A wedding is said to be the happiest day of a person’s life. If that person is royal, however, there are a few extra complications.
The royal world has never been short of scandal and drama, even on wedding days. Here are a few wild moments from the years:
Louis XVI didn’t attend his own wedding:
Louis XVI was not happy that he had to marry Marie Antoinette, both of whom were in their mid-teens at the time. So much so that he didn’t even show up to the wedding! Their wedding took place by proxy in Vienna, and Marie’s older brother Ferdinand had to stand in as the groom at the altar. The pair met for the first time weeks after their wedding when she arrived in Versailles.
Their marriage was not an easy one. Seven years passed before they consummated the marriage, making them the laughing stock of the kingdom.
Henry VIII created a new church so he could divorce his wife
The Church of England was founded with a less-than-holy origin story. King Henry VIII wanted to end his marriage to Catherine of Aragon after their union failed to produce a son and he became interested in one of his wife’s ladies-in-waiting, Anne Boleyn. However, the Catholic Church does not allow divorce. King Henry VIII thus split from the church, built a new one and made himself the Supreme Head of the Church of England.
King Edward VIII abdicated the throne for love
Britain’s Edward VIII became King in 1936 after his father died. However, he was already in love with an ‘unsuitable’ woman: Wallis Warfield Simpson. Simpson was already married, had previously been divorced and was -gasp- American.
She got divorced but the royal family still could not accept her as an appropriate partner for the King. However, his love for Simpson proved too strong. King Edward abdicated later that same year to be with Simpson, thus causing his descendants to lose their place in line for the throne too.
The pair married in June 1937 but were shunned from the royal family for decades after.
The Queen did not attend Prince Charles and Camilla’s wedding ceremony
Prince Charles and Camilla’s relationship, which continued through his marriage to Princess Diana, was already a massive scandal on its own. Another huge scandal: his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, did not attend their wedding.
The Queen insists that her absence was a sign of her prioritizing her role as Supreme Governor of the Church of England over any motherly duties. However, the Queen and Prince Phillip did not approve of Camilla when she first began dating their son, and many reports suggest that disdain continued over the years, adding fuel to the fire.
Sarah Ferguson wasn’t invited to Will and Kate’s wedding
Prince William did not extend an invitation for his highly anticipated wedding to his aunt, Sarah Ferguson.
“It was so difficult because I wanted to be there with my girls and to be getting them dressed and to go as a family,” Ferguson told Oprah. “And also it was so hard because the last bride up that aisle was me.”
Princess Stéphanie of Monaco married her bodyguard
Princess Stéphanie of Monaco fell in love with Daniel Ducruet in 1988. Only problem? He was her bodyguard. The two carried on a relationship in secret, even having two children out of wedlock before marrying in 1995.
However, the pair split a year later after Ducruet was caught on tape having an affair, causing yet another scandal for the family.
Megan Markle only had one family member attend her wedding
Megan Markle’s family has received much coverage ever since her relationship with Prince Harry became public. Many family members went out against her to speak to the press, and created great scandal.
Markle’s father was meant to walk her down the aisle but days before the big day, he was caught staging paparazzi photoshoots to garner positive press about him. As a result, Markle had only one family member by her side for her big day: her mother. Doria Raglan stood proudly as she watched her daughter say ‘I do’.
The Prince of Hanover’s dad skips his wedding
Prince Ernst August married long term girlfriend, Russian designer Ekaterina Malysheva in 2017 without his father, Ernst August Sr., in attendance. In fact, the father did not approve of the nuptials at all.
“The decision was not easy for me because it concerns my son,” August Sr. said to a German newspaper. “But I am constrained to preserve the interests of the House of Hanover and the property, including cultural property, which has been its property for centuries.”
The Prince refused to return an estimated $100 million worth of property he’d been given a decade earlier, causing his father to anger and skip the wedding.
Rustic and romantic, barn venues have been trending for years in the wedding industry. The beauty of this venue is that you can really have fun with it.
A barn gives enough of a blank canvas to truly allow your decor to stand out. That being said, you don’t have to do much to dress this space up from drab to fab. Some twinkling lights, drapery and floral installations goes a long way in adding to the environment.
If you need help envisioning decor ideas, look no further. Here are a few spaces we are loving:
The coronavirus pandemic has messed with plans for people the world over, even celebrities aren’t exempt.
Joe Jonas and Sophie Turner celebrate their one year anniversary of being married on May 1. Last year, the pair shocked everyone by tying the knot at a Las Vegas chapel after the Billboard Music Awards. The ceremony was officiated by an Elvis impersonator and livestreamed by DJ Diplo.
They followed up that impromptu wedding with a star-studded, elaborate ceremony in the south of France a few months later.
Initially, the pair had planned to go back to Las Vegas to honour their one-year anniversary. However, with the coronavirus pandemic, no one is doing much travelling at the moment.
Speaking to James Corden on The Late Late Show, Jonas explained his new plan to bring Vegas to them.
“So, if you can keep a secret, I would say I might try to recreate Vegas in our house. I have a DJ set up. We could do a night club.”
Corden built on the idea, suggesting Jonas dress up as Elvis or even have the Elvis impersonator officiant join in on the celebration via Zoom call.
Today’s brides are unique, and deserve a ring to match. Rather than going for the expected diamond, modern brides are turning to alternative stones to adorn their ring fingers. For a sweet, soft look, why not consider going for morganite? This pink gemstone has become a trendy alternative in recent years.
Morganite is a semi-precious stone in the beryl family, making it related to emerald and aquamarine. While it is typically light peach in colour, it can range in shades from orange to pink.
The stone was discovered in Madagascar in 1910. It was named after famous financier J.P. Morgan, who was well-known for his love of gemstones. Today, the majority of morganite comes from Minas Gerais, Brazil.
According to Crystal Vaults.com, morganite “cleanses the emotional body of stress and anxiety, old wounds and hidden traumas, and enkindles lightness within the spirit, as if a burden has been lifted.”
The stone also encourages and maintains loving thoughts.
The stone has slowly grown in popularity over the years.
“While diamonds are still the most popular gemstone used in engagement rings, other gemstones, including morganite, are becoming increasingly sought after,” Brilliant Earth co-founder and co-CEO Beth Gerstein told Vox. “We continue to see an increasing interest in pink engagement rings following the rise of millennial pink in 2017.”
Morganite scores 7.5-8 on the Mohs scale, making it softer than diamond yet still quite durable. However, it is more susceptible to scratches and damage.
Besides being unique, morganite is also way more affordable than diamond, making it a great choice for an engagement ring.
The coronavirus pandemic has postponed wedding plans across the globe for the foreseeable future. However, that doesn’t mean we can’t still celebrate love!
Johannesburg-based couple Kyle Hyam and Gaby Trathen were meant to get married this past weekend on April 26. However, they were left heartbroken that they had to postpone their big day.
“Initially it was a tough decision, but when President [Cyril] Ramaphosa forbid social gatherings and closed borders the decision was made for us – it was out of our control, which somehow made it easier,” said Trathen to Times Live.
“The entire celebration will now be moved to 2021, when travel bans will hopefully be lifted so all our international guests can join us and large gatherings are permitted.”
Despite the day being cancelled, their friends and family decided to help put a smile back on their faces and still celebrate.
“Although friends and family could not celebrate with them the way we had planned, we decided to ensure they had something happy from us all on what would have been their wedding day,” said Hyam’s sister, Taryn Wiebols.
Friends and family from across the world all sent in videos of themselves dancing to Pharrell William’s Happy. The song was chosen to encourage the couple to not let the current tough situation get them down.
“The song ‘Happy’ by Pharrell Williams has an overall theme that nothing can bring you down if you believe in the power of love and happiness. We danced to this song in our homes all over the world. We danced in our kitchens, lounges, cars, on rooftops and even in the rain,” said Wiebols.
“This is now ‘Take 1’ of their wedding party. We are so ‘Happy’ they have found each other and we cannot wait to celebrate ‘Take 2’ in person when it is safe to do so.”
A friend in Australia edited the clips together into one fun, uplifting video. Watch it here:
Anthony and Cleopatra. Romeo and Juliet. Justin and Hailey. These are iconic love stories, a legacy that will forever endure.
Justin and Hailey Bieber’s love story was 10 years in the making. Now married and blissfully happy, we take a walk down Memory Lane to see how Justin turned Hailey into one less lonely girl.
2009 – The beginning:
Back when ‘Baby’ was still playing on the radio and Justin was influencing the youth with his famous bowl-esque quiff, he met his future wife backstage at The Today Show. At the time Hailey was a Belieber, naturally, so her father Stephen Baldwin organised for the pair to meet. Luckily for all of us, that incredibly awkward meeting was caught on camera.
2014 – Rumour has tt:
By 2014, Justin had ended his famous on-again, off-again relationship with Selena Gomez for another countless time. Single and ready to mingle, Justin and Hailey (and Kendall Jenner) were spotted hanging out at Hillsong Church in New York City. Rumours began to fly that the pair were a little more than friends, but Hailey denied them.
“I’ve known him since I was so young — since I was like 13 — and we’ve just been good friends over the years,” she told E! News after the images surfaced. “We have just stayed close and there’s nothing more to it than that.”
The pair became very close, spending New Years together.
2015 – Are they or aren’t they?
The pair continue to be spotted together. However, in 2015 Justin and Selena are photographed on a stroll and rumours begin flaring up that the couple are back together after Justin admitted that ‘Sorry’ was written about his former love.
To complicate the matter even further, in December Hailey shared an image wearing Justin’s sweatpants, on which he commented “Gimme back my sweats,” to which Baldwin replied “No sorry they look better on me”.
Both Justin and Hailey confirmed that they are casually dating. “We are not an exclusive couple,” Baldwin told E!. “He’s about to go on tour. Relationships at this age are already complicated, but I don’t really like to talk about it because it’s between me and him.”
However, six months down the line the situationship came to an end and Justin moved on with Sofia Richie. Justin unfollowed Hailey and the pair were not spotted together for almost two years. Justin also briefly got back together with Selena Gomez during this time frame.
2018: Reunited and it feels so good
The beef was squashed by 2018 and the pair were once again spotted by paparazzi and fans looking very cosy. They soon became the King and Queen of PDA.
Speaking to the Times UK, Hailey said, “We went through a long period of time when we weren’t friends. We didn’t speak for quite some time and there was a lot of weirdness that went on. We’ve moved past that.”
In July 2018, a month after the pair got back together, Justin went down on one knee to propose while on vacation in the Bahamas.
“When I saw her last June, I just forgot how much I loved her and how much I missed her and how much of a positive impact she made on my life,” Bieber told Vogue. “I was like, ‘Holy cow, this is what I’ve been looking for.'”
Rumours that the pair quietly got married at a courthouse begin to circulate in September after the pair were spotted getting a marriage licence in New York. In an interview, Hailey’s uncle Alec Baldwin confirmed that the pair secretly married.
Justin later confirmed the news on Instagram with his caption, “My wife is awesome.” A day later, Hailey changed her social media handles to “Hailey Baldwin Bieber”.
The pair have their official religious ceremony in Montage Palmetto Bluff, Bluffton, South Carolina on September 30.
Hailey stunned in an off-the-shoulder gown designed by Virgil Abloh and a statement veil with the words ’till death do us part” stitched onto it in white block lettering. But she didn’t stop there. She had two reception looks: a Ralph & Russo halterneck and a Vera Wang slip dress that she paired with sneakers.
Their second nuptials were attended by their many famous friends, including Kendall and Kylie Jenner, Justine Sky, Jaden Smith, Joan Smalls, and Justin’s manager Scooter Braun.
Elaborate, five-tier cakes are definitely a sight to behold but sometimes less is more. One-tier wedding cakes have slowly been rising in popularity as couples seek to make a more understated statement.
Another benefit of one-tier cakes is that they’re more affordable, allowing couples to save a bit of money. After the coronavirus pandemic, wedding budgets might be stretched as people recover financially. This cake is the perfect way to help.
One-tier cakes are anything but boring though! Have fun with texture, height, detail and dimension to create a cake with drama and personality. Here are some fun ideas:
It’s been 365 days since Idris and Sabrina Elba tied the knot, and the pair seem as loved up as ever.
The couple married on April 26, 2019 in a lavish three-day Moroccan ceremony at the Ksar Char Bagh hotel in Marrakesh.
Taking to Instagram, Sabrina shared a new video from their nuptials capturing the meaningful moment she walked down the aisle.
“Words can’t describe what I felt in this moment. Walking down the aisle and seeing the man of my dreams, my best friend, standing in front of me ready to make a bond that lasts forever,” Sabrina captioned the image.
“You have changed my life, you have changed my world, you have changed my spirit. I thank you for the happiness you give me every day and the love you show me and my family. I can’t believe it’s been a year. All the memories we’ve make it feel like a lifetime. Let’s celebrate today for our future and be thankful for the health and happiness we have. I love you Idris and I forever will. Happy anniversary ❤️ @idriselba”
Weddings around the world are at a standstill as the coronavirus pandemic continues. With everything in limbo, it can be tough to feel positive. A group of brides have decided to lift each other’s spirits during this crazy time.
Brides are feeling lost, confused and heartbroken over the current state of affairs. In an effort to brighten each others days, they’ve decided to gift each other presents from their wedding registries.
The idea stemmed from a Zola community chat. Zola, a free online wedding platform, hosts a myriad of community chats where engaged people can talk about their wedding plans.
To help support each other through these trying times and also lend a financial hand, brides are leaving links to their online registries in the community chat. They then purchase a gift for someone else from their registry.
“This is a really tough time for a lot of brides who have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. I thought it would be a great idea if we came together to brighten each other’s days a little,” read the original post.”If you’d like to participate, leave the link to your registry in the comments. Then go to someone else’s registry and purchase something for them! Once you’ve purchased an item off a registry, leave a heart for them.”
According to Business Insider, over 1500 brides are participating in the exchange, helping them all feel a little less alone.
“For many of us, the celebrations have been put on hold, and you’re always told, ‘No one cares about your wedding as much as you,’ but it turns out that hundreds of strangers care just as much as you do, too,” bride Adrith told Business Insider.
“The registry exchange has been an opportunity to shower other couples with love in a time that’s full of chaos and sadness, and it’s a way to remind each other that we truly aren’t alone or forgotten.”
As the coronavirus pandemic worsens across the globe, more and more brands are jumping in to do their part. Many bridal brands are now offering their skills to make a positive difference in any way they can.
Sewing surgical masks
Many bridal designers have joined the fight against coronavirus by repurposing their workshops to produce non-surgical face masks that they will donate to hospitals in need. High-fashion designers like Naeem Khan, Louis Vuitton, Burberry, Prada, Chanel and Christian Siriano are just a few of the big names who have joined the call. Smaller bridal companies are also participating.
Bridal retailer Davids Bridal and popular craft store JOANN have paired up to produce non-surgical masks for hospital systems and senior living facilities across the USA. They plan to donate 50 000 masks every week.
“It’s such a privilege to support frontline medical personnel who are so selflessly fighting this pandemic. David’s Bridal is actively committed to protecting these heroic individuals and we are deeply grateful for the partnership with JOANN to make this happen,” said Jim Marcum, David’s Bridal CEO.
To celebrate and honour all the hard work healthcare workers do, Pronovias is offering engaged healthcare workers the world over the chance to wear a Pronovias gown, free of charge. Any hospital-employed bride-to-be, from doctor to nurse to janitor, is eligible. This forms part of their Heroes Collection, which is dedicated to all the healthcare workers.
Lady Gaga’s favourite designer, Brandon Maxwell is working with milliner Gigi Burris, jewelry designer Eva Fehren, celebrity stylist Micaela Erlanger and shoe brand Margaux to donate complete wedding outfits to three brides whose weddings have been affected by the coronavirus.
“As a company who has been fortunate to play a small part in so many women’s special days, we realise the current crisis and the economic repercussions from it may have already deeply affected you,” Maxwell wrote on Instagram. “In times of darkness we must look to the light, and we believe an optimistic moment to look forward to is important.”
