Hats, Feathers and Things that should have stayed at home.

Dear Readers,

Let me start by saying that the Sultan of Brunei is very rude. He arrived at Westminster when Prince William had already got there. That's bad.

Hi Ho, Hi Ho!

As I waited (rather impatiently I must say) for Kate Middleton's arrival, I kept myself busy by seeing what the guests had worn to the wedding of the century. Home Secretary Theresa May chose quite a traditional and conservative beige coat and matching hat. Lady Frederick of Windsor opted for a navy blue silk Armani Privé, whilst Elton John and his partner wore Richards James and Henry Poole respectively. Overall, most of the guests seem to have chosen British designers. Sara Parker Bowles, for example, chose Osman and Christopher Kane picked a Burberry design. British milliner Philip Treacy is said to have fashioned a total of 36 hats for today's ceremony. Busy much, Philip?

As much as I would love to comment on a greater number of fashion choices, I only selected a few which in my opinion deserve to be underlined. Obviously, I will save the bride for the end (I knew it! I knew it would be Sarah Burton!)

Yikes, hotness!

Let's start off with Mr. and Mrs. 'trying-to-populate-the-world-with-Mini-Beckhams'. I love David and Victoria. They looked impeccable, as pretty much always. David sported a clean-cut Ralph Lauren Purple Lable morning suit, to which he also added his OBE. The queen of glamour, Victoria, chose skyscraper stilettos which make my feet cry even just by looking at them. The dress Victoria is wearing was designed by Mrs.Beckham herself. Whilst some have criticised her for choosing a dark-coloured dress, I absolutely love it. I don't think its unappropriate, and after all it's not even black. It's midnight blue. And I can't fail to mention her Treacy pill-box hat: classy, different and incredibly 'posh'. They get a 10/10 from me! 

Joss and Tara

On to Tara Palmer Tomkinson and Joss Stone. I want to discuss both together, since I have just one remark to make. Dear Tara, your off the shoulder royal blue shirt is marvellous. Beautiful colour, flattering cut. Good Choice! Dear Joss, the colour of your dress is awesome. The little jacket is something I would gladly steal from your  closet. But girls, I strongly disapprove you choosing a monocolour combo! Wearing a black shoe and clutch wouldn't have hurt anyone. And Joss, that slightly lighter hat didn't do the trick, sorry. It would have relieved my eyes though. 

This makes me so sad.

If you have just had tea, please don't read this paragraph and don't look at what Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie were wearing. OMG, what's up with those Philip Treacy hats? Eugenie's thingy makes me want to run head front into a herd of buffaloes. Beatrice's just makes me want to die (or play 'try to get a ball of paper through my strange hat').

*sigh*

Moving on to another horror. Let's look at (and cry) Camilla Parker Bowles. Well, Camilla has never been in my good books. And this look will not certainly improve my opinion of her. Camilla wore a champagne-coloured Anna Valentine design and Jimmy Choo shoes. I really don't want to know where that hat is from. I can hardly tell her hair and her hat apart. All in all, I find this outfit very boring and unfit for the Princess of Wales.

So Wrong...

Chelsy Davy is supposedly Prince Harry's on and off girlfriend. I can give Harry one reason to dump Chelsy once and for all. The combo she chose to wear today. The colour is gorgeous but that dress's cut is really not ideal for her body shape. I'm glad that timesfashion also agrees, 'Chelsy Davy in Alberta Ferretti - nice colour, bad cut.' I also find her hat quite tacky.

What was she thinking? 

Nick Clegg's wife tops my 'Worst Dressed' list. Let me start by saying that I LOVE THE HAT. I know many people might think it's over the top but I would gladly wear that one day. But that hat should be the sole focus of the entire outfit, so it should be teamed up with a muted, plain dress. Clearly Mrs. Clegg does not get the latter point. There's too much going on! Huge flower, polka dots, tulle, leather gloves. Oh my god, someone call me a doctor because I feel oh so sick.

REBEL!

Next on the list is Mrs Cameron, who wore an exquisite teal dress by British fashion line Burberry. The horizontal pleat dress is already sold out on Net-A-Porter. Seems like many women were inspired by Mrs. Cameron's choice of dress. However, I hope that many less women choose to follow her example and turn up to a morning wedding WITHOUT A HAT. Mrs. Cameron swapped a hat for an Erdem Headpiece which in my opinion is completely inappropriate. Elle have also claimed that she wore a pair of 'humble, "Samella" style' shoes 'currently in the sale at Aldo, for under £50.' 

Awhhh!

Oh my my! You just have to love Queen Liz! I can't believe  she looked so beautiful is this Angela Kelly sunflower yellow piece. I would have criticised the choice of colour had someone else worn it but it somehow looks perfect on her. That's why I believe that confidence makes 70% of an outfit. And QE2 has certainly got plenty of it. Did you know that the Queen has to wear bright colours for such crowded and important events? Apparently, the British monarch has to choose vibrant clothing to distinguish herself from the crowd, even for security reasons. All in all, I think the Queen rocked!  

10 / 10 !

I must say that the Middleton women had it really going on! I can't find words to describe how beautiful Kate, Carole and Pippa looked. Carole Middleton, the bride's mother, opted for a sky blue Catherine Walker coat dress and matching hat, which was simple yet distinctive. I just wish more bride-mothers made a similar choice. Pippa, Kate's sister, looked equally stunning in her maid of honour's dress.

William is one lucky man!

As I said earlier, I wanted to leave the bride for last. Throughout the entire morning I just hoped that all the anticipation about her dress would not be translated to huge disappointments. But Kate looked ravishing, rather plain (when compared to Diana's dress) yet elegant. The dress, designed by Alexander McQueen's Sarah Burton, is strongly reminiscent of Grace Kelly's wedding dress. Kate, who is now the Duchess of Cambridge, wore an ivory dress with a gorgeous lace bodice. Her dress was complemented by a graceful veil and a 1936 Cartier tiara which the queen herself lent her. The bride's hair was down and she seems to have put on her bridal makeup herself! The look was met by general approval. Richard Wade has described Kate's bridal look as '"Demi-Chignon’ – a style which combines a classic bridal look with a regal, couture finish.  The focus of the style was Catherine’s unique and individual halo style tiara, set just back from the hairline, which determined the finished look"'. Karl Lagerfeld has said that the dress is 'very pretty, and relatively classic, but that goes with the decor, with a little touch of the 1950s.' Even Victoria Beckham has claimed she loved the dress! 

William looked very handsome too.

Sarah Burton, who can finally speak about her design for Kate Middleton after months of sworn secrecy, declared that the bride looked 'absolutely stunning'. She also says it was the "experience of a lifetime" to create the Kate's dress. You can read more about Sarah Burton and Kate's gown here.

Final Verdict: I think there were way too many disasters BUT the good looks outweighed the bad ones at the very end. I can now remove my feather headpiece and start drawing up a list of 'Ways to seduce a Prince and land myself a Royal Wedding'.

-B