Will it feature flounce and frills? Will it be a naive Merchant Ivory derivative? Dramatic? Or just plain old dull?
The endless speculation about "the dress" has become a soap opera in itself, with the Middleton family seemingly complicit in the plot by being pictured outside several designer boutiques like a gaggle of kitten-heeled shoplifters.
"It's a national obsession. It's gossip in its purest sense – inoffensive and thrilling," said Kate Reardon, editor of Tatler. "I'm sure they've been teasing us. This couple are presented as being very down to earth and straightforward but they are also the most media savvy young couple on the planet, and they know that this universal not-knowing is delightful."
Fashion commentators remained flummoxed as to whether an expert couture dramatist, a sloaney stalwart or a lo-fi newcomer has won the dress commission of the century. "The fashion industry thrives on being in-the-know first, and this time they really don't know," said Reardon.
Currently, the strongest rumours surround Sophie Cranston, who designs her own small label, Libélula; Sarah Burton, who is head designer at British label Alexander McQueen; and Bruce Oldfield – a designer who can already boast royal credentials.
Jade Beer, acting editor of Brides Magazine, yesterday summed up the designers in contention as "Sophie [Cranston] at one end, occupying the safer and more classic ground; Burton at the fashion forward end of the spectrum and Bruce occupying the middle ground."
Cranston's emergence as front runner has left some in the fashion industry with a furrowed brow. Her name was leaked on the internet last week by the Huffington Post and although St James's Palace is refusing to comment and Cranston has reportedly denied it, the rumour has traction. The 34-year-old won the designer of the year at graduate fashion week in 1999, then went on to work with Alice Temperley before joining Alexander McQueen's design studio – both labels have also been linked to the wedding dress commission.
In 2002 Cranston founded her own label – Libélula – which means dragonfly in Spanish. Middleton is already a fan of her designs, most recently wearing a black velvet dress coat to a friend's wedding in January. Her vintage-inspired aesthetic, which often focuses on 1920s and 1930s styles, has slim, bias-cut silhouettes which flatter narrow frames and seems in keeping with Middleton's style.
"She clearly favours slim-fitting clothes so I'd be surprised to see her in a giant dress," said Reardon.
But others see the commission as a task too great for the fledgling label which has only been creating wedding gowns – which retail at a less-than-regal £800 – since last year.
"The label does its job fantastically well," said Paula Reed, style director of Grazia magazine, "but it will be hard to make an easy-going silhouette work for an abbey setting. When I heard the rumour it brought to mind the barefoot-in-a-barn kind of look. Maybe that's what the couple would love to do but they are getting married in front of the world and that type of silhouette will have a hard time holding its attention. For me there is a big disconnect between a low-key dress and Westminster Abbey."
But Beer disagrees, seeing the choice of Cranston as a brave one. "If it's true it's gutsy to choose a designer who has only been making bridal dresses for a year. It would show enormous confidence in Sophie. Championing a smaller British designer would be a very confident move."
Beer also noted that the rumour of Cranston's commission was not a fait accompli. "My contacts tell me that the Bruce Oldfield rumour is still quite strong within the Middleton camp," she says. Oldfield designs are traditional and favoured by the likes of Barbra Streisand and Sophie Wessex – and he was a favourite of William's late mother, Diana, Princess of Wales. His name became connected to the Middleton dress in January after reports that Pippa and Carole Middleton had been seen visiting his boutique. "It does seem unlikely though," said Beer, "he could be doing the mother's dress and it would be unusual to do both mother and bride, so I think not."
Meanwhile the rumour that the commission has gone to Sarah Burton – the discreet and highly regarded creative director at the Alexander McQueen label – is fading. Reports in March that Burton, who was appointed creative director at McQueen shortly after the designer's death, was a contender had the fashion industry salivating.
"I thought 'wow what an enlightened, sophisticated choice' at the time," said Reed. "It would have ticked all the boxes of showcasing British fashion as the whole world was watching. A normal designer with a sparkling CV. But that hope is fading fast."
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