In case you missed it, there was an unsung superstar of the Royal Wedding 2018: Doria Ragland. The mother of the bride a.k.a Meghan Markle was the picture of perfection in a bespoke floral soft green Oscar de la Renta dress and coat, which she wore with a matching fascinator — and her nose piercing! — stealing the hearts of millions. And it turns out, there’s a super endearing story behind the outfit she wore to watch her daughter marry into the British aristocracy.
The co-creative directors of Oscar de la Renta, Laura Kim and Fernando Garcia, sat down with a Buro 24/7 to talk about their return to the iconic fashion house, and they shared an adorable tidbit about how they found out their designs were going to be part of the once-in-a-lifetime event — and what Doria was like in person. And, no shock here, it was incredibly endearing.
So how did the collaboration come to be? It all started with a phone call. Garcia explains, “ Meghan Markle’s assistant sent us an email one night and said she would like to speak to you guys about something and this was a few months before the royal wedding so that was quite an alarming email to receive (laughs).” He further explained that while he knew that there was no way the Duchess didn’t have her wedding dress figured out, it was a delightful call because she wanted to have an American designer represented at the wedding because she’s American.
So of they went to L.A. to meet Doria for an ultra top-secret fitting. Naturally, Doria charmed the fashion design duo, with food no less. Kim explains, “She’s so sweet. Her snacks were so cute, too.” Garcia clarifies that they were healthy treats too, because Markle’s momma is a runner.
Flash forward to a few months later and Doria was presented with two options from ODLR, and she picked the pistachio-hued outfit for the big day. A moment so major for the duo, that the look inspired their Resort 2018 collection!
