The unusual detail on Princess Beatrice's wedding dress

(Image credit: 2019 Luc Castel)

published 20 July 2020

Princess Beatrice and Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi were married in a secret ceremony in Windsor on Friday, and have since released beautiful portraits from their intimate day, which of course gave us insights into their wedding attire.

It's safe to say Beatrice is perhaps the most daring royal bride yet, having broken all the traditional rules, right down to her wedding ring.

Additionally, she borrowed her wedding dress from her grandmother Queen Elizabeth II, a totally unexpected move, since all royal brides get their dresses custom made for them (see Kate Middleton's Alexander McQueen dress and Meghan Markle's Givenchy gown).

The ivory dress is made of Peau de Soie taffeta and features intricate diamanté patterns across the bodice and sleeves. The Queen wore it to her UK premiere of Lawrence of Arabia in 1962.

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It was designed by British designer Norman Hartnell, who gained the Royal Warrant as Dressmaker both to the Queen Mother and the Queen in 1940 and 1957 respectively.

So by wearing the gown, Princess Beatrice not only paid homage to her grandmother, but to her great-grandmother also. However she made sure she put her own stamp on it too.

If you compare the dress on the day of the wedding, versus the day of the premiere in the 60s, you'll see that it has been tweaked slightly, thanks to Angela Kelly and Stewart Parvin, both of which work closely with the Queen.

Princess Beatrice had organza puff sleeves added where before there were only straps, and had the hemline of the skirt straightened and trimmed with ivory satin, where before it was a puff ball style.

She finished off her bridal look with a tiara known as Queen Mary's Fringe Tiara, which the Queen wore on her own wedding day in 1947. Her daughter Queen Anne also wore it for her wedding day, making it extra special.

We can all agree Princess Beatrice looked absolutely stunning.

Penny Goldstone is the Digital Fashion Editor at Marie Claire, covering everything from catwalk trends to royal fashion and the latest high street and Instagram must-haves.

Penny grew up in France and studied languages and law at the Sorbonne Nouvelle University in Paris before moving to the UK for her MA in multimedia journalism at Bournemouth University. She moved to the UK permanently and has never looked back (though she does go back regularly to stock up on cheese and wine).

Although she's always loved fashion - she used to create scrapbooks of her favourite trends and looks, including Sienna Miller and Kate Moss' boho phase - her first job was at MoneySavingExpert.com, sourcing the best deals for everything from restaurants to designer sales.

However she quit after two years to follow her true passion, fashion journalism, and after many years of internships and freelance stints at magazines including Red, Cosmopolitan, Stylist and Good Housekeeping, landed her dream job as the Digital Fashion Editor at Marie Claire UK.

Her favourite part of the job is discovering new brands and meeting designers, and travelling the world to attend events and fashion shows. Seeing her first Chanel runway IRL at Paris Fashion Week was a true pinch-me moment.

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