The 10 Best Royal Wedding Dresses

As Kate arrived at Westminster Abbey on April 29th and her dress was revealed, she easily made into history with one of the most stunning royal wedding dresses of all time. However, I still think that Crown Princess Mette Marit’s iconic dress from 2001 still rule supreme as the best royal wedding dress of all time. Here is my top 10 list of royal wedding dresses, of all time.

1 Crown Princess Mette Marit — The Quintessential Modern Royal Bride Mette Marit’s wedding dress is craftsmanship at its best, few dresses has ever been this tailored. The neckline alone is a masterpiece, and yet to be surpassed. Another feature of this dress is how the dress flowed, it was like she was floating around on a cloud when she and Crown Prince Haakon entered the Royal Palace and the dress spread elegantly over the polished ballroom floor. The dress is almost painfully understated and oozes Scandinavian design sensibilities. A true masterpiece.

2 Princess Grace of Monaco — Royal Wedding Goes Hollywood There is no question that Catherine Duchess of Cambridge’s draws heavily on the design of Grace Kelly’s iconic wedding dress from 1956.The dress, with its trendsetting 50s bridal dress silhouette, first made popular by fellow MGM star Elizabeth Taylor’s first wedding dress, is an all time classic. Kelly and Taylor shared the same designer from MGM, Helen Rose

3 Princess Diana — The Wedding Dress of a Century Love it or hate it, but it just doesn’t get any bigger than this. The grandeur of Diana’s trendsetting wedding dress from 1981 might never be excelled, the 25 foot train alone makes sure of that. Everything about this dress is big, but then again, the wedding is still the biggest royal wedding to date and as the wedding ceremony was held at the huge St. Paul Cathedral, the dress could not exactly be a small affair. The dress has not passed the test of time very well, though it was hugely popular in its time, it is as much a romantic dream as a cautionary tale.

4 Queen Sonja — 60s Regal Wedding Dress This is a personal favorite, but I think it has much going for it. The 60s are not famous for big princess gowns, but this dress manages to be both contemporary and at the same time very much a regal dress. Sonja, due to the fact she was a commoner, was also a grown woman by the time she was allowed by the king to marry Crown Prince Harald after nine (!) years of courtship, so the dress couldn’t be too exclusive or too youthful. A flawless dress, that would serve as an inspiration for Mette Marit’s masterpiece some 33 years later. (© Scanpix)

5 Princess Mary — How to Make an Aussie into Royalty If there was ever any doubt that a Tasmanian could become a princess, then this dress and its wearer silenced any doubters. It has a great combination of a classic silhouette and a flamboyant skirt. A lovely dress that fits Mary perfectly.

6 Crown Princess Victoria — A Dress Fit for a Queen in the Making This dress has all the hallmarks of a dress can will stand the test of time. This is much due to the dress’ very strict and classic silhouette, and the dress is tailored to perfection. The most extravagant features are the crown (not a tiara) and the century old veil.

7 Duchess of Cambridge — A New Standard is Set There is no question that Kate’s wedding dress is an instant classic. It’s a proper haute couture dress, from the fashion house of Alexander McQueen, which also manages to reflect the personal style of the Duchess. I’m personally not a fan of the neckline/cleavage, that said, it is an exquisite dress fit for a princess and future queen of Great Britain.

8 Princess Maxima — Vintage Details This is yet another dress with strong classic lines and with throwbacks to the 60s and early 70s. The neckline and sleeves are vintage and adds some interesting details on a very traditional dress.

9  Princess Caroline of Monaco — 70s Haute Couture You can almost feel the chic atmosphere of the jet set of the 70s when you see Princess Caroline’s Christian Dior dress from 1978.

10 Princess Anne — The Odd One Princess Anne has never been a style icon, not that she ever aspired to it either. However, when this horse loving and down to earth princess was the first of the Queen’s children to marry, she surprised all with this nice dress. It’s very much dated by now, though the Tudor sleeves still are impressive.

Tagged: Royal Weddings, Royalty

Posted in: Royalty, Wedding