Nikki Bella explains getting married in dream wedding dress she meant to wear for John Cena

Nikki Bella got to wear her dream wedding dress in an unexpected way.

When she married Artem Chigvintsev in August, the TV personality wore a wedding dress she had initially bought to marry John Cena before they broke off their engagement in 2018.

While many saw her choice as controversial, Bella and the "Dancing with the Stars" pro explained the decision to Us Weekly.

“I had the moment with that dress … when I saw it,” she told the outlet. “It was all something that I dreamed of.”

Bella, 39, said she just wasn't willing to part ways with "the" dress.

“I went back and forth with that decision,” she said. “For me, it [reflects] how I stand as a strong woman. I was like wait, why should I not wear what I love? Because of my past? It just didn’t make sense to me.”

Her husband was also supportive of the idea, Bella said.

“He looks at it as just a material thing. He probably wanted me to save money but then didn’t realize I bought a few other dresses after,” she joked.

Chigvintsev said he personally didn't care about the history of the gown.

“I didn’t think it was going to be that big of a deal for people to react," he said. "I think [if there’s] an issue with it, they’re bringing some other energy into our happiness.”

Bella had four outfit changes for her Paris wedding, and two were purchased for a previous engagement, she told Brides magazine.

“I had two beautiful dresses that I loved, and they were going to be for a different marriage, but they were my dream and I love them," she said. "So, I brought them out to see if I could make them work."

Bella said that by prioritizing herself, she had a wonderful wedding.

“What brides will realize when they start searching for the dress is that what you wear is about you as a woman," she told the outlet. "It has nothing to do with the person that you’re marrying or the people that are attending. It has everything to do with what you’ve envisioned for yourself and how you feel.”

This article was originally published on TODAY.com