Fashion designer Elizabeth Emanuel is known for creating the voluminous ivory silk gown worn by Lady Diana Spencer as she exchanged wedding vows with Charles, Prince of Wales.
Princess Diana’s wedding dress designer says the Netflix show "The Crown" doesn’t depict the late princess accurately.
Fashion designer Elizabeth Emanuel is known for creating the voluminous ivory silk gown worn by Lady Diana Spencer as she exchanged wedding vows with Charles, Prince of Wales.
"The Crown" is “hard to watch” for Emanuel because the way Princess Diana is portrayed seems so different from the woman she knew.
“Especially when you see like ‘The Crown‘ and all these publications saying, oh, she was depressed all the time,” she said. “And that shows that it wasn't the case. And I just want to show that because Diana was fun-loving and upbeat and a wonderful, wonderful person and everybody loved her. All my team loved her, you know, everybody did. So I just I think it's very important to show that there was that side as well, you know?"
The princess’ wedding gown isn’t the only dress Emanuel created for Diana.
A hot-pink gown was designed in 1981 for Lady Di to wear at a ball just two days before the royal wedding.
“So it's going to be it a very, very exciting event. And she wanted something really spectacular and eye-catching to wear for that because the whole world was going to be there at that party,” she said. “I think it was a message being sent with this dress, really. That she'd been previously known as Shy Di, but in this dress, she definitely was no longer a Shy Di. This was a much more confident, dynamic, you know, a woman who knew she looked fantastic and stunning that evening.”
This dress is a recreation of the one worn by the late princess.
Emanuel says other dresses belonging to Diana are in private possession or have been found in second-hand stores, adding, “But this one, it just disappeared.”
Clothing is more than fabric to Emanuel.
"Well, I think what people wear is really important because it shows the inner workings of their mind. You know, they might want to express self-confidence, they might want to look a certain way. I mean, I regard fashion as people packaging, you know, and marketing,” she said.
Now that she’s recreated the pink gown, Emanuel says she will make a copy of Diana’s alternate wedding dress, made in case the design seen on the Most Photographed Woman in the World was leaked to the tabloids.
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