Marie Claire UK Marie Claire UK
  • Fashion Fashion
      • Fashion
        • View all Fashion
        • Fashion Trends
        • Shopping
        • Watches and Jewellery
        • Fashion News
  • Beauty Beauty
      • Beauty
        • View all Beauty
        • Fragrance
        • Hair
        • Make Up
        • Skincare
        • Nails
        • Marie Claire Beauty Awards
  • Health Health
      • Health
        • View all Health
        • Fitness
        • Nutrition
        • Female Health
        • Wellbeing
  • Life Life
      • Life
        • View all Life
        • Opinions
        • Travel
        • Sustainability
        • Weddings
        • Money & Work
        • Competitions
  • Culture Culture
      • Culture
        • View all Culture
        • TV and Film
        • Celebrity News
        • Books
        • Royal News
  • Vouchers Vouchers
      • Clothing
        • View all Vouchers
        • Mint Velvet
        • Karen Millen
        • H&M
        • nobody's child
        • ASOS
        • ARKET
        • MANGO
      • Designer Clothing
        • View all Vouchers
        • Reiss
        • THE OUTNET
        • SSENSE
        • Mytheresa
        • Liberty London
        • Selfridges
        • Farfetch
      • Accessories
        • View all Vouchers
        • AllSaints
        • Aspinal of London
        • Charles & Keith
        • River Island
        • FitFlop
        • Kate Spade
        • Vagabond
      • Jewellery
        • View all Vouchers
        • Pandora
        • Abbott Lyon
        • Goldsmiths
        • Beaverbrooks
        • Astrid & Miyu
        • Swarovski
        • Angara Jewellery
      • Beauty
        • View all Vouchers
        • Sephora
        • Cult Beauty
        • Space NK
        • Dyson
        • Clarins
        • Look Fantastic
        • Clinique
      • Activewear
        • View all Vouchers
        • Lululemon
        • Gymshark
        • Sweaty Betty
        • Nike
        • adidas
        • New Balance
        • Helly Hansen
  • NEWSLETTER Signup to our newsletter
  • logoCreated with Sketch.
    Marie Claire Newsletter

    Celebrity news, beauty, fashion advice, and fascinating features, delivered straight to your inbox!


    By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

    You are now subscribed

    Your newsletter sign-up was successful


    An account already exists for this email address, please log in.
    Trending
    • Women in Sport 2026
    • Marie Claire Masters
    • Autumn Winter 2026
    • Nail Trends 2026
    • Best Investment Bags
    • Best Perfumes
    1. Style

    Meghan Markle had two extra flowers sewn into her wedding veil

    Penny Goldstone's avatar
    By Penny Goldstone
    Published 10 June 2020 In News

    When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

    (Image credit: Getty Images)
    • Facebook
    • X
    • Pinterest
    Share this article
    Join the conversation
    Follow us
    Add us as a preferred source on Google
    Subscribe to our newsletter

    When Meghan Markle wed Prince Harry two years ago, she wanted to add a special tribute to the UK in her wedding dress and accessories.

    Not only did she pick a British female designer, Clare Waight Keller (who at the time worked for French couture house Givenchy), to design her gown, but she asked her to help make it extra special.

    This resulted in her intricate wedding veil, which was embroidered with 53 flora and fauna, one each to represent all of the Commonwealth countries.

    The veil itself was made from silk tulle, with flowers embroidered in silk and organza. These included the lotus flower for Malawi, the blue water Lily for Sri Lanka, the Maltese Centaury and the Thistle of Scotland to name just a few.

    The designer recently revealed, 'Through hours of conversation, meetings together, and research, slowly all the pieces of that story came together. Purity and simplicity were the guiding principles, a narrative of nature through the 53 florals of the Commonwealth to bring the world into the journey of the ceremony and subtlety bringing the lines of Givenchy and the history of the Maison to capture the classical timeless beauty I knew she wanted to achieve.'

    You may like
    • Knatchbull Daisy Knatchbull on Building Savile Row’s First Women-Only Boutique and Why Agility Is Her Secret Weapon
    • Corsages Listing Carrie Bradshaw's Favourite Accessory Is Suddenly Everywhere—And It Just Appeared at Haute Couture Week
    • Andy Burnham and Marie-France van Heel entering 10 Downing Street “Are We Just Jealous?” Victoria Moss Unpacks the Sexist, Ageist Commentary Around Marie-France van Heel’s Victoria Beckham Dress

    The Givenchy team also added crops of wheat, to symbolise love and charity.

    Meanwhile, Meghan asked to have two extra flowers added to her veil, to illustrate two other specific moments of her life. These were the wintersweet, which grows in the grounds of Kensington Palace in front of Nottingham Cottage, where she and Prince Harry first lived when they got engaged.

    Marie Claire Newsletter

    Celebrity news, beauty, fashion advice, and fascinating features, delivered straight to your inbox!

    By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

    The second was the California Poppy, which is of course the State flower from the Duchess of Sussex's place of birth, California.

    Penny Goldstone
    Penny Goldstone
    Social Links Navigation
    Contributing Fashion Editor

    Penny Goldstone is the Contributing Fashion Editor at Marie Claire UK. She writes about catwalk trends and the latest high street and Instagram sartorial must-haves. She also helms the Women Who Win franchise.

    She has worked in fashion for over 10 years, contributing to publications such as Cosmopolitan, Red, Good Housekeeping, and Stylist.

    Read more
    Knatchbull
    Fashion Daisy Knatchbull on Building Savile Row’s First Women-Only Boutique and Why Agility Is Her Secret Weapon
    Corsages Listing
    Shopping Carrie Bradshaw's Favourite Accessory Is Suddenly Everywhere—And It Just Appeared at Haute Couture Week
     
     
    Andy Burnham and Marie-France van Heel entering 10 Downing Street
    Fashion “Are We Just Jealous?” Victoria Moss Unpacks the Sexist, Ageist Commentary Around Marie-France van Heel’s Victoria Beckham Dress
    Rosie Huntington-Whiteley X ViX
    Fashion The Low-Down: All the Fashion Industry News you Need to Know, Now
     
     
    Latest in Style
    Mytheresa Linkby
    Shopping I’m a Fashion Director—Any of These 13 New-In Autumn Buys Would Make a Great Addition to Your Forever Wardrobe
    The Second-Hand Survival Guide: How to Shop Smarter
    Fashion I’m a Sustainable Fashion Expert: My Top Tips for Avoiding Fakes When Shopping Pre-Loved Designer
     
     
    Mariko Kuo
    Shopping I’m a Corporate Lawyer, and This is How I'm Wearing these 3 Trouser Trends at Work
    NYFW ss27 outfits to wear now
    Fashion I Just Got Back From New York: These 6 Outfits Deserve a Spot in Your Autumn Rotation
     
     
    Latest in News
    New Beauty Launches Romilly Wilde / Cécred / Bobbi Brown
    Beauty The Beauty Digest: Cécred Comes to the UK, Romilly Wilde Returns & £22 Skincare Gets Serious
    The Beauty Digest: New Products to Know
    Beauty The Beauty Digest: A Foundation With Infinite Shades, Diptyque Does Bodycare, and the Exhibition Every Beauty Lover Should See
     
     
    Eva Omaghomi
    Fashion After 17 years in the Royal Household, Eva Omaghomi Talks Bringing African Design Talent to Harrods
    New Beauty Products: The Beauty Digest
    Beauty The Beauty Digest: Dyson Does Teeth, Fenty Rips Up the Rulebook (Again) and a Surprisingly Fragrant Week for Dogs
     
     
    logoCreated with Sketch.
    • Site Archive
    • Contact Future's experts
    • Contact us
    • Terms and conditions
    • Advertise with us
    • Privacy policy
    • Cookies policy
    • About us
    Add as a preferred source on Google Add as a preferred source on Google

    Marie Claire UK is part of Future plc, an international media group and leading digital publisher. Visit our corporate site.

    © Future Publishing Limited Quay House, The Ambury, Bath BA1 1UA. All rights reserved. England and Wales company registration number 2008885.