Meghan Markle's wedding dress–designed by Clare Waight Keller for Givenchy–was an undoubted nod to her minimal, sophisticated and clean-lines-filled personal style, but her incredibly dramatic 16-foot veil seems like an ode to much, much more.
The Duchess of Sussex opted for a monarch-length veil–the length gets its name from royal weddings of the past; namely, Princess Diana's epically long train and veil by designer Elizabeth Emanuel for her wedding to Prince Charles in 1981. It was suspected that the bride would honor her late mother-in-law on the day of her wedding to Harry, and many anticipated that a swatch of Diana's gown would be sewn into Markle's gown as her "something old." But, given her veil length's nod to Diana's train partnered with her tiara that once belonged to Queen Mary, it seems like Markle's accessories are closer to her "something borrowed."
In addition to honoring Diana subtly with the veil's length, Markle chose to honor her new home with the veil's design. Waight Keller's team at Givenchy embroidered the trim of the veil and blusher with flowers–and not just any buds and blooms. In their official statement about Markle's bridal look, the Palace disclosed that the flowers stitched into Markle's veil are the signature flowers of all the county's in the British Commonwealth.
Said the Palace, "Ms. Markle expressed the wish of having all 53 countries of the Commonwealth with her on her journey through the ceremony. Ms. Waight Keller designed a veil representing the distinctive flora of each Commonwealth country united in one spectacular floral composition.
The Commonwealth family of nations – of which Her Majesty The Queen is Head –will be a central part of Prince Harry’s and Ms. Markle’s official work following His Royal Highness’s appointment as Commonwealth Youth Ambassador. Ms. Markle wanted to express her gratitude for the opportunity to support the work of the Commonwealth by incorporating references to its members into the design of her wedding dress. Significant time was spent researching the flora of each Commonwealth country and much care was taken by Ms. Waight Keller to ensure that every flower is unique...In addition to the flora of the Commonwealth, Ms. Markle also selected two personal favorites:
Wintersweet (Chimonanthus praecox), which grows in the grounds of Kensington Palace in front of Nottingham Cottage, and the California Poppy (Eschscholzia californica) the State flower from Ms. Markle’s place of birth, California.
Symmetrically placed at the very front of the veil, crops of wheat are delicately embroidered and blend into the flora, to symbolize love and charity."
Coincidentally, matters of love and charity were what were most important to the late Princess Diana as well.
Carrie Goldberg is HarpersBAZAAR.com’s Weddings & Travel Director. She oversees the site’s BAZAAR Bride channel, travel & dining content, and styles fashion and bridal editorials for BAZAAR.com. When she’s not traveling, she spends her free time in her hometown–New York City–where there is no shortage of new places to shop, eat, drink, see and explore.
