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 British newspapers have been rife with rumors that she has
chosen the dress and already attended her first fitting,
although royal officials are keeping such details a tightly
guarded secret.
"We have not put out a statement, nor commented on the wedding
dress," a spokeswoman for Harry's office said.
The choice of wedding gown designer has prompted much
speculation in newspapers and magazines ever since Harry, the
fifth-in-line to the throne, and Markle, 36, announced their
engagement last November.
"I think she'll definitely wear a UK designer," Bojana Sentaler,
founder and creative director of Canadian label Sentaler, told
Reuters. "I'm not sure which one but I think it'll be a UK
designer."
One of those whose name has been suggested is Stella McCartney,
who was behind British human rights lawyer Amal Clooney's
cream-colored trouser suit for her civil marriage ceremony to
U.S. actor George Clooney, as well as the coat Markle wore on a
visit to Cardiff earlier this year.
"A wedding is a wedding, it's a beautiful honor and privilege to
do anyone's wedding dress," a smiling McCartney told Reuters
when asked if she would like to design Markle's outfit.
"I've always loved working on wedding dresses and they're always
varied because you have to be really personal about it, you have
to really look at the woman and the day," said McCartney, who
shares Markle's ethical design and animal cruelty-free stance.
British-Australian brand Ralph & Russo is another that has been
mentioned a possible contender for the job after Markle chose a
dress made by the duo for her official engagement portraits with
Harry.
That dress, and the location of the wedding, Queen Elizabeth's
Windsor Castle home to the west of London, might also serve as a
good indication of what's to be expected, said Anna McGregor,
curator of the London luxury wedding department store, The
Wedding Gallery.
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"Well, you always have to think about the venue because the dress
has to be appropriate for the venue that you're getting married in
and of course she's getting married in the chapel at Windsor. So you
need to find something that's going to work for that location," she
said.
"I think that the Ralph & Russo she wore for the engagement shoot
was such a perfect look on her."
For fashion brands, having apparel seen on a member of Britain's
royal family can lead to a spike in sales. Prince William's wife
Kate has become a fashion icon since she married Harry's elder
brother in 2011, with huge interest in her choice of outfits for
official engagements.
British retailer Marks & Spencer received a publicity boost in
January when Markle was photographed wearing one of its 45-pound
($62) jumpers during a visit to a London radio station.
Similarly, Canadian luxury outerwear brand Sentaler got a lift from
the actress in December 2017 when she was pictured wearing one of
the label's coats to a Christmas church service attended by the
royal family.
The public, and the fashion world, are expected to have to wait
until May 19, the day of the wedding, to find out who the designer
is. Whichever brand she chooses, nothing should steal the limelight
from the bride said Chinese-born, London-based designer Huishan
Zhang.
"The whole thing is really creating a relationship with you and the
bride, no matter the bride who is she, right?" he said.
"You serve for the bride, for that occasion, it's her special day,
you should just treat her as a person, as a bride, who is seeking
for a beautiful dress for once in her lifetime."
(Reporting by Helena Williams and Johnny Cotton; writing by Hanna
Rantala; editing by Stephen Addison)
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