April 2011 Archives

Speculation continues to mount over the dress Kate Middleton will wear when she weds Prince William next week.

Various designers, including Bruce Oldfield and Jasper Conran, have been rumoured to have landed the job of creating the gown that the bridal industry expects to be copied over and over as soon as the public gets a glimpse of it.

Well let me throw another name into the mix. Given that sustainability remains such a hot topic, the Royal bride-to-be could make a statement with this wedding dress made entirely from Huhtamaki paper cups.

It was created by Julia Roebuck, a recent graduate from the London College of Fashion, using the company's BioWare cold drink cups in support of the Footprint Awards 2011 which are dedicated to rewarding contributions to sustainability and environmental excellence in the foodservice industry.

The cups are made from renewable plant materials and their origin, manufacture and disposal have all been developed to have a lower impact on the environment.

Of course, it's unlikely the Huhtamaki dress will make an appearance at Westminster Abbey on the big day but if it did it would certainly have Twitter and online forums buzzing.

As you might imagine, there's no shortage of Royal Wedding-themed products to mark the impending nuptials of HRH Prince William and Kate Middleton.

Now table stylist Luigi Spotorno has created the Royal Orchid, a special linen napkin fold to adorn the dining tables of Royal Wedding celebrations nationwide, using products from Johnsons Stalbridge Linen Services.

But don't panic if you're not posh enough to use linen - although the design was created for linen napkins, Luigi says it also works with three-ply paper napkins.

"I wanted to create something unique and special for this lovely couple," says Luigi, author of Luigi's Language of Napkin Folding. "Now I am giving party organisers the chance to re-create the Royal Orchid at their own Royal Wedding celebrations."

Luigi submitted the design to St James' Palace and received a personal letter expressing the thanks and best wishes of the Royal couple.

There's no indication they're planning to use the design for the napkins at their Buckingham Palace reception but perhaps they should consider it. The job of folding the hundreds needed would be an ideal way to keep Prince Harry out of mischief for a while.

Download your guide to Napkin Folding here >>