Princess Diana’s wedding dress broke royal records with extravagant details
Princess Diana‘s wedding dress made royal history.
When the late Princess of Wales walked down the aisle to marry King Charles III on July 29, 1981, her dress broke records.
Diana’s 25-foot train broke records as the longest in royal wedding history
The gown was designed by Elizabeth Emanuel and David Emanuel and boasted a 25-foot train, making it the longest ever for a royal wedding.
“Halfway through, we realized, ‘We’re not going to finish this,’” David told E! News in 2017.
“Behind the scenes we’re thinking, ‘Maybe we’ve bitten off too much … keep sewing!’” he recalled.
Diana’s veil included 10,000 micro pearls
The mother-of-two’s veil was handmade using 10,000 micro pearls.
“I asked that the tiny mother of pearl sequins looked as if they were scattered on the tulle. As the sequins were almost transparent, only the sparkles of light would be visible, creating a fairy dust effect,” Elizabeth told British Vogue in 2021. “We used the same sequins on the gown itself, so that it would also sparkle as Diana walked down the aisle.”
Fashion historian Robert McCaffrey told the outlet about Peggy Umpleby, who made the veil: “In truth, she sat at her kitchen table embroidering for two solid weeks. The veil was completed, sent to the Emanuels and she returned to work, only to have her colleagues remark on how pale she was despite her two-week ‘holiday.’”
Diana had five bodices made for the dress
In the lead-up to the big day, Diana reportedly lost a lot of weight, leaving the designers scrambling to make the gown fit her and forcing them to make five bodices.
“Most brides do lose weight,” Elizabeth explained to People in 2018.
“So we weren’t that worried when she did. She ended up with a 23-inch waist from a 26- to 27-inch,” she added.
Diana had a backup dress in case of an emergency
The details of the frock were kept under wraps. However, Diana and her team had a backup option in case her gown was leaked to the public.
“At the time we wanted to make absolutely sure that the dress was a surprise,” Elizabeth explained to People.
“Had the secret of the real dress got out it’s possible that Diana would actually have worn this one,” she revealed.