Mariah Carey is no stranger to weddings having been married twice before – and the nuptials couldn't have been more different, especially when it came to her bridal gowns.
The 54-year-old – who has reportedly split from her boyfriend of seven years, Bryan Tanaka – was first married to record producer Tommy Mottola from 1993 to 1997. She then tied the knot to TV star, Nick Cannon in 2008, before they split in 2014, with their divorce being finalized two years later.
Mariah looked beautiful on both of her wedding days, but she took a very different approach when it came to her second dress after being inspired by Princess Diana's elaborate royal gown for her first big day.
Mariah Carey's wedding dresses
© Getty ImagesMariah and Tommy exchanged vows at St. Patrick's Cathedral in Manhattan, New York City, on June 5, 1993. For her special day, she turned to renowned bridal gown designer, Vera Wang, and walked down the aisle in a $25,000 dress that boasted a 27-foot train and a 10-foot veil.
According to Vera, Mariah "was very moved and influenced" by Princess Diana's 1981 royal wedding to then-Prince Charles'. "It was very much like Diana at Westminster Abbey," she previously told Page Six.
"She wanted that level of pomp and circumstance and romance and volume," Vera added. "She really wanted a princess look, and it was just one of those weddings that was truly a fairytale in the sense of scale."
© Getty ImagesThe similarities between Mariah's and Diana's dresses are evident. Not only did they both have floor-sweeping veils – the late princess had a 25-foot veil – but Mariah also wore a tiara and carried a large bouquet of white flowers with green leaves.
Mariah's gown also featured a bodice with pear detailing, puffed sleeves, and a voluminous full skirt that flared out at the waist.
© Getty ImagesThat wasn't the only time Mariah rocked her unforgettable wedding dress. In 2005 she slipped it back on for her 'We Belong Together' music video – and if she had her way, she would have set it on fire!
"When I did 'We Belong Together' I was going to burn the wedding dress," she said on 'Watch What Happens Live' in 2018. "That was my original wedding dress."
© InstagramHowever, Mariah didn't get her wish as the video's director rejected the idea. "I wanted to burn it at the end of the video," she added. "I thought it would've been dramatic, nobody understood."
Wedding dress number two
For her 2008 wedding to Nick Cannon at her Bahamian estate, Mariah opted for a drastically different look, choosing a "simple" slip dress by Nile Cmylo.
"It was a simple, slim-cut dress in an off-white that turns into a very pale pink to match the sand. And [Christian] Louboutins," she told People when asked about the dress shortly after the wedding.
However, the designer was forced to make some last-minute alterations on the morning of the wedding after he discovered Mariah would be wearing the dress for their beach ceremony, and not in a music video, which is the ruse she told her intimate group of guests to keep her wedding day a secret.
"I was pulled aside and said this is actually a real wedding," Nile told Access Hollywood. "So, I went back to the fabric store in the morning and started over again and came back with something a little more appropriate."
Get the lowdown on the biggest, hottest celebrity news, features and profiles coming out of the U.S. Sign up to our HELLO! Hollywood newsletterand get them delivered straight to your inbox.
