The wedding outfits of The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are to go on display at Windsor Castle and the Palace of Holyroodhouse in a special new exhibition, A Royal Wedding: The Duke and Duchess of Sussex
The Duchess of Sussex’s dress drew gasps when the bride-to-be stepped out of her carriage. The timeless, elegant wedding dress, with a distinctive boat neckline bodice, was created by the British designer Clare Waight Keller, Artistic Director at the historic French fashion house Givenchy.
Meghan’s dress – which prompted “You look amazing!” from Prince Harry – is made from a double-bonded silk cady, developed following extensive research in fabric mills throughout Europe. The graceful lines of the dress were achieved using six meticulously placed seams, extending towards the back of the dress, where the train flows in soft folds.
The five-metre-long veil is made from silk tulle and embroidered with the flora of the 53 countries of the Commonwealth. The Duchess added two of her favourite flowers to the embroidered decoration: Wintersweet, which grows in the grounds of Kensington Palace in front of Nottingham Cottage, and the California Poppy, the State flower of The Duchess’s place of birth. It took the team of embroiderers hundreds of hours to create the design, washing their hands every 30 minutes to keep the tulle and threads pristine.
The Duchess’s veil was held in place by a diamond and platinum bandeau tiara, lent to her by Her Majesty The Queen. On public display for the first time, the tiara is formed as a flexible band of eleven sections, pavé set with large and small brilliant diamonds in a geometric design. The centre is set with a detachable brooch of ten brilliant diamonds. The bandeau was made in 1932 for the Queen’s grandmother, Queen Mary, designed to accommodate the centre brooch. This brooch was given to the then Princess Mary in 1893 on her marriage to Prince George, Duke of York (the future King George V). The bandeau and the brooch were bequeathed to Her Majesty by Queen Mary in 1953.
The Duke of Sussex’s wedding outfit was the frockcoat uniform of the Household Cavalry (the ‘Blues and Royals’), specially commissioned for the occasion and made by tailors at Dege & Skinner on Savile Row.
A Royal Wedding: The Duke and Duchess of Sussex is part of a visit to Windsor Castle from 26 October 2018 to 6 January 2019 and part of a visit to the Palace of Holyroodhouse from 14 June to 6 October 2019 (tickets to the latter available from 1 November).
To book tickets, visit www.royalcollection.org.uk
© 2024 