Shortly after the engagement party the couple decided they’d have two ceremonies in the Hamptons: a small one with family and close friends to sign the Nikah in honor of Abedin’s Muslim faith and the Ketubah in honor of Soros’s Jewish heritage, and a larger celebration the following day inclusive of a cocktail hour, dinner, and dancing. For the smaller gathering, “I’m wearing this ethereal, unbelievable Erdem dress,” Abedin says. She fell in love with the label about a decade ago while working in D.C. “I had to give a very, very stressful testimony on Capitol Hill, and I was very nervous about it,” she says. “I wanted to feel and look my best. I remember going into [a] store and finding the most extraordinary black dress with white floral on it. It was Erdem.”
At first, Abedin was a little overwhelmed by the task of deciding on her wedding looks—but she felt wholly at ease during her first appointment with Moralıoğlu, which was held in February at Erdem’s London atelier. “The minute I walked in, I just felt very relaxed,” Abedin recalls. “He had so much love, care and attention in the way he approached me.” Moralıoğlu, who also dressed Abedin for the 2024 Met Gala, presented Abedin with a series of sketches he had drawn based on references she shared during a previous conversation—among them Grace Kelly’s wedding dress.
“During the initial fitting, we explored different silhouettes to help define the shape and understand how she wanted to feel in the dress,” the designer says. Several Zoom meetings and a handful of custom swatch options later, they landed on a 1930s-esque long-sleeve silhouette, marked by a high neck and a delicate bow around the waist. “For the fabric, we selected a beautiful French Chantilly lace—crafted in a historic mill in Caudry, dating back to 1840—and mounted it on a smooth Italian silk crepe. We wanted the lace to feel light and delicate, capturing a sense of movement as she walks.” Hidden details imbue the gown with more sentimental touches. “The thing that made me gasp when I saw the dress is that [Moralıoğlu] embroidered my father’s name in Arabic, inside, right by my heart,” Abedin says. “My father passed away in 1993 and he was a very instrumental person in my life. I think about him every day.” Abedin and Soros’s initials are also embroidered inside the dress, in light blue thread on a delicate ribbon, as the bride’s something blue. “The entire process felt incredibly collaborative and seamless,” Moralıoğlu says, “[and] the dress is everything we had envisioned—graceful, classic, and quietly powerful. It is a joy to be a small part of Huma’s special day.”