Sunday 14 June 2015

The wedding dress of Princess Sofia of Sweden

It's one of the most eagerly awaited dresses of the year and now we know just what Sofia of Sweden, princess and duchess, wore on her wedding day. White, lacy, long and dreamy it suited the bride to perfection and although it's not going to win an instant place in the all time hall of fame it was just right for the newest princess in Europe.


The wedding dress of Sofia of Sweden in all its glory in one of the official photographs

The wedding dress of the year was the creation of Swedish designer, Ida Sjostedt, and is made of white crepe silk and organza.


 
The first thing you notice is the lace shoulders and sleeves - the material for that part of the dress comes from Jose Maria Ruiz.

 
 
 
The fitted bodice had lace details as did the semi full skirt which flowed into a beautiful train.

 
 

The amount of lace details on the dress and train can perhaps be best appreciated, at the moment, in the sketches done by Ida Sjostedt of her most famous creation. The drawing, released by the Royal House, shows that the embellishments ran in lines away from the waist on the front of the skirt and again away from the back of the dress into three lines on the train. 



A sketch of Sofia's wedding dress by designer Ida Sjostedt


For the reception the new princess hitched up the full flowing skirt with a wrist clip so that she could waltz into the night with her new husband. The images of them dancing show the flow of the skirt of this wedding gown.


 
So how is Sofia's dress best summed up? It is noticeably white rather than cream or ivory and the lace is what really stands out.  A first glance makes it seem quite a simple dress but there are acutally many layers of design to this wedding gown which give it a richness that grows with every glance.

 
 
Much like the dress worn by her now sister-in-law, Princess Madeleine, in 2013 this one takes a while to really appreciate the intricacy of the design and the amount of work that has gone into it.

 
 

But like all good royal wedding dresses it was designed on a grand scale, filling the Royal Chapel and making the bride a focal point on her big day, while retaining its elegance and looking just perfect for the princess who wore it.


The veil

And of course every bride needs a veil. Princess Sofia kept with her lace theme and chose a thin tulle veil with embellishments of lace.



It was attached to the top of Sofia's swept back semi bun and was tucked around it neatly enough to afford everyone a look at the sprig of myrtle leaf tucked in the bride's hair.

   
It had a light airy feel to it and avoided the biggest pitfall of a long veil on a royal bride - being overwhelming. Sofia wore this veil rather than the veil wearing Sofia.

 
That's not to say it wasn't impressive in its scale - a full cathedral length veil and then some for this bride at the Royal Chapel. Its lace edging fitted the end of the train to create a pretty flowing effect.

 

The tiara

If there's one thing a royal bride needs even more than a veil, it's a tiara. And like many a royal bride before her in the last twenty years or so, Sofia had none to call her own. So she got one as a gift instead.

 
The diamond and emerald creation was a present from her new parents in law, King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia.

 
It's an unusual and rather modern looking piece with the emeralds sitting on top of the diamonds and it means that Sofia can start royal life as she means to go on. Sparkling.

 
So what do you think of Sofia's wedding dress? And how does it compare to others from years past?

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