Exclusive

Jade Roper and Tanner Tolbert Reveal How They Broke Tradition Before Their Bachelor Wedding—Plus, Check Out Her Dress

Exclusive: The couple's big day will air as part of ABC's The Bachelor at 20: A Celebration of Love

By Tierney Bricker Feb 12, 2016 8:23 PMTags
Watch: Jade Roper's Final Night as a Single Lady

 There's no time for tradition in Bachelor Nation!

While many couples chose not to spend their last night as "singles" together, Jade Roper and Tanner Tolbert aren't like most couples. See: Meeting on a spinoff—Bachelor in Paradise—of a reality dating competition, getting engaged during the finale of said spinoff and then having your wedding day filmed by ABC as part of a Valentine's Day special, The Bachelor at 20: A Celebration of Love, after dating for less than a year.

"Tanner and I did not do the traditional thing, we actually stayed together last night!" Jade revealed to E! News just hours before saying "I do" at the St. Regis Monarch Beach in California on Jan. 24. Then again, it shouldn't come as much of a surprise as the couple has been inseparable since meeting each other on the first day of filming Bachelor in Paradise in Mexico.

"I knew I had my eyes set on Jade before the show even started," Tanner, 28, admitted. And Jade was equally as interested.

"I was super drawn to Tanner the minute I saw him and I actually surprised myself," the 29-year-old said, revealing on the first night she "kept trying to strategically place myself closer to him so he would turn around and talk to me, and it worked!"

Watch: How Tanner Tolbert Knew Jade Roper Was the One!

While the audience was filled with former Bachelors and Bachelorettes, including Andrew Firestone, Trista Sutter, Chris Soules, and Andi Dorfman, Jade and Tanner said there were a few franchise alumni that had to be a part of their big ceremony which was officiated by Chris Harrison.

"Me and Ben [Higgins] were good friends on the first show, and then me, Jared [Haibon] and JJ [Lane] were really close throughout both, so they played a big part of mine and Jade's relationship because they were there for it. we talked about tons of deep issues, so having those three guys here is a really big deal because they are people I will view as friends for the rest of my life."

As for Jade, her Bachelor in Paradise BFF Carly Waddell was actually one of her bridesmaids, and was playing a special part of the reception. 

ABC

"She's a singer-songwriter and she wrote a song that she's going to sing," Jade revealed, adding that "listening to that and sharing that moment with her" was one of the wedding moments she was most looking forward to.

But leading up to the wedding, it was all about the dress for Jade, which was designed by Galia Lahav, "who I've been obsessed with forever," the bride admitted.

"I was able to work with the designer and it's a custom dress for me," she gushed. "It's a dream."

To hear more from Jade and Tanner, like the moment they knew this was the real deal, watch our interviews with the newlyweds before they swapped vows above!

The Bachelor at 20: A Celebration of Love special airs Sunday at 8 p.m. on ABC.