Princess Di's wedding gown

[LuvLDM]

I was 11 when Diana got married, I remember being mesmerized by the wedding footage on TV! I still think she was so beautiful!
Her dress certainly isn't my taste but I think it was perfect for her.

 

[Poohforyou]

Diana probably had no choice in the matter. It did not become her at all.

She had limited choice since she had to go with a British designer and had to be very conservative (not a bad thing given some bride's choices with striper gowns). Also, she was very young at the time and readily admits she was going through a frilly period at the time.

I think she looked pretty but overwhelmed.

 

[DeluxePrincess]

The dress seems very dated now, like most gowns from the 80's, but at the time I thought it was a perfect princess dress. Of course, I was 11. I thought her hair was trendsetting. I thought she looked lovely.

 

[Lassie Lynne]

I do remember hearing at the time, that her hair was done more with curls, but it didn't hold too well and due to the heat, it flattened. That was the biggest critisism that I can remember most people said (besides the wrinkles).....it was actually mostly agreed to be a beatiful dress.

 

[CurlyGirl]

Diana's gown was a poufy, fussy mess. From the huge ruffle at the neck to the poufy sleeves - yuck! And it was a crumpled mess when she got out of that carriage. That dress totally engulfed her. And I thought her hair looked too floppy.

Queen Elizabeth's dress was lovely and, on the Today Show, they showed the top of Queen Victoria's dress and it was just beautiful and really my style! I guess it was a two piece dress; top and skirt. I googled an image of it and, actually, it looks quite hideous. But the top (when they showed it out of the preserved wrapping) looked very pretty. I don't know what the bottom looked like but the images they show of the dress look far worse than it looked on tv. I don't know why!? But, the version (allegedly historically accurate) that Emily Blunt wore in The Young Victoria was beautiful!

 

[chamonix]

Funny how different we all are....what I loved most about her dress was the wrinkles! I loved that it was such a gorgeous abundance of sumptuous silk (bounty befitting a princess) but that it had a "realness" to it...meaning, the wrinkles from the carriage ride, etc. It was the perfect dress that perfectly said she was the "People's Princess". It was simple yet elegant, casual, yet not.

It just really spoke to me. Ok, looking at it now, I see how it's dated with those huge sleeves, but at the time, I thought it was perfect. LOL

I do agree though that the designers did NOT fit it well. That would be my only criticism.

I was married many years later, and I chose a similar gown--not the pouffy style (that was over, thank god!) but simple, casual, yet elegant due to the rich fabric (mine was a silk brocade). Not too many adornments. (someone mentioned "all those silly bows"... I didn't notice any on her gown?)

I thought for the time, it was simple and elegant, a perfect princess dress...in fact, quite traditional and classic for a princess. The wrinkles were the perfect touch, even though they weren't necessarily planned. Loved loved loved it.

Can't wait to see Kate's.

 

[chamonix]

Oh, and I hope Kate wears her hair down. I love long hair and hers is so gorgeous! I hate when women wear their hair up for weddings. (see a pattern here? The style I like is more simple, natural.....obviously that's why I like Diana's dress, and bride's hair down...etc)

Also, do we ever see Kate's hair up? Another reason why I don't like hair up at weddings is if it's not how women wear their hair usually, why do it then? Some hair up is ok (to get it out of your eyes and accentuate your face) but the rest of it should be down. Long natural hair is beautiful!

 

[java]

Just last night I realized the reason I had HUGE sleeves on my dress were because of Princess Di's dress. I was in High School when she got married and I remember it clearly- my friend and I watching at her house. I will be watching tomorrow.

 

[MaryAnnDVC]

I thought she looked beautiful on her wedding day, wrinkles and all. Her dress wasn't "me", but it fit the style of the times. I think people have such strong opinions about wedding dresses in particular because they're such a big part of the wedding day. When I watch "Say Yes to the Dress", I'm often mortified, especially those Pnina Tornai dresses. I think some of those brides are going to look back at their wedding pictures someday the way some of us '80's brides look back at ours.

The 80's were, in general, just a really bad decade for fashion, including wedding dresses. I know...I got married in '84 and looking back, can't help feeling "What was I thinking?" My mother was married in 1942 and her gown was beautiful and classic. So it's not just about being old that makes the 80's so bad.

 

[s____!]

Typical 80s gown. I hate big, poofy gowns and that is the biggest and poofiest I've ever seen.

I have a feeling Kate is going to go for something that's very fitted. All of her clothes always fit perfectly. I would be so disappointed if she showed up looking like a marshmallow.

 

[ols386]

She was so lost in that gown. I did love it from the back. The puffy sleeves were huge! I know it was a product of the times but even then I thought it was just too much gown.

I think the dress was a bit (well, actually, a lot) much, but she was so beautiful!!

And she looks truly happy in the photo. I remember years later, seeing her in the media and in photos, and I thought she looked sad.

 

[Rora]

The dress was a product of the times. She looked beautiful but I'm not a big fan of the dress. Now, my mother, thought it was gorgeous. Different strokes for different folks, right?

 

[Buckalew11]

For the 80's, I loved it.

I liked her hair at the wedding more than I liked it in those pictures which were either made before the wedding day or after someone tried touching it up because it was super straight for the ceremony. I loved Diana's hair except for when she grew it out--ugh! She had the most requested hairstyles ever. It was from the time of engagement until her death...very popular hair.

 

[CurlyGirl]

When Kate went for tea with Camilla after getting engaged, she was overheard as saying she liked Princess Grace's wedding dress. Maybe hers will reflect Princess Grace's design?

 

[Swalphin]

Being a young girl at the time I was in awe of her and the entire day. I thought she was beautiful. That day I made a decision never to get a tattoo I thought if I ever have a chance to marry royalty a tattoo would disqualify me. I knew of nobody with a tatoo so not sure why I fixated on it. Never got a tatto nor married royalty,

 

[kacaju]

So funny...my dd15 just asked me tonight if I had any prom pictures of me and my dress. OMG....the 80's prom dresses.... After reading these comments about Diana's wedding dress (my prom was in 84) and the same color as her dress...I think I will continue to pretend I do not have any pictures to show her!!

 

[The_Alice]

When Kate went for tea with Camilla after getting engaged, she was overheard as saying she liked Princess Grace's wedding dress. Maybe hers will reflect Princess Grace's design?

If she goes with that, that's gonna be a TON of lace:

 

[FredinFL]

Even back then I thought that dress was a train wreck, ick.

 

[Gigi22]

In fairness, there is a very stringent (unwritten) conservative dress code for royal brides, Diana was very young when she married Charles, and those were the 1980s--the time when we all thought that shoulder pads and big hair were good things!
Remember, Diana also had to pass a pre wedding medical certification of her intact state.
Those were really different times.

 

[tar heel]

I got married in 1982 and my dress was nothing like Diana's. Long sleeves, sculpted neckline, train.

I didn't ever consider wearing my long hair up -- my DH would be have been terribly disappointed if my hair hadn't been down.