Italian-born Isabella Orsini (left) was stunned to notice the likeness between her own gown, from her wedding two years ago, and the Sarah Burton dress worn by the Duchess of Cambridge last month.(dailymail.co.uk)

　　The Duchess of Cambridge’s wedding dress is certain to inspire a raft of imitations but in mainland Europe there have been claims that the gown was itself copied from another recent royal wedding。

　　The Duchess’s Alexander McQueen dress, designed by Sarah Burton, bears a striking resemblance to the outfit worn by the actress Isabella Orsini when she married Belgian Prince Edouard de Ligne two years ago. Ms Orsini’s dress was designed by Gerald Watelet, the Belgian designer。

　　Newspapers and magazines across Europe have dubbed the Duchess “copycat Kate” due to the similarity between her dress and that of Ms Orsini, who is the goddaughter of Silvio Berlusconi。

　　Both dresses have a v-neck line with a lace bodice that was both long sleeved and high-necked。

　　Both women are pretty slim brunettes who complemented their gowns with a tiara that held their veil in place。

　　Ms Orsini, 36, told the Italian magazine Novella 2000: “As soon as the Duchess of Cambridge went out to go to church, I thought her dress was a copy of mine. It means Kate Middleton has good taste。”

　　The wedding of Prince Edouard and his bride was a far more low-key affair however with only a few hundred people turning out onto the streets to watch them. It is thought that up to 2 billion people watched the royal wedding when it took place last month on television and online。

　　Both bridal gowns pay homage to an earlier dress worn by Grace Kelly on her wedding day to Prince Rainer of Monaco in 1956.

　　Fevered speculation over the identity of Miss Middleton's dress designer finally ended with confirmation that Sarah Burton, creative director of Alexander McQueen, had won the coveted commission. The ivory satin dress had a nipped in waist, 9ft train and long-sleeved bodice of handmade lace by the Royal School of Needlework, based at Hampton Court Palace. The team of workers had to wash their hands every 30 minutes to keep the lace and threads pristine, and the needles were renewed every three hours to ensure they remained sharp and clean。

　　The lace design incorporated rose, thistle, daffodil and shamrock — the emblems of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. French Chantilly lace, combined with English Cluny lace, was the only fabric from foreign shores。

　　The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are currently on honeymoon in the Seychelles where they are staying on a private island。

　　(Read by Renee Haines. Renee Haines is a journalist at the China Daily Website。)

　　英国新王妃剑桥公爵夫人的婚纱势必引发一阵模仿潮。但欧洲大陆的一些媒体指出这款婚纱本身就抄袭了最近另一场皇室婚礼的婚纱。

　　新王妃的这件亚历山大•麦昆品牌婚纱由莎拉•伯顿设计，和女演员伊莎贝拉•奥尔西尼两年前嫁给比利时王子爱德华•德•里涅时所穿的婚纱简直如出一辙。奥尔西尼的婚纱由比利时设计师杰拉德•瓦特雷设计。

　　由于两件嫁衣高度相似，欧洲各媒体纷纷给凯特取绰号为“模仿者凯特”。奥尔西尼是意大利总理西尔维奥•贝卢斯科尼的教女。

　　两件婚纱均采用V领镂空上衣、长袖高领设计。

　　两位新娘都很苗条、皮肤略黑，还都用王冠挽住了面纱。

　　36岁的奥尔西尼接受意大利杂志《Novella 2000》采访时说：“剑桥公爵夫人去教堂前一亮相，我就觉得她的婚纱抄袭了我的。这说明凯特•米德尔顿很有品位。”

　　爱德华王子的婚礼低调得多，仅有几百人沿街观看。而据称全球有多达20亿人通过电视和网络观看了上月举行的威廉王子大婚。

　　两件婚纱都效仿了格蕾丝•凯利1956年嫁给摩纳哥王子雷尼尔三世时所穿的婚纱。

　　米德尔顿的婚纱由亚历山大•麦昆创意总监莎拉•伯顿设计，这也终于平息了大家对婚纱设计师人选的激烈讨论。这款乳白色的缎纹婚纱配有9英尺长的掐腰式拖裙，长袖上衣的蕾丝都是由汉普顿宫皇家刺绣学院的工作人员手工缝制。制作者每半小时就要洗一次手，以免弄脏蕾丝和针线，每3小时还要换一次针，以保证针的尖锐和清洁。

　　蕾丝图案上有玫瑰、蓟、水仙花和三叶草(英格兰、苏格兰、威尔士和北爱尔兰的象征)。和英国的克伦尼花边交织在一起的法国尚蒂伊花边是唯一的外国装饰。

　　威廉和凯特目前正在塞舌尔的一座私人小岛上度蜜月。