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Celebrities have been feeling the love this year, and we can’t get enough. From a romantic star-studded event in the South of France to a three-day extravaganza in Marrakesh, these famous couples went big for their 2019 nuptials.

Justin and Hailey Bieber

The most exciting, star studded wedding of the year goes to the Biebers, who wed in Montage Palmetto Bluff, Bluffton, South Carolina on September 30. With a stunning off-white gown designed by Virgil Abloh and a statement veil with the words ’till death do us part” stitched onto it in white block lettering, Hailey’s look was absolutely iconic. 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 (they had a small courthouse wedding in 2018) were attended by their many famous friends, including Kendall and Kylie Jenner, Justine Sky, Jaden Smith, Joan Smalls, and Justin’s manager Scooter Braun.

Joe Jonas & Sophie Turner

Following a host of pre-wedding activities, this loved up-couple said ‘I do’  at the Château de Tourreau in the South of France with their closest family and friends around them. Of course, Kevin and Nick Jonas were there, as well as sister-in-law Priyanka Chopra, Maisie Williams and Ashley Graham.  Turner wore a stunning long-sleeve gown designed by Louis Vuitton’s creative director Nicolas Ghesquière.

This is their second wedding. The couple famously wed at a Las Vegas chapel after the Billboard Music Awards, and their nuptials were broadcast to the world via Diplo’s Instagram Live.

Zoe Kravitz & Karl Glusman

The last weekend in June was a pretty eventful week in France. Joining Joe and Sophie, Big Little Lies star Zoe Kravitz also said ‘I do’ to actor Karl Glusman in the city of love. The location was particularly special to them as it is where they met back in 2016.

The couple is very private, and haven’t shared any official images from their nuptials. However, we do know it was a fun-filled affair. According to W Magazine, dad Lenny Kravitz’s 18th-century mansion acted as wedding venue. In an interesting fashion statement, the bride-to-be wore bridal biker shorts and an embellished fishnet cover for their rehearsal dinner.

Their wedding had an A-list attendance, including Zoe’s parents Lenny Kravitz and Lisa Bonet, step-father Jason Mamoa, Cara Delevigne and the cast of Big Little Lies.

Idris Elba and Sabrina Dhowre had a stunning three-day extravaganza in Marrakesh back in April. The location was chosen as Sabrina’s family is originally from East Africa and Idris’s is from West Africa, so they wanted to meet somewhere in between.  In a tribute to their cultures, they wove Ghanaian and Somalian traditions into their big day.

Sabrina wore an A-line crêpe dress with delicate Chantilly lace train for the ceremony, and a figure-hugging shimmery number for the reception. Both were designed by Vera Wang.

Ellie Goulding and Caspar Jopling

The ‘Lights’ musician said ‘I do’ to her art-dealer boyfriend, Caspar Jopling, at the York Minster Cathedral in England back in August. Goulding stunned with five beautiful bridal looks for their festivities. For the ceremony, she donned a bespoke Chloé gown and a delicate silk tulle veil with an organza collar featuring her and Caspar’s initials. Her other gowns include a sleek off-the-shoulder silk Stella McCartney creation, a beaded Ralph & Russo number, a short Balmain number featuring semi-sheer puffed sleeves and she ended the evening in a simple strapless black gown with a full skirt.

The wedding was a royal affair, with Sarah, Duchess of York and her daughters, Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie in attendance. Other notable guests include Katy Perry, Orlando Bloom and Ed Sheeran.

Heidi Klum and Tom Kaulitz

The German model and her Tokio Hotel singer beau had a romantic ceremony off the coast of Capri in August. They tied the knot onboard the famous Christina O,  following in the footsteps of Princess Grace Kelly and Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis who also chose this yacht for their respective receptions.

The pair legally married back in February, using this extravagant affair as an opportunity to celebrate with family and friends.

Image: Instagram / Hailey Bieber

You won’t be seeing any images from Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds’ 2012 nuptials on Pinterest and The Knot anymore. The prominent websites joined other platforms taking a stand by placing a shadow ban on all images relating to plantation weddings.

Pinterest, The Knot Worldwide, Brides and Zola recently announced that they would be making changes to their platform that would restrict all references to plantations, as well as any language attempting to romanticise these locations as wedding venues.

Those searching for such content will receive a notification that the images may violate Pinterest’s policies. The sites will no longer work with vendors that are plantations or attempt to romantacise such locations.

This means that images from Ryan Reynold’s and Blake Lively’s 2012 wedding held at Boone Hall Plantation in South Carolina, have now been shadow banned from these popular sites.

This move is in response to a campaign led by racial justice organization, Color of Change, who argued that the weddng industry was glamorising and capatalising sites of human rights atrocities.

“The decision to glorify plantations as nostalgic sites of celebration is not an empowering one for the Black women and justice-minded people who use your site,” Color of Change wrote to the Knot Worldwide executives. “Plantations are physical reminders of one of the most horrific human rights abuses the world has ever seen. The wedding industry routinely denies the violent conditions Black people faced under chattel slavery by promoting plantations as romantic places to marry.”

Many plantations in America thrived off slave labour and became places of human rights abuse for the people forced into these demeaning positions. As such, they’ve become painful reminders of a dark and sordid history for many African Americans who descended from such slaves.

“Weddings should be a symbol of love and unity. Plantations represent none of those things,” said a Pinterest spokesperson. “We are working to limit the distribution of this content and accounts across our platform, and continue to not accept advertisements for them.”

“We want to make sure we’re serving all our couples and that they don’t feel in any way discriminated against,” The Knot’s chief marketing officer Dhanusha Sivajee told Buzzfeed News.

Image: Instagram / Ryan Reynolds

It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s a…groom? This groom’s head was in the clouds, literally, on his wedding day. Instead of walking down the aisle, he decided to make a grand entrance by skydiving to his wedding venue.

Akaash Yadav married his bride Gaganpreet in spectacular fashion at their Los Cabos, Mexico wedding. A video of the groom skydiving into his wedding was posted to Instagram page ‘wedmegood’, and quickly went viral. It currently has over 11 000 likes.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B5VXF-_px7a/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Talk about taking a leap of faith! Yadav shared a video on his personal account, writing, “It’s a bird, it’s a plane…it’s me. On 11/25/19, I skydived into my baraat and into hundreds of screaming people. It ended up going viral and getting shared all over the world, which is insane in itself. But more importantly, it ended up being one of the craziest, most amazing experiences in my life.⁣”

https://www.instagram.com/p/B5qPBDyFGx8/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Image: Instagram / Akaash Yadav

King Philippe and Queen Mathilde of Belgium married on December 4, 1999 and are now celebrating the huge milestone of 20 married years.

Before meeting Prince Philippe, Mathilde was a countess but led a more civilian life as a qualified speech therapist with her own practice in Brussels. When she first met Philippe, he was still only heir to the Belgian throne, with a lot of pressure and eyes on him. Being a very private couple, they managed to keep their relationship a secret right until they announced their engagement and surprised everyone.

Things were not easy for them, but true love conquers all and made them stronger than ever. We look back on their marriage over the past years, and congratulate them on how far they’ve come.

The wedding day (note the veil!):

Embed from Getty Images

Embed from Getty Images

Modern day:

 

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⁣ ⁣ Retour sur les fiançailles et le mariage du Roi et de la Reine à l’occasion de leur 20e anniversaire de mariage le 4 décembre. Regardez leur témoignage sur La Une (RTBF) ce soir à partir de 20h20.⁣ —————⁣ Terugblik op de bekendmaking en verloving van de Koning en Koningin naar aanleiding van hun twintigste huwelijksverjaardag op 4 december. Vanavond in gesprek met La Une (RTBF) om 20u20.⁣ —————⁣ Looking back on the announcement and engagement of the King and Queen on the occasion of their 20th wedding anniversary on December 4th. Tonight in conversation with La Une (RTBF) at 8:20 pm.⁣ ⁣ @rtbf #anniversaire #mariage #huwelijk #verjaardag #wedding #anniversary #verloving #fiançailles #engagement #porcelaine #porselein #porcelain #KoningFilip #RoiPhilippe #Koning #Roi #König #King #KoninginMathilde #ReineMathilde #Koningin #Reine #Königin #Queen #royalty #België #Belgique #Belgium #BelgianRoyalPalace #MonarchieBe

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The royal couple have four children and are known to be very fond of their two dogs living with them at the Belgian Royal Palace. We wish them another happy 20 years!

 

Picture: Instagram/BelgianRoyalPalace

 

Weddings are expensive, and saving money where you can is crucial. But have you ever considered saving the earth to save money? This couple did, and they were rewarded in more than just monetary value.

Ellie Toohill and Darren Auth Duke from Western Sydney decided to save money in an inventive way by recycling bottles to pay for their wedding. They travelled across Sydney collecting rubbish to deposit into a bottle vending machine. For every bottle they collect, they earn 10cents. While it doesn’t sound like much, it can add up very quickly.

Ellie Toohill and Darren Auth Duke Credit: Daily Mail
The couple collected bottles to fund their wedding. Credit: Daily Mail

They turned their backyard into a storage space where they separated their rubbish into special compartments for recycling. They also got their neighbors involved too, having them donate bottles to add.

Ellie and Darren even used social media to spread their cause. They created a Facebook page, called A recycling wedding Sydney, and used it to document their process.

They used an app to track their progress, through which they earned $7581, and another $3000 in printed receipts. With the money they were able to fund their wedding reception (planned for April 2020) and purchase their rings. They plan to do it all again to fund their honeymoon. Talk about something old, something new…

Image: Unsplash

Would you marry someone for a day? Apparently, many tourists and locals in Amsterdam would!

As part of an initiative to create meaningful tourism, Untourist Guide Amsterdam launched a project that allows tourists to ‘marry’ a local, but just for a day. You provide the company with a few details about yourself, pay a hefty sum of 100 Euros (R1 620) and off you go. This includes the ceremony, outfits, a wedding set, speech, picture and rings to keep.

Some may think it strange, others might like the idea of getting to know someone in a foreign place and make new friends. After the ‘wedding’ (which, of course, is not legally binding),  the new couple explore the city and you get shown around by a true Amsterdammer.

Untourist Guide Amsterdam also make it very clear that they are not a matchmaking site, nor will they allow any inappropriate requests. This is purely for sincere adventure-seekers!

Picture: Facebook/Untourist Guide Amsterdam

One of Hollywood’s favourite couples, Nick Jonas and Priyanka Chopra, have just celebrated their one-year anniversary. Their touching tributes to each other prove that their love has only grown stronger.

Nick and Priyanka wed in spectacular fashion last year in a three-day wedding blending Hindu and Christian traditions. Fast forward one year, and the couple are still feeling the love. On Sunday December 2, both took to social media to proclaim their love for each other.

“One year ago today we said forever… well forever isn’t nearly long enough. I love you with all of my heart @priyankachopra happy anniversary,” wrote Nick.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B5ipkt5nav7/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

In her own post, Priyanka wrote, “My promise. Then..today.. forever. You bring me joy, grace, balance, excitement, passion.. all in the same moment…thank you for finding me..Happy First wedding anniversary Husband.. @nickjonas ❤️? And Thank you to everyone for the love and good wishes. We feel blessed.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/B5i5BuUnKqV/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Image: Instagram / Priyanka Chopra

Oh, we love love! This couple completely stole our hearts. Capetonians Joey and Jane had been acquaintances for almost 10 years but nothing had come of it. In fact, Joey had actually invited her to coffee before, but she forgot to respond to his message and they never went!

Then, one day, Joey decided to go salsa dancing, and there she was. They got to chatting. Both being fitness professionals that used to work at the same gym, they had so much in common. She asked him to dance, and the rest, as they say, is history …

However, the couple faced a small problem: Jane was busy with immigration plans, adamant on relocating to the UK! Poor Joey was at his wit’s end. But with new love blooming, he managed to persuade her to stay a little while longer to see where it would lead. Knowing he had to change her mind while he had the chance, Joey took her hiking in Newlands forest to a spot they both loved to celebrate one year since they met at the dance. There he proposed and she said yes!

Credit: Joey Koffman
Credit: Joey Koffman

“Three weeks prior, I went on a two hour mission to find the exact same spot where we had our very first picnic,” Joey said on his Facebook post to the popular group #I’mstaying. He set it up with arrows pointing toward the spot and there he read Jane a story he wrote of the events of that first night they danced.

Being an interracial couple in a race-sensitive country, the two are not unaware of the challenges. “But I believe it’s up to us,” Joey said in an interview. When asked why they decided to stay in South Africa, he said that they both love the diversity and nature, and especially the kindness of South Africans.

“We are happy and feel eternally blessed,”  he added. “We love Cape Town. We love South Africa.”

They plan to get started on the wedding arrangements soon.

Picture: Supplied

Award-winning comedian Tumi Morake and her husband, Mpho Osie-Tutu, have just reached a milestone. The famous South African couple recently celebrated their 10-year wedding anniversary, and they seem just as loved up as when they first started.

Taking to Instagram, Morake posted a heartfelt message to her husband. Along with an adorable picture from their wedding day, she wrote, “#tbt #throwback to 28 November 2009 when my bff @mphooseitutu and I got married! 10 years of growth, love and blessings. Woooooo baby we made it to the double digits ????? #blessed #awesometutus #betweentwotutus #love #anniversary”

https://www.instagram.com/p/B5ZfyRIHErY/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link

Congrats to the happy couple!

Image: Instagram / Tumi Morake

The first-look trend, in which a bride shows her groom her final look before the wedding, has just been given a unique spin. Instead of surprising her groom with her bridal attire, this bride decided to show her beloved dog.

When Duncan Dupree told his future bride, Kristen, that he didn’t want to do the popular trend in which the bride and groom have a outfit-unveiling photoshoot with each other right before they say ‘I do’, she decided to do one instead with their large black American Kennel Club Labrador retriever, Zeke.

“Duncan decided pretty early on that he wanted to see me for the first time walking down the aisle with my father, rather than a ‘first look.’ In passing, we joked about me doing one with Zeke,” Kristen, a registered nurse, told Today.

Zeke has always been an important member of the family. They adopted him to be a companion for Kristen when Duncan was working away from home as a landscape foreman. They’ve been inseparable ever since.

“Anyone that knows us knows how much we love Zeke,” Kristen gushed to Today. “He comes everywhere with us. Family beach trips, hunting camp weekends, boat days, we bring him everywhere. He is one of the sweetest dogs you’ll ever meet, and he makes every adventure better!”

On the day, they had the special ‘first-look’, which really helped to soothe Kristen’s pre-wedding jitters. Perri Farlow of Farlow Photography beautifully captured the images. Since being posted, the images have gone viral on Facebook, amassing 46k shares, 18k likes and 28k comments.

 

“My matron of honour went to get him for me and it truly was a special moment for me. In the middle of a busy day of hair, makeup, setting up and pictures, it was nice to just love on my dog,” she said.

Image: Unsplash