Former Bachelor host Chris Harrison and former Entertainment Tonight correspondent Lauren Zima not only tied the knot, but they pinned it and decorated it with final-rose petals. After five years of dating, the couple got married in two lavish weddings - including one in Austin last weekend.
According to People magazine, which got an exclusive invitation to cover the nuptials, Harrison and Zima first wed at a winery in Napa Valley, California on October 14. They followed that intimate celebration with a star-studded "blowout bash" at an undisclosed Austin ranch on Saturday, November 4.
Harrison and Zima, who live in Austin, told their 225 guests to come to Texas "ready to party," the magazine reports.
“We moved here in part to start a new chapter of life together in a place neither of us had lived before, so we wanted to celebrate in the place where we’ve built our life together and with the people we’ve gotten close to here,” Zima tells People.
Adds Harrison, "They say everything’s bigger in Texas, and that’s what we’re leaning into."
While the exact location of the Austin ranch bash remained under wraps, Zima and Harrison have divulged some of the dreamy details and Texas vendors who pulled together the event. The weekend festivities included a welcome party at their home, an abbreviated version of their Napa wedding ceremony, and a rollicking "cowboy cocktail party."
The food and drinks, they reveal, were quintessentially Texan: barbecue and tequila. Barbecue brisket, pulled pork, sausage, turkey, coleslaw, mac and cheese, potato salad, and banana pudding from Bam Bams BBQ were served up first, followed by warm chocolate chip cookies from a local Tiff’s Treats, People reports.
Guests reportedly took shots of the couple's favorite Siempre Tequila and sipped signature cocktails with clever names like "The Final Rose" and "The Bachelor No More."
And Hall Wines (owned by Dallas' Kathryn and Craig Hall) reportedly kept glasses full with Hall Sauvignon Blanc, WALT Chardonnay, 1873 Cabernet Sauvignon, BACA Zinfandel, and WALT Pinot Noir.
Making the scene look pretty was Dallas-based floral designer Something Pretty Floral, which did Bachelor alum Madison Prewett's wedding in Dallas last fall. (Keeping those roses in the Bachelor family.)
Making the bride and groom look pretty was Austin-based hair and makeup artist Lauren Parker.
Harrison, 52, and Zima, 35, met in 2016 when Zima interviewed Harrison for Entertainment Tonight. Harrison hosted The Bachelor franchise reality TV shows for 19 years, until his tumultuous departure in 2021.
Catherine Giudici Lowe, who met and married Bachelor Sean Lowe in 2014, posted on Instagram that Harrison and Zima's wedding "was honestly one of the most fun weddings I’d ever been to!" The Lowes (one of The Bachelor's rare success stories) live in Dallas with their three young children and are frequent return guests on the show. They were among the dozens of "Bachelor Nation" alumni invited to the Austin wedding.
"Such a beautiful weekend and we were so blessed to have you guys there," Harrison commented on Lowe's Instagram post. "Your love means so much to us."
For more details of the couple's Texas and California weddings, including which Bachelor stars were in attendance, check out People's story.
