Vogue UK: KRISTEN STEWART found trying on her Twilight wedding dress for the first time an emotional experience - so says the gown's designer Carolina Herrera.
"In the initial fitting when Kristen put the dress on and looked in the mirror, she was very moved," the designer told us. "In that moment she was not an actress or a character in a film, she was a bride, and a happy one at that. It is always very important to make the bride happy, of course, and in this case I was delighted to do so. It was a very special moment for both Kristen and the character of Bella to share."
One of this year's most covetable wedding dress jobs (next to The Duchess of Cambridge and Kate Moss' gowns), Herrera was asked by Twilight author Stephenie Meyer to create the dress - worn by lead character Bella Swan wears when she marries her vampire boyfriend Edward Cullen.
"I was of course inspired by Stephenie's description of the gown in the book, but I added the touch of Herrera and also took into consideration the personality and the style of the bride," said Herrera. "A wedding dress is both an intimate and personal for a woman - it must reflect the personality and style of the bride. Bella's dress is romantic and filled with a timeless sophistication, very similar to the character. In a way, this dress served as a symbol of the character's coming of age and introduction into womanhood."
Herrera's feminine classic wedding gowns have been worn by some of the world's most stylish brides, from Renee Zellweger to Christina Hendricks. What made her want to collaborate with Twilight?
"Being a big follower of The Twilight Saga, I was very flattered to be a part of this fantastic project," she told us. "I read the books and saw the first film and have been a fan ever since. You can't walk down the street and run into someone who doesn't know what Twilight is anymore, whether it be the books or the movie. Our bridal collections always possess a timeless elegance and sophistication and I found the same elements in Stephenie Meyer's descriptions of Bella's dress."
The handmade gown - a demure, floor-length style with a Bardot neckline and short train - is available to buy from Herrera boutiques in New York, Los Angeles, Bal Harbour and Dallas from January 2012.
"It is always a unique process to design a wedding because every bride is different; the dress always has to be special because it is the most important day in the life of a woman," said Herrera. "I tried doing that with this dress, but this one of course is totally different because at the end it's a film - a cultural phenomenon. Millions of people are going to watch and it had to be precise."
