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Mel B shunned tradition as she tied the knot with husband Rory McPhee in ‘spiritual’ second wedding in Morocco over the weekend.
The couple previously walked down the aisle in London’s St Paul’s Cathedral last month, followed by an evening reception at the Shangri-La hotel at The Shard.
But while their first celebration was the picture of tradition with the Spice Girl donning a pearl-adorned white gown and arriving in a classic Bentley, this time around, the multi-day occasion was a much more glamorous affair that paid homage to Mel’s individual style.
Meanwhile, the guest list saw one person that couldn’t make the London do in attendance – non other than Mel’s fellow Spice Girl Melanie C, with the star being the only Spice Girl to make it.
The second wedding celebration saw one notable difference in the form of Mel’s dress, with the singer ditching her conventional white gown for a sparkly red strapless number with a thigh-high split.
As with her Josephine Scott-designed gown, Mel was guided in her choice of outfit by wedding dress guru Caroline Black from London-based Evelie Bridal, who helped her choose the perfect dress to celebrate her and Rory’s day.
Just as Josephine Scott’s dress proudly reflected her British roots, Mel and Caroline chose Justin Alexander, a US-based designer, to reflect her life in America where she is currently a judge on America’s Got Talent.
Caroline said of the dress: ‘For Mel’s Morocco wedding dress, we focused on trying Justin Alexander gowns with a little extra sparkle. Mel loved the idea of a red dress—something bold, with lots and lots of shimmer—but it also had to feel light and easy to move in.
‘We drew inspiration from a variety of dresses she tried on at Evelie South Kensington, then went back and forth brainstorming with Justin Alexander and his design team. After several conversations and sketches, the first design took shape. Mel gave us clear feedback on what she liked and what she didn’t, and the final result was beautiful.
‘Mel had such a strong sense of what she wanted—it was a joy working with her and Justin Alexander to bring her vision to life.’
The silhouette was entirely hand-beaded with rich red crystals and bugle beads, creating a mesmerizing floating effect across the illusion bodice and skirt, with the whole thing taking over 850 hours to complete by a team of six artisans.
Mel completed her look with a Moroccan-inspired cathedral veil, custom-draped in mocha tulle and accented with red crystals to mirror the gown’s embellishments.
Meanwhile Rory, who wore traditional McPhee tartan and kilt at the London ceremony, flew the flag for UK designers with a twist on the traditional black tie, wearing an outfit by Alexander McQueen.
Elsewhere, while her London nuptials was a one-day event which ended with a surprisingly low-key after party, her latest wedding was a three-day extravaganza held at the Selman Marrakech hotel.
Daily Mail understands that the event, which was held from August 1-3 saw the couple and their guests enjoy the outdoor spiritual ceremony as well as dinner and a wedding brunch.
The Moroccan celebrations were said to have had a vibrant, fiery them to reflect Scary Spice’s style.
Mel’s sister Danielle Brown shared a glimpse of the table settings on her Instagram, with the label adorned with Morrocan lanterns, laser cut paper place settings and ornate crockery and cutlery.
Elsewhere, while she sent her apologies the first time around, Mel C ensured she flew out to Morocco to support her pal for her big day.
While she didn’t post any snaps on her own social media, she didn’t comment on Mel B’s Instagram post, writing: ‘What a weekend! So happy we got to share it with you [three heart emojis].’
At the London ceremony, Emma Bunton was the only Spice Girl to make an appearance, with Mel C and Victoria Beckham quick to offer up their apologies and paying tribute to Mel on social media.
Meanwhile, Geri Halliwell-Horner has remained tight-lipped on the matter amid reports differences between the pair.
It was thought the Spice Girls could be set for a reunion at the Moroccan celebrations, with Geri given the chance to extend an olive branch to Mel if she attended the North African ceremony, however it wasn’t meant to be.
Morocco hold significance for the girl band after they jetted there for a mini reunion a decade ago to celebrate David Beckham’s 40th birthday.
However ironically Mel B was the only member not in attendance as instead, Eva Longoria filled in for Scary – joking ‘I’m the new Spice Girl! #LatinaSpice’.
