Fashionably Royal: The Wedding of Kate Middleton and Prince William: The Wedding Party Edition

Now, let's get down to looking at the rest of the wedding party. My working definition of the wedding party is "anyone who appeared on Buckingham Palace's balcony to wave to the crowd." See here:

Date: 29 April 2011
Place: Westminster Abbey, London
Event: Wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge

First, let's look at the parents of the bride: Michael and Carole Middleton. Mrs. Middleton wore a light blue suit designed by Catherine Walker's design team. (Catherine Walker designed more clothes for Princess Diana in her life than any other designer; she passed away last year.) The coat was wool crepe and the dress was made of silk shantung. Her hat was designed by Jane Corbett. There were reports in the press that she hired and fired a number of designers to create her look for the day. I like to think she's a bit more decorous than that. Either way, she really looked lovely--elegant but not too look-at-me.

Next, the father and brother of the bride. They wore matching morning suits--the type of suit traditionally worn at weddings in England. The suits are believed to have been made by exclusive Savile Row tailors Ede and Ravenscroft.

Both Middleton men wore tie pins that were specially made by Robinson Pelham. They were made to match the jewelry worn by Kate, Pippa, and Carole--all of which was based on the newly created Middleton coat of arms.

I would like to take a moment to give a shout-out to Mr. Middleton for looking so, so proud of his daughter. The look on his face really made me think he would be just as proud if she were marrying a janitor, so long as she was happy. (Warms the heart, doesn't it?)

On to the parents of the groom! Well, the father and step-mother--in case you're not comfortable with Camilla being referred to as William's "parent." Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, wore a champagne silk dress and hand-embroidered champagne and duck-egg blue coat, and carried a coordinating clutch bag, all designed by Anna Valentine. Valentine also designed her outfits when marrying Prince Charles in 2005. Her shoes were made by Jimmy Choo and her hat was one of many Philip Treacy creations seen on the wedding day.

Charles, Prince of Wales, wore his Royal Navy Ceremonial Day dress uniform. He served in the Navy from 1971-76 (and was also in the Air Force). In 2006, he was granted the rank of admiral--thus the uniform. As much as the royal family tend to have a laughable number of military decorations on their uniforms, they often earned most of them by actually serving in multiple branches of the military.

Next, we come to Her Majesty, the Queen. She chose a lovely shade of yellow for her Angela Kelly created crepe wool dress and matching coat with hand-sown beading at the neck in the shape of sun rays. The bright color not only looked love on the unusually-spry monarch, but also indicated an optimism for the marriage. Her hat was also designed by Angela Kelly and, rather sweetly, the Queen wore her grandmother's True Lovers' Knot brooch. (Awww.)

The Queen's husband, the Duke of Edinburgh, of course wore a military uniform. Specifically, he wore a Grenadier Guards uniform, with whom he has ranked as a colonel since 1975. Of all the uniforms he could have chosen, it is unclear why he chose it especially considering he was a long-serving naval officer. (He had just entered the navy when he first met Elizabeth; they were both teenagers.)

Prince Harry's uniform was, in my opinion, the most dramatic and hulking of the day. He, like his brother William, is actively serving in the military. He wore the uniform of the Blues and Royals, a cavalry regiment within the Army, with whom he serves as a Captain. The tassels and epaulets alone must have weighed 20 pounds! One of the most interesting aspects of his uniform was where he kept the ring William placed on Kate's finger. He had a pocket specially sewn in his left cuff so that he could easily retrieve it when the time came.

The bridegroom himself, William, wore the Irish Guards Mounted Officer's uniform--he was appointed an honorary colonel with them in February of this year. It came as a bit of a surprise as nearly everyone assumed he would wear the uniform of Flight Lieutenant in the Royal Air Force, with whom he actively serves in Wales. The uniform he did choose to wear is the highest military rank he holds and, additionally, the motto of the Irish Guards is "Who shall separate us?"--perhaps a sentiment he feels toward his new bride.

Now, the bridesmaids and pageboys. (Bridesmaids are not to be confused with the maid of honor, Pippa Middleton, who is featured just below.) The bridesmaids included Grace van Cutsem, 3, Eliza Lopes, also 3, Hon. Margarita Armstrong-Jones, 8, and Lady Louise Windsor, 7. Their dresses were made by Nicki Macfarlane and her daughter Charlotte and were designed to echo the bride's dress. They were made of the same fabrics (silk gazar with Cluny lace trimming and net underskirts) as the bride's dress and had similar "structural" qualities. The girls also had optional capes that were not worn because the weather behaved. Their shoes were created by Rainbow Club of satin in the Mary Jane style with buckles decorated with Swarovski crystals.

Sweetly, the bridesmaids wore ivy and lily of the valley wreaths in their hair as Kate's mother Carole had in her wedding in 1980. The bridesmaids also carried bouquets made of hyacinth, sweet William, and lily of the valley.

The pageboys were William Lowther-Pinkerton, 10, and Tom Pettifer, 8. Their outfits were made by Kashket and Partners (who also fitted William's uniform); the design originated in the Royal Household--but we don't know who exactly! They were made to look like uniforms worn by Foot Guards in the 1820s Regency period and included the insignia of the Irish Guards (as seen in William's uniform). The collars and cuffs were produced by the Royal School of Needlework, who also made the lace for the bride, bridesmaids, and maid of honor. (Tom Pettifer, the blonde pageboy, had the biggest, happiest grin on his face throughout the day. If only all children involved in weddings were so well-behaved!)

Last, but certainly not least, was the most talked about member of the wedding party--maid of honor, Pippa Middleton. In another surprise, Pippa, Kate's sister, wore a white dress! I have never seen a maid of honor wear white before. I can't say that I disagree with it, as smashing as Pippa looked--but at the same time, it was a bit distracting from Kate, and it was her big day. Pippa's dress was a very figure-hugging white, satin crepe dress, also designed by Sarah Burton at Alexander McQueen, with a low cowl neck, a row of buttons down the back (matching the bride's dress), and lace details (also matching the bride's dress).