The Haute Couture Princess Diana Gown in ‘Spencer’ Took *a Lot* of Time to Create

The mermaid dress is a re-creation of a 1988 Chanel gown.

Kristen Stewart stars in the upcoming drama directed by Pablo Larraín, titled Spencer, as does a re-creation of a 1988 Chanel mermaid dress that took over 1,000 hours to make. Stewart, who plays Princess Diana on the brink of her divorce, wears the dress both in the film and in the promotional poster, where we can see the immaculate attention to detail.

Spencer picks up about 10 years after Diana and Prince Charles’ wedding and during the dawn of Diana’s realization that she needs to remove herself from her current situation. The entire film takes place during a weekend of Christmas festivities at Queen Elizabeth’s Sandringham Estate, as pressure from both the royal family and the media mounts on Diana.

According to Vogue Paris, haute couture stitchers at Chanel re-created look No. 82 from the Spring/Summer 1988 collection. The house used cream-colored organza for the bodice and pleated tulle for the neckline and mermaid skirt, completed by Lognon house.

All the delicate floral embroidery was done by Lesage, and the embroidery alone took over 700 hours to complete.

At the point where the film starts, Diana’s life is about to change forever and she’s about to start following her own rules—including fashion rules. During the marriage, she dressed in Catherine Walker, Bruce Oldfield, and Bellville Sassoon. But once she broke free, she started indulging in Jimmy Choo, Lady Dior, Versace, and, of course, Chanel.

Though we don’t know if Diana ever wore the No. 82 Chanel dress from 1988 during her Christmas weekend, we do know that Kristen Stewart as Princess Diana looks incredible in it.

Stewart is a Chanel ambassador, so the fashion house worked closely with her and the Spencer costume department, providing additional fashion pieces like the red Chanel coat that went viral earlier this summer.

With the one-two punch of great acting and great fashion, Spencer will no doubt be a contender for several upcoming awards. The film drops on November 5th.

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