Ariana Grande and Dalton Gomez’s Wedding in Montecito, 2021
Fewer than twenty people, a white room hung with flowers, and a silk column gown by Vera Wang with a bubble veil and a bow. The at-home wedding, perfected.
Ariana Grande married Dalton Gomez on May 15, 2021, at their home in Montecito, in a room full of candles and flowers with fewer than twenty people present. It was a pandemic-era wedding, and a very small one, and it arrived without warning: news came through her representative two days later, and photographs about a week after that. What made it memorable was how clearly it looked like her, from the ponytail to the bow, and how little it needed to impress anyone.
| At a glance | |
|---|---|
| Date | Saturday, May 15, 2021 |
| Place (ceremony) | The couple’s home in Montecito, California |
| Reception | At home, with family |
| The dress (designer) | Vera Wang |
| Guests | Fewer than 20, including both families |
The couple
Grande, one of the most successful pop singers of her generation, went public with her relationship with Gomez, a luxury real estate agent, in 2020. She announced their engagement on Instagram on December 20, 2020, with photographs of the couple and her ring and the caption “forever n then some.”
The ceremony
The wedding took place at home. “It was tiny and intimate — less than 20 people,” her representative said. “The room was so happy and full of love.” The photographs Grande later shared show a white room with a fireplace, candles and flowers suspended from the ceiling. There were no public details about the officiant, the music or the menu, and none were needed.
The dress
Grande’s gown was a custom design by Vera Wang: a lily-white silk charmeuse column with an empire waist, a sculpted neckline, an exposed bra-strap closure and a low, open back. It was simple and fluid, closer to a 1960s evening dress than to a traditional ball gown, and entirely in keeping with the scale of the day. Her veil was short and full, a shoulder-length, hand-pleated “bubble” veil with a silk bow at the crown, worn over her famous high ponytail.
When the photographs appeared, Wang wrote on Instagram that dressing Grande had been “a joy” and wished the couple “a lifetime of happiness.” For more of the gowns that shaped modern bridal style, see our guide to celebrity wedding dresses.
The rings
The engagement ring, by the jeweler Jack Solow, set a large oval diamond at an angle beside a small round pearl. The pearl was the sentimental part. Years earlier Grande had written that her grandmother “had a ring made for me w/ the pearl from grandpa’s tie pin,” and Solow said Gomez had wanted to include it because it was so special to her. Her wedding band, also by Solow, was a platinum and diamond pavé design made to sit beside it.
What came after
The couple marked their second anniversary in 2023. The marriage ended in divorce, which was finalized in 2024.
Why it mattered
In a year when many weddings were postponed or pared back, Grande’s showed how good a small wedding could look. It made the case for a fitted silk column over a ball gown, for a short veil over a cathedral one and for the single strong accessory, the bow, as a signature. It also showed what a pop star who has lived her life in public could choose to keep private. The at-home wedding has a long history among famous couples, from Beyoncé and Jay-Z in their New York apartment to Portia de Rossi and Ellen DeGeneres at home in Beverly Hills.
Borrow the idea
Marry at home, and make one room beautiful. You don’t have to decorate a house; choose one room, clear it, and fill it with candles and a single floral installation. Hanging flowers above a small space look extraordinary in photographs. See choosing a florist.
Choose a column in silk. A bias-cut or charmeuse column is kinder to a small room than a big skirt. Our guide to the wedding dress explains the silhouettes.
Make the veil your signature. A short bubble veil with a bow is playful and practical, and it won’t catch on furniture or doorframes. Many bridal ateliers will make one to match your dress.
Carry an heirloom into the ring. A stone, a pearl or a piece of gold from a grandparent’s jewelry can be reset into an engagement ring or band. Ask your jeweler to assess the stone first; pearls are soft and need a protective setting.
Keep the list under twenty. Immediate family and a few friends means everyone can sit at one table. Our guest list guide helps with the hard choices.
Written and edited by the Today’s Weddings editors. How we research and check what we publish is set out in our editorial standards. Spotted something wrong? Tell us.
