Bachelor ARIE LUYENDYK JR. and LAUREN BURNHAM spill wedding details.
The Bachelor’s Arie Luyendyk Jr. and Lauren Burnham open up about their big day
The backlash was furious. After The Bachelor’s Arie Luyendyk Jr. dumped his final rose winner, fiancée Becca Kufrin, with a camera crew in tow, then proposed to runnerup Lauren Burnham on live TV during ABC’S After the Final Rose special, pretty much the entire internet turned against him. But Arie and Lauren insist they haven’t noticed. “I thought we would get a lot more backlash,” Lauren told Life & Style at Indycar’s Firestone Grand Prix in St. Petersburg, Fla., on March 11. “Since we’ve been out in public the last few days,” added Arie, who says they’ve avoided social media, “people have been really supportive. It’s been really sweet.”
Now, despite the messy way things began, the couple is trying to focus on the future — and plan their dream wedding. They intend to get married this August or September, Lauren, 25, exclusively tells Life & Style. “We might do a destination wedding,” notes Arie, 36. Though it seems like a rush for the race car driver-turned-real estate agent and his tech salesperson fiancée, Lauren’s family couldn’t be happier. “I hope it will be in the summer,” Lauren’s mom, Pamela, tells Life & Style. “Lauren’s on cloud nine with Arie.”
TUNING IN AGAIN
When it comes to planning their big day, Arie and Lauren should have some help — from ABC. “They’d love to get married on TV because it would be a continuation of their love story,” an insider tells Life & Style. “They want viewers to be able to see the next chapter of their journey.” ABC would also pick up most of the tab — which means the bride and groom wouldn’t have to limit the guest list. “Lauren wants to have a big wedding with all her friends from all over the country,” says the insider. “Her maid of honor would no doubt be her sister, Heather. And she would love her pastor, Randy Singer from her church [in Virginia], to be a part of it.”
Lauren’s mom definitely approves of the network chipping in financially: “That would be wonderful!” she says. “My husband’s probably going to jump up and down at that thought!”
SECOND TIME’S THE CHARM
Lauren, like Arie, was engaged once before. But while she looked at gowns with her mom when she thought she was going to marry pro hockey player Chris Crane, “her heart wasn’t in it,” the insider says. Now it is. “She hasn’t started looking yet, the insider says, “but she has some ideas: lacy, traditional, beautiful and elegant.” Arie “wants to wear blue, of course,” Lauren tells Life & Style, adding that she’ll wear white.
W hen it comes to decorations, “L au r en’s really into white hydrangea s, which her mother has been growing, and peonies,” says the insider. “And they can’t forget roses to go along with the Bachelor theme.” Arie would love to exchange vows at sunset, and Lauren “loves things hanging from ceilings or trees,” the insider adds, “and would love pretty lights for an evening reception.”
After the wedding, the duo plan to focus on work — together. Lauren’s getting her real estate license and moving to Arizona where, Arie tells Life & Style, “we are going to do some remodeling of homes together. We’re excited about that.” They’re also thrilled to start a family. “We do talk about babies a lot,” Arie confesses, “but one step at a time for sure!”