The wedding dress embodies all dreams of perfect love; it is
a symbol of romance and happiness. It is the most expensive piece of clothing
most women will ever buy and nevertheless the most memorable one.
Out of millions of wedding dresses worn throughout the years
by women all around the globe; some manage to stand out and be recognized
throughout history. The key reason for those dresses not to be forgotten is
because of the importance of its wearer. Each century has its famous brides
that are inspirations for the present and the future. The 20thcentury
is a proud owner of a collection of iconic brides that are still being admired
today…
Grace Kelly
She was an actress turned princess. Grace Kelly was the then
Julia Roberts of Hollywood. She married prince Rainier III of Monaco to become
her serene highness and the princess of Monaco in
1956. Her dress, along with her doll-like features is one of the
most beautiful wedding looks of all time. She chose the legendary MGM (Metro
Goldwyn Mayer) wardrobe designer, Helen Rose to come up with a dress to give
her fitting exit from the cinematic world and a grand entrance to the Royalty
of Monaco. The Dress has inspired brides worldwide, including Kate Middleton,
who chose a similar silhouette for her big day in 2011.
Grace Kelly’s wedding gown was truly fit for a princess. It
featured a voluminous skirt of ivory peau de soie and a high collar with a
fitted bodice made of Brussels lace and embroidered with seed pearls.The
Designer worked on the dress for six weeks with three dozen seamstresses.
The bodice was made of reassembled rose point lace over
silk net, which had been re-embroidered by two seamstresses who worked on
it for a month. Thousands of seed pearls were added to accentuate the patterns
in the lace.
Grace’s veil was adorned with lace lovebirds and she decided
against the customary tiara and opted for a Juliet cap instead. The cap was
decorated with lace and orange blossoms and held a veil that was reportedly 90
yards long. The circular Veil was edged with lace lovebirds and the majority of
it was left sheer so the princess’s lovely face would be visible through it.
The dress was guarded in the two months of its making
that lead up to the wedding. It never left the fitting room and the dress was
locked away every night and the gown of Grace Kelly remains one of the most
celebrated in history. The Dress is now the property of the Philadelphia
Museum of Art and they displayed it on the 50th anniversary of
the wedding in May 2006.
Jacqueline Kennedy
Not many wedding dresses will be recognized at a glance but
the dress Jacqueline Bouvier wore to marry John F. Kennedy in 1956 is still
known to be as one of the most iconic dresses ever made in the history of
mankind. Jacqueline was one of the most stylish first ladies of the
United States of America and is still known to be a fashion icon. She chose the
couturier Ann Lowe to design her wedding dress. It was made out of Ivory
Silk taffeta, and was in the shape of a ball gown. The neckline was a sweetheart
shape (also known as the portrait type). She wore a lace veil that belonged to
her grandmother with a lace a Tiara decorated with orange blossoms.
The unknown fact about this lovely dress was that; Ann Lowe
was a colored woman which was scandalous during the time and the original dress
she created after two months of labor was destroyed along with nine other
dresses in a flooding that occurred in Ann Lowes workroom which occurred 10
days prior to the wedding. But she took the challenge; she and her staff worked day and
night completed the wedding dress in eight days and delivered the dress on sue
date. Even though she didn’t make a profit out of it her efforts are still
being admired and her creation is known to the world as the dress that made
Jacqueline the fashion icon of the 20th century. It is now on
display at the Kennedy Library in Boston.
Princess Margaret
Princess Margaret was the younger sibling of Queen Elizabeth
1 and was a sensational young royal during her time. She was beautiful,
fashionable and was prepped with a social life that made her a tabloid
princess. She was married to photographer Antony Armstrong-Jones on May 6th 1960.
This was also the first royal wedding ever televised, and
was watched by over 20 million viewers worldwide, so her effect on ushering in
the sleek styles of the 1960s could very well have stretched far beyond the
royal family. Her wedding gown is still the subject of awe decades later
and was designed by Norman Hartnell, the same designer that designed the
Queen’s Wedding gown and the Queen’s coronation gown.
Princess Margaret didn’t prefer the usual heavily
embellished traditional creations of the designer, instead she requested him to
create a simple dress that will compliment her petite figure; and every aspect
of the dress was designed to make her look more flattering and elongate. The
dress was made out of silk organza with a ‘V’ neck and the full skirt, which
was the trendiest silhouette of the time after Christian dior’s ‘New look’. The dress’s simplicity allowed for some statement
accessories: a diamond necklace from her grandmother Queen Mary and the Famous
Poltimore Tiara; that was acquired especially for Margaret. The Tiara and the
necklace were subsequently sold at auction after her death. The Dress is now on
display at Kensington Palace in London and is the property of the British Royal
Collection.
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