How Grace Kelly’s Renaissance Couture Wedding Dress Was Designed

Actress Grace Kelly’s marriage to Prince Rainier III of Monaco had all the elements of a fairy-tale wedding, with intricate details capturing the public’s attention. WWD meticulously documented every clue about what the bride would wear on her wedding day, from a pair of short kid gloves she purchased a month before her wedding to her make-believe wedding costume worn in the movie “High Society” released three months after her nuptials.

This republished article that appeared in WWD on April 18, 1956, details Princess Grace of Monaco’s trousseau and the creation of her two wedding gowns by renowned Hollywood costumer Helen Rose at MCM Studios in Culver City, for her both her civil ceremony and religious ceremony.

Thirty-five people, including milliners, beaders, seamstresses, hand embroiderers, dyers- and sketch artists worked on the gown for the church ceremony, which is Of Renaissance inspiration. Twenty-five yards each of peau de soie and silk taffeta, 100 yards of silk net and 300 yards of Val lace have been used for the ivory gown and veil.

The circular veil was designed so as not to hide the face at any time. Of silk illusion net, it is embroidered with rose point lace and re-embroidered with thousands of tiny pearls. Two tiny lace love birds are embroidered on the back of the veil.

The veil rests on a Juliet cap of rose point lace. The cap Itself has a small wreath of tiny French orange blossoms and leaves fashioned of tiny pearls.

The bodice is made of two pieces of rose point lace in wheat and flower pattern. Three yards of the lace lit around the neck and down the front of the bodice and wind up in long, fitted sleeves.

Seamless Bodice

It took two skilled seamstresses one month to re-embroider the two pieces of lace together so that there is not one seam in the entire bodice. Bodice closes down the front with tiny lace buttons and loops and fits over a foundation of silk Souffle of a pale flesh tone.

The peau de soie overskirt is bell-shaped, without folds in front. Fullness in back is laid in pleats at the waist and flares out at hem for a fan-shaped effect. The skirt fastens in back with three peau de soie bows and attaches to the bodice with a draped cummerbund, which buttons in back with a dozen very small peau de soie buttons and loops.

The underskirt is a masterpiece of engineering. The first petticoat, a silk crepe sheath, is bordered, with a 12-inch band of Alencon lace.

To maintain the bell shape of the dress, there is a small hoop on the petticoat, extending about 14 inches below the waist. and consisting of tiny organdy and lace ruffles. Over it is a second petticoat, bell-shaped and floor-length of silk ivory taffeta, covered with ruffles of nylon tulle. Each ruffle is 8 inches wide and edged with Val lace.

Over this is a third petticoat of silk taffeta and net. Down the back of this there is a godet of net and rose point lace which forms the Cathedral train 3.5 yards long. The edge of the veil ends in back where the lace train begins. In front, the edge of the veil falls to the waist and appears only over the cummerbund. It does not extend to the lace bodice to avoid lace over lace.

For the religious ceremony, Miss Kelly will carry a prayer book covered in the same material and rose point lace used In the gown. A cross has been embroidered with small pearls on the cover.

Lace Suit

For the civil ceremony, the bride will wear a lace suit 14 inches from the ground in length.

It is of hand-run blush tan Alencon lace over ashes of roses silk taffeta. The lace has been hand embroidered on the taffeta with silk thread to give it a brocaded quality.

The bell-shaped skirt is lined with matching peau de soie. It fits over a Pellon foundation, lined on two sides with taffeta ruffles about six inches wide.

A separate matching jacket has lace buttons down the front. Lace is placed so that each buttonhole appears as though it is in the center of a tiny flower, the button becoming center of the flower.

The jacket has a short peplum, and small rounded collar and cuffs, reminiscent of one of Miss Kelly’s favorite dresses in the motion picture, “The Swan.” 

The dress has three-quarter length sleeves and ties at the neck with a cord of ashes of roses silk taffeta.

Sheer Hat

For this ceremony, the bride will wear a hat of two layers of mousseline de soie, in blush tan and ashes of roses. Laid in soft folds, it fits the head in cap fashion and has three flat silk roses, one over the left ear and the others in back, connected by a cord of taffeta.

With this outfit Miss Kelly will wear white matching kid gloves and matching silk pumps. She will carry a small corsage of roses.

Reproduced by Tonya Blazio-Licorish