Netflix’s Orange Is The New Black actress Daneille Brooks has traded in her single life for matrimony, Vouge reports.
She took to Instagram showing off her flesh-toned dress and captioned the pic, “I’z married now!”
In a series of posts shared to Instagram, Brooks is shown beautifully alongside her new husband Dennis Gelin.
Brooks recalled how she and her friend, who were single at the time, wanted to throw a party with “some good-looking prospects” while she was working. Her friend, who worked at a gym, invited people she met while employed at the facility. Gelin received an invite via a mutual acquaintance he shared with Brooks’ friend.
“[Gelin] rolled in mad late, like two to three hours late,” the actress told Vogue. “When all of us heard the door ring, the group decided to play a trick and grill the next person who walked in the door.
"I opened the door and everyone gave him the death stare. As the host, it felt a bit harsh for someone I didn’t know to get playfully grilled, so I decided to quickly greet him with a smile and asked to take his coat. He smiled back,” she added.
Brooks went on to say that as the night winded down, Gelin impressed her when he offered to throw away the trash.
“I was so taken aback because there had been at least 10 guys in the room, and no one had thought enough to ask such a thoughtful question,” she said. “I perked up and said ‘Why yes, thank you.’ And then we proceeded to talk."
After the groom-to-be complimented the actress on her physical appearance and how radiant her skin was, Brooks said she then asked Gelin, “Do you have kids, are you married, do you have a job?”
"It was like music to my ears,” she said of his response.
“A brother with a clean slate, has his own, and is thoughtful. Jackpot. I quickly slid him my phone to exchange numbers. As he was getting ready to take out the trash, he asked me where the trash room was. It was the easiest room to find, but I just had to spend more time with him, so I decided to show him the way.”
Brooks said she knew that she had “found someone” that “knew [her] worth” when Gelin surprised her with a bouquet of flowers at her home.
“I said to myself, ‘If this card says ‘From Dennis’ I have found my husband.’ Sure enough, I opened the card, and it said, ‘To Danielle, Thank you for an amazing night. See you soon. Dennis.’ This man had gone above and beyond,” Brooks said.
“He had flowers delivered to my house, and we hadn’t known each other for more than 24 hours. [At] that moment, I knew this was a man who was going to always love and appreciate me,” she added.
While the wedding planning started well, the discovery of the Omicron variant caused a bit of a bump, the actress said, adding that it "was a bit too late in the process to turn back."
"So we added extra precautions with required PCR tests and rapid tests the day of the wedding,” she said.
The new wife said she knew she wanted to have two dresses. Brooks went with designer Chrisitan Siriano for a first look reveal. However, she wanted to use a designer of color for the ceremony dress.
During an interview with Vogue, Brooks said she felt "Black creatives aren’t highlighted enough," which is why she chose a London-based designer. The bride took to Instagram giving praise to designer Gbemi Okunlola.
"It was very important to me to find a black wedding dress designer. When I tell you I hit jackpot finding @alonuko_bespoke, I hit jackpot," she said in her post.
"[Alonuko] was incredible to work with and even flew all the way from London two days before my wedding to make sure the dress arrived in time. Thank you for your talent and professionalism! Brides, hire her!!! Thank you for adding to my special day!" she continued.
The couple married at the historic Alfred DuPont Building in Miami. Pastor Balwdin, Brooks hometown pastor, officiated the newlyweds' wedding.
Making it even more special, the couple’s 2-year-old daughter was the flower girl.
“We cried the ugly cry, and laughed hard,” the new bride said. “Dennis and I did our personal handshake and jumped the broom in honor of our ancestors. It was definitely a night to remember.”