We are so honored to have the pleasure of sharing the exclusive feature of WWE‘s Lana + Rusev’s Bulgarian Wedding. Rusev and Lana said their “I do’s” twice. One Hollywood worthy soiree in Malibu and one elegant and traditional wedding ceremony in Rusev’s native home, Bulgaria. Here are the special details of this celebrity couples love story and their European wedding.
The First Encounter
On August 12th, 2015 Rusev popped the question in our swimming pool! I thought he was playing a prank so I asked him if it was a real ring and then I started screaming for 10 minutes. It was perfect! I loved that I had never looked at rings and had no idea that he was going to propose. Our fans will see the moment on the E! reality show Total Divas.
In Preparation
We decided to have two weddings to be able to celebrate with all family and friends, one in Malibu California and the other in Bulgaria. The Bulgarian wedding was mostly planned by my husband and his Mother; I just picked out the colors. I spent most of my time working with my gown designer Olia Zavozina, designing my dream dress. I wanted the Bulgarian wedding to be uniquely different so I spent a lot of time on an inspiration for my gown and bridesmaids dresses. I have always wanted a long train but I felt it did not fit the beach wedding in Malibu, so I decided to incorporate it into the traditional Bulgarian wedding. Olia turned my dream wedding gown into a reality, which took over 300 hours to sew with lace imported from Paris, Italy and Russia. Olia was kind enough to name the gown after me, which will be available to other brides for purchase.
The Big Day
We incorporated so many Bulgarian traditions. It started with Rusev, his entire family and wedding party coming to the apartment to pick me up, complete with Bag pipes and accordion. The tradition is for the groom to break down the door and negotiate with my bridesmaids and my mother to “buy” me. Once he got into the house, he had to find my shoe, that we hid, and fill it with money until it fit me. Then we danced in the street and everyone in the town started dancing with us. We headed to the Greek Orthodox Church where crowns were placed on our heads for the traditional wedding ceremony. At the reception the traditions continued. First, we had to see who could drink the homemade moonshine the fastest, the winner is considered the boss of the home. Next, we threw the empty glass on the ground and the number of broken pieces of glass represents the number of children we will have. Then there was the breaking of the bread and whoever takes the bigger pieces is the leader of the home. I won both competitions! There was a lot of singing and dancing with all of the guests coming up giving us flowers, gifts, and blessings. It was magical! Total Divas filmed the entire experience to share with our fans around the world. Bulgarian weddings are so special every bride should have a Bulgarian wedding and be treated like a real life princess.
The Retreat
We spent five days in the Seychelles, in our own private villa with an infinity pool. We then went to Dubai, ate the most amazing Lebanese food, and finished the trip with a traditional Turkishspa. We stayed at Four Seasons in both the Seychelles and Dubai two amazing resorts that made our honeymoon spectacular.
:: credits ::
Caterer/Reception: The Island Restaurant | Ceremony Venue: Sveta Marina Orthodox Church | Gown: Olia Zavozina | Honeymoon Accommodations: Four Seasons Seychelles & Four Seasons Dubai, Jumeirah Beach | Photographer: Digital Studio | Bridesmaid Dresses & Groom’s Suit: Olia Zavozina
