Meghan and that €63,000 dress
... in photos taken near the burial site of the last US divorcée to wed a royal
IT is the most extraordinary of royal engagement portraits.
Meghan Markle poses in a see-through £56,000 (€63,000) couture dress – yards from the burial site of the last American divorcee to marry into the British royal family.
Forget the shapeless off-the-peg suits and awkward poses of Princess Diana, the newly released pictures of Prince Harry and his fiancée are pure Hollywood glamour.
Three pictures put out by Kensington Palace yesterday were taken this week at Frogmore House in the grounds of Windsor Home Park, a stone’s throw from the castle where the couple will marry on May 19.
The royal residence has a particularly interesting history: It is the burial place of Wallis Simpson, whose husband Edward VIII abdicated in order to marry her, and where Harry, 33, introduced his first serious girlfriend, Chelsy Davy, to Queen Elizabeth. An aide said Harry and Meghan, 36, have happy memories of sharing private time at Windsor, and that Frogmore’s beautiful grounds provided a ‘relaxed setting’ for the portrait sittings.
Their choice begs the question whether they might choose Frogmore as a venue for their wedding reception rather than the formal state rooms at Windsor Castle. One source told the Mail last night: ‘I think this is a very strong possibility.’
In the end, however, the backdrop was immaterial to that dress.
An LA-born, red carpet veteran, Ms Markle’s choice of a daring transparent gown, by the British design duo Ralph & Russo, in two of the photographs was far from conventional. Priced at an eye-watering £46,650 excluding vat – £55,980 (€63,000) in all – it is a complete one-of-a-kind from the luxurious in-the-know label for high-profile women with a love of fashion).
The handmade creation would have taken hundreds of hours to make and comes from last year’s autumn/winter collection.
It comprises a silk organza skirt, hand appliqued with silk tulle ruffles, and a sheer bodice decorated with intricate gold feather thread-work and beads.
A fashion source said: ‘It’s not clear whether the dress was fitted to Meghan before coming off the catwalk, but it’s definitely couture.’
Royal aides have confirmed that the gown was ‘purchased privately’ but it is unlikely that Ms Markle – or whoever bought it for her – would have paid the ticket price, not least because of the publicity the fashion house has received as a result.
A spokesman for Ralph & Russo, who are now being tipped as possible designers of Meghan’s wedding dress, declined to comment last night. The haute couture fashion house and luxury goods company was founded in 2007 by Australian couple Tamara Ralph and Michael Russo and became the first British brand to be elected in almost 100 years by the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture to show its collection on the official schedule at Paris Haute Couture Week.
The third photograph released yesterday, which shows the royal lovebirds in a more intimate pose, depicts Meghan in a white €1,038 cashmere and silk pullover by Victoria Beckham.
Harry, meanwhile, is believed to be wearing a €1100 wool-cashmere double-breasted black pea coat by Burberry.
The photos were taken by Polish prince and fashion photographer Alexi Lubomirski. news@dailymail.ie
‘Her choice was far from conventional’