Gabourey Sidibe is ready to head down the aisle to say “I Do” to her fiancé Brandon Frankel. And she doesn’t have any plans on being a traditional bride. From her dress, her hair and location, the couple will be doing THEM. Find out what the cover girl told BRIDES magazine about how they plan to mix it up…
Gabourey Sidibe is planning her wedding ceremony and it’ll be nothing like anyone has seen before.
The Precious star and her fiancé Brandon Frankel enjoy an unconventional relationship and they want their nuptials to be just like that. Forget the white dress. Forget the traditional wedding location and ceremony. The couple plans to curate an experience that’ll highlight and celebrate their love with family and friends.
The bride-to-be covers BRIDES magazine’s Style issue in gorgeous custom Talla Designs gown that gave us African wedding glam. It’s a look she’d like to rock for her wedding.
No traditional white dress. Think everything that is NOT a wedding dress - bold color palettes and prints, unexpected silhouettes, feathers, and oversized jewelry.
”I’m super against tradition,” she shared. "I definitely don't need a white dress. My favorite look [from the shoot] was the pink African print. Honestly, whatever I wear on the wedding day will probably be African print. It might have a little white, so it looks like a wedding dress, but it's definitely going to be colorful."
As she prepares to trek down the aisle, she has been collaborating with a stylist and revealed “Orange Is The New Black” newlywed Danielle Brooks is her muse.
”I’ve been pulling a lot of things on my Pinterest board to share with my stylist, but my biggest muse has been Danielle Brooks. She had two beautiful dresses—one created by Christian Siriano, who I've also worn before. When the time comes, I am definitely going to hit him up to create a custom look, maybe even African print," she explained.
That would be gorgeous.
In terms of hair, she's leaning towards Senegalese twists or cornrows with a little tiara. "I want lots of jewelry in my hair. I also want beautiful eye makeup with very, very long butterfly eyelashes and a very bold lip."
As for where they’ll tie the knot - that hasn’t been determined just yet. However, the couple does not want to get married at a typical wedding venue. They would love to tie the knot at a private residence, much like the house they shot the magazine spread at in Malibu, where their guests will be able to spend the entire weekend. A view of the water is another wishlist item, but the only non-negotiable the duo has is the time of day:"I want to get married at golden hour," Gabby shared. “I just want it to be picturesque."
One major part of their nuptials will be the mixing of their cultures - Senegalese, American, and Jewish—throughout the entire celebration.
”Including my culture [in the wedding] is important to me for sure. I've been feeding him some Senegalese food in the last few years—especially in the pandemic," so a specialty menu is definitely on the table. Brandon's background most certainly won’t be forgotten, either. "It will be a nice mix of African and Jewish touches," Gabby adds. "I want his background to absolutely be there because this is a partnership."
Gabby & Brandon have a special, unconventional relationship that many may not understand, but that’s how they like it. In the interview, they talked about how she ended up seeing her engagement ring in advance and how she also saw the entire proposal setup before he popped the question. They laugh about it all and it’s part of the reason why they don’t want their coupling to be “traditional.”
”It cannot be a traditional wedding," she said. Really, it can't be. I don’t want anything done the 'traditional' way. Our relationship is very much on our terms and I want it to be fun, like a true party."
Sweet. Swipe through more photoshoot flicks below:
Congrats again to the couple!
You can read their full interview here.
Photo: Brandon's IG
