Next year, Kelly Bensimon will send out twice as many wedding invites.
The former cast member of Real Housewives of New York City revealed to PEOPLE that she and her fiancé Scott Litner are arranging for two weddings: a small ceremony for people in their immediate family and a large celebration for all of their friends and family.
The model and real estate agent teases viewers on Tuesday, “Why have one when you can have two?” as she promotes her appearance on Peacock’s upcoming Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip: RHONY Legacy. “So we’re working on setting dates for all of that.”
She and Litner will exchange “I dos” in the backyard of his family house on June 22, 2024, at the very least.
The second celebration will take place in the Hamptons, but Bensimon needs to organise her ideas beforehand.
“When this all started, I thought I would be at ease with it. I will be the most stylish bride ever. However, I soon began doing it,” she remembers. “I believe I might just turn into a complete bridezilla at this point! I simply believe I might look incredibly good in those shoes.”
Bensimon was formerly married from 1997 until 2006 to renowned fashion photographer Gilles Bensimon. Sea, 25, and Teddy, 23, are the couple’s shared daughters.
After a year of dating, on their Fourth of July weekend getaway in Wisconsin, Litner asked Bensimon to marry him. She had recently wrapped up filming RHUGT: RHONY Legacy, her prolonged comeback to the Real Housewives franchise following the conclusion of season 4 of her three-season tenure on RHONY in 2011.
“Right before we went away, I was walking with Luann [de Lesseps] and I said, ‘I’m in a complicated situation,'” Bensimon remembers. “And we didn’t really have the chance to go through it while we were filming, but then I came back and boom — I’m engaged!”
With a handmade five-carat emerald-cut diamond ring from NYC jeweller Material Good, the finance executive proposed. It just so happens that the two were in Lake Genova, which Bensimon describes to PEOPLE as “one of my favourite places.”
She remarks, “It was very sweet.” “He’s so thoughtful.”
That seems to be standard procedure with Litner. “He’s just a really genuine, nice, kind person,” she exclaims. He gets along well with my girls, has a lovely family, and is all around very grounded. I just have ungrounded inclinations, even though I’m a really grounded girl. However, he and I both usually have our feet planted firmly on the ground. Thus, we simply get along incredibly well.”
“I didn’t even say anything when I initially saw him. It’s not like me; usually, I have something to say,” she continues. “I was dumbfounded.” But he really amazed me. He’s just a very unique person.”
Friend and RHUGT: costar de Lesseps of RHONY Legacy concurs. Bensimon notes that de Lesseps was among the first people she called to inform them of the engagement. “He’s very nice, very handsome, and most importantly, adores Kelly,” she tells PEOPLE. “I think they make a lovely couple.”
Bensimon’s choice to hold double celebrations for her nuptials is supported by De Lesseps, 58, who she insists would be invited to both ceremonies.
She teases, “Look, I had a three-day wedding—not that it turned out so great, but that’s another story,” referring to her union with her ex-husband Tom D’Agostino Jr. in Palm Beach in 2017. “That weekend was the best of my life. Even if the marriage didn’t work out, it was still a great party!”
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On RHUGT: Legacy, viewers can anticipate amusing moments similar to those between Bensimon and de Lesseps.
“We had an amazing time,” Bensimon remarked. Really, I didn’t even skip a beat. I was on vacation, so when I got off the airport, I was simply enjoying myself and drinking as much rosé as I could. Then it dawned on me, “Oh my God, I should be filming right now!”
She continues, “I’m so happy to be back and with such a great cast,” referring to the costars Kristen Taekman, Ramona Singer, Sonja Morgan, Dorinda Medley, Luann de Lesseps, and Kelly Killoren Bensimon. “Everything happens for a reason.”
On December 14, The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip: RHONY Legacy will be accessible for streaming. New episodes will be released every Thursday after that.
