Least Favourite Royal Wedding Dress

[ysbel]

I like the historical motif. Some people can't stand it. Both Mary's and Letizia's dress had a bit of that going on and I thought it was lovely.

Jane Seymour used to wear these lovely medieval-style dresses to Hollywood premieres and looked stunning in them but the fashion mavens tore her apart and she stopped wearing them.

 

[Avalon]

I went to the Princess Diana exhibit today. It is showing in Houston until Febrruary 5. It is hard to describe the wedding dress. It looks better to me in photographs. It is also hard to believe that such an important wedding had such an understated dress. It is very plain. The lace is beautiful but seems too narrow for the length of the train. It has some sparkle from the irricescent sequins sewn on the lace. Some are also sewn on the veil. But the sparkle wasn't enough to really make a showing.

It seems most everyone dislikes the dress. I read somewhere - don't know if it is true or not - that the designers fashioned the dress after Cinderella. That might be an urban rumor, but the dress does look like the one in Disney. I think she should have used more seasoned designers. She was very young and very in love when she chose the dress, and I think the design shows her young romantic taste at the time. One of the early dresses in the exhibit showed this same quality, the ruffles, bows, etc.

I don't like Diana's dress as well, it's not something I would wear for my big day anyway. However i think that in 1981 it was quite stylish and suited the occassion. She looked lovely in it, like a Cinderella, yes, but that's what she was thought to be at time. I think she would look lovely in any dress. And frankly, can you imagine how much our children will be laughing at the dresses we now think are beautiful?

 

[Zonk]

Avalon...My thoughts exactly. Back in 81 I thought Diana's dress was stunning. Now I think its okay...cause is says 80's

When one of my girlfriends was shopping for a wedding dress, she was choosing between a strapless dress (she has great arms) or a dress that had purple beading in the back (a tribute to her husband's fraternity..it looked better than it sounds). My comment...go with the strapless dress..you want something twenty years from now that says..timeless and classic. You don't want to date your wedding year

 

[crisiñaki]

I think we have to be compassive with all those Royal women who got married in the *shudders* 80's because that decade was disastrous for fashion in every possible way, so the designers went for the "cool and update" thing and the results were... well... you already know

As for Mabel's dress there's NO possible excuse for that woman's lack of judgement and fashion sense, if you are educated, if you want to look beautiful PLEASE do not use 10^n bows in your dress

 

[princess olga]

I actually had a (short) chat with Viktor -a strange man btw- some time ago and he told me it was Mabel idea to make it more extravagant & with the big bows. Maybe she thought of the motto 'dress to impress', which she certainly did. (I know it is bad tatse to go namesdropping, but I swear it is the only one who approaches 'famous' that I talked to in my life ).

Ah, that's right, you actually mentioned that, if I'm correct, in a different thread (probably the Mabel thread!

Would love to know more about your exchange about this very topic with the big V. himself! First of, thanks from all of us for asking the question you did!! I'm serious!

Also, if you remember at all from your encounter with V., did you get the impression from him that post-wedding, Victor and Rolf received a lot of flak from everyone for allowing Mabel to get away with all those bows? I have to say I get the impression from your conversation with him that at least the V. of this renowned designer duo seems <very> keen on setting the record straight on who was really responsible for those ghastly bows.

What I'm wondering also is, Couldn't V and R have tried a bit harder to talk Mabel out of those bows? If I'd been the designer, I know <I> would have! Of course, knowing what we know about Mabel, if anything, she's a determined lady..the impression I have of her is that once she's made up her mind about anything (Soros foundation, Friso, Bows, whatever) it will be impossible to persuade her to change her mind!

I hope you assured V. that in any case the dress itself was just exquisite, and a wonderful design (sans bows of course)!

Frans Molenaar was a disappointment indeed. It seemed he tried to make a bad copy of Marilene's dress, mixed with some other things. Wasn't Margriets outfit at the wedding of WA and Maxima created by him as well?

Do you know where Marilene got her dress from? I remember it was made in Brussels, but I do not know the designer.

I haven't the faintest who designed Marilene's dress, but I really doubt it would be Natan. After all, Natan was responsible for Laurentien's as well as Mathilde's wedding gowns. And even though Mathilde's gown resembled, design-wise, Marilene's dress a bit, Mathilde's seemed much more high-quality for some reason.

And don't get me started on Frans Molenaar's ill-fated attempt to channel Marilene's dress for poor Annette. It's strange, too, since he's had the reputation of an obsessed perfectionist. I'd expected more from him. Seems that clearly, what must have happened here is that he outsourced the whole thing to a bunch of under-paid, overworked, under-appreciated seamstresses working under inhumane circumstances in some humid, dimly-lit, badly airconditioned factory...
Actually let me take that back: even under-paid factory workers in one emerging economy or other would have done a better job...blind. (Sorry, Annette, we love you! Just not your wedding-dress!)

 

[princess olga]

Avalon...My thoughts exactly. Back in 81 I thought Diana's dress was stunning. Now I think its okay...cause is says 80's

When one of my girlfriends was shopping for a wedding dress, she was choosing between a strapless dress (she has great arms) or a dress that had purple beading in the back (a tribute to her husband's fraternity..it looked better than it sounds). My comment...go with the strapless dress..you want something twenty years from now that says..timeless and classic. You don't want to date your wedding year

I agree strapless is typically a great way to go, but perhaps a tad too debutante-ish for those church-bound royal brides. I'm intrigued though by the dress with the purple beading you mentioned: I'm a bit off topic here I think, because we're talking not-so-great wedding gown designs/brides, whereas the purple beading idea sounds very fitting for a royal bride to me!

 

[princess olga]

I think we have to be compassive with all those Royal women who got married in the *shudders* 80's because that decade was disastrous for fashion in every possible way, so the designers went for the "cool and update" thing and the results were... well... you already know

As for Mabel's dress there's NO possible excuse for that woman's lack of judgement and fashion sense, if you are educated, if you want to look beautiful PLEASE do not use 10^n bows in your dress

You know what, I think the designers, Victor and Rolf, also deserve some responsibility for the bow-disaster. I mean, How could they have agreed to have her walk down the isle like that?! Marengo had a chat with them (with Victor) and I get the impression V. (and R.?) are trying to wash their hands clean of the whole bow-affair, not a very gentleman-ly thing to do, in my opinion, even if it's all Mabel's doing in the end. I wonder if V. is perhaps going around talking down on Mabel's bows because it did some damage to V and R's reputation? That they are trying to tone down their part in the whole thing?

Not sure what I would have done if Mabel would have come to me for her wedding gown design and <insisted> on those bows. Would I have refused the whole project? Would I, instead, have executed whatever it was that she wanted, as V and R seem to have done?
I think I would have secretly called Queen beatrix's office with a cry for an intervention from her Majesty !

 

[ysbel]

Mabel just wore a bunch of bows - she didn't murder a baby.

I think the bow wedding dress reflects more badly on the designer than Mabel. A woman chooses a wedding dress once, wears it only once, and then packs it up. But a designer makes wedding dresses for many women and many weddings. You would expect a designer to know more about what makes a wedding dress look special than a bride who's never been wedding dress shopping before.

If the designers tried to distance themselves, its probably just a career saving move lest new brides think all their wedding dresses have that many bows.

 

[pinklady1991]

I think the bow wedding dress reflects more badly on the designer than Mabel. A woman chooses a wedding dress once, wears it only once, and then packs it up. But a designer makes wedding dresses for many women and many weddings. You would expect a designer to know more about what makes a wedding dress look special than a bride who's never been wedding dress shopping before.

If the designers tried to distance themselves, its probably just a career saving move lest new brides think all their wedding dresses have that many bows.

I agree with ysbel...often designers have a once in a lifetime opportunity when they get to design a society/royal wedding gown and they are trying to do something "different" or they are trying to capture a particular idea rather than thinking about the woman who will be wearing the dress. Thus you end up with Mabel's infamous bow incident or Diana's fractured fairy tale. Definitely two cases where the dress wore the woman and not the other way around.

Have to admit though...this is a TOUGH crowd. Have me thinking twice about what I'm wearing to a black tie fundraiser in a couple of weeks...

 

[Zonk]

You had to see the purple beading...it looked nice but like I said..in 20 years it would have dated her wedding.

I agree..its hard to be a royal bride and/or wedding designer. Think about it...most of the dresses look alike with minor variations around the neckline. Either your dress resembles Maxima/Aimee/Mary or it has tons of lace like Anita/Claire. or you do something totally crazy like Mabel (and the less said about that one the better). Its a lot of pressure to have such a high profile wedding dress (basically no low necklines) while maintaining some dignity and showing some of your personality as well.

 

[Maxie]

Well, of course are V. & R. partly responsible for the whole Mabel dress affaire, but I think you all underestimate the power of Mabel's opinion. I always see her as a woman who gets what she wants and if that's going to be a dress with bows, she'll get it, even when V. & R. are screaming 'No! Mabel! No!' at the top of their lungs (which they obviously didn't, because I think they're two freaking bow lovers too...). I think Mabel has proven that she doesn't care about what people are thinking by dressing up her little daughter in a bow covered baptism gown and wearing several very ugly creations with bows after the wedding. I think that's partly because she is completely clueless in the fashion department, but on the other hand I think she loves to be known for something... at least the people over here are talking about her when they've seen her on tv. There's something about Mabel, we could say...

Oh my, I should write a book on that dress and its owner. And on V. & R. of course. Maybe Marengo could do some field research and do a little interview with the two designers, since he already knows one of them...

Last year I saw an documentary on V. & R., by the way. They were having a fashion show (and Mabel was there too, of course). I actually found that they had some pretty great clothes in that show too. Not the bow ones, of course, but the others...

 

[princess olga]

Mabel just wore a bunch of bows - she didn't murder a baby.

I think the bow wedding dress reflects more badly on the designer than Mabel. A woman chooses a wedding dress once, wears it only once, and then packs it up. But a designer makes wedding dresses for many women and many weddings. You would expect a designer to know more about what makes a wedding dress look special than a bride who's never been wedding dress shopping before.

If the designers tried to distance themselves, its probably just a career saving move lest new brides think all their wedding dresses have that many bows.

LOL, you make some excellent points, Ysbel. And I actually think that without the bows, or even with jst the smaller ones--that dress would have been one of the best royal wedding gowns out there: the overall design/cut was so classic and well done, it brought out her figure very well in a classy way. I have a thing for boat necks too, I'll admit, so that part of the design I liked as well. Plus the belt: the gown had a belt and that gave it a current look.
Not sure about the veil though.

 

[princess olga]

You had to see the purple beading...it looked nice but like I said..in 20 years it would have dated her wedding.

I agree..its hard to be a royal bride and/or wedding designer. Think about it...most of the dresses look alike with minor variations around the neckline. Either your dress resembles Maxima/Aimee/Mary or it has tons of lace like Anita/Claire. or you do something totally crazy like Mabel (and the less said about that one the better). Its a lot of pressure to have such a high profile wedding dress (basically no low necklines) while maintaining some dignity and showing some of your personality as well.

you are right, royal brides don't have as much choice as do we common girls. Never thought about it that way. Seems that in that sense, Mabel managed to do something that was different, good for her!

 

[princess olga]

Well, of course are V. & R. partly responsible for the whole Mabel dress affaire, but I think you all underestimate the power of Mabel's opinion. I always see her as a woman who gets what she wants and if that's going to be a dress with bows, she'll get it, even when V. & R. are screaming 'No! Mabel! No!' at the top of their lungs (which they obviously didn't, because I think they're two freaking bow lovers too...). I think Mabel has proven that she doesn't care about what people are thinking by dressing up her little daughter in a bow covered baptism gown and wearing several very ugly creations with bows after the wedding. I think that's partly because she is completely clueless in the fashion department, but on the other hand I think she loves to be known for something... at least the people over here are talking about her when they've seen her on tv. There's something about Mabel, we could say...

well I guess we can conclude that whatever <we> think of the result, Mabel got exactly what she wanted, and that's what counts.

 

[crisiñaki]

V & R should take responsability like men instead of blaming Mabel for everything ; even if MOST of it is her fault, because I would NEVER wear that kind of dress not even at gunpoint

I believe that Mabel is by general consensus the WORST Bride Ever, congratulations (really? ) I'm evil, I know

 

[princess olga]

V & R should take responsability like men instead of blaming Mabel for everything ; even if MOST of it is her fault, because I would NEVER wear that kind of dress not even at gunpoint

I believe that Mabel is by general consensus the WORST Bride Ever, congratulations (really? ) I'm evil, I know

Chrisinaki, I agree about that V &R should have shouldered some responsibility in this case. Or, lacking that, the least thing Victor could have said to Marengo when she expressed polite doubt about the sanity of a bow strategy for a royal bride, would be something along the lines of: "but how can you say that dahhhlinn, those bows on Mabel were just maahhhvelous, and out-of-this-world EXQUISITE!!"
in other words, defending the way this bride ended up looking.

But the worst bride ever? Ok, how about this for a different perspective: for one second, do your best and try to 'think away' the bows. And what does one get? A gorgeous dress <not unlike> the classic evergreen of your favorite bride (and mine!) Christina!! Those two gowns are not that different!
As for the choice of grooms...well...that's a different thread I guess!

 

[tenngirl]

I agree with what Maxie said, I think Mabel got exactlywhat she wanted, attention!

I don't think there is any other wedding dress that is discussed and debated as much as hers.

Look at us, we sit here talking about wedding dresses and she comes up constantly. Of course, it is not about how "gorgeous" it was, but maybe she thinks bad attention is better than none!

I think if she had left the bows off the train, it would not have been so horrible. Otherwise, as princess olga said, its not that awful of a dress!

And just think, years from now when these new brides are older and their daughters are marrying, people will remember Mabel's dress and hope her daughter's doesn't look like hers did!!! I would wonder if people will even remember some of the other brides.

 

[Maxie]

well I guess we can conclude that whatever <we> think of the result, Mabel got exactly what she wanted, and that's what counts.

Well, sure it is. This must be one of the most talked of wedding dresses of the last couple of years. I for instance keep on screaming about it whenever I get the chance (and that's not only on the forums here, believe me... my poor family and friends luckily they agree!) It's almost becoming an hobby.

V & R should take responsability like men instead of blaming Mabel for everything ; even if MOST of it is her fault, because I would NEVER wear that kind of dress not even at gunpoint

Oh, neither would I! *Shivers* If I was V. or R.(or both of them, which would be interesting enough), I would do exactly the same (and yeah, I know how lame that is ). I wonder if that dress really has been bad for business, by the way...

 

[crisiñaki]

Chrisinaki, I agree about that V &R should have shouldered some responsibility in this case. Or, lacking that, the least thing Victor could have said to Marengo when she expressed polite doubt about the sanity of a bow strategy for a royal bride, would be something along the lines of: "but how can you say that dahhhlinn, those bows on Mabel were just maahhhvelous, and out-of-this-world EXQUISITE!!"
in other words, defending the way this bride ended up looking.

But the worst bride ever? Ok, how about this for a different perspective: for one second, do your best and try to 'think away' the bows. And what does one get? A gorgeous dress <not unlike> the classic evergreen of your favorite bride (and mine!) Christina!! Those two gowns are not that different!
As for the choice of grooms...well...that's a different thread I guess!

Well about that:

1. Cristina is WAY prettier than Mabel and has a much better body
2. Her makeup and hair were very simple and tasteful while Mabel looks like Marilyn Manson's bride
3. Yes, maybe their gown's style are similar, but the thing is the bows *shudders* actually existed and they were a disaster (a nightmare I've been trying hard to forget) and Cristina's dress was uncovering her shoulders
4. In this case, less is more because Mabel ended up looking like an overgrown wedding cake instead of a beautiful bride
5. And about grooms, do I really have to compare Iñaki and Friso? No words necessary

 

[princess olga]

Well, sure it is. This must be one of the most talked of wedding dresses of the last couple of years. I for instance keep on screaming about it whenever I get the chance (and that's not only on the forums here, believe me... my poor family and friends luckily they agree!) It's almost becoming an hobby.



Oh, neither would I! *Shivers* If I was V. or R.(or both of them, which would be interesting enough), I would do exactly the same (and yeah, I know how lame that is ). I wonder if that dress really has been bad for business, by the way...

interesting point you bring up: that in fact, the whole thing was a pact between mabel and the V&R boys. They agreed on the "let's show the world how we can make fun of the whole royal & weddin g tradition thing.

In V&R's case, they wanted to make a case of taking something traditional and go to town with it in an over-the-top, avant garde kind of way.

And as for Mabel..of course, after the wave of criticism she got for not having come clean about former 'friend' (read: lover), heavy duty criminal Klaas Bruinsma, I dont blame her for wanting to 'give the finger' to the media and us, the audience at large, and using her wedding day for that.
In other words, Was that wedding dress in fact an instrument of mass torture? Was it her giving the Dutch people a medieval 'eye for an eye' by way of inundating our view with those bows? I'm being facetious (sp) here, but you all have a point that Mabel chose this 'out there' design very much on purpose.

But this dress choice of hers could have backfired, as in, could have been even more ill-received than it was, an, worse, it could have insulted Beatrix, and/or Friso. Did she consider them when she designed those bows? Or was this also some sort of spite towards her nw mother in law? That is almost what it seems, and yet from all accounts, Beatrix had been very supportive toward Mabel during the whole Bruinsma media ordeal.

Or is it what you were saying, Mabel living out the old adage of "Bad publicity is better than no publicity?"
Maxie, you were right, explaining this dress could easily fill up a book! Come to think of it, so could this thread! What a great book that would be!

 

[Maxie]

interesting point you bring up: that in fact, the whole thing was a pact between mabel and the V&R boys. They agreed on the "let's show the world how we can make fun of the whole royal & weddin g tradition thing.

In V&R's case, they wanted to make a case of taking something traditional and go to town with it in an over-the-top, avant garde kind of way.

And as for Mabel..of course, after the wave of criticism she got for not having come clean about former 'friend' (read: lover), heavy duty criminal Klaas Bruinsma, I dont blame her for wanting to 'give the finger' to the media and us, the audience at large, and using her wedding day for that.
Was that wedding dress in fact an instrument of torture? Was it her giving the Dutch people an 'eye for an eye'?

But this dress choice of hers could have backfired, as in, could have been even more ill-received than it was, an, worse, it could have insulted Beatrix, and/or Friso. Did she consider them when she designed those bows? Or was this also some sort of spite towards her nw mother in law? That is almost what it seems, and yet from all accounts, Beatrix had been very supportive toward Mabel during the whole Bruinsma media ordeal.

Or is it what you were saying, Mabel living out the old adage of "Bad publicity is better than no publicity?"
Maxie, you were right, explaining this dress could easily fill up a book! Come to think of it, so could this thread! What a great book that would be!

Oh yes, I could go on on this subject for hours... Maybe you heard some Dutch people talking about 'Ja, ze heeft haar prins gestrikt!' which is (for those of you who don't master the Dutch language...) actually a Dutch saying for 'well, she's got her prince now (and not in the nicest way, that is)'. Quite funny about that is that it includes the Dutch verb 'strikken' which comes from the Dutch word 'strik' which means coincidentally 'bow'. That was just so funny. When I heard someone say that for the first time I literally fell off my chair laughing... so that could be another theory about the Mabel dress: all that she wanted to show the world was that she had 'strik'-ed her prince.

 

[hania]

shame she is a classy lady and without teh bows it would have looked lovely!!!

 

[Marengo]

To awnser some of the questions of Princess Olga and Maxie (and others), my chat with Viktor was not that long as I found him a strange men and he feels ill at ease with people he doesn't know that well (and actually so do I, though not that strongly ). Anyway, I didn't think he was washing his hands clean. He simply said that the giant bows were one of Mabels suggestions. And although strange things like that are the trade mark of V&R, they thought that a princess needed something more conservative. Anyway, when she came with the idea they made the most of it. I didn't think he cared theat much about the poublicity, on the contrary actually as he said their business was booming (in more discrete terms). Well, after our chat for 5 minutes there came an uneasy silence, after which I excused myself .
Anyway, I don't think that this dress will reflect badly on the designer duo. The quality of the dress is very good and their target market hasn't really seen the dress, nor do they know who Mabel is.

 

[Idriel]

Anyway, I don't think that this dress will reflect badly on the designer duo. The quality of the dress is very good and their target market hasn't really seen the dress, nor do they know who Mabel is.

Very true. Most of V&R designs would be deemed unwearable by most people (it's as crazy and brilliant as Dior couture, but for everyday wear), so clearly, their customers are very extravagant people who might actually have loved the dress.
I know I am alone here but I am a fan of V&R and I thought the dress was gorgeous. The big bows on the bottoms were a bit too sloppy and not defined enough, but from the hips up, it was pure perfection (don't shoot me).

A model by V&R (smh.com.au) Mabel's dress (looked beautiful from the front) (christinesroyalty.net)

 

[Maxie]

Very true. Most of V&R designs would be deemed unwearable by most people (it's as crazy and brilliant as Dior couture, but for everyday wear), so clearly, their customers are very extravagant people who might actually have loved the dress.
I know I am alone here but I am a fan of V&R and I thought the dress was gorgeous. The big bows on the bottoms were a bit too sloppy and not defined enough, but from the hips up, it was pure perfection (don't shoot me).

A model by V&R (smh.com.au) Mabel's dress (looked beautiful from the front) (christinesroyalty.net)

Don't worry, I won't shoot you. Actually I think that you're quite right when you say that the dress looked beautiful from the front. I always found that the cut of it all was perfect (as Marengo says: the quality of it all is very good) but those bows on the train! That just was too much for me (and for most people here, I think), they spoilt the whole dress, imo. I think it would have been nice to have the little bows all over the dress itself (and not getting bigger as the dress lowers, btw) if she needed that hard to have bows on it. I just think that the statement 'Less is more' isn't something Mabel lives by...

 

[crisiñaki]

Don't worry, I won't shoot you. Actually I think that you're quite right when you say that the dress looked beautiful from the front. I always found that the cut of it all was perfect (as Marengo says: the quality of it all is very good) but those bows on the train! That just was too much for me (and for most people here, I think), they spoilt the whole dress, imo. I think it would have been nice to have the little bows all over the dress itself (and not getting bigger as the dress lowers, btw) if she needed that hard to have bows on it. I just think that the statement 'Less is more' isn't something Mabel lives by...

Yeah, that was I said before

 

[pollyemma]

Yeah, that was I said before

I think we can all agree that from the front the dress was "ok" if not "beautiful" as some think. the dress was definitely well make. it flattered her figure much more than some other V and R "outfits" she has worn. it was those weird bows on the train that sent the whole thing over the edge.

 

[princess olga]

Very true. Most of V&R designs would be deemed unwearable by most people (it's as crazy and brilliant as Dior couture, but for everyday wear), so clearly, their customers are very extravagant people who might actually have loved the dress.
I know I am alone here but I am a fan of V&R and I thought the dress was gorgeous. The big bows on the bottoms were a bit too sloppy and not defined enough, but from the hips up, it was pure perfection (don't shoot me).

A model by V&R (smh.com.au) Mabel's dress (looked beautiful from the front) (christinesroyalty.net)

I completely agree about the "perfection from the hips up." And as many of us have been saying, the cut and material of the gown were just perfect, too.
And anyway, thank goodness Mabel didn't have her mind set on that pink concoction on the left!

 

[pinklady1991]

Maybe we should put this all in perspective...whatever our opinions are of the dress, we're STILL talking about it. Maybe thats what V&R had in mind all along. And Mabel seems "unbowed" by the whole experience. (Sorry, sorry, but I just couldn't resist...)

 

[crisiñaki]

Mabel is going to pass to history (along with Princess Margarite, but don't make me go there ) as the Dutch Royal woman with the biggest set of scandals and bad press; God, not even Camila got that kind of media slaughter when she was Charles' "significant third" and that's saying something; I agree with some of you, she must really like to be talked about even if it's all bad things; that woman has the worst friendship circle in the world and seems to be dressed by the enemy, so...