The Naked Dress

As headlines turn to the all-important question of who will be chosen to design Kate Middleton’s wedding gown; the barely-there frock that caught the Prince’s eye back in 2002 is rumoured to be worth £100,000.

Worn by our future Queen at a charity fashion show while at St Andrews University, the designer Charlotte Todd said it cost her only £30 to put the dress together back in 2000. However, Ms Todd has also said she will never sell it despite bookies predicting it will rise in value to a possible £100,000 if Kate becomes Queen. The last time a “naked” dress sparked so much interest was back in the mid-1990s with season one (episode 6: Secret Sex) of Sex and the City which saw Big fall for Carrie, in a big way!

So what of the latest “naked” dress? Returned to Ms Todd’s mother’s closet following the fashion show, the 31 year-old received an offer for £1,000 to sell the dress but refused. A fashion one-hit-wonder, she did not go on to pursue a design career opting instead for a job in an aquarium. But she can hold onto her claim to fame with her role in the royal love story after William really noticed Kate when she strutted down the catwalk in Ms Todd’s design. She said, ‘It’s part of fashion history – the moment William could first have fallen in love with Kate – and that makes me really proud.’

With the date set and the venue booked, Britain prepares for the royal wedding and a new bank holiday weekend (which as luck would have it, coincides with my own wedding anniversary on May 2nd). So who will be the lucky fashionista who gets to join Ms Todd in continuing the tapestry of this royal love story? Bets are on Philippa Lepley as the designer of choice with those in the style-know predicting Ms Middleton will want to choose someone well-established but without a celebrity that will overpower her own on her special day.

Previous designers who have dressed those brides entering into the British monarchy include Sassi Holford (http://www.sassiholford.com), Jasper Conran (http://www.jasperconran.com) and Lindka Cierach (http://www.lindkacierach.co.uk). Despite cementing their love with Princess Diana’s sapphire and diamond engagement ring, it is unlikely that William’s fiancée will opt to be dressed by Elizabeth Emanuel, who famously designed Diana’s bridal gown for her wedding to Prince Charles in 1981.

So we can but wait. Only five months to go… can our patience hold out?!