Princess Gracia Patricia (1929-1982)

[Cloaked]

I have drooled over this dress for years and never noticed the fugly bows on the back. It looks horrible from  behind, the illusion has been shattered.  

My daughters, niece, sister and I went to the WONDERFUL Grace Kelly Icon Exhibition at Bendigo Art Gallery last weekend!

The thing that struck me about the bride dress is that it was small - no loooong train and the waist was so tiny and the sleeves showed the fineness of Grace's arms.  I thought that it was gorgeous and would have been a joy to wear.  The movies show that Grace had no problem moving about at all in her dress.  The headpiece was so beautiful too.

It was great to see all of the fashion that Grace wore.  After seeing the exhibition I think that Grace was a follower of fashion.  She seemed to dress typically of the era.  Her 1950's styles looked like 1950's styles and her 1970's dresses were colourful and very seventies.  The exhibition was like a wonderful show of the decades of fashion.

The most important thing I learnt from the photos and costumes of Grace Kelly was that she was definitely the IT factor in her outfits.  She was exquisite looking; without her the fabrics bear no comparison in attractiveness to when she wore them.  She also smiled a lot and exuded a fresh happiness.  

The films and private footage of fishing, family BBQs and conversations were the best things I saw at the exhibition.  Grace and Rainier gave their children a glorious childhood - lots of affection and family time. Their family life appeared very relaxed and the children were sweet, dear little active creatures.  Grace and Rainier looked to be hands on and devoted to their family. It must have been shattering for them when Caroline had the first tragic marriage and then for Grace to die, before Stephanie had finished with the strong mothering that Grace seemed to give, would have left a huge void.

If Charlene and Albert have children I hope that he remembers what a happy little soul he was and tries to give his own children a similar loving home life.

There are still a couple of weeks of the Grace Kelly Icon Exhibition left and I would recommend it.
Two of Grace's films are showing at the Capital next door at 11.00 am and 1.00 pm.
And I highly recommend the cafes at the Art Gallery and the Grace Kelly themed shops across the road. Bendigo is a fabulous city in which to wallow and eat for two days.  

[KittyHeaven]

Cloaked...thanks for the awesome post and photos! 

I completely agree that Grace is the one who made that gown what it has become..an iconic wedding gown. Because on an average woman, or even on any other simply beautiful woman..it simply would not have been all that great-not to me anyway. Grace's long neck and arms, her slim wisp of a waistline and of course her unparalleled facial beauty are what has MADE that gown stand the test of time.

Natalie Portman, Angelina Jolie, Audrey Hepburn, Liz Taylor, Jacqueline Kennedy...all considered beautiful women of their era but I am convinced that not one of them could have worn that particular gown as successfully.

The Grimaldi children lived lives that seemed idyllic on the outside. I remember looking at photos of them when I was a child and feeling vaguely envious. And I do think Rainier and Grace were very hands-on as parents and created a home that was decidedly child-centered which was a rarity for Royal and aristocratic families of that era. BUT...I also believe that the children were considerably spoiled and that this created serious problems for all three of them as they reached adulthood. Stephanie in particular seemed to be headed for trouble even before the traumatic loss of her mother. Rainier and Grace seemed unwilling and/or unable to set boundaries for her and and she frankly sounded like a terror. 

Albert's stuttering and difficulties with personal relationships also come to mind. 

Anyway, I love hearing about your experiences at the Exposition...I really hope it comes here to Southern Calif eventually!

[Isadora]

I read a claim that Grace's father basically brought her the title and the man with 2 million dollars (I think it was 2). Any truth in this? I'm impatiently waiting to read your comments/opinions.

[esther angeline]

It was called a dowry but I do remember reading that her father and the Prince negotiated .  Rainier was reportedly cash poor so marrying Grace was good for him and Monaco.

[Tinika]

Only a woman as beautiful as Grace could get away with wearing a monstrosity like that!

How true that is.  I also read that the morning of her meeting with Rainier, her hotel's electricity went out while her hair was sopping wet, so she had to pull it back like that and wear the floral headpiece also; it wasn't what she'd originally planned to with her hair, and she was very nervous about "looking terrible" to meet the prince of Monaco for the first time.

I do think Grace was among the most beautiful women of her day (and any day). But I think Paola of Belgium might even have been more beautiful when young. The photos of her back then take one's breath completely away.

[christina01]

I find it sad and rather weird that both Grace and Diana died in car accidents 

[bumbershoot]

With respect to Grace Kelly's father paying Rainier a dowry, this is not anything new for wealthy young American women and impoverished European nobility.  Read Edith Wharton's great novel ``The Buccaneers'' about pretty young American girls from nouveau riche families whose daddies essentially bought them titles. Counsuelo Vanderbilt, who was for a time the Duchess of Marlborough, is the prime case in point, but there were many many others. Certainly  the fictional Cora Crawley, Countess of Grantham, based entirely on the buccaneer story.

[Sarah]

Many years later it was Grace herself who took care of Caro's divorce by paying off Junot $2 million in exchange for not writing his memoirs.

[Ugly Betty]

I read a claim that Grace's father basically brought her the title and the man with 2 million dollars (I think it was 2). Any truth in this? I'm impatiently waiting to read your comments/opinions.

Jack Kelly reportedly wasn't that impressed with Rainier so I doubt that he would go out of his way to buy Grace a title from his country.  At the time of the engagement, Kelly was Fairmount Park Commissioner, the largest urban park system in the United States and he made no small bones that Rainier's country was smaller than his city park.

Kelly merely diverted $2M against Grace's future inheritance so as to not short-change his other kids so it was really her money that went to Monaco - just a few years ahead of planned.

[christina01]

I also remember reading that Jack Kelly was at first unimpressed as he thought Grace had fallen in love with a prince from Morocco !!!

[Isadora]

Did Jack Kelly's attitude towards Rainier change later on?

[Ugly Betty]

Did Jack Kelly's attitude towards Rainier change later on?

Hard to know since he died only four years after the wedding.

[DowntownTO]

What a beautiful, beautiful woman. Grace was really the perfect name for her. Can someone explain to me how such a marvellous creature like her gave birth to a tool like Albert?

The wonders of recombinant DNA work in both directions. Wanna see a prince turn into a frog?

[tgb]

I also remember reading that Jack Kelly was at first unimpressed as he thought Grace had fallen in love with a prince from Morocco !!!

Was she really in love? I don't mean that as a critical response to your post, your words just got me thinking. For some reason I always had the impression that for all her Hollywood experience/travels/independence, Grace was really an old school Main Line girl at heart who knew a job didn't excuse her from marrying well. I remember seeing something about the courtship happening very fast and had the impression it was almost businesslike, but I've never read much about their actual relationship. She never seemed to have that 'desperately in love' look to her but of course she wouldn't have given away much anyway, she had such a polished (though charming) presentation. Were there ever rumors about their relationship? I recall mentions that it was sometimes rocky, but no specifics. Sometimes I wish we had tabloids back then    They just seem a curious pair.

[fogdancer]

I have drooled over this dress for years and never noticed the fugly bows on the back. It looks horrible from  behind, the illusion has been shattered.  

My daughters, niece, sister and I went to the WONDERFUL Grace Kelly Icon Exhibition at Bendigo Art Gallery last weekend!

The thing that struck me about the bride dress is that it was small - no loooong train and the waist was so tiny and the sleeves showed the fineness of Grace's arms.  I thought that it was gorgeous and would have been a joy to wear.  The movies show that Grace had no problem moving about at all in her dress.  The headpiece was so beautiful too.

It was great to see all of the fashion that Grace wore.  After seeing the exhibition I think that Grace was a follower of fashion.  She seemed to dress typically of the era.  Her 1950's styles looked like 1950's styles and her 1970's dresses were colourful and very seventies.  The exhibition was like a wonderful show of the decades of fashion.

The most important thing I learnt from the photos and costumes of Grace Kelly was that she was definitely the IT factor in her outfits.  She was exquisite looking; without her the fabrics bear no comparison in attractiveness to when she wore them.  She also smiled a lot and exuded a fresh happiness.  

The films and private footage of fishing, family BBQs and conversations were the best things I saw at the exhibition.  Grace and Rainier gave their children a glorious childhood - lots of affection and family time. Their family life appeared very relaxed and the children were sweet, dear little active creatures.  Grace and Rainier looked to be hands on and devoted to their family. It must have been shattering for them when Caroline had the first tragic marriage and then for Grace to die, before Stephanie had finished with the strong mothering that Grace seemed to give, would have left a huge void.

If Charlene and Albert have children I hope that he remembers what a happy little soul he was and tries to give his own children a similar loving home life.

There are still a couple of weeks of the Grace Kelly Icon Exhibition left and I would recommend it.
Two of Grace's films are showing at the Capital next door at 11.00 am and 1.00 pm.
And I highly recommend the cafes at the Art Gallery and the Grace Kelly themed shops across the road. Bendigo is a fabulous city in which to wallow and eat for two days.  

bollocks now i know the Mabel's issue about laces.... lmao