Edelweiss Patterns 
The museum curator at Buckingham Palace arranges this magnificent gown’s skirt for the exhibition.
Ever since Princess Catherine stepped out of the car and onto the red carpet at Westminster Abbey, fashionistas all over the world became enthralled with her gorgeous bridal ensemble! Many have designed replicas of the now-famous dress, while others have speculated at how one would recreate it themselves. (You can read my post on “How to Sew Princess Catherine’s Wedding Dress” here.)
But for the first time since the Royal Wedding, fortunate tourists can now view the very gown that Princess Catherine wore on her wedding day! In early summer Catherine had announced her intentions to graciously loan her bridal gown to the Buckingham Palace for exhibition, along with the lace appliqued high heels, Cartier halo tiara, earrings, and wedding cake that were admired by over two billion people who watched the wedding festivities by television. In an unprecedented act for costume display, Princess Catherine’s wedding dress is not even housed in a glass display case, but is modeled by a manequin right in the middle of the banquet hall.
This lovely dress will be on display until October 3, 2011, and is housed in the grand banquet room in Buckingham Palace where the Royal Couple celebrated their wedding reception.
I found a delightful behind-the-scenes video on the official Royal Wedding Site that shows Queen Elizabeth, Princess Catherine herself, and the museum curator viewing the newly-opened display at Buckingham Palace. Princess Catherine wore a simple sheath style dress which is what we’ve become accustomed to seeing her wear since her marriage, while the Queen is dressed in a lovely silk charmeuse floral printed dress.
I do wish that the Princess would wear things that were not quite so plain and business-like, and opt for more colors in her wardrobe like the red suit she wore on her last day in Canada. Except for the occasional royal blue, we usually only see muted hues of ivory, tan, and navy in her color selection. But her fascinator headpieces are quite charming, and I love how she always curls her hair!
From a personal view point, I wonder if Princess Catherine might feel just a twinge of sadness seeing that gorgeous gown on a far-away manequin when it must be such a sentimental dress to her. I remember after my ballet performances I was always a little sad to have to turn over my costume to the wardrobe department, knowing that I’d only ever see it again in photographs. Of course she will retain complete access to it after the exhibition closes this fall, but after such a breathtaking fairytale wedding, it would be a shame if she never got to wear it again! Princess Catherine in particular seemed to fit the role of Royal Princess so well that I almost thought she was missing something when I saw photos of her after the nuptial festivities wearing simple, everyday clothing.
We’ll have to hope that perhaps she will wear the gown for a tenth wedding anniversary the way that Queen Elizabeth re-wore her coronation gown for the Canadian tour! For now, though, that striking gown is on display for the public to get a glimpse of while the wedding is still fresh in their minds.