This month marks 11 years since Prince William and Kate Middleton got married—and 11 years since Kate Middleton's wedding dress left the world in awe as she arrived at Westminster Abbey.
- Kate Middleton and Prince William tied the knot on 29th April 2011.
- This year marks 11 years of marriage for the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.
- In other royal news, Kate and William's weird twist of fate in their love story will make you believe in true love.
A very special milestone for Kate Middleton and Prince William is drawing nearer. April 29th 2022 will be the day they celebrate 11 years since their huge royal wedding day .
While so much has changed since the big day, with the couple now being parents to Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, there's still one particular aspect of their wedding day that many royal fans are obsessed with—Kate Middleton's wedding dress!
As Kate and Wills prepare to spend their very special day reminiscing on their iconic nuptials, we're looking back on the key details of the wedding dress that left the world in awe.
Who designed Kate Middleton’s wedding dress?
The Duchess of Cambridge is a fan of many British designers, including Jenny Packham and L.K Bennett, and Kate's dresses are the envy of fashion lovers across the globe. For her wedding dress, Kate opted for a gown designed by Sarah Burton— creative director of luxury fashion house Alexander McQueen.
"Miss Middleton worked closely with Sarah Burton in formulating the design of her dress," Buckingham Palace confirmed at the time of the wedding.
And the dressmaker has since revealed how Kate's wedding gown reflected her personality.
Naturally, the details behind Kate’s wedding dress, including who designed it, were kept secret for months, despite a number of attempted leaks. And the grand reveal on April 29th 2011 was well worth the wait.
On why Kate made the decisions she made, a statement from the Palace said, “Miss Middleton chose British brand Alexander McQueen for the beauty of its craftsmanship and its respect for traditional workmanship and the technical construction of clothing.
“Miss Middleton wished for her dress to combine tradition and modernity with the artistic vision that characterises Alexander McQueen’s work.”
On what Kate wanted her dress to reflect, “The dress epitomises timeless British craftsmanship by drawing together talented and skilled workmanship from across the United Kingdom.
“The dress design pays tribute to the Arts and Crafts tradition, which advocated truth to materials and traditional craftsmanship using simple forms and often Romantic styles of decoration. Ms Burton’s design draws on this heritage, additionally giving the cut and the intricate embellishment a distinctive, contemporary and feminine character.”
Not only was Kate’s dress utterly stunning, but it attracted attention for all the right reasons.
The train was nearly nine-feet-long, which lent itself to a dramatic entrance into Westminster Abbey.
Kate’s sister, Pippa Middleton, who also wore an Alexander McQueen gown for the occasion and welcomed her second child last year just days before the ten year anniversary of the wedding, was in charge of holding the train, which was nearly nine feet long, for Kate’s arrival.
The dress was Victorian inspired with its corset-style bodice and all the lace work was done by hand by the Royal School of Needlework.
According to Good Housekeeping, Kate’s “something blue” was a blue ribbon sewn into the inside of her dress and her “something borrowed” was the Queen’s Cartier Halo tiara she wore for the special day.
In a similar fashion, the Queen lent Princess Beatrice a dress for her secret Windsor wedding during the UK's 2020 lockdown.
How much was Kate Middleton’s wedding dress?
Kate Middleton’s Alexander McQueen wedding dress is thought to have cost £250,000.
It is widely reported that it was Kate’s parents, Carole and Mike Middleton, that footed the bill and paid for Kate’s gorgeous gown.
Did Kate Middleton have a second wedding dress?
Yes, like many royal brides Kate had an outfit change for the evening reception.
The future Queen Consort slipped into a much simpler gown, also Alexander McQueen, which featured a satin A-line skirt, a sweetheart neckline and an embellished belt. She teamed the dress with a cream cardigan.
Where is Kate Middleton’s dress now and is it on display?
As is tradition with many royal wedding dresses, Kate’s dress went on display in the Ballroom at Buckingham Palace for a short period after the wedding.
The exhibition ran for three months and was hugely successful, with over 600,000 people buying a ticket to see the dress in person.
It’s unclear where the dress has been kept since that day, but we’re sure the team at Buckingham Palace have got it safe and secure in storage somewhere.
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