First look out! Lauren Sanchez marries Amazon founder Jeff Bezos in classic Dolce & Gabbana

Indian Express

7 hours ago

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and long-time partner Lauren Sanchez are officially married. The couple said 'I do' in a star-studded ceremony on the secluded island of San Giorgio Maggiore in Venice, Italy, last night.
For her big day, Sanchez stunned in a custom high-neck, corseted Italian lace gown by Dolce & Gabbana. The hand-appliqued couture piece was fitted and cosseted, cascading into a tulle-and-lace veil that flowed elegantly down her back. Bezos looked every bit the classic groom in a crisp black tuxedo, bow-tie and white undershirt.
'Not just a gown, a piece of poetry. Thank you @dolcegabbana for the magic you made,' Sanchez, an American journalist, wrote on Instagram, sharing the first pictures of their wedding.
For accessories, she chose Dolce & Gabbana Alta Gioielleria Miracolo earrings, four diamonds cut from a single stone and inlaid in white gold –– her 'something borrowed'.
The Dolce & Gabbana bridal dress, fitted with its tulle-and-lace veil, took 900 hours of atelier work and was inspired by one worn by Sophia Loren. 'The whole thing was like a dream. I feel like a princess,' Sánchez Bezos told Vogue during the fitting process.
She also revealed that it is the first formal dress she's ever worn that is so covered up across the chest. 'It is a departure from what people expect, from what I expect, but it's very much me.'
Her hair was left loose, all romantic and swept up, accentuated by make-up that was light and clean. 'Hardly any glam, the least amount of make-up,' she had insisted. 'This is part of the evolution. I want it as natural as you can get it,' she had told the publication.
For the wedding dinner, she slipped into a sweetheart neck, corseted gown inspired by the Rita Hayworth film Gilda; and for the party afterwards, a cocktail dress by Oscar de la Renta, featuring 600 yards of hand-sewn chain and 175,000 crystals.
The wedding celebration also included two welcome dinners for which she chose a 2003 Alexander McQueen –– one-shouldered black column dress and a Schiaparelli couture off-the-shoulder dress, with hand-embroidered flowers, and a corset covered in gold bugle beads.
From A-list Hollywood celebrities to powerful political figures, the guest-list was 200-strong and boasted of the highest level of security. Members from the Kardashian-Jenner family, Bill Gates, Karlie Kloss, Oprah Winfrey and Usher were papped while getting onto to water taxis to reach the island, but that's all we could see of them due to an apparent social media blackout issued by the hosts.
Bezos, 61 and Sanchez, 55 had been dating for six years before they decided to settle down together. Previously, Bezos was married to MacKenzie Scott, and Sanchez to Patrick Whitesell. Between the both, the couple share seven children, and had gotten engaged in May 2023 on their three-masted, 417-foot sailing yacht Koru, a Maori symbol for new beginnings.
Details about their upcoming wedding had been making waves for a while, with activists trying tooth and nail to sabotage and disturb their plans. Threatening to block guest entry by releasing inflatable crocodiles in the Venetian canals, to swarming streets to prevent cars from moving forward, Bezos and Sanchez had to make last minute plans to shift their nuptials to a remote island for privacy, safety and smooth operations.