Queen Elizabeth, Carole Middleton, Miriam Gonzalez Duantez, Samantha Cameron, Tara Palmer Tomkinson and Victoria Beckham

It’s all about the dress — and the hats.

Kate Middleton left the Goring hotel in a full dress with lacy long sleeves decorated with flowers, a deep neckline and full veil.

Floppy, feathered, bold and expensive — hats were in full force on Friday as guests streamed into Westminster Abbey for Prince William and Kate’s wedding.

Some looked like dinner plates. Others were so large they covered faces. One woman wore a bright red fascinator — a hairpiece attached to a clip or a comb — that resembled a flame licking her cheek.

Queen Elizabeth II arrived in a primrose Angela Kelly dress and matching hat. Princess Beatrice and Princess Eugenie — daughters of Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson — arrived in vertical hats that looked liked sculptures perched on their heads.

Irish designer Philip Treacy made most of the hats for royals attending the wedding — 36 in all that included creations for Prince Charles’s wife Camilla, Princess Beatrice, Princess Eugenie, Princess Michael of Kent, Queen Anna-Marie of Greece and Princess Mathilde of Belgium.

He also designed a hat for Hollywood royalty: Victoria Beckham wore a midnight blue Treacy hat. And dozens of less famous guests wore his creations.

“These hats are the ultimate accessory,” Treacy said. “And there’s no more of an occasion than a royal wedding.”

Treacy has spent months making royal wedding creations that can cost more than £1,000 (Rs 74,000). He joked that he planned to take a short break now.

Carole Middleton, the bride’s mother, wore a sky blue wool crepe coatdress with matching satin piping over a sky blue silk shantung day dress.

Both were designed by the Catherine Walker fashion house. Walker, who died in September, was a favourite with Princess Diana.

Middleton’s hat was created by British designer Jane Corbett.

Samantha Cameron, wife of Prime Minister David Cameron, broke with tradition: she wore a sparkly hair clip instead of a hat, and a tight turquoise dress.

Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg’s wife Miriam Gonzalez Duantez — a Spanish attorney — sent tongues wagging with a body-hugging dress draped with lace and a red hat. “Hers has to be the sexiest outfit here,” said one media commentator.

Princess Beatrice was wearing an ensemble of Valentino couture and gloves by Cornelia James. Her sister, Princess Eugenie, was wearing an outfit by Vivienne Westwood.

Zara Phillips, the Queen’s granddaughter, was wearing Paul Costelloe. The couple’s friend, Tara Palmer Tomkinson, was wearing Deborah Milner.

The wedding presents a golden opportunity for designers. Many replica hats and dresses are expected to be in shops this week.

Victoria Beckham wore a dress of her own design: the dark tones of the smock-like maternity gown had a slightly funereal look. Her husband David wore a top hat with tails and the medal signifying that he is an officer of the order of the British empire.

Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, wore a champagne silk dress and a duck egg blue and champagne coat by Anna Valentine with Jimmy Choo shoes. Valentine had designed Camilla’s dress for her 2005 wedding to Prince Charles.

A handful of Italian designers are making appearances. Prince Harry’s on-again, off-again girlfriend, Chelsy Davy, chose two custom-made Alberta Ferretti looks — an aqua green satin dress for the Abbey and an asymmetric, midnight blue satin gown for the evening.