From Queen Elizabeth’s post-war wedding gown or Yoko Ono’sixties attire to Priyanka Chopra’s stunning Mandarin-collared gown, each gown served as a symbol of love, culture and history. If you are looking for a wedding dress for your big day that will be inspired by some of the most iconic leading ladies in fashion history, we are here for you!

We have researched and chosen some of the most historical and iconic wedding gowns for inspiration and a hot look back at fashion’s biggest moments.

10. Bianca Jagger

We are starting the list with the iconic Bianca Jagger, who decided to go against the stereotypical white wedding dress and opted for a more fashionable and rebellious attire. The former Mrs Jagger wore a white skirt with a buttoned-up suit by Yves Saint Laurent, the designer had made a shirt for Bianca but it ended up not fitting as she was 4 months pregnant on her wedding day with the Rolling Stones Legend, Mick Jagger.

9. Elizabeth tailor

Although Elizabeth Tailor got married eight times (twice with Richard Burton), Elizabeth was not a huge fan of weddings. For her first wedding with Richard Burton in 1967, the legendary actress chose to go against the traditional white wedding gown and wore a yellow chiffon babydoll dress with sheer long sleeves. She added lilies of the valley into her hair for a bridal look.

8. Serena Williams

The Tennis Legend married her husband, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian in a fairytale-themed wedding in New Orleans back in 2017. Serena stunned everyone as she walked down the aisle in a caped Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen gown, along with millions of dollars worth of diamonds that complimented her entire outfit.

7. Audrey Hepburn

One of the greatest actresses in history, Audrey Hepburn, married actor Mel Ferrer in Switzerland in 1954 and left everyone amazed with her wedding dress. Ms Hepburn wore a typically full-skirt ‘50s ballerina-length dress which was designed by Pierre Balmain. The dress looked romantic and elegant and featured a high neck, along with leg-o-mutton sleeves and a cinched waist and a lovely bow at the back. The actress chose to ditch the veil and wore roses in her hair instead.

6. Marilyn Monroe

Everyone’s sweetheart, Marilyn Monroe, has a series of draw-dropping timeless fashion moments that everyone is still talking about. One of those moments was the wedding dress that she wore for her wedding with Arthur Miller. Monroe chose to wear a mid-length gown which oozed glamour and sophistication. The dress hugged her hourglass figure beautifully and featured sheer, gathered sleeves and a low scooped neck. She also wore wrist-length gloves that complimented the outfit.

5. Priyanka Chopra

The Indian Actress went all out when it came to designing her wedding dress and has set the level high for any future ionic dresses. Priyanka married her now-husband, Nick Jonas, in Mumbai back in 2018. The wedding ceremonies lasted over a week-long and it was surely a wedding that no one will forget especially the bride’s gown. Although Priyanka wore multiple outfits during the week-long celebrations, the most noticeable dress is of course the Ralf Lauren custom gown that she wore during her Christian Ceremony. The gown featured a multitude of pearls, crystal beading and Swarovski crystal embellishment. The extraordinary dress had a magnificent tuille veil measuring an outstanding 75ft. LB. Altogether it took 1,826 hours of work to put together the lovely custom gown and the draw-dropping veil.

4. Grace Kelly

Grace Kelly went from being a Hollywood actress to marrying a prince! In 1956 the Rear Window actress married the love of her life, the Prince of Monaco, Rainer III at the Saint Nicholas Cathedral. Her dress served as one of the most iconic wedding dresses of all time and Is still a major inspiration for future brides to this day. Grace wore a silk taffeta and antique Brussels lace gown made by the MGM costume designer, Helen Rose. For the dress, Helen used 25 yards of silk taffeta, 100 yards of silk net and hundreds of pearls and it took the designer and three dozen seamstresses six weeks to finalize the dress, and may we say it looked amazing.

3. Princess Diana

The worlds Princess married Prince Charles at St Paul’s Cathedral in 1981 in front of the world. Diana wore a stunning ivory silk taffeta dress which was designed by David and Elizabeth Emanuel. The gown was decorated with lace, sequins, hand embroidery and 10,000 pears, along with a 25-foot train that is the longest train in the history of royal weddings.

2. Kate Middleton, The Duchess of Cambridge

Kate married the love of her life, Prince William, at Westminister Abby on 29^th April 2011 in front of the entire world. Middleton wowed everyone in her custom-made Alexader McQueen gown which was an ivory and white satin gazar dress with long sleeves and a bodice covered in couture lace. The dress was worn with a veil made from layers of ivory tulle and the Cartier Halo Tiara, which was borrowed from Queen Elizabeth.

1. Queen Elizabeth II

Queen Elizabeth II was 21 years old when he married Prince Philip at Westminister Abby in 1947. The Queen famously decided to save up ration cards to purchase the material needed for her wedding dress. Her gown was made out of ivory duchess satin which was decorated with 10,000 white pearls that were imported especially for the Queen, silver threads and tulle embroidery. Her bridal look also included a 15-foot patterned full-court train attached to the shoulders and a silk tulle veil. The look was completed with Queen Mary’s Fringe Tiara which was lent to her by her mother.

Each and every wedding dress has a story to tell and a moment to shine. It is a part of your present and history that will be passed on to each generation that passes as a symbol of love from a moment that will remain in your hearts forever.

Comment below which wedding dress is your favourite!

Everything went like clock work, a very English Wedding, and a great representation to the watching millions around the world and showed just how much the British still love and respect the Royal Family.

The police estimated around a million people lined the route from the Abbey to Buckingham Palace.

With cheers from the watching public outside the abbey as guest and celebrities arrived to take their places, the Beckhams had one of the loudest cheers and very fitting too as David and Victoria  both looked stunning, (David broke from tradition wearing his OBE on his left lapel).

And with a packed church of 1,900 lucky guests, the excitement could be felt around the country, as the Queens and other dignitaries took their places.

It was sad yet wonderful to see Princess Diana’s boys in uniform walking down the red carpet, united as brothers William and Harry shared a joke, yet was respectful and dignified for this very special occasion.

Kate Middleton spent the night with her mother and sister at the 5 Star Goring Hotel in Belgravial. The best keep secret “who has designed the wedding dress”, was given a massive clue late last night when a lady stepped out of a car, head covered, but the giveaway was the distinctive ring and belt that she wore was Sarah Burton at Alexander McQueen.

And sure enough when Kate Middleton finally stepped out of her car out side the abbey, the full glory and splendor of Sarah Burton’s creation could be seen by the world. In a word, exquisite, not only did it capture the elegance of Kate, but in many ways one could say that it captures what will surly be a new trend inwedding dresses The ivory and lace dress was simple yet elegant, the detailing on the dress and the lacing was a magical touch combining tradition and modernity, Kate wanted a dress that would represent timeless British craftsmanship.

As Kate entered the abbey tightly holding her fathers hands, with an air of calm and confidence, the world watched as the bridal party walked down the long red carpet to meet her Prince. Prince Harry turned to see her then turned to his brother saying “wait till you see what’s coming”, and sure enough when Prince Williams did, he leaned towards his bride and said “you look beautiful”….. His mother would have been so proud.

The Service ran smoothly with only a little moment when the prince struggled to place the wedding ring on to Kate’s finger. The wedding vows was said and quite noticeable Kate did not promise to obey her husband. Then there was the signing of the royal marriage register, the newly weds then payed their respects to the Queen before walking down the red carpet to meet the waiting public.

The bridal party and 650 guests then headed for a canape reception at Buckingham Palace where thousands of well wishers lined the streets leading up the Mall to the gates of the Palace.

The happy couple and bridal party soon appeared on the famous balcony of Buckingham Palace after their wedding service in Westminster Abbey where the 500,000 strong waiting well-wishers where given not one but two kisses to truly seal the wedding.

We where told to expect something different and we where not let down, as the newly weds left Buckingham Palace to Clarence House in Prince Charles’s blue classic  1970 Volante DB6 Mk II Aston Martin  driven by Prince William. The happy couple waved out of the open topped car which had been decorated with red, white and blue ribbons and balloons had a number plate reading JU5T WED.

Later that evening, Prince Charles hosted a dinner and disco for 300 very close friends and relatives. It was lovely to see the couple had changed outfits for the evening event – Prince William was in dashing black tie while Kate  wore a white strapless satin evening gown with diamante embroidered detail round the waist, design by Alexandre McQueen’s Sarah Burton.

It was one of those days that will last in our memories for many years to come, and so many fantastic moments that can only be described as a fairy tail wedding.

Congratulations and Good Luck from 5 Star Weddings, this was indeed a 5 Star Event xx

Full details of the Dress is provided by officialroyalwedding2011.org

Miss Middleton chose British brand Alexander McQueen for the beauty of its craftsmanship and its respect for traditional workmanship and the technical construction of clothing.  Miss Middleton wished for her dress to combine tradition and modernity with the artistic vision that characterises Alexander McQueen’s work.  Miss Middleton worked closely with Sarah Burton in formulating the design of her dress. The dress epitomises timeless British craftsmanship by drawing together talented and skilled workmanship from across the United Kingdom.  The dress design pays tribute to the Arts and Crafts tradition, which advocated truth to materials and traditional craftsmanship using simple forms and often Romantic styles of decoration.  Ms Burton’s design draws on this heritage, additionally giving the cut and the intricate embellishment a distinctive, contemporary and feminine character.

The design
The lace appliqué for the bodice and skirt was hand-made by the Royal School of Needlework, based at Hampton Court Palace.  The lace design was hand-engineered (appliquéd) using the Carrickmacross lace-making technique, which originated in Ireland in the 1820s.  Individual flowers have been hand-cut from lace and hand-engineered onto ivory silk tulle to create a unique and organic design, which incorporates the rose, thistle, daffodil and shamrock. Hand-cut English lace and French Chantilly lace has been used throughout the bodice and skirt, and has been used for the underskirt trim.  With laces coming from different sources, much care was taken to ensure that each flower was the same colour.  The whole process was overseen and put together by hand by Ms Burton and her team.
The dress is made with ivory and white satin gazar.  The skirt echoes an opening flower, with white satin gazar arches and pleats.  The train measures two metres 70 centimetres.  The ivory satin bodice, which is narrowed at the waist and padded at the hips, draws on the Victorian tradition of corsetry and is a hallmark of Alexander McQueen’s designs.  The back is finished with 58 gazar and organza covered buttons fastened by Rouleau loops.  The underskirt is made of silk tulle trimmed with Cluny lace.

The Fabrics
French Chantilly lace was combined with English Cluny lace to be hand-worked in the Irish Carrickmacross needlework tradition.
All other fabrics used in the creation of the dress were sourced from and supplied by British companies.  The choice of fabrics followed extensive research by Sarah Burton and her team.
The Royal School of Needlework
The Royal School of Needlework (RSN), based at Hampton Court Palace, assisted the Alexander McQueen team in accurately cutting out the delicate motifs from the lace fabrics and positioning the lace motifs with precision into the new design.  The lace motifs were pinned, ‘framed up’ and applied with stab stitching every two to three millimetres around each lace motif.  The workers washed their hands every thirty minutes to keep the lace and threads pristine, and the needles were renewed every three hours, to keep them sharp and clean. The RSN workers included existing staff, former staff, tutors, graduates and students, with the youngest aged 19.
The RSN’s work was used primarily for the train and skirt of the Bride’s dress, the bodice and sleeves, the Bride’s shoes and the Bride’s veil.

Veil and Jewellery
The veil is made of layers of soft, ivory silk tulle with a trim of hand-embroidered flowers, which was embroidered by the Royal School of Needlework.  The veil is held in place by a Cartier ‘halo’ tiara, lent to Miss Middleton by The Queen.  The ‘halo’ tiara was made by Cartier in 1936 and was purchased by The Duke of York (later King George VI) for his Duchess (later Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother) three weeks before he succeeded his brother as King.  The tiara was presented to Princess Elizabeth (now The Queen) by her mother on the occasion of her 18th birthday.
The Bride’s earrings, by Robinson Pelham, are diamond-set stylised oak leaves with a pear shaped diamond set drop and a pavé set diamond acorn suspended in the centre.  Inspiration for the design comes from the Middleton family’s new coat of arms, which includes acorns and oak leaves.  The earrings were made to echo the tiara.  The earrings were a personal gift to the Bride from her parents for her Wedding Day.
Robinson Pelham have also designed and made a pair of diamond earrings for Miss Philippa Middleton.  These earrings are more floral in nature to compliment the headpiece worn by Miss Philippa Middleton during the Service.
A tourmaline and diamond pendant and matching earrings have been designed and made for Mrs. Carole Middleton.  Two gold stick pins, one with a single gold acorn at the head and the other with an oak leaf, are also worn respectively by the Father of the Bride, Mr. Michael Middleton, and the Bride’s brother, Mr. James Middleton.

Wedding Shoes
The wedding shoes have made hand-made by the team at Alexander McQueen and are made of ivory duchesse satin with lace hand-embroidered by the Royal School of Needlework.

The Bride’s Bouquet
The bouquet is a shield-shaped wired bouquet of myrtle, lily-of-the-valley, sweet William and hyacinth.  The bouquet was designed by Shane Connolly and draws on the traditions of flowers of significance for the Royal Family, the Middleton family and on the Language of Flowers.

The flowers’ meanings in the bouquet are:

• Lily-of-the-valley – Return of happiness
• Sweet William – Gallantry
• Hyacinth – Constancy of love
• Ivy: Fidelity; marriage; wedded love; friendship; affection

Myrtle: the emblem of marriage; love.
The bouquet contains stems from a myrtle planted at Osborne House, Isle of Wight, by Queen Victoria in 1845, and a sprig from a plant grown from the myrtle used in The Queen’s wedding bouquet of 1947.
The tradition of carrying myrtle begun after Queen Victoria was given a nosegay containing myrtle by Prince Albert’s grandmother during a visit to Gotha in Germany.  In the same year, Queen Victoria and Prince Albert bought Osborne House as a family retreat, and a sprig from the posy was planted against the terrace walls, where it continues to thrive today.
The myrtle was first carried by Queen Victoria eldest daughter, Princess Victoria, when she married in 1858, and was used to signify the traditional innocence of a bride.
Miss Philippa Middleton’s Dress
Miss Philippa Middleton’s dress was designed and created by Sarah Burton at Alexander McQueen.  It is of a heavy, ivory satin-based crepe, with a cowl front and with the same button detail and lace trims as the Bride’s dress.

The Young Bridesmaids’ Dresses
The young Bridesmaids’ dresses were designed by childrenswear designer Nicki Macfarlane to echo the Bride’s dress.  The four dresses were hand-made by Ms Macfarlane and her daughter Charlotte Macfarlane at their homes in Wiltshire and Kent.
The Bridesmaids’ dresses have been created using the same fabrics as the Bride’s dress.  The ballerina-length, full, box pleated skirt gives the dresses a sculptural quality, with the layering of ivory over white satin gazar adding depth of colour.  They have all been hand-finished with delicate English Cluny lace, which is visible under the skirts, and four layers of net underskirt.  The puff sleeves and neckline are trimmed with the same English lace as the Bride’s underskirt.  The backs have been finished with the same button detail.
The sashes are made of pale gold, wild silk, which is tucked at the front and tied at the back in a sumptuous bow.
As a special memento, the Bridesmaid’s name and the date of the wedding have been hand-embroidered onto the lining of each dress.
Capes (These may or may not be worn dependent on the weather)
The waist-length capes, also created by Nicki Macfarlane, are made from ivory Yorkshire wool, edged in fine English lace and tied at the front in the same satin gazar as the dresses.

Shoes
The Bridesmaids’ shoes were designed and made by Devon-based Rainbow Club.  The classic Mary Jane style shoes are made from satin and finished with a Swarovski crystal buckle. Devon-based Rainbow Club have been designing, making and colouring handmade wedding shoes since the mid-1980s.

Bridesmaids’ Flowers
The Bridesmaids’ flowers were designed and made by Shane Connolly.  The ivy and lily-of-the-valley hair wreaths worn by the younger Bridesmaids were influenced by the Bride’s mother’s own headdress at her wedding in 1981.  The bouquets held by the Bridesmaids replicate the flowers used in the Bride’s bouquet, and they incorporate lily-of-the-valley, sweet William and hyacinth.

Pages’ Uniforms
The Pages are wearing a uniform in the style of that worn by a Foot Guards officer at the time of the Regency (the 1820s).  The uniform draws its insignia from the Irish Guards, whose Colonel is Prince William.
The tunic is Guards’ Red with gold piping, Irish shamrocks are on the collars and its buttons are arranged in fours, denoting the Irish – or Fourth – Regiment of Foot Guards.  The buttons feature the Harp of Ireland surmounted by the Crown Imperial.  The breeches are ivory and are worn with white stockings and black buckle shoes
The Pages will wear a gold and crimson sash (with tassel) around their waists.  The sash is worn by officers in the Irish Guards when in the presence of a Member of the Royal Family.
The uniforms were designed in the Royal Household and were created by Kashket and Partners, who have also fitted Prince William’s uniform for his Wedding Day.   The collars and cuffs were created by the Royal School of Needlework.
Copyright: 5starweddings 2011

Friday 29th April is the confirmed date that has been announced by Clarence House as the Royal Wedding between Prince William and Kate Middleton. The venue for the wedding ceremony is to be Westminister Abbey. It is also confirmed that the Friday 29th of April will be a public holiday.

William and Kate, both 28, got engaged while on a private holiday in Kenya in October and announced their engagement last week.

The Middletons and the Royal Family will pay for the wedding, while the taxpayer will foot the bill for security and transport.

Westminister Abby has many memorable and historical times for the Royle Family, The Queen and Queen Mother were both married at this stunning venue, and a sad note, it was also the venue for the funeral of Princess Diana’s in 1997.

The couple wanted a spring wedding and chose the abbey for is “staggering beauty”.

“We know that the world will be watching on April 29, and the couple are very, very keen indeed that the spectacle should be a classic example of what Britain does best,” Mr Lowther-Pinkington said.

What do you think of the venue and date for the wedding? spring is a lovely time with the cold winter behind, and a wonderful time for the nation to celebrate.

From his vast fortune of £800 million, Sir Paul initially put forth £15.8 million for Heather, which paled in comparison to her asking price of £125 million. The resolution? A court-ordered £24.3 million that Heather accepted. Heather voiced concerns that their daughter Beatrice, only four years old then, would have to endure ‘B’ class travel while her father enjoyed ‘A’ class. Yet, with the sizable settlement, it seems improbable that the ‘B class’ will be in their future. Many might argue that Heather’s take from the payment should be sufficient, especially considering Sir Paul’s wealth was amassed long before their paths crossed. But that’s just one perspective—what’s yours?

Looking ahead, it seems prudent to explore the world of Prenuptial Agreements. Stay tuned.

The culmination of Sir Paul McCartney’s and Heather Mills’ marital dissolution came from a hefty settlement awarded to Mills. A British judge decreed McCartney to part with £24.3 million—translating to roughly $48.7 million then. This total encompassed a direct payment of $33 million alongside assets worth over $15 million, including real estate. While this amount was considerable, it fell short of Mills’ initial claim of nearly $250 million. Despite this, Mills publicly stated she was satisfied with the financial resolution.