29 April 2011 Last updated at 15:36 ET

Balcony kisses seal royal wedding

After weeks of speculation Kate Middleton's very British wedding dress has been revealed.

Designed by Sarah Burton of Alexander McQueen, it has a lace appliqué bodice and skirt, and veil. The bride wore her hair down, with a tiara.

Ms Burton said creating the royal wedding dress had been the "experience of a lifetime".

Prince William wore the uniform of colonel of the Irish Guards, as well as his Royal Air Force wings.

The lace on the bride's dress details a rose, thistle, daffodil and shamrock, and was hand-made by the Royal School of Needlework at Hampton Court Palace.

The bridal train measures 2m 70cm, and along with the lace, all other fabrics used in the creation of the dress were sourced from and supplied by British companies.

The lace motifs were pinned, "framed up" and applied with stab stitching every 2mm to 3mm around each lace motif.

Workers washed their hands every 30 minutes to keep the lace and threads pristine, and the needles were renewed every three hours, to keep them sharp and clean.

The veil was held in place by a Cartier "halo" tiara, lent to Miss Middleton by the Queen.

Parents' gift

The bride's earrings were a wedding day gift from her parents, Carole and Michael Middleton.

The earrings were the bride's "something new". For her "something blue", a blue ribbon was sewn into the interior of her dress, while her "something old" was the traditional Carrickmacross craftsmanship used to create the bridal gown.

Made by Cartier in 1936, the tiara was purchased by the Queen's father, the Duke of York (later King George VI) for his Duchess (later Queen Elizabeth and the Queen Mother) three weeks before he succeeded his brother as King.

The tiara was presented to Princess Elizabeth (now the Queen) by her mother on her 18th birthday.

The bride's bouquet was a shield-shaped wired bouquet of myrtle, lily-of-the-valley, sweet William and hyacinth. It was designed by Shane Connolly.

Maid of Honour Philippa Middleton's dress was also designed and created by Sarah Burton at Alexander McQueen.

A heavy, ivory satin-based crepe, it had a a cowl front with the same button detail and lace trims as the bride's dress.

The four young bridesmaids' dresses were designed by childrenswear designer Nicki Macfarlane and hand-made by Ms Macfarlane and her daughter Charlotte Macfarlane at their homes in Wiltshire and Kent.

The mother-of-the bride Carole Middleton wore a sky blue silk dress with short pleated sleeves and pleated pockets by Catherine Walker - a favourite designer of Princess Diana.

Diana favourite

Over that Mrs Middleton had a sky-blue wool crepe coatdress. Her hat was by Berkshire-based Jane Corbett.

The groom's stepmother, the Duchess of Cornwall, wore a champagne silk dress with matching duck egg blue and champagne hand-embroidered coat, both by the designer Anna Valentine.

Sarah Burton - who made the billowing red and black poppy dress Michelle Obama wore for a state dinner and the wedding dress Sara Buys wore for her wedding to Tom Parker-Bowles - had long been the hotly-tipped favourite for the role of royal wedding dress designer.

She said she was incredibly honoured to be asked to design the historic dress, saying she had "enjoyed every moment of it" and the bride had looked "stunning".

"I personally am very grateful and honoured to have been given the opportunity to work on this project, and I wish TRH The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge every good wish for the future," she said.

She also designed the bride's evening dress for the black tie event at Buckingham Palace - a strapless white satin gazar evening gown with diamante around the waist and a white angora bolero cardigan.

The designer joined Alexander McQueen's studio in 1996 as an intern, working alongside him on his collections for 12 years before he took his own life in February 2010.

She was named creative director of the Alexander McQueen label the following May.

Guests at Westminster Abbey included David Cameron, in a morning suit, along with his wife, Samantha, who did not wear a hat.

Mrs Cameron wore a £495 Burberry London teal knee-length dress, £75 Aldo shoes, and an orange shawl.

Victoria Beckham, who attended with her husband, ex-England football captain David, wore a midnight blue Philip Treacy hat along with a dark blue dress, one of her own designs.

Beckham, with a 1920s-style slicked-back hairstyle, wore a Ralph Lauren morning suit and carried a top hat.

Princess Beatrice, Princess Eugenie, Princess Michael of Kent, Queen Anna-Marie of Greece and Princess Mathilde of Belgium also wore creations by Irish milliner Treacy.

The gold for Miss Middleton's ring was given to Prince William by the Queen shortly after the engagement was announced.

It had been made by Llandudno-based jeweller Wartski, Clarence House said.

The prince, who was made a colonel of the Irish Guards in February, also wore Royal Air Force wings, in a nod to his job as an RAF search-and-rescue helicopter pilot.

His best man, Prince Harry, wore a Blues and Royals officer's uniform, while their father, Prince Charles, wore the Royal Navy number one dress (ceremonial).

He has held the rank of Admiral of the Royal Navy since 2006.