Retired wedding dress designer Yoko Kato of South Hadley said she was surprised Kate chose a "fingertip veil," rather than a longer veil.
Retired wedding dress designer Yoko Kato of South Hadley knows about royal wedding dresses.
So it's no surprise she reported that she got up before 4 a.m. Friday to watch the royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton at Westminster Abbey.
Kato, who designed a replica of Princess Diana’s 1981 wedding dress, was very curious about what the new princess would be wearing.
“I didn’t expect her to wear that type of dress. I thought it would be much more form-fitting, like her sister’s maid of honor gown,” Kato said.
Kato said Middleton’s gown was simple and elegant, “very suitable for her age and her personality.” She said she was surprised she chose a “fingertip veil,” rather than a longer veil.
Kato said the dress Diana wore, with its 25-foot train, was suitable for her age, as she was only 20. Middleton is 29. Kato said everyone has been eagerly waiting to see Middleton’s gown, as it is expected to influence the decisions of other brides-to-be.
Yoko Kato“The whole rest of the year, brides will choose a similar style as hers,” Kato said.
Kato is eager to watch the reruns because she wants to get a better look at the back of the dress and some of its finer details. She called the dress, with its lace bodice and 10-foot train, “very, very pretty.”
“She looked very confident. I thought she would be crying, but she wasn’t,” Kato said of Middleton.