“My wish is the confidence of the woman wearing my clothes to rise as the zipper goes up”
Celia Kritharioti
With an upcoming wedding in Greece this weekend, let’s take a look at a Greek designer and royal pairing that is a match made in heaven.
The Greek designer Celia Kritharioti runs the oldest fashion design house in Greece. Kritharioti’s House of Couture, initially established in Athens in 1906, is known for bespoke, embellished, and finely crafted gowns. Every one of her designs is unique and individually tailored to the wearer. When she took the helm of the venerable house, she brought her own modern interpretation of elegance to the fore. You’ll find that Kritharioti designs creations that are both ethereal and starkly modern.
In Princess Tatiana of Greece, she’s found a perfect advertisement for modern Greek fashion. Tatiana is tall and has model-like looks. As a non-official royal, she also has the freedom (and the cash!) to wear designs that are less conservative than the average royal. It’s a perfect design match for Krithorioti.
For her husband Prince Nikolaos’s 50th birthday (a private event, so she could go more daring), Tatiana chose a gold chain gown. You can see the front of the designer’s version here.
For the wedding of Prince Carl Philip of Sweden and Sofia Hellqvist, Tatiana chose a more conservative but still sparkling Kritharioti gown.
This is bold, unadorned Kritharioti. It was worn when she gave a speech at the Hellenic Initiative in Sydney. It needed to make a statement from the stage and promote Greece, which it did well. It was also a royal favorite at the time of its wearing in 2017.
More bold Kritharioti was worn for the combined 80th birthday celebrations of King Harald and Queen Sonja.
And back to sparkly and frothy for the same event, but different celebration. As you can see, the designer covers the style spectrum from solid and structural to highly embellished and pure float.
What do you think of the synthesis between the Greek designer and her rangy royal client? If you want to check out her bridal creations on the chance that she designs the wedding dress this weekend for Nina Flohr, you can see it here. Remember, though, that the ramp from runway to royal is long. You will have to apply your imagination to see them as royal wedding ready.