Royal wedding style though the decades

Here's an interesting look at royal wedding style though the ages.

Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, 1923


A traditional full-length gown with a court train was the order of the day for Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother's marriage to the Duke of York, later George VI. Designed by Madame Handley, the dress was on trend for the 1920s with its unshaped lace bodice - a style made popular by Coco Chanel. This gown is so trendy it hurts.

Wallis Simpson, 1937


The marriage of Wallis Simpson and Prince Edward wasn't a royal wedding as such as the prince had decided to abdicate the throne in order to marry divorcee Mrs Simpson. The bride wore a simple blue dress with a fitted waistband, gathered bodice all finished off with a neat hat - the style was widely copied for its simplicity. I love this dress! The buttoned waist and the flowy, elegant skirt is gorgeous.

Queen Elizabeth II, 1947


Queen Elizabeth II's wedding day at Westminster Abbey was a grand affair - and the royal wedding dress was certainly fit for the occasion. The Queen's dressmaker Norman Hartnell had the honour of designing the ivory duchesse satin gown adorned with crystals, 10,000 tiny pearls and appliqué tulle embroidery. The 15-foot train was also embroidered with pearls and crystals as well as appliqué duchesse satin and was inspired by Botticelli's Primavera, to signify hope after the war. LOVE!!!! The floral lace train is gorgeous.

Grace Kelly, 1956


MGM wardrobe designer Helen Rose had the honour of creating Grace Kelly's wedding gown in the 50s - the dress featured a full skirt of ivory peau de soie and a fitted bodice made of Brussels lace and embroidered with seed pearls. Grace's veil was adorned with lace lovebirds and the gown remains one of the most celebrated in history. She's so gorgeous. The bustle type poofy skirt is so pretty.

Princess Margaret, 1960


Queen Elizabeth II's younger sister, Princess Margaret, was the subject of the world's first televised royal wedding and she chose a simple gown by her favourite designer Norman Hartnell for the occasion. The bride wore a white silk organza dress with a short train, a Claude St Cyr of Paris veil and the Poltimore tiara, purchased at auction. The full skirt is so fairy tale princess, and the crown seems pretty on her. Normally I hate tiaras at weddings, but since she's ACTUAL royalty it makes sense.

Lady Diana Spencer, 1981


Lady Diana Spencer's marriage to Prince Charles had people around the world glued to their tellies and the late princess certainly looked the part. The bride wore a silk taffeta gown designed by Brits Elizabeth and David Emanuel - complete with enormous puff sleeves, 10,000 hand-stitched pearls and a record-breaking 25-foot train, the outfit is certainly a memorable one! It's not a popular opinion, but I hate this gown and pretty much every other gown from the '80s.

Sarah Ferguson, 1986

Sarah Ferguson's duchesse satin gown was an elaborate affair (it was the 80s after all!) - the 17-foot train featured an anchor to represent Prince Andrew's time in the navy and an 'A' was also embroidered onto it to reflect her love for her husband. Ditto Fergie. Sorry.

Sophie Rhys-Jones, 1999


Sophie Rhys-Jones looked stunning in this silk organza coatdress by Samantha Shaw - the outfit was embroidered with 325,000 pearl and cut glass beads. Prince Edward also had a hand in the outfit - he designed the black and white pearl necklace that Sophie wore on the day. This is a little too matronly for me, but it's elegant enough.

Camilla Parker Bowles, 2005

It was Prince Charles' second wedding, but his second bride looked fantastic in this outfit designed by Robinson Valentine. Camilla accessorised the full-length coat and chiffon dress with pale beige suede shoes by LK Bennett and a plummage and lace detail portrait hat by Philip Treacy. She looks good for her. I like the long duster.

Which is your favorite? Mine is Grace Kelly, or if we're talking about English royalty, Princess Margaret. Everything about her screams royal wedding, and I mean that in the best way possible.

-KB

Red Wedding Gowns

Designer Red Wedding Gowns

White Informal Wedding Dresses

Informal Wedding Dresses Discounts

In choosing the wedding dresses, the bride may want to look at the budget at hand. This is where wedding gown discounts comes into play. There are lots of places to get extremely nice wedding dresses at good discount prices. Note that you will not want to trade quality with promised discounts. So how do you get to know if what they have meets your taste and will really appeal to you?

Wedding Dresses Discounts

First thing is for you to determine your needs. Do you have a theme? Do you want colored dresses? Once you determine what you need, it will be easier to narrow down your search. Discounted wedding dresses can be found for every style imaginable, from the traditional formal gowns right down to the informal dresses and even discounted designer wedding dresses.

Remember that when you spend your money on a discounted wedding dress, you are not settling for second best or lower quality. It just means that you're able to prioritize and spend your money wisely. Did you know that some dresses can be purchased at as much as an 80% discount from online stores?

That money that you save from purchasing a discounted wedding dress can be used for other things like your reception or your honeymoon. Deciding not to spend too much money on a wedding dress does not mean that you cannot be the most magnificent bride ever. Choosing a discounted wedding dress will not only save you money, it will also be fun when you can get the dress of your dreams for less.

Informal Wedding Dresses Designer

Informal wedding dresses are becoming the IN thing today. Not only are the gowns leaning more toward informal - but brides have chosen to move away from the traditional white Victorian style gown. It is becoming more common to see the blushing bride sporting colors ranging from the light pastels of a few years ago to the more subdued shades of greens, browns, purples, and pinks.

Because of their increased popularity there are more sources than ever to shop for informal wedding dresses. Many bridal shops carry lines of informal gowns. In addition, there are several outlets on the internet, and of course there is always the option of making your own dress.

Regardless of where you choose to shop for informal wedding dresses, keep in mind that if you are having a theme wedding you will want to choose a dress in keeping with the style of the theme. Consider what type of attire would be worn if that theme were not a part of a wedding. For example, if you are celebrating your wedding with a Italian Renaissance Nobility theme the attire, and virtually everything else, would be formal as they had rules governing virtually every aspect of court life. On the other hand if your wedding theme is a celebration of your love of the wilderness, then your choices would probably tend toward the more informal gowns.

Long Informal Wedding Dresses

Elegant Bridal Wedding Dresses.

Casual Wedding Dresses For You

White Wedding Dress Gown

Samoan wedding dresses normally have patterns on them, which make the dresses more beautiful. A person has the option of selecting black, brown, cream or white background colors for their wedding dresses. Traditional Samoan wedding gowns are colorful because they use barks to make them; a person can select a white wedding dress that has light brown patterns on them thus making the attire unique and attractive. Professional siapo makers in Polynesia decorate the wedding gowns a day or two before the wedding ceremony.

White Informal Wedding Dress

Informal Wedding Gown Dress

Informal Wedding Gowns

Short and Long Informal Wedding Dresses

Informal Wedding Dresses

The reality of informal wedding dresses is that when you choose a more simple look for your wedding outfit, you automatically become the star attraction - and not your gown!

One of the biggest bridal fashion faux pas is that brides go overboard for decking themselves out for their special occasion! If your goal is to be the most stunning and lovely creature that your groom has ever beheld, then you will certainly wish to keep your bridal gown and accessories informal and simple, drawing the focus onto yourself, and not your bridal outfit.


There are so many awesome and impressive informal wedding gowns from which you can choose, for your understated and elegant entry into your wedding ceremony.

If you wish to get married in a National Park or a lovely city park location, then you should keep the length of your informal wedding gown short, and certainly not any longer than just above ankle length. You should definitely forgo a wedding dress train when doing an outdoor wedding ceremony, as the fabric of the train can become soiled or ripped.


If you have decided upon a waterfront or beach bridal ceremony, then you may wish to leave off long sleeves from your dress, and instead choose short sleeves or beaded straps.

You also have quite a bit of choice for the materials and fabrics that are conducive to an understated wedding gown. I have seen darling crocheted or knitted lace dresses that were very pretty, and yet had that enticing informal flair to them.

These brides either made their wedding ensemble themselves, or a beloved grandmother, aunt or even their mother spent time lovingly stitching one for the beloved bride. These informal gowns end up becoming cherished family heirlooms.

As far as adding accessories and headpieces to a informal wedding dresses, I have seen some very impressive results from the traditional free form wire and bead or semi precious stone and fresh water pearl tiaras, for accenting the bride's gown.

These unique and one of a kind wedding headpieces are a very pretty option to wearing a traditional veil. You can still wear a bridal tiara while dancing, without snagging a veil. You can also accent an informal bridal gown with simple flowers or even tastefully arranged ribbons in you bridal hairdo that will still give you a fresh and pretty look.

By :Karen Lincoln