to find umbrellas. Reuters also reports that the entire multi-day wedding extravaganza will likely cost Bezos anywhere between $46.5 million and $55.6 million. All of this is for show as well – Bezos and Sanchez already had their civil, legal wedding before heading to Venice.

Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez have already tied the knot in the US after signing a multi-million dollar prenup, multiple sources tell Page Six. The happy couple, who have organized a $10 million, three-day wedding spree, have not registered to tie the knot in Venice. Sources say they were legally married ahead of their lavish ceremony on Friday on the island of San Giorgio Maggiore.

“Often a marriage in a foreign country is not valid in the USA, or creates other issues, so yes it is likely they are already married,” said one renowned Florida-based attorney.

Another Italian source confirmed to us they have legally wed before their big ceremony on Friday. City officials told The Times of London the couple did not make an official request to wed in the Floating City, which is required under Italian law. “I can totally rule out that they will have a civil ceremony in Venice under Italian law,” an official said.

Reps would not confirm whether Amazon founder Bezos, 61, who is the world’s third richest man, and Sánchez, 55, have already had a civil ceremony.

[From Page Six]

Page Six pointed out that George and Amal Clooney did have a civil wedding in Venice before their splashier service. It was probably different for George because he owned a home in Italy and perhaps had some kind of Italian citizenship or residency at that point? Whereas Lauren and Jeff are just American citizens and tourists renting out Venice for their ugly American exploits. Speaking of the breathtaking consumerism on display:

Jeff Bezos has gifted his bride-to-be Lauren Sánchez a necklace valued at $3 million to $5 million for their wedding weekend in Italy, a source tells Page Six. The insider told us of the multimillion dollar jewelry, “It’s a diamond necklace that circles her neck with a large center stone and matching earrings.”

The source said that there’s buzz Sánchez will don the “dazzling new gems” during their weekend nuptials in Venice. Our source teased: “You won’t be able to miss this elegant diamond necklace as it’s almost as massive as Jeff’s superyacht. Lauren is thrilled with her blinding new necklace and earrings that take her already impressive collection up several notches.”

It’s unclear which jeweler was the source of the new necklace, and the source said NDAs are in place for all the wedding stylists and staffers — but there’s word the brand will leak when experts invariably guess at the necklace’s value and provenance, we hear.

The insider added: “It’s said Lauren will wear a long list of precious jewels throughout the festivities that could easily be worth up to $20 or $30-plus million.”

The source added: “I’m also told Lauren has her jewels and looks photographed days before she goes out in public so she knows what the photos will look like, and can change them if she’s not absolutely thrilled with the way everything looks.”

[From Page Six]

Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton, these two are NOT. I’m actually curious about Bezos’ taste in jewelry for Lauren though – this man clearly has no eye for aesthetics. I think if Lauren was choosing pieces for herself, it would just be “bigger is better,” regardless of how it looks.

Photos courtesy of Backgrid, Cover Images.