The 9 Biggest Weddings of 2021
Parties! Parties! Parties! As T&C forecasted back in our April issue, it wasn't going to be long before fun made its grand comeback. After all, if the Belle Epoque and Jazz Age taught us anything, it's that some of history's most festive eras followed periods of difficulty. A select group of high society brides this year clearly got the memo, ushering in the return of multi-day blowout weddings of absolutely unbridled opulence—and optimism. From a storybook western fairy tale set in a Colorado ghost town (Lily Collins), to the backdrop of an exquisite rose-hued villa in the south of France (Issa Rae), to eccentric heiress bacchanals in Bel Air (Paris Hilton) and San Francisco (Ivy Getty), a closer look at the biggest weddings of 2021, below.
Paris Hilton & Carter Reum
Leave it to Paris Hilton to close out the 2021 wedding season with bedazzled bang and blinding bling. The multi-day event celebrating her union to venture capitalist Carter Reum kicked off with the wedding itself, on November 11, which took place at the former Bel Air estate of the bride's late grandfather Barron Hilton. She wore custom Oscar de la Renta featuring pressed flower thread work embroidery and a tulle ball skirt for the ceremony and had three dress changes for the tented reception: first an off-the-shoulder tulle gown by Galia Lahav, then an Oscar de la Renta minidress, and finally a floor-length Pamella Roland dress with cascading sequins and pearls. He kept it simple in a navy silk Ermenegildo Zegna tux. The next night, the newlyweds and their guests took over Santa Monica pier for a neon-lit carnival-themed bacchanal for which she wore head-to-toe hot pink (naturally). On the third and last night it was back to the Bel Air estate for one more black tie fete—this time Hilton wore another custom Oscar de la Renta number encrusted with shimmering crystal stars. And then of course, never one to be outdone, her entire wedding planning process has turned into a 13-part reality show, Paris in Love, currently streaming on Peacock.
More: Everything We Know About Paris Hilton's Wedding
Ivy Getty & Tobias Alexander Engel
Not even the most well-connected of modern swans can bring together a guest list quite like the one Ivy Getty, great-granddaughter of the infamous oil tycoon J. Paul Getty, managed for her multi-day San Francisco wedding to photographer Tobias Alexander Engel in November. Nancy Pelosi was an officiant, Mark Ronson DJed, John Galliano designed her dress, Anya Taylor-Joy served as her maid of honor, and California governor Gavin Newsom was among the guests. The itinerary was just as eclectic: a British Invasion Mod Party at the Palace of Fine Arts on the first night followed by a picnic lunch the next day, during which hungover attendees were offered IV drips. Then the ceremony at City Hall, completely transformed with orchids, roses, and turquoise and pink Persian rugs, followed by a reception at the legendary mansion of the bride's grandparents, Gordon and the late Ann Getty, for dinner and dancing among their stunning museum-worthy collection of Impressionist paintings, Chinese porcelain, Russian chandeliers, and French antiques.
More: Ivy Getty's Wedding Jewels Belonged to Her Legendary Grandmother Ann Getty
Lily Collins & Charlie McDowell
If Paris Hilton and Ivy Getty mastered the not-so-subtle art of the sustained social media blitz before, during, and after their wedding festivities, Lily Collins and Issa Rae (see below) accomplished just the opposite, managing to keep their celebrations entirely secret and private until they chose to do the post-nuptial reveal—all strictly on their own terms. In September Emily in Paris star Lily Collins surprised her 23 million Instagram followers by announcing she had gotten married to her fiancé, director Charlie McDowell, over Labor Day weekend. The beautiful storybook setting was provided by Dunton Hot Springs, a former Colorado ghost town turned luxury destination, while Ralph Lauren crafted a bespoke wedding gown and cape of French Calais-Caudry lace to match the fairy tale environs.
More: All the Details on Lily Collins's Wedding Dress
Issa Rae & Louis Diame
Despite masterminding refreshingly frank portrayals of love and relationships on her hit HBO show Insecure, multi-hyphenate actress, writer, and producer Issa Rae has taken a different approach with her own personal life—by remaining intensely private about it. So the internet was particularly delighted one morning in July when she revealed in a surprise Instagram post that she had tied the knot to her longtime love, Senegalese banker Louis Diame, in the south of France. The dress? Ivory Vera Wang couture made of Chantilly lace and hand-sewn crystals (she later changed into another Wang creation for the reception). The tux? Red velvet Dolce & Gabbana. And the picturesque setting? Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild in Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, an exquisite pink palace built in the early 20th century for Baroness Béatrice de Rothschild, a member of the powerful banking dynasty, and where guests, including Rae's Insecure co-stars Jay Ellis and Yvonne Orji, meandered and mingled among the estate's nine gardens.
More: All the Photos From Issa Rae's Private Wedding in the South of France
Vera Arrivabene & Briano Martinoni Caleppio
Venice had its own royal wedding of sorts this year with the October nuptials of Vera Arrivabene, daughter of Count Giberto Arrivabene Valenti Gonzaga and Princess Bianca di Savoia Aosta (a descendant of Queen Victoria), and fellow Italian aristocrat Briano Martinoni Caleppio. Following a ceremony in the 17th-century church of San Pantalon there was a reception at Palazzo Papadopoli, the Arrivabene family home that also happens to be the Aman (they live on the top floor). The bride worked with Prada on a custom gown made of sustainable recycled nylon. Her three sisters Viola, Maddalena, and Mafalda, who served as bridesmaids, all wore embellished Miu Miu dresses.
More: Vera Arrivabene & Briano Martinoni Caleppio's Royal Wedding in Venice
Jennifer Gates & Nayel Nassar
Ever since Jennifer Gates announced her engagement to fellow equestrian Nayel Nassar, faithful adherents of the Forbes billionaire index eagerly waited to see what kind of extravagant wedding the daughter of Bill Gates, aka the fourth richest man on the planet, would throw. The answer came in October. The bride's 124-acre, $16 million horse farm in Westchester County, New York, was transformed into a giant venue for the couple's celebration, which reportedly cost $2 million. She wore two custom Vera Wang gowns; he wore Armani. Following an alfresco ceremony, guests moved into a massive tent for the reception, where dinner was by Jean-Georges, the wedding cake was designed by Sylvia Weinstock, and Coldplay performed.
More: Everything We Know About Jennifer Gates & Nayel Nassar's Wedding
Géraldine Guyot & Alexandre Arnault
LVMH scion Alexandre Arnault's Venice wedding to accessories designer Géraldine Guyot predictably drew an A-list crowd. Jay-Z and Beyoncé, Pharrell Williams, Roger Federer, and Kanye West, who performed at the reception, were all in attendance for the two-day event—the couple had held a smaller first wedding in Paris a few months earlier—which took place at the Cipriani on the city's Giudecca Island.
More: All the Details on Alexandre Arnault and Géraldine Guyot's Wedding in Venice
Nina Flohr & Prince Philippos of Greece and Denmark
Anyone and everyone with a blue-blooded title descended on Athens in October to witness the union of Nina Flohr and Prince Philippos of Greece and Denmark, the youngest son of King Constantine II. The bride wore Chanel and borrowed a tiara from her mother-in-law Queen Anne-Marie. Even by one percenters' standards (Flohr's father Thomas is the billionaire founder of VistaJet) this was a lavish affair, and the couple's third celebration, no less—they had previously done a civil ceremony in St. Moritz with just their respective fathers present and then a smaller party for close family and friends in Cambridge, England. Among the royal delegates who flew in from all around Europe: Prince Pavlos and Marie-Chantal of Greece with their kids; Prince Christian of Hanover and his Peruvian wife Alessandra de Osma; Monaco's Andrea Casiraghi and his Colombian heiress wife Tatiana Santo Domingo; Queen Sofia of Spain, who is also King Constantine's older sister; Princess Benedikte of Denmark, who is Queen Anne-Marie's sister; and from the UK contingent, Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie with their respective husbands, Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi and Jack Brooksbank.
More: Prince Philippos of Greece and Denmark Marries Nina Flohr in Athens Ceremony
Kitty Spencer & Michael Lewis
A cushy brand ambassadorship with Dolce & Gabbana turned out to be a convenient perk for Kitty Spencer—niece of the late Princess Diana—for her wedding to retail tycoon Michael Lewis, which took place over three days of festivities in Rome this summer. The fashion house crafted an entire wardrobe of grand, custom-made looks, starting with her wedding dress, a Victorian-inspired high neck lace gown that, like all the rest, was handmade. There was also a baby blue tulle dress embroidered with flowers for the night before, an organza gown embellished with flowers and crystals for the reception, a beaded mini for dancing, and another floral white silk dress for the next day.
More: Princess Diana’s Niece Kitty Spencer Wore Several Hand-Made Gowns For Her Fairytale Wedding
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