After months of speculation, weeks of “it has to be so-and-so”, we got the answers we were looking for this morning when Meghan Markle stepped out of her car and showed the world the dress we’ve all been waiting to see. And wow.
We were as surprised as anyone to see Meghan step out of the car in a dress by British designer for a French fashion house, Clare Waight Keller for Givenchy, but the cut and lines of the dress were exactly what we expected to see from Meghan.
Givenchy was nowhere near the top of anyone’s selections and definitely not anything that we had considered. What we can say is that looking back on the selection now, it makes perfect sense for Meghan, who has always had a fondness for French fashion and style.
Here is what was included in Kensington Palace’s Press Release about the dress:
Ms. Meghan Markle’s wedding dress has been designed by the acclaimed British designer, Clare Waight Keller. Ms. Waight Keller last year became the first female Artistic Director at the historic French fashion house Givenchy. After meeting Ms. Waight Keller in early 2018, Ms. Markle chose to work with her for her timeless and elegant aesthetic, impeccable tailoring, and relaxed demeanour. Ms. Markle also wanted to highlight the success of a leading British talent who has now served as the creative head of three globally influential fashion houses – Pringle of Scotland, Chloé, and now Givenchy. Ms. Markle and Ms. Waight Keller worked closely together on the design. The dress epitomises a timeless minimal elegance referencing the codes of the iconic House of Givenchy and showcasing the expert craftsmanship of its world-renowned Parisian couture atelier founded in 1952.
Meghan’s wedding dress was sculpted using six meticulously placed seams. From the Kensington Palace Press release:
“The focus of the dress is the graphic open bateau neckline that gracefully frames the shoulders and emphasises the slender sculpted waist. The lines of the dress extend towards the back where the train flows in soft round folds cushioned by an underskirt in triple silk organza. The slim three-quarter sleeves add a note of refined modernity.”
The dress is made of double bonded silk cady that was exclusively developed for the dress. The designer shared that the material is:
“Perfect for the round sculptural look required, the silk cady has a soft matt lustre whilst the bonding process and pure white colour chosen by Ms. Markle and Ms. Waight Keller bring a fresh modernity to the dress.”
Post-wedding, sketches of the dress were shared, including close-up photos of the veil’s detailing.
The final touches to Meghan’s wedding day look was the addition of Queen Mary’s diamond bandeau tiara, lent to Meghan by The Queen. We hope it’s one she will get to borrow again as it was a stunning choice for her. Here are some details about the tiara:
The diamond bandeau is English and was made in 1932, with the centre brooch dating from 1893. The bandeau, which is made of diamonds and platinum, is formed as a flexible band of eleven sections, pierced with interlaced ovals and pavé set with large and small brilliant diamonds. The centre is set with a detachable brooch of ten brilliant diamonds. The diamond bandeau was made for Queen Mary and specifically designed to accommodate the centre brooch. This brooch was given as a present to the then Princess Mary in 1893 by the County of Lincoln on her marriage to Prince George, Duke of York. The bandeau and the brooch were bequeathed by Queen Mary to The Queen in 1953.
Meghan also wore earrings and a bracelet made by Cartier (the earrings we saw just a few weeks ago), and Meghan’s wedding shoes are based on a Givenchy refined pointed couture design made of a silk duchess satin.
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Clare Waight Keller for Givenchy Wedding Gown
Details
What did we think of the dress?
We loved the blending of Meghan’s love for french style mixed with the heritage choice of a British designer. The dress was clean, simple and – most importantly for Meghan and a royal bride – timeless. We actually saw many similar elements to the dress as that of Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden, or Mette Marit of Norway.
While the heavy fabric didn’t have as much definition to accentuate Meghan’s trim build as that of Crown Princess Victoria’s, for example, it was a beautiful, appropriate silhouette.
What did you think of Meghan’s wedding dress? Was it everything you hoped for?
Oh my god!!! I love this dress!! Meghan looks stunning and I have to say she absolutely looks like Meghan, her hair is a bit messy and un-done, if you know what I mean but she looks just like Meghan!
This wedding reminds me of Swedish royal weddings, the pomp and circumstance is there but also a great deal of love, of ease, of joy which isn’t always found in royal weddings.
Sorry for the rambling but I’m so excited I can’t think straight lol
I think we’re seeing what happens when Meghan tries to get a smooth updo, there are always strands which are going to escape.. I’m delighted she went for such a gorgeous bun and all hair away from her face, she’s truly royal like this. But the escaping hair may come down to pins and product in the end — super-glue hair spray anyone?!
I believe you are right Bertie. I know I could almost never pull off a smooth updo with getting out the helmet-hold Aqua Net. lol!
Oh, Lauri! The helmet-hold Aquanet made us LOL!!!! xo
The stylist said ‘the messy’ stray was deliberate not accidental. The Duchess wanted, and he styled her hair so that her ‘signature strand would escape. I was watching about three different streams and had it on a streaming loop all day and I DID NOT notice the strays until when i read about it the next day.
The service was so heartwarming, all I noticed was the couple’s glow
I love it. That tiara has been one of my favorite tiaras…kind of art-deco-y in style. And the wedding dress to me is perfection. My favorite wedding dress of all time is Princess Margaret’s, and while the designs are not the same, they both are the same type of simple, sleek designs without a bunch of frou frou embellishments. It is a great, modern bridal look.
The tiara choice was perfect – hasn’t been worn in a long time and hopefully it’s one we will be able to see more often over the years as Meghan has more occasion to wear it. xo
Such a beautiful wedding it has truly changed the World. Such a perfect couple. The love they showed when looking at each other said it all. You’re truly blessed with one heart held together.
Thanks for commenting, Jenny! We think it was a great day too! xo
At one and the same time, not what I was expecting and yet very Meghan. And no one saw that coming, did they? If I’ve ever heard of Claire Waight Keller it was very sotto voce, very left of field and a great play by Meghan to highlight a lesser-known name. And meantime Amal stepped up and did McCartney proud.
I wasn’t expecting quite such a plain dress from Meghan after there’d been so much talk of Ralph & Russo and embellishment and lace. But this is a masterpiece of sculptured elegance with all the genius in the cut of its lines. The bateau neck for a start is judged exactly to be open but not exposing, to flatter but not steal the show, and the fitted bodice and flared skirt are equally restrained but feminine and queenly, flowing effortlessly into a tidy train. Meghan can move so well when she’s walking, she can make any full-length gown more classy with her easy grace.
And scarcity of detail on the dress beautifully showcases the stunning veil. Duchess Kate’s veil is one of my own all-time favourites and this one has similar characteristics in using a flowing silky fabric, not stiff tulle, with the most exquisite embroidery of all those Commonwealth flowers.
Like Kate, Meghan has used a relatively low-set tiara since this style would come to grief on anything large and spiky, and the bling complements the fabric. I adore this tiara, a bandeau as we’d all thought, but what a stunner, it blew me away. As did that incredible bracelet which I’d assumed was borrowed Queenie bling but from your ID I’m assuming must be a stonking generous gift, and enhanced by those neat three-quarter sleeves. Meghan is simply one of the most beautiful brides I’ve ever seen.
Omg, I’m watching you on CNN right now Christine!!! I love your dress!
Thank you, Lauri! It’s LK Bennett 😉 xo
Thank you Bertie for putting the words together that my sleep deprived brain could not! I agree with you, not only about the dress but the whole service, not what I was expecting but so very Meghan and Harry! The love surrounding them was palpable and the tenderness they express to each other brought tears to my eyes!
I feel like much talk has centered around this being “Meghan’s wedding” and how she’s putting her stamp on everything and unfortunately it’s not all positive, which saddens me because, as usual, the bride is getting blamed while the groom had just as much say as she has. I haven’t seen that here at all but during the telecast I was watching there was quite a bit of disagreement between the commentators about various aspects of the service, dress, flowers, etc and they all mentioned Meghan but never once mentioned Harry. I realize that this service was so different from what the royals (and us royal watchers) are used too but that doesn’t make it wrong or bad, just unique and thoughtful.
Thank you Lauri, you’re very generous. Your own words are enhancing my own royal wedding day too, I hadn’t heard the negative stuff and am glad to miss it. There’s always a naysayer! One thing I can say for that preacher tho,I will always remember his words!! :- D
OK….After watching over 5 hours of television coverage (and using a half box of Kleenex because I was moved so much!) I now have my thoughts together.
THE DRESS: Perfections from head to toe. The cut of the dress, and neckline were simply stunning. I don’t know if anyone else caught this, but I read a few weeks ago that one of Meghan’s wedding style inspirations was Carolyn Bisset Kenedy’s dress, and although this had 3/4 sleeves and that beautiful long embroidered sheer train, I could see that inspiration echoed in her wedding dress. I thought it was interesting that Jessica Mulroney, her stylist friend was sitting so close to the couple, but when the ceremony was over and the couple left to sign the official registry, I noticed the train dragging a little and Jessica graciously bent down to fix it because she was arms length away. Very smart of these two! I can tell you that any summer 2018 bride will have touches of this dress in some way!
THE TIARA: It was so stunning I felt I was almost hypnotized the first few seconds I saw it up close on TV. It framed her face so beautifully and was the perfect choice for the train.
THE SHOES: I saw them mostly when she was leaving the car to make the initial entrance into the church, and they were conservative, yet very chic and timeless.
THE BEAUTY LOOK: Very clean, chic and natural. Exactly what I expected, although I was surprised she didn’t have a tad bit more color (e.g. blush) but otherwise, it enhanced her naturally beautiful features. The hair was up in a perfect chignon, which was the right call to put the focus on the tiara and the neckline of the dress. And yes a few whips of hair were flying around at different points which I know annoys some people, but I found it charming. And let’s face it, when you have such a gorgeous ensemble on it really doesn’t matter in the scheme of things. When they take the royal portraits her hairstylists will touch this up and it will look perfect.
Thanks for commenting, Madison! We also loved the “whimsy”, if you will, of her hair! It is so perfectly Meghan. xo
She could have gone with something much more flattering. The lines are lovely but the fabric is horrendous. When you are build like that, the options are endless so why…..?????
I agree Jan. She could wear almost any design! Plus such a heavy fabric for spring.
Excellent points, ladies. Several people have commented on various other platforms that the weight of the fabric might have actually had more to do with ensuring “modesty” for the royal bride rather than anything else. It’s a theory, anyway!
I thought the fabric had been specially created to give a sculptured effect that Meghan wanted. The extra body in it certainly helps create a more distinct outline for such a relatively grand setting
Good point, Bertie! The dress definitely needed some “size” to it to align with the grandeur of the venue… Especially on those stairs outside the chapel for the photos afterwards. A plain dress would not have worked at all. Needed something more sculpted!
This dress will stand the test of time. It reminds me of the Theory off-the-shoulder checked jacket she recently wore…maybe it was a hint of the dress to come? Meghan knows how to highlight her gorgeous shoulders in such a tasteful and classic way. And the tiara was a great choice. So many hidden away in the vault, it was impossible to predict . The veil perfectly reflects her new role. I bet the Queen was thoroughly impressed with the concept of adding flowers for every country in the Commonwealth. For all the talk of Meghan “shaking things up”, I think she has equally shown respect and admiration for the Royal family. As a side note, Prince Charles has thoroughly impressed today as well, which was a nice surprise.
Totally agree, SG! The flowers were a delightful touch and we loved that it was true to Meghan while still being very respectful of the ceremony requirements as a royal bride. xo
I loved her wedding look! The dress was perfection, it let her true beauty shine thru! You noticed her not just the dress! I loved the tiara and her hair. Her makeup was simple but elegant!
Hope you can find out the products the makeup artist ( Daniel Martin) used on Meghan?!
Everything I’ve seen just says get the look with these products but I would love to know the real products:-)
Loved your coverage of the Royal Wedding!
Hi Tammy,
We’re working on it! It’s likely that Daniel Martin will share in the coming weeks. (Or at least we’re hoping he does!)
xo
Hi everyone!
My greatest takeaway from the wedding was that The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are really and truly in love! The way they were looking at each other was tender, intense, supportive and pure magic!
The dress: At first, I was slightly disappointed at the simplicity, I had been convinced she would choose the designer Ralph and Russo and was expecting something really unique and a bit dramatic. However, watching Meghan walk down the aisle and seeing the exquisite lines of the dress and veil and that tiara, I realized Meghan was true to her style, she had said in an article even before she met Harry, “simple is the name of the game” when referring to her wedding dress style. Watching the ceremony and carriage ride I appreciated how sleek, elegant and sophisticated the dress was, and she was breathtakingly beautiful!
P.S. Prince Charles was my favorite for how he lead Meghan so proudly to his son, and then his sweet attention to beautiful Doria!
Thanks for sharing, Iris! It was a great day – and a great dress!
xo
Just a few comments, I loved the tiara and the designer was a surprise to be sure. I thought the fabric for the gown was a bit “thick”. My late mother was a seamstress and made many a wedding gown so I am familiar with fabrics and their “hand” or weight. I believe when a fabric is this heavy it is difficult to fit a garment close to the body. I hoped for
more detail on the bodice, some embroidery or beading to reflect the design of the veil (which was lovely). Maybe she chose such a simple silhouette because she wanted us to focus on her face not the dress. We’ll never know! The jewelry was fab!
Thanks for the helpful comments, Deborah! It’s always great to hear from someone with obviously so much family experience in the business. I’m sure your mother made beautiful garments, and I’m very sorry for your loss.
xo
Meghan Markle’s look great and fabulous in Clare Waight Keller Givenchy Dress
Like others I thought the dress seemed badly made and bulky. Was Meghan actually measured for it? Not a good look at all. Perhaps it was Meghan’s shape which was the problem in which case they should have gone for a different style.