Forty Thousand Crystals or One Pair of Flat Sandals: The Grimaldi Weddings

Forty thousand Swarovski crystals, fifty metres of silk and eighty metres of organza. Two thousand five hundred hours of work. That is what Charlene Wittstock's wedding dress took for the Monaco wedding on 1 and 2 July 2011, designed by Giorgio Armani. It is a figure worth holding in mind, because the same family also produced its exact opposite.

The Grimaldis are a family that turned weddings into a genre of their own, and their choices are still being copied in bridal salons across Europe. Not all of them were lavish, and it is precisely the differences that make the story interesting.

From sixty years' distance

Grace Kelly, 19 April 1956, a dress by Helen Rose - thirty people worked on it for two months. Brussels lace on the sleeves and neckline, hand-sewn pearls, a skirt of silk faille and a cap that held the veil. The most expensive design that designer produced in her career.

Caroline of Monaco married twice and both times in Marc Bohan for Dior. In 1978, a bohemian A-line cut with bell sleeves and a sash at the waist - highly untypical for the period. In 1983, a wrap dress in champagne satin, midi length, narrowed at the waist, with draping and balloon sleeves, and a band worn as a diadem.

Stephanie of Monaco in 1995 was the first royal bride of her generation to marry in a short dress - knee length, with lace, a sweetheart neckline and long sleeves.

And then - flat sandals

The most interesting choice came from Tatiana Santo Domingo on 31 August 2013. Instead of a dress, a two-piece set in fluid fabric, with a small train, a V neckline and short sleeves. Flat sandals on her feet. A flower crown on her head. Neither of those is what protocol expects of a bride in Monaco.

Beatrice Borromeo in 2015 wore two dresses, both Armani - an A-line with a square neckline and lace for the ceremony, silk and tulle recalling classical Greece for the reception. That second look was then copied by brides across Europe in 2021.

Charlotte Casiraghi married in 2019 at an abbey in Provence, in floral-motif tulle by Giambattista Valli, with a faux Bardot neckline and a ruffled skirt.

Between forty thousand crystals and one pair of flat sandals, it is the second choice that is remembered more fondly today. That says something about weddings here too, where the bill often grows because somebody else is going to be watching.