Last Minute Rehearsal at Westminster Abbey

This morning Kate arrived at Westminster Abbey for a last minute run through of the wedding ceremony. She looked stylish in a black and white Issa bird print tea dress, a ruffled-front cream-colored BCBG Max Azria jacket and LK Bennett 'Greta' platform wedges.

Update 6/22/11

Kate's white jacket has FINALLY been identified!!!! It is a BCBGMAXAZRIA white woven twill ruffle front jacket $238.

Kate arrives at Clarence House

Kate arrives at Clarence House on Wednesday looking very relaxed and chic. She wore blue jeans, a light pink cowl-neck sweater, topped with a cream-colored blazer and black sling-back platform wedges. In her hand, she held her Prada 'Bowler' bag.

 

Update 10/26/2013

 

 

Kate's jacket has been ID'ed! Thanks to 'Copy Kate' on Ebay, we now know that Kate is wearing an Ecru jacket from Zara.

 

 

Additional Info from Copy Kate:

'SMART-CASUAL

STAND-UP COLLAR

DISTINCTIVE ANGLED CURVE DETAIL FROM COLLAR TO TOP BUTTON (SEE PHOTO)

LIGHTLY SHOULDER-PADDED

SINGLE-BREASTED

3-BUTTON FASTENING

2 ANGLED FRONT POCKETS WITH FLAP

3-BUTTON DETAIL TO ARM CUFFS

VERTICAL SEAM-PANEL DETAILING THROUGHOUT

FULLY LINED

HIP LENGTH

45% WOOL 55% RAYON

VERY EARLY / VINTAGE 'ZARA WOMAN'

COLOUR: ECRU / CREAM / IVORY

 

 

 

 



Where will Kate stay the night before her wedding?

The night before her nuptuals, Kate will stay in the luxurious Royal suite at central London's Goring Hotel. The hotel will also host her immediate family.

The five-star hotel, located in Belgravia -- near Buckingham Palace has recently undergone a £150,000 makeover.

The suite has five rooms and has a slew of wierd and wonderful features including:

• A dark wood four-poster bed. It is the centrepiece of  the suite with a large flat screen TV at it's foot only to be summoned at the push of a button
• An original "Venerable" toilet by 19th-century plumber Thomas Crapper
• A painting of Edmund Blackadder kissing the hand of Queen Elizabeth I
• An antique wedding dress believed to be a prototype for the gown worn by Queen Victoria in the bedroom
• A waterproof flat screen in one of the en-suite bathrooms 

Sophie Cranston Is NOT wedding dress designer!

Sophie Cranston working under her label Libelula is putting the rumors to rest. She will NOT be designing Kate's wedding dress. Here is the official press release:

"Libelula has a company policy of not commenting on any of the work they do for private clients." "However, due to the unprecedented media attention, they would like to make the following statement: We are not designing Kate Middleton's wedding dress. We, like everyone else, can't wait to find out who is!"

Kate is stylishly clad in Issa on Kings Road

Kate was spotted shopping on Kings Road today. She wore a £480 Issa short-sleeved black wrap dress and tan court kitten heels - which she wore four years ago - accessorised with her 18-carat sapphire and diamond engagement ring.

Update 9/15/2013

Kate's tan court kitten heels have been ID'ed! They are by Bally.

Kate was seen wearing these as far back at 2008 so they are no longer available.

 

Update 9/8/2011

Kate's black solid draped silk wrap dress is now available on mytheresa.com for $675. Description from the website is as follows:

'Black draped wrap dress. Deep V-neckline with gathering detail at the waist. Short sleeves with slight gathering at the shoulder. Back seam detailing. Hidden zip at the side. 100% silk"

Kate Gets A Coat of Arms

The princess-to-be's new coat of arms has been unvelied.

The emblem, which cost £4,400, was commissioned by her dad Michael and a special version will be printed on the back of the souvenir Royal Wedding programme. This will also give the entire Middleton Family the right to use this emblem since it was petitoned by Mr. Middleton.
 

Kate played a large part in the design and suggested the 3 acorn sprigs to signify the 3 Middleton children - Kate, Pippa and James.  She chose acorns because they grow to be oaks - a tree that symbolises strength in England and west Berkshire, where the family live.

Dominating the arms is an inverted gold V, which represents Kate's mother Carole - whose maiden name is Goldsmith - as the heart of the family. 

The design also features two thin white chevronels on either side to symbolise mountains - reflecting the family's love of skiing - and the Lake District. The background colours of red and blue were chosen as they are the principle colours from the flag of the United Kingdom and match Prince William’s recently revised coat of arms.
A tied ribbon, which represents Kate's unmarried status, completes the emblem.

Following the Royal Wedding on 29 April, Kate's coat of arms will be combined with her husband Prince William's family emblem - something known as 'impaled arms'. Looking at the shield, the Prince's heraldic design will fill the left hand side and Kate's will be on the right.

Wedding Dress Designer Revealed!!!!!

Sophie Cranston of the Libélula label is said to have won the coveted commission to make Catherine's wedding dress. We first heard of the designer when the royal bride-to-be stepped out to a friend's wedding in Yorkshire this January in a much-talked-about, vintage-inspired, Libélula black velvet dress coat with a diamante clasp -- the Dulwich coat, named after the area in South London where Cranston has her studio.

With less than two weeks to go, Kate's wedding dress is near-completion. It's also likely that there is more than one dress made (by the same designer), much like Princess Diana's dressmakers, David and Elizabeth Emanuel, who had a "back-up" dress in case something happened to the first one.

Libélula is a relatively unknown British label that is soon-to-be-besieged designer.

So, who is Sophie Cranston?
34-year-old Cranston is a a young British designer with a romantic and bohemian background. She is a graduate of the University of Northumbria, who won the Student Collection of the Year award at Graduate Fashion Week in 1999, with a tongue-in-cheek collection called 'The Morning After the Night Before', which featured a male model wearing only a striped cashmere cushion.

After cutting her teeth under Alexander McQueen, Sophie joined Alice Temperley - another designer whose name has been in the frame for the royal appointment - in 2000, and was instrumental in helping her establish the Temperley label. Then, in an about-turn, she suddenly decided to move to Andalucia to learn Flamenco and Spanish. It was here, in a small, white-washed village in Southern Spain that she established her own label Libélula - Spanish for dragonfly.

She rapidly gained a loyal band of high-profile followers, including Emma Watson, Tamara Eccleston, and Jerry Hall, with her signature vibrant prints and beautifully cut, timeless and flattering shapes. Cranston currently creates two ready-to-wear fashion collections a year from her studio in Dulwich, plus a fledgling bridal range, which The Daily Telegraph's Celia Walden chose for her marriage to Piers Morgan in June last year. http://www.libelula-studio.com/shop

Wedding Day Hair

Kate's hairdresser, Richard Ward, has confirmed that her hair on her wedding day will be '100 per cent down and flowy.' In doing so, Kate simultaneously breaks bridal convention and reinforces herself as a low-maintenance, natural beauty icon.

Ward went on to say 'Every bride's hair on their wedding day should reflect their look throughout the year. Kate's such a natural girl, so no stuffy up-dos for her.'

Details, Details, Details & The Designer of Kate's Navy Suit

We have a name...the designer of Kate's Navy Suit is...Amanda Wakeley. The tailored skirt-suit with hook and eye-style fastenings down the front was from the fall 2007 collection.

http://www.amandawakeley.com/

Now on to the details....

Shoes

Matching navy leather 3 inch heels from L.K. Bennett curently on sale for £95.00. The shoe has a rounded toe and a block heel.
http://www.lkbennett.com/shoes

Clutch

Kate carried a navy leather clutch with kauri shell embellishments. The designer is unknown.

Kate Reigns Supreme in Blue Tailored Suit

Kate was dressed in an elegant, understated, blue tailored suit when she stepped out on her last official pre-wedding engagement in Darwen, Lancashire.

She teamed the outfit with matching patent heels, a simple black clutch bag and wore her hair swept off her face to reveal a simple set of pearl earrings.

The couple were due to officially open the school and launch the "SkillForce Prince's Award," an honour to reward young people who contribute to their local community.

Who will care for Kate's Tresses on her wedding day?

Hairdresser James Pryce will take care of and style Kate's beautiful chestnut locks on her wedding day. He works at the Richard Ward salon in Chelsea where the Middleton's have been clients for many years. He was also responsible for Miss Middleton’s luxuriant locks as she posed for pictures to celebrate her engagement to Prince William.

On the wedding day, he will be helped by a team of 4 senior stylists from the salon as well as Richard Ward as Kate gets ready at the Goring Hotel in Belgravia, close to Buckingham Palace.

Richard Ward will personally tend to Kate's mother Carole as well as her sister Pippa who will be her maid of honour.

James Price currently charges £50 for styling and £88 for a cut and blow dry. The stylist has 15 years’ experience in the industry.

http://richardward.com/

Whistles blouse is re-issued!

 

Whistles has re-issued the cream silk blouse Kate Middleton wore in her official engagement portrait and it's available in stores for £125!

scrapbook131982 on Ebay

 

Originally part of the high street retailer's autumn/winter 2008 collection - and priced at a more reasonable £95 - Kate brought the blouse into the limelight when she raided her wardrobe for the photo shoot with fashion photographer Mario Testino.

scrapbook131982 on Ebay

 

Made from 100% silk, the 'Kate' blouse is embellished with a delicately woven frill detail at the front and features a grandad collar.

 

Additional Pictures

 

scrapbook131982 on Ebay

 

scrapbook131982 on Ebay