From Kate's Burberry trench to the couple's Dorito habit and their rumoured honeymoon destination, the royal wedding is a boon to retailers, manufacturers and tour operators. The royal wedding is just a few weeks away and a vast amount of ink is being spilled on the topic. Just in case you don't have a chance to read it all, CTV.ca will be posting a royal recap every week up until the big day.
Kate's style isn't easy to find
Everything Kate Middleton wears turns gold for her chosen designers and clothing stores. Just like Princess Diana, Kate Middleton is rapidly becoming a style leader and her specialty is mixing iconic designers with affordable pieces, making her look more accessible to duplicate. The problem is, stores can't keep stocked up. The Mail Online is reporting that the classic Burberry trench she sported during a visit to Belfast, Northern Ireland last week sold out across the country in a day.
But will she fit into her wedding dress?
British royal watchers – who now have their future princess under heavy scrutiny – are concerned that Kate's losing too much weight. So they must have been delighted to see the story in the Mail Online over the weekend that revealed her sweet tooth that can only be satisfied by two quintessentially British candy treats; Haribo Starmix and Tangfastics. She buys them at Peaches Spar, a shop in her home town of Bucklebury, Berkshire, where she's presently living until the wedding day. Store owners also revealed that the happy couple enjoys Doritos. Just call it a new kind of product placement.
The hen party
Maid of honour, and Kate's sister, Pippa Middleton has apparently booked four potential bachelorette party venues, all in an effort to keep the plans under wraps. A Mail Online royal wedding reporter has sourced that a "dirty-dancing" theme party will take place at the Middleton home in Bucklebury, and then the ladies plan to hit the clubs in London. They won't know exactly where until they arrive, but a good bet is either Eighty-Six in West London or Public in Chelsea, two of Kate's favourite spots.
Thank goodness for the matchmaker
William and Kate might not be walking down the aisle were it not for the alleged intervention of one Sam Waley-Cohen, a school friend of the couple who arranged for them to attend a party at his place a few months after their 2007 break-up. In a profile on Waley-Cohen, the Mirror UK says that Will and Kate were inseparable most of the night, sparking reunion rumours. A few weeks later they were spotted on a yacht on the African island of Seychelles and the rest, as they say, is history. For his part Waley-Cohen says, "I genuinely don't know if I had anything to do with it. They've both been friends for a long time. I think they got back together of their own accord."
The honeymoon
The scuttlebutt is that William and Kate will honeymooning on the Isles of Scilly, located on southwestern tip of the Cornish peninsula of Great Britain. This has led to a boatload of queries and 108 per cent rise in bookings by people who want catch a glimpse of the newlyweds while enjoying their own vacation. This is Cornwall website quotes Julian Pearce, economic development officer for the Council of the Isles of Scilly as saying, "It's still speculation, but the news has undoubtedly put the islands on the national and international radar, with a lot of internet activity coming from mainland Europe and the USA, in addition to the UK."
The Middletons are picking up some of the tab
Carole and Michael Middleton are set to bulk up their bank account just in time to pay their share of wedding expenses with inheritance money from Kate's paternal grandfather, who died last November. The Daily Mail reports that Michael's share of the legacy is approximately £97,000, about $150,000. They plan on chipping in about $80,000 to the wedding.
