Simplicity Wears the Crown
By CATHERINE SAINT LOUIS
Published: April 29, 2011
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AFTER months of feverish speculation about who would design Kate Middleton’s wedding dress, there were few surprises in the end. British designer, check. Smaller train than Princess Diana’s 25-footer in 1981, check.
AFTER months of feverish speculation about who would design Kate Middleton’s wedding dress, there were few surprises in the end. British designer, check. Smaller train than Princess Diana’s 25-footer in 1981, check.
Pool photo by Kirsty Wigglesworth
SAFE BUT STUNNING Kate Middleton's wedding dress got high marks from many fashion insiders, who contrasted it with Princess Diana's in 1981. More Photos »
Multimedia
Princess Diana Archive/Hulton Archive, Via Getty Images
1981 Diana Spencer wed at 20 in a billowy gown with a 25-foot train. More Photos »
Sac Gareth Little/European Pressphoto Agency
Kate Middleton, 29, chose a ball gown with the V neckline she prefers. More Photos »
Associated Press
Princess Grace Kelly waved to cheering crowds with Prince Ranier II following their wedding ceremony in 1956. More Photos »
Sarah Burton of Alexander McQueen created a lace gown with a V-neck satin bodice flowing into a skirt with delicate folds on a nearly nine-foot train. Her ivory tulle veil, fixed by a Cartier 1936 “halo” tiara lent to her by the queen, was modest. Simplicity reigned.
“It’s the kind of gown that will stand the test of time,” said Mark Badgley, part of the duo that is Badgley Mischka. “Not all gowns do.”
“Any bride across the world will want to wear it,” he added. “It’s got a touch of vintage, a classic 1950s ball gown, so timeless that her daughter would look gorgeous in this gown 30 years from now.”
Who says playing it relatively safe can’t be stunning? “She had a perfect dress, a very traditional dress for a very traditional wedding,” Oscar de la Renta said. “What I liked about it was, it was not ostentatious. There was not 50 meters of train, and it was not overembroidered. It was just a very traditional dress for a ravishing girl who doesn’t need a lot.”
It stood apart from the billowy confection that Princess Diana wore.
“That dress was appropriate for that time, so opulent, a little bit over the top, but it speaks to another time,” saidNarciso Rodriguez, who designed Caroline Bessette’s silk crepe gown for her 1996 marriage to John F. Kennedy Jr.“What struck me as so beautiful about Kate’s dress is it reminded me of Grace Kelly’s dress, even though it was different. Those dresses are moments in time that are timeless.”
Both were ball gowns with fitted lace bodices, but the 1956 incarnation had a high neck and less-sheer sleeves. Ms. Middleton is partial to V-necks.
Several in the industry suggested that Ms. Middleton, at 29, was not overpowered in the way Princess Diana, at 20, was on her day.
“She was wearing the dress, the dress wasn’t making the statement for her,” said Kimberly Lee Minor, the chief fashion strategist at Priscilla of Boston, which designed the bridal gowns for Luci Johnson in 1966 and for Tricia Nixon in 1971. She added: “It was not overwhelming. It was very modern. When I looked at her standing at the altar, you could see Kate.”
Vera Wang, who was a CNN commentator for the ceremony, wrote in an e-mail message: “Diana’s dress had a sense of innocence, whimsy, almost storybook romance. In contrast Catherine’s gown was about way more than simply the dress. Sarah Burton channeled a new take on classicism for a modern-day bride who will one day be queen.”
Carolina Herrera praised Ms. Middleton for not forgetting her own style amid the prewedding hubbub.
“She knows exactly what looks good on her,” she said. “Diana, in a big dress, was like a little girl. At the moment, nobody said it was dated. Everyone said it was so beautiful, how divine.” And it had the requisite drama for St. Paul’s Cathedral, she said.
Some designers remarked that the Burton dress, even with its roses and daffodils hand cut from two kinds of lace, is less intimidating for brides who wish to emulate it.
“She’s not taking a lot of chances with this dress, but in the best possible way,” said James Mischka, who adored the “unusual pleating on the skirt” that “is a signature McQueen look that Sarah took and made timeless and elegant.”
Ms. Middleton’s dress may even help reverse one trend in bridal wear.
“Nine out 10 girls want to wear strapless,” Ms. Lee Minor said, though she cited two recent brides, Ivanka Trump and Nicole Richie, who covered their shoulders to stunning effect. Today was a “tipping point for sleeves,” she said of Ms. Middleton’s look, adding, “With that tight bodice, it basically looked like a strapless dress with a sheer gorgeous lace cover.”
Ms. Lee Minor suspects that designers will reinterpret similar sleeves for their lines. On that count, Mrs. Herrera is nicely positioned, since her latest bridal collection already had “a lot of sleeves,” she said.
“Strapless dresses can be used to go to a ball. It’s not special enough.”
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