"After the party comes the hangover – and the bill might cause a slight headache, too.
It is thought the cost to the Middletons of making sure their eldest daughter Kate had a wedding day to remember may top £250,000. And the bill is not the only thing to bring them back down to earth – yesterday, dad Michael, 61, was seen on his ride-on mower trimming the lawns of their extensive property.
Although he and wife Carole, 55, are millionaires, shelling out a quarter of a million pounds on one day might still make them wince.
They booked the whole of the plush Goring hotel in London’s Belgravia for two days for family and friends, at an estimated £85,000. They then spent £25,000 on two parties – including a buffet for 120 family and friends on the night before Kate and Wills’ April 29 wedding. And after the reception at Buckingham Palace finished in the early hours of Saturday morning, friends and relatives – including best man Prince Harry – continued the revelries back at The Goring, where Beluga caviar is £400 for 100g and a bottle of Dom Perignon champagne can command an eye-watering £1,530.
As well as picking up the hotel tab, the Middletons also paid a premium to look good on their daughter’s big day. Kate’s bridal gown, designed by Sarah Burton at Alexander McQueen, cost them around £40,000 while her Robinson Pelham diamond earrings cost another £15,000. The rest of the family also had to look the part. Carole’s outfit by Catherine Walker cost an estimated £10,000, while maid of honour Pippa’s stunning floor-length gown, also by Sarah Burton, cost around £20,000.
As well as picking up the hotel tab, the Middletons also paid a premium to look good on their daughter’s big day. Kate’s bridal gown, designed by Sarah Burton at Alexander McQueen, cost them around £40,000 while her Robinson Pelham diamond earrings cost another £15,000. The rest of the family also had to look the part. Carole’s outfit by Catherine Walker cost an estimated £10,000, while maid of honour Pippa’s stunning floor-length gown, also by Sarah Burton, cost around £20,000.
The family are also going to make a contribution to the couple’s postponed honeymoon with Prince Charles paying the remainder.
The large bill adds to the mystery of the Middleton finances. The family’s firm, Party Pieces, was formed in 1981 as a hobby when flight attendant Carole was pregnant with Kate. What started as a small-scale venture to make some pin money soon grew. Packages and themes for parties took off and in 1987, now working with husband Michael, Party Pieces became a full-time business. Before Kate and Wills got engaged it was worth around £8million. It is now thought to be worth £30million thanks to its new royal connections.
The company employs 30 people and, in recent weeks, did a roaring trade in street party packs while traffic to its website jumped 25-fold. But as it is a partnership between the couple, details of its finances remain secret. Its success meant the Middletons could move from their modest semi in Bradfield Southend, Reading, to a five bedroom, £1.5million mansion in the tiny village of Bucklebury, near Newbury.
They sent their children to the best schools, including £29,000 a year Marlborough College, Wilts.
They also bought an apartment in Chelsea in 2002 at a cost of £795,000 (which is now worth £1.2million) without the need of a mortgage. It became the family base first for Kate and now for James and Pippa, 27.
And when several acres of land near their home came up for sale in 2005 they couple paid the £295,000 asking price in cash. The Middletons drive top of the range Range Rovers and are said to enjoy the finer things of life now their business is a success.
There are also rumours that with their new social station, they will now want to upgrade their home and have looked at Bolehyde Manor near Chippenham in Wiltshire – the 14th-century home of Earl and Countess Cairns. The extensive property is on the market for almost £5million.
If they do sell up and move, at least whoever buys their home in Bucklebury knows the lawns are well looked after – thanks to Michael and his mower."
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Click here: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1382606/Royal-Wedding-A-shake-tail-feather-Pippa-Middleton-goes-global.html
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