On the 17th May 2008 the Phillips branch of the House of Windsor welcomed a new member in the shape of Autumn, Peter Phillips new wife.
Autumn Kelly, a pretty, blond Canadian officially became Mrs Phillips during a ceremony which began at 4pm in the very Gothic but grand St George's Chapel which is situated in the grounds of Windsor Castle. The chapel has previously hosted Royal weddings such as Prince Edwards and Sophie's and Lady Helen Windsor to her husband Tim Taylor.
As usual for May the weather was dull, having rained all morning. It was cold too, and I could only feel sorry for the bridesmaids as they arrived at the chapel. Not only did they have the unenviable task of trying to avoid getting their gowns, made from chiffon, getting grubby on the wet steps,but they must also have been shivering while they did it! The dresses were green in colour the shade being named 'Kelly Green' for the occasion. Zara Phillips, sister to the groom Peter, was chief bridesmaid, but the bride was also attended by a group of friends and step-sisters as well as Peter's god-daughter, Rosie.
By Royal standards the wedding was small attended by only three hundred guests. Some had flown in from Canada to attend the service. Others came from closer to home. Prince Charles attended with his wife Camilla. Prince Andrew arrived with his daughters Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, though his ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson was conspicuous by her absence. Prince Harry attended as did his girlfriend, Chelsy Davy. According to some reports the Prince's long term girlfriend was introduced to HM The Queen for the first time yesterday. Prince William was absent. He was attending the wedding of one of his friends in South Africa. However, Kate Middleton attended on his behalf leading to questions that as this was a semi-formal role, would she be the next Royal bride to grace the front pages of international newspapers?
Both Kate Middleton and Chelsy appeared at times somewhat nervous attending such a 'royal' event but both women didn't disappoint on the fashion side. Both dressed nicely but understated being careful it may seem as not to take the shine off Autumn on the most important day of her life.
Autumn's dress was made from ivory duchess satin and had a cathedral style train. Her underskirt was made from tulle netting edged with silk. The dress cost an estimated £7,500 and took six months to create. It had a full skirt, a boned sleeveless bodice and the bride wore a laces shrug. Her veil was edged in lace and looked almost Spanish in style.
Earlier this month Autumn and Peter made headlines when it was revealed they had sold their story to Hello! the famous coffee table society magazine for £500,000. Part of that deal was they also got to feature in the second edition the couples wedding. Today it was revealed that the Kelly family could not afford to host such a lavish wedding and Princess Anne was unwilling to foot the bill. The wedding cost in total it has been rumoured £50,000. Traditionally Royals have tended to veer away from the magazine as some society circles call it tacky but both Peter and his new wife seem happy in some areas, to wave goodbye to tradition and do things their own, very modern way.
The bride arrived one of the Royal cars but the newly wed couple left in a carriage and rode to the reception which was held at Frogmore House in the grounds of Windsor Castle. One can only imagine what conversation they had as they rode away from the chapel, but judging by the photographs I can only assume it was a happy one, tinged with relief that the hardest part of the day was well and truly over.
The couple's honeymoon destination has not been made public but I can only assume they will be happy not only to get away from the bad weather and the press but to finally relax after organising such a fancy wedding.
I wish them both well in their new life together.
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