George Boyle
Princess Diana's wedding dress is one of the most iconic in history, with its design kept a closely guarded secret until the big day. The dress was made of ivory silk taffeta and antique lace, with a 25-foot train and a 153-yard tulle veil. It was hand-embroidered with mother-of-pearl sequins and an estimated 10,000 pearls, featuring lace-trimmed puff sleeves and a ruffled neckline. The dress was designed by former husband-and-wife duo David and Elizabeth Emanuel, who described it as a dress that had to be something that was going to go down in history. Other famous royal wedding dresses include Princess Elizabeth's, which drew parallels with the dress worn by Grace Kelly in 1956, and Princess Victoria's, made of white Moiré Antique with three flounces of Honiton lace.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Princess | Diana |
| Wedding location | St. Paul's Cathedral, London, England |
| Wedding date | 29 July 1981 |
| Designer | David and Elizabeth Emanuel |
| Fabric | Silk, taffeta |
| Embellishments | Mother-of-pearl sequins, frilled lace, pearls |
| Number of pearls | 10,000 |
| Train length | 25 feet |
| Veil | Sparkling, made of tulle, 153 yards |
| Good luck charm | 18-carat gold horseshoe trinket studded with white diamonds |
| Something old | Antique lace from Queen Mary |
| Something blue | Blue bow inside the bodice |
| Tiara | Spencer Tiara, a Spencer family heirloom |
| Earrings | Diamond earrings with a pear-shaped diamond at the centre and 50 smaller diamonds |
| Engagement ring | 18-carat oval sapphire and diamond ring |
| Back-up dress | Yes |
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What You'll Learn
Princess Diana's wedding dress
The design of the dress was kept a secret, and even Princess Diana herself did not see the final result until the dress fitting at Buckingham Palace. The designers wanted the dress to be "suitably dramatic" and make an impression, and it certainly did, with over 750 million people tuning in across the globe to watch the royal wedding. The dress was so influential that it set wedding fashion trends after the wedding, with large puffed sleeves, full skirts, and "soft touch fabrics" becoming popular requests.
In addition to the main wedding dress, the Emanuels also created a second, backup wedding gown in case their original creation was leaked to the press. This spare dress was made of pale ivory silk taffeta with embroidered scalloped details on the hem and sleeves and featured a V-neck, three-quarter sleeves, and a wide skirt. Diana also had a cascading bouquet of gardenias, stephanotis, freesias, orchids, lily of the valley, Earl Mountbatten roses, ivy, veronica, and myrtle, which is a royal wedding tradition.
The dress toured for many years with the exhibition "Diana: A Celebration", with Althorp House, Northampton being the prime display location. In 2018, the dress was chosen as one of the "Most Influential British Royal Wedding Dresses of All Time" by Time magazine, further cementing its iconic status in fashion history.
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Princess Elizabeth's wedding dress
The dress was made from ivory silk and decorated with 10,000 seed pearls. It was embroidered with star lilies, jasmine, smilax, seringa, and white rose-like blossoms. The 13-foot train was inspired by Botticelli's painting 'Primavera' from 1482, and was meant to symbolise "rebirth and growth" in postwar Britain. In total, the gown took 350 women seven weeks to make.
The final cost to make the dress during modern times was £30,000 (approximately $37,000 or $1.6 million). Princess Elizabeth, however, had to pay for her dress using ration coupons. She saved up clothing coupons to purchase her wedding dress and was granted 200 extra coupons by the government for the celebration. She also received coupons from admirers through the mail, although she had to return them as it was illegal to transfer them.
The outfit was completed with ivory duchesse satin high-heeled sandals, trimmed with silver and seed pearl buckles, made by Edward Rayne.
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Royal wedding dress traditions
Royal weddings are steeped in tradition, and the bride's dress is no exception. While the royal bride chooses her wedding gown and works with a designer to create it, the Queen must approve it before the big day.
Royal wedding dresses are typically long-sleeved and modest, with a high neckline. Royal brides never bare their shoulders and avoid showing too much cleavage. The colour is always white or ivory, a tradition set by Queen Victoria, who wore an ivory silk gown when she married Prince Albert in 1840. Since then, white wedding dresses have become the norm for royal brides and women across the globe.
Another tradition, also set by Queen Victoria, is that the bride's bouquet must contain myrtle, which represents love, fertility and innocence. The wedding bands are also important: they are usually made from Welsh gold and come from a mine in North Wales.
Royal brides often wear a tiara, often borrowed from the royal collection, and the wedding day is typically the first time a new royal wears one.
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Princess Diana's wedding dress designer
Princess Diana's wedding dress was designed by the Emanuels, a husband-and-wife duo consisting of David and Elizabeth Emanuel. The Emanuels founded their eponymous label in 1977, and their designs were worn by celebrities and royalty alike. Princess Diana herself selected the designers to make her wedding gown, having previously worn a blouse they designed for her engagement portrait session.
The Emanuels' creation for Princess Diana was an ivory silk taffeta and antique lace gown with a 25-foot train and a 153-yard tulle veil. The gown was adorned with mother-of-pearl sequins and over 10,000 pearls. It featured a ruffled collar, puffed sleeves, and a romantic ruffle neckline. The dress was valued at the time to be worth approximately $43,573 in 2023 dollars.
The gown set wedding fashion trends, with large puffed sleeves, full skirts, and soft-touch fabrics becoming popular requests. Copies of the dress were available within hours of the wedding. The Emanuels also designed a backup wedding gown for Princess Diana, which was never worn and has since disappeared. The replica of the backup dress, which was displayed in 2024, differed from the original in its bright white hue, fitted sleeves, and lack of a train.
Princess Diana's wedding dress remains a fashion fixture, with the designers and dress becoming globally famous after the wedding. The dress has been described as "iconic" and solidified Princess Diana's status as a fashion icon.
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Princess Diana's second wedding dress
Princess Diana's wedding dress is one of the most iconic gowns ever worn by a royal bride. The Emanuels, a former husband-and-wife duo, designed the dress, which featured an extravagant 25-foot train and was made of ivory silk taffeta and antique Carrickmacross lace. The dress was hand-embroidered with mother-of-pearl sequins and an estimated 10,000 pearls.
However, the designers also created a second, simpler wedding dress for Diana as a backup in case the initial design was leaked to the public or ruined before the wedding day. This alternate gown was made from the same ivory silk taffeta but did not include any lace. It featured a deeper V neckline, shorter frilled sleeves, and a ball skirt without a lace hem. Elizabeth Emanuel, one of the designers, revealed that the backup dress was only three-quarters finished and has since disappeared. Sketches of the backup gown were revealed in 2023, and the dress was brought to life using old sketches and thumbnails. It is now on display at the virtual interactive Princess Diana Museum.
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Frequently asked questions
Princess Diana wore a silk-and-taffeta gown designed by husband-and-wife team David and Elizabeth Emanuel. The dress was hand-embroidered with mother-of-pearl sequins, frilled lace, and 10,000 pearls. It also featured a 25-foot train and a 153-yard tulle veil.
Princess Diana wore the Spencer Tiara, a family heirloom. She also wore a pair of diamond earrings with a pear-shaped diamond at the centre and 50 smaller diamonds surrounding it. Additionally, she wore an engagement ring with an 18-carat oval sapphire and diamond.
Yes, Princess Diana had a good luck charm attached to the label of her dress. It was an 18-carat gold horseshoe trinket studded with white diamonds.
Princess Elizabeth wore an ivory silk dress with flower designs of jasmine, smilax, lilac, and white rose-like blossoms added to the train, embellished by white crystals and pearls. The dress also featured a border of orange blossom appliquéd with transparent tulle outlined in seed pearls and crystal.
