Ever wondered who leads the pack when it comes to an expensive custom wedding dress? The following four celebrities must come close.
In a world obsessed by the best and biggest, have you ever wondered who purchases those outrageously expensive couture gowns most of us can only dream about? These following four celebrities each wore a custom wedding dress for their nuptials and definitely deserve a place on the list of most expensive and extravagant gowns.
Grace Kelly – 'The Wedding of the Century'
Number one is reputed to be (comparatively, by today's standards) the most expensive custom wedding dress, ever – although whether it is the best is entirely subjective of course. Grace Kelly was an American film actress who married Prince Rainier III, to become Princess of Monaco. The prince proposed to Ms Kelly within just three days of meeting her and her family, but once she accepted, the event was promoted as 'The Wedding of the Century'.
Designed by Helen Rose, the dress has endured as a huge influence for brides commissioning a custom wedding dress for themselves. Helen Rose was an American costume and clothing designer who spent most of her career with the famous American film company Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) and the dress was a gift to Grace Kelly from the studio. Sleeveless and using details of silk, silk net, silk taffeta and an antique rose-point lace, the dress comprised a bodice and skirt as well as two petticoats. Kelly wore a veil, head-dress and pearls to finish off the breathtakingly beautiful ensemble. The gown is now owned by the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
Kate Middleton
When Kate Middleton married Prince William, with the huge fanfare that accompanied the event, the dress had a lot of expectations to live up to. Inspired by Grace Kelly’s dress, the gown was designed by Sarah Burton from the house of Alexander McQueen. Utilising yards and yards of silk net and lace it featured hand stitched appliqué and cost around £250,000. Within hours of the wedding, replica gowns were being produced all over the world.
Catherine Zeta Jones
Catherine Zeta-Jones married Michael Douglas in November 2000 at the Plaza Hotel in New York. Her dress reportedly cost $140 000 USD and had a train with a length of six feet. Beautifully fitting and very glamorous, the V-neck and sparkling diamond features made it even more elegant. Again, this particular dress is a much-copied design.
Princess Diana
Princess Diana’s custom wedding dress was designed by David and Elizabeth Emmanuel. It is said that Diana’s unique personality and the way she wore it added to the value and beauty of the gown. With pearls, sequins and lace frills on the bodice it was offset with a train of around 24 feet in length and was priced at a quite modest £9000 in 1981.
These four amazing dresses may be out of the range of most brides-to-be, however they could certainly serve as an inspiration for a custom wedding dress design.
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