Trista Rehn, the first “Bachelorette” lead in 2003, set the status quo with this white gown when Ryan Sutter proposed.
Rehn and Sutter, of course, are still together to this day with two kids, and they even televised their wedding, but back then, there hadn’t really been a successful “Bachelor” love story.
When “The Bachelorette” returned after a three-year break in 2008, DeAnna Pappas switched up the style and wore a green ombré strapless gown on the beach of Grand Bahama Island.
Pappas accepted a proposal from pro-snowboarder Jesse Csincsak, though their relationship only lasted a few months. He married someone else from within Bachelor Nation, Ann Lueders. She was eliminated on night one of Jason Mesnick’s season.
Jillian Harris chose a simple pale pink strapless gown for her finale in 2009 on the Big Island of Hawaii.
Harris’ simple gown almost looks like a wedding dress, but she never made it down the aisle with winner Ed Swiderski. They broke up one year after the finale aired, in July 2010.
Ali Fedotowsky opted for a pale gold/nude strapless dress for her Bora Bora finale in 2010.
Fedotowsky accepted a proposal from Roberto Martinez surrounded by flowers and the ocean while wearing an Alberto Makali gown. Her relationship with Martinez lasted just over a year — they announced their breakup in November 2011.
Ashley Hebert rocked a pale pink gown with feathery fringe for her 2011 Fiji finale.
Hebert’s style throughout the season was quite unique and that lasted all the way up to her finale dress by Randi Rahm — even though the color is classic “Bachelorette,” the bottom has never been replicated.
She accepted a proposal from JP Rosenbaum, and they tied the knot in 2012 and have two kids together. They announced their split in October 2020, after almost eight years of marriage.
Emily Maynard opted for a peach gown with an intricate bodice that almost looked like armor for her 2012 finale in Curaçao.
Maynard, who wore a gown by Jean Fares, chose Jef Holm at the end of her season, eliminating Arie Luyendyk before he even received his final date.
But their engagement didn’t last long. Holm and Maynard split around three months later in October.
Desiree Hartsock was the first Bachelorette to wear a one-shoulder gown, and the first to wear her hair up since Meredith Phillips. She wore this nude gown with detailed beading at her proposal in Antigua in 2013.
Hartsock herself is a wedding dress designer, so it’s no surprise she chose this structured Randi Rahm dress — it looks like a wedding dress, just nude.
She accepted a proposal from Chris Siegfried, and the two got married in 2015. They have two children together.
Kaitlyn Bristowe looked like a fairy princess at her 2015 proposal in Malibu, California.
Bristowe, who wore a Mac Duggal gown, was the second “Bachelorette” lead in a row to reject Nick Viall in favor of their other suitor — this time, Bristowe chose Shawn Booth and the two got engaged.
Bristowe and Booth were engaged for over three years, before announcing their breakup in November 2018. She’s now engaged to another member of Bachelor Nation, Jason Tartick of Becca Kufrin’s season.
JoJo Fletcher picked a beachy pale pink dress with a high slit and beaded bodice for her finale in Thailand in 2016.
Fletcher got engaged to Jordan Rodgers at the end of her season on a beach in Thailand, so she was appropriately barefoot and wore a flowy beachy dress.
They are still together today and finally tied the knot in 2022 after COVID delays.
Rachel Lindsay wore a glittery gold Randi Rahm gown with another thigh-high split for her 2017 proposal in Spain.
Lindsay got engaged to Bryan Abasolo in La Rioja, an area in northern Spain. Two years later, they married in Mexico and are still together today.
Becca Kufrin rocked a silvery dress fit for a mermaid for her beach-side Maldives proposal in 2018.
The top of Kufrin’s dress almost looked like it had netting on the top, adding to the mermaid vibes.
She got engaged to Garrett Yrigoyen during the finale. They split after over two years together in September 2020. Kufrin is now engaged Thomas Jacobs from Katie Thurston’s season after the two met during “Bachelor in Paradise.”
At her 2019 finale in Greece, Hannah Brown’s white gown was all about the back.
According to Page Six, the dress by Randi Rahm was completely made of lace and encrusted with pearls.
Brown accepted a proposal from Jed Wyatt, but the two broke up before the finale aired after news broke that Wyatt reportedly had a serious girlfriend before he went on the show and only joined the cast to promote his music.
In a twist of fate, Wyatt’s said ex-girlfriend is now married to Brown’s brother Patrick.
Clare Crawley cut her season early in November 2020 to get engaged to Dale Moss, but she still got to wear a glam white dress at the La Quinta resort in Palm Springs.
She also wore a gown by franchise favorite Randi Rahm.
Crawley turned her whole season upside down when she chose to leave with Moss after just a few episodes. The two then had an on-and-off relationship that culminated with a final break-up in September 2021.
Tayshia Adams, who took over for Crawley, wore a baby blue one-shoulder column look for her December 2020 proposal in Palm Springs.
Of course, it was a Randi Rahm original.
Even though Adams had less time than a normal Bachelorette would, she still managed to fall in love and get engaged to Zac Clark. However, they broke up in December 2021.
Katie Thurston wore a jade-green patterned gown unlike anything we’ve seen before from a Bachelorette for her August 2021 proposal in New Mexico. It was designed by WONÁ Concept.
Thurston got engaged to Blake Moynes (formerly of Clayshia’s season) back in April 2021, although it didn’t air until August. The proposal, like her entire season, was filmed at the Hyatt Regency Tamaya Resort and Spa in Santa Ana Pueblo, New Mexico.
Thurston and Moynes were together for around two months after the finale before announcing their split in October 2021.
Michelle Young stunned in a shimmery white dress at her proposal in December 2021 in Mexico.
Young’s dress featured a metallic silver belt and a thigh-high slit.
Her season culminated with Young getting engaged to her First Impression Rose recipient Nayte Olukoya at the Iberostar Hotel in Punta de Mita, Mexico.
They broke up in June 2022.
Gabby Windey wore a strapless off-white dress with flower embellishments and a mesh panel.
Season 19 of “The Bachelorette” focused on not one but two Bachelorettes and their journey to find love: Windey and Rachel Recchia.
Windey was left with only one man left at the end of the season, Erich Schwer, and he proposed to her while they were in Mexico.
Amidst multiple scandals, the two are still engaged.
For her proposal, Rachel Recchia also wore white, though her dress was a little more traditional.
Recchia wore a more classic “Bachelorette” halter dress covered in white flowers and sparkles to get engaged to Tino Franco (also her only contestant left) during the finale.
Their engagement didn’t last, though. Recchia and Franco were broken up before the finale aired after Franco kissed another woman. Their post-season break-up was also filmed.