And that’s a wrap! On the ceremony at least. As we speak, the wedding guests are in the middle of a lavish reception at the Middleton family home in Berkshire, but this morning we were given a sneak peek on what appeared to be a beautiful family wedding. [Update on the reception at the end of the post.]

First things first – the bride. As suspected, Pippa wore a gown by Giles Deacon that turned out to be a high-collared, short-sleeved dress in floral lace with a heart-shaped open back. She wore a full veil over an elaborate up-do featuring a subtle tiara-esque headband. She looked perfect.

She and her father, Michael Middleton, arrived at the church in a vintage 1951 Jaguar where onlookers were able to catch a sight of her, as well as the all of the other guests that were snapped walking in earlier. I won’t include photos of them, so as to save space for all the images of Pippa, the Duchess of Cambridge, Prince George and Princess Charlotte, but if you’re interested, the Daily Mail has a pretty decent rundown and I have to say, I enjoyed the people/fashion-watching better today than I did at the royal wedding in 2011. Choices were a bit more daring and interesting than what people felt comfortable putting on display in Westminster Abbey, which is fair.

As for Kate, she wore a peach-colored Alexander McQueen silk dress, which was an interesting choice given that it’s the same brand that created her own wedding gown. I would call it a nod to that day six years ago, except for the fact that she turns to their designs regularly for big events and I suspect it was a matter of preference. This particular dress isn’t to my personal taste, primarily because I think the bust is so unflattering and the color a bit aging, but I thought she looked beautiful all the same. There’s just something about peach silk that screams “grandmother” to me, but I think that may also have been something about the length as well.

And now for the real show-stoppers: George and Charlotte. Had we not just seen a new photo of Charlotte for her second birthday I think we would have been shocked at how much older she appeared. I, for one, was having trouble wrapping my head around a two-year-old serving as a bridesmaid, but she looked like she was up to it by what we saw outside.

George, for his part, lived up to his reputation as the tiniest tyrant by having a mini-meltdown outside the church that earned him a lecture and a finger wag by his mother, who was not having it.

As reported, Kate served as a bit of a mother hen to the pageboys and bridesmaids, shepherding them down the aisle as Pippa did at her own wedding, without actually acting as maid of honor. It’s believed the last bit was meant to help keep the focus on Pippa, but I have to say, while I kind of get the desire to keep all eyes on the bride, who isn’t paying attention to the bride on her wedding day? There’s only one woman in bright white floral lace and a veil.

After Pippa and Michael entered the church around 11:30 am BST this morning, a 40-minute ceremony followed, during which it rained profusely, no doubt helping to keep crowds outside to a minimum. She and her new husband, James Matthews, emerged a little after noon, looked ridiculously happy. Kate helped put the pageboys and bridesmaids in position, which is right around when George had a bit of a tantrum, and then the couple drove 1.5 miles to the Middleton home in Bucklebury, waving to well-wishers along the way.

It went off perfectly and I’m so pleased for them. Glad that everyone got to see some family snaps of Kate and Pippa together, as well as George and Charlotte. Glad that everything looked beautiful and Pippa looked so happy. After so much attention and being put in such a bizarre situation by Kate’s marriage, I’m somewhat relieved that Pippa has come out on top and wish her all the best.

As for the one name we haven’t come to yet, Meghan Markle. Prince Harry was pictured walking with William and was clearly at the ceremony, while it appears that Meghan will be joining him later at the reception. Given the size of the church and the fact that it’s entirely possible she and Meghan have only met fleetingly, if at all, this isn’t surprising, whatever the headlines might lead us to think 🙂

I’ll update this post if anything else comes up, but in the meantime, big congratulations to the newlyweds. [See below the photos]

And now the reception. It sounds like immediately after the ceremony guests were treated to a champagne reception near the church before heading over to the Middleton home. A Spitfire demonstration appears to have been donated for the entertainment of guests.

Harry, meanwhile, ducked out a side exit of the church after the ceremony and drove back to London to pick up Meghan [NOTE: There are alternate reports coming out saying Meghan was already at Engelfield House in Berkshire, not at KP.] One photo of them driving to Berkshire has cropped up so far, however since there was a 48-hour social media ban on guests, it’s possible we’ll get more information later this week. While there was some disappointment to not get a good glimpse of Meghan’s dress, I actually thought this was very well-done of her and Harry.

As much as there was attention focused on Kate and her children, the media would have lost it if Meghan had been seen milling about with guests before and after the ceremony given the intense speculation that we’re about 2.5 months out from an engagement announcement. This allowed her to be a part of the day, highlighted the seriousness of the relationship and didn’t detract in any way from what was really Pippa’s moment.

Here are some images of the party in full swing – bit of a departure from the morning, no?