We fell in love with young actors Kamaria and Ricky Horne, who tied the knot in an intimate destination wedding in St. Lucia. We loved that Ricky took his time to win Kamaria’s heart.
Young couple Rhona and Justin won us over when they dedicated their wedding to the majesty of Detroit, Michigan. They remind us of a young Cliff and Clair Huxtable — she’s a lawyer and he’s a doctor.
Wedding cupcakes were one of the biggest trends this year. Rhona and Justin fell right in line and added a mini cake that they could take home and eat on their one-year anniversary.
When Brooklyn native Mikayla moved across the country to San Francisco, her sweetheart Oliver soon followed. They returned to the East coast to tie the knot.
Mikayla’s wedding gown featured a beautiful floral pattern. Her bridesmaids’ dresses picked up on the light sage color.
Toronto, Canada couple Shereine and Clance opted to tie the knot in the paradise of the Turks and Caicos Islands. What a way to start off their lovely life together?
Personal trainer and group fitness instructor Tiffany Robinson married the soul mate she prayed for, Philadelphia Eagles defensive end Darryl Tapp, on February 20, 2010 at Disney World’s Wedding Pavillion.
We loved Tiffany’s bridesmaids’ jewel toned, biased-cut dresses.
Virginia-based couple Lauren and Malik impressed us with their determination to stay together even when they were miles apart. They got hitched in a beautiful celebration on May 8, 2010 at the Hotel Monaco in Washington D.C.
Our readers went gaga for Lauren’s yellow peep-toe shoes.
Mesita and Durante took us south of the border to the Excellence Playa Mujeres resort in Mexico for their big day.
Hot pink is Mesita’s favorite color — she incorporated the hue with these peep-toe pumps.
The bride kept things consistent, adding a pop of color to her bridal makeup with hot pink lips.
College sweethearts turned superstar athletes Olympic Gold Medalist sprinter Sanya Richards and NY Giants cornerback Aaron Ross jumped the broom in a spectacular affair in Austin, Texas on February 26, 2010.
Long distance couple Mahlet and John spent most of their relationship apart. John moved from Michigan to Philadelphia to be with Mahlet right before their May 8, 2010 wedding day. We loved the rustic feel of their celebration.
Mahlet chose teal as her primary wedding color. Her bridesmaids looked spectacular in the warm color. The bride also wore teal shoes.
Another long distance pair. Janice and Dami said their vows in front of 600 people at the Marriott Houston Westchase in Texas. They moved to New York the day after their wedding, using the road trip as their honeymoon.
Long distance couple Kisha and Eric happily said “I do” in a beautiful wedding at the Riviera in Coney Island, Brooklyn, on March 19, 2010. Everyone in the room could feel the love between these two.
It was important for Kisha to feature African elements in her wedding. She had this intricate cowry shell headpiece was made for her by Sherri Hobson of Beauloni Style.
Kisha and Eric entered the reception hall to the beat of African drummers, provided as a wedding gift to the couple.
“All the spirits of our ancestors showed up,” Kisha said.
Everyone cheered for Kim and Theron, who celebrated their love with a seaside ceremony in Riviera Maya Mexico. It was the second marriage for the both of them and they vowed to do it right this time.
Jennifer and Vince met in New Orleans during the ESSENCE Music Festival in 2002. They got engaged at EMF 2009. When it came time for them to tie the knot, they headed back to the bayou and said “I do” in Dillard University’s Lawless Memorial Chapel on March 10, 2010.
In true New Orleans fashion, the couple ended their celebration with a traditional NOLA second-line band.
New York marketing mavens Dawn Baxter and Derrin Woodhouse tied the knot with a traditional ceremony at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Englewood, New Jersey, followed by a lavish soiree in North Bergen, NJ.
Brooklyn couple Cynthia and Lester warmed our hearts with their intimate wedding that featured bright sun-shiney yellow as its primary color.
The couple chose a tower of cupcakes topped with a big round cake from Baked in Red Hook, Brooklyn. They also gave guests sweet and tart lemon drops and coconut scented soaps as gifts.
Carol met Kris at a church in California, an ocean away from her Kenyan home. She later found out that Kris had been a missionary in Kenya. She fell for his faith and he for her free spirit, and the two joined their hearts and cultures in a gorgeous garden ceremony.
“I rely a lot on God. God put us together. We’re so different how would we ever have met?” Carol told us.
We loved the story of Maryland couple Ayana and Duriel, proud parents who stayed together and made their love official in a lovely garden wedding at the Glenview Mansion in Rockville, MD.
Ayana spotted her dream dress online. When she couldn’t find it anywhere, she bought material in Trinidad and Tobago (where she is from) and had her favorite seamstress in Maryland replicate it. She also made her vintage-inspired scalloped veil.
We cried with young couple Teni and David, who moved up their wedding date so that the groom’s mother, who was terminally ill, could see her son walk down the aisle.
After taking some time away from the dating scene, radio and TV personality Egypt Sherrod found the man of her dreams in Mike Jackson. The couple married in a fabulous affair at the West Mount Country Club on top of Garrett Mountain in New Jersey on September 11, 2010.
Egypt called on R&B friends Coko from SWV and Q Parker from 112 to serenade her and Mike on their wedding day.
Venus’ hubby Ikechukwu crossed the pond from London to the U.S. to be with the love of his life. The two tied the knot in a beautiful family affair in Fort Worth, Texas on May 22.
Venus loves purple, so she added a pop of her favorite color to her feet with these violet wedding shoes.
Lawyers Tulani and Othello became friends while studying for the Georgia Bar exam in Atlanta. Years later, their friendship turned into love. They got hitched in a modern and chic celebration at the Foundry at Puritan Mill on September 12, 2010.
Tulani’s best friends wore black cocktail dresses. We love the pockets in the bride’s gown and in the bridesmaids’ dresses.
Another cupcake wedding — all the guests at the reception remember these delicious treats.
School counselor Richerica Cobb caught science teacher Roylin Wolf’s eye as soon as she joined the faculty at the middle school where he worked. After eight years of dating, they tied the knot in a beautiful Moroccan-inspired wedding on June 25, 2010.
Richerica knew she wanted her “something blue” to be a pair of fierce teal shoes. She found these Luichiny sandals on Endless.com.
“I’m a shoe fanatic,” she confesses. “When I saw those I fell in love!”
Young, glamorous couple Michi and Brandon Marshall (of the Miami Dolphins) tied the knot in a rock and roll inspired wedding at the Art Deco Paris Theatre in MIA on July 17.
Michi tied in the rock and roll theme with leather laces on the back of her wedding gown, designed by “Project Runway” fourth-season-winner Christian Siriano.
Michi’s shoes were designed by Gucci and go with her rock and roll inspired style, made with a platform and metal details.
Joanne and Matt first dated in 1999, and then stopped seeing each other for six years. They reunited in 2005 and vowed never to part again in a gorgeous garden ceremony at Pearl Buck Estate in Perkasie, PA.
Another bright colored shoe — green is Matt’s favorite color. Joanne’s footwear was a nod to her new hubby.
Joanne’s girlfriend Danielle Jannelli did her girl a solid by making the cupcakes for the wedding. They had red velvet cake, chocolate hazelnut cake, carrot cake, and vanilla cake with vanilla icing. ESSENCE.com readers loved the cupcake stand.
Joanne and Matt’s DIY wedding featured a sweet candy station.
Washington D.C. couple, Aisha and Danielle, made history as the first same-sex couple that ESSENCE.com featured in their popular weekly feature “Bridal Bliss.” The pair was also one of the first to receive a marriage license in D.C.
The ladies chose an old Hollywood theme for their wedding day. They both wore glamorous vintage-inspired gowns.
Baltimore couple Asia and Kevin headed to the warmer climate of the Florida Keys to tie the knot. We loved the bride’s short cocktail dress and vintage inspired headpiece. What’s even cuter — the groom wore Converse sneakers down the aisle.
These satin, peep-toe Badgley Mischka pumps were the perfect shoes for Asia to strut down the aisle in.
Former best friends Genesis Draper and Brandon Leonard fell in love at the University of Texas in Austin. The Lone Star State residents headed back to their meeting grounds to tie the knot on March 28, 2010.
“This picture is our ode to the Obamas,” Genesis told us of this photo. “I asked the photographer to try and recreate the shot from the famous Obama wedding photo.”
Bobby and Erica’s story made us smile. The two met after Bobby wrote an editorial in ESSENCE Magazine about being unlucky in love. He and his lady luck tied the knot in an elegant affair at the Bell Tower on 34th in Houston, Texas on October 2, 2010.
A nod to how they met, the couple made a mock ESSENCE Magazine cover and displayed it at their reception.
Model Anansa Sims and insurance agent David Patterson have never wanted to spend a second apart from each other since the day they met. The two lovebirds got hitched in a regal wedding in Columbus, Ohio on July 10, 2010.
Anansa asked her mother, supermodel Beverly Johnson, to help her with her hair and makeup on the big day.
Virginia Tech friends-turned-lovers Dana and Nonye’s big wedding was steeped in tradition. The couple read their nuptials at St. Paul’s Catholic Church in Portsmouth, Virginia and later changed into Nigerian dress for their reception.
All the ladies gushed over Dana’s fuchsia Christian Louboutin pumps.
The couples’ wedding cake, made by Emily Patti at Patti Cakes in North Caicos, was beautiful and whimsical.
The couple chose a tower of cupcakes topped with a big round cake from Baked in Red Hook, Brooklyn. They also gave guests sweet and tart lemon drops and coconut scented soaps as gifts.
Brooklyn couple Cynthia and Lester warmed our hearts with their intimate wedding that featured bright sun-shiney yellow as its primary color.
