Designed by Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen the dress manages to strike that fine and perfect balance between intricate detail and understated refinement, being neither too plain nor too plush. The full sleeves have a certain austerity that the times call for - yet are perfectly feminine in their delicate lace needlework; even the accompanying jewellery maintains a carefully-selected level of ostentatiousness.
The continuation and evolution of lace as a fashion trend will also be ushered along by Kate's impeccably hand-engineered lace bodice and skirt.
As well as the wedding dress market being awash with copies, the shape of the train will inspire wedding dress designs, likely for some years to come. Structured and with petal-like pleats that suggest an opening flower, the train differs somewhat to the less structured trains that have dominated recent memory.
The dress may be perfectly feminine, but it's not flouncy or frivolous or likely to be mistaken for a giant meringue-based dessert. The fitted bodice, particularly on Kate's slight figure, gives it an air of strength. It nods gently to figures like Queen Victoria, capable of ruling a nation through the good times and the bad. That sense of independence is surely a quality future brides will be keen to replicate.