Bridal trends evolve through the years, but if there’s any classic look that has stood the test of time, it’s the long-sleeved wedding dress. Whether it’s a three-fourths sleeve or a full-length one, rendered in taffeta or delicate lace, there’s something about a long-sleeved bodice that exudes elegance, making it a perfect choice for brides who want a timeless style.
That isn’t to say that it limits your options for details, though. Numerous celebrity brides have walked down the aisle wearing long-sleeved dresses with atypical elements—like an off-shoulder detail, colored fabric, or sheer sleeves. Ahead, we’ve rounded up the most memorable celebrity bridal looks with long sleeves that prove how beautiful—and versatile—the design is.
1. Grace Kelly
Perhaps the earliest fashion memory of a wedding gown with long sleeves is Grace Kelly’s iconic lace look designed by American costume designer Helen Rose. It is said to be one of the most famous wedding gowns in the 20th century, inspiring numerous wedding looks after its debut. It features a high-neck lace bodice and a full peau de soie skirt, which required two petticoats.
2. Audrey Hepburn
Breakfast at Tiffany’s movie star and style icon Audrey Hepburn wed Mel Ferrer in 1954 wearing a Pierre Balmain-designed dress with three-fourths ball gown sleeves. Featuring a tea-length hemline, the high-neck dress had a gathered full skirt, cinched at the waist with a satin sash. She wore opera gloves that gave the illusion of full-length sleeves.
3. Nicky Hilton
When hotel heiress Nicky Hilton tied the knot with James Rothschild, she wore a $70,000 Valentino frock designed by Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pierpaolo Piccioli. The long-sleeved ball gown featured a straight neckline bodice but was covered from head to toe in precious giupere lace embellished with crystals. It was “composed of three different tones of ivory,” describes the designers.
4. Brigitte Bardot
French film star and sex symbol Brigitte Bardot got hitched four times. Her first wedding dress was designed by Madame Ogive “the dressmaker on the Rue de Passy.” Worn in 1952 to her wedding to Roger Vadim, the Victorian-inspired look was characterized by full-length sleeves and an embellished high neckline, plus ruched fabric around the hips that accentuated her figure.
5. Kate Middleton
The moment Kate Middleton officially became the Duchess of Cambridge, she was wearing a white lace gown designed by Alexander McQueen’s Sarah Burton. Featuring full-length long sleeves, the design was reminiscent of Grace Kelly’s iconic wedding look, varying only slightly because of the V-neckline and the relaxed full skirt. According to InStyle, it was embroidered by the Royal School of Needlework.
6. Sharon Tate
One of the most famous faces of the '60s, Sharon Tate embodied everything about the era when she married director Roman Polanski in 1968. She wore a pastel yellow mini dress with leg-of-mutton sleeves, and her hair was adorned with flowers—a look that was very similar to Elizabeth Taylor’s when she married Richard Burton (for the first time) in 1964.
7. Kim Kardashian
Pop culture icon Kim Kardashian tied the knot in 2014 with Kanye West wearing a Givenchy lace gown that went down in history. Designed by Riccardo Tisci, the extravagant wedding dress (which reportedly cost half a million dollars) was crafted with lace, accented by sheer waist panelling and a backless detail. The serpentina silhouette was made more dramatic with a cathedral-length veil that inspired many wedding gowns thereafter.
8. Meghan Markle
Another royal wedding with a famed bridal look is none other than Meghan Markle’s. When she became the Duchess of Sussex, the American actress wore a long-sleeved Givenchy gown designed by the house’s first female artistic director, Claire Waight Keller. The simple, clean-cut featured a bateau neckline, a semi a-line cut, and three-fourths sleeves, all topped off with a delicate lace-trimmed veil.
9. Ellie Goulding
British singer Ellie Goulding wed art dealer Casper Jopling last August 2019 wearing a Victorian-inspired Chloe gown by Natacha Ramsay-Levi. Her ivory-colored long sleeves had the faintest puff, and what really stole the show were the hand-embroidered roses with glass beads that matched the embellished neckline.
10. Sophie Turner
Long-sleeved dresses rendered in lace is a tried-and-tested formula as seen in Sophie Turner’s Louis Vuitton bridal look. Designed by Nicolas Ghesquiere, the gown had a plunging V-neckline and cap sleeves with a layer of lace underneath that extended to her arms—a unique take on the good old sleeved wedding gown.
11. Miranda Kerr
A look that was directly inspired by Grace Kelly’s immortal bridal look was Miranda Kerr’s wedding dress designed by Maria Grazia Chiuri who was then newly appointed as the creative director of Dior. Miranda walked down the aisle to marry Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel wearing a satin ball gown with full-length long sleeves—the entire dress was peppered with embroidered lilies of the valley.
12. Priyanka Chopra
Another Jonas wedding ceremony that also entailed a long-sleeved frock was Priyanka Chopra and Nick Jonas’ in 2018. The actress and beauty queen stunned in an elaborate number designed by Ralph Lauren, which consisted of a column dress (crafted with mother of pearl sequins) with a sheer overlay. Lace-effect tulle appliques trailed down to her scalloped sleeves.
13. Hailey Bieber
When Hailey Baldwin walked down the aisle to become Mrs. Justin Bieber, she wore a Virgil Abloh-designed lace wedding gown with off-shouldered long sleeves. The OFF-WHITE designer crafted a body-hugging, semi-sheer dress with a bustier bodice and panelled serpentina skirt, which flared and blended with the tulle veil embroidered with “Till Death Do Us Part.”
14. Georgina Wilson
It Girl Georgina Wilson fulfilled her dream wedding in a frock from Monique Lhuillier’s Fall 2015 collection. Rendered in a chic champagne hue, the tulle-layered ball gown was covered with floral motif rose gold beading that frayed out along her arms to give the illusion of long sleeves.
15. Anne Curtis
In 2017, Anne Curtis married Erwan Heussaff in a long-sleeved lace gown by Monique Lhuillier. The bodice featured a sweetheart neckline with a lace overlay, which she removed after the ceremony for the festivities. Like the true adventurous fashionista that she is, she wore blue velvet Prada boots beneath the layered, full-length skirt.
16. Camille Co
OG Blogger Camille Co wed Joni Koro in Tuscany wearing a simple Lela Rose gown. The streamlined long-sleeved dress featured a boat neckline with a low-cut back, its edges lined with elegant pearls. What made the sleeves unique though, were the cutouts along the sides that daintily framed her arms.
17. Heart Evangelista
When Chiz Escudero and Heart Evangelista got married in an Instagrammable Balesin wedding ceremony, the multi-hyphenate donned a high-neck Ezra Couture wedding gown, another bridal look that was directly inspired by Grace of Monaco. The intricately designed dress was crafted with different kinds of fine lace (French lace, dentelle de Calais), with Baroque lace as the overlay and appliques for the tulle sleeves.
Hey, Preview readers! Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Tiktok, and Twitter to stay up to speed on all things trendy and creative. We’ll curate the most stylish feed for you!
