Sunday Tidbits for March 15: Horses, of Course (And More)

Heading up this week's tidbits, two kinds of horses, plus some Dutch/Danish cross over as we approach King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima's state visit to Queen Margrethe's territory this week:

--First things first, Friday's Afghanistan Service of Commemoration in London has been covered in full at the Jewel Vault, so feel free to wander over there to discuss. (We won't be repeating coverage of the event here.) [Jewel Vault]

--Crown Princess Mary traveled to London to present the Champions for Change Award to Princess Mabel of Orange-Nassau for her efforts to end child marriage with the Girls Not Brides organization. A well-deserved honor. [YouTube, ParisMatch]




--Máxima, you vibrant tropical fish, you. What are you wearing here? (A deeply unflattering top from COS and a peanut necklace, that's what.) I trust you'll be on your best sartorial behavior for the big state visit. [YouTube, ModeKoninginMaxima, Facebook]




--Princess Estelle got a special treat after Crown Princess Victoria's name day celebrations: a hand made rocking horse and wooden sword from the Life Squadron of the Life Guards, which includes items from old Guards equipment. [Livskvadron Facebook]


Kungahuset.se

--In the world of real life horses, one last update to this year's Cheltenham Races roster: Princess Anne helicoptered in after the Afghanistan service for the sole purpose of giving Camilla some competition in the fur hat stakes, and by the looks of it, she means business:

View image | gettyimages.com
Also, Zara Phillips is just DONE with our hat critiques, going out in a frenzied feathery burst of glory:

View image | gettyimages.com

--And finally, the tastiest headline of the week: Guillaume and Stéphanie Receive a Pretzel. [Luxarazzi]

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Sunday Tidbits for March 8: One Christening, Two Lookalikes, and More

I'm busy mourning the loss of a precious hour to daylight saving time, so let's get right to it. Your tidbits for the week:

--Monaco's baby twins have a christening date: May 10, 2015. The ceremony will be broadcast, so I assume all interested in watching will at least be able to stream it online somewhere. [Monaco Matin]

--CNN will run a feature on the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall next Saturday featuring an interview with the Prince, just prior to their visit to the States. Catch if you can. Or don't, fine, be that way. [CNN]

--A new logo and new picture have been released for the upcoming celebration of Queen Margrethe II's 75th birthday [Kongehuset]:


 Torben Eskerod / Kongehuset.dk

--Luxembourg's grand ducal family gave an official dinner for France's President Hollande during his visit to the country (but it wasn't a state visit, so no gowns and no tiaras). Stéphanie looks nice and all, but she also looks like she's Single White Female-ing Queen Mathilde. [Luxarazzi]

Sadly no tiaras but still more than expected... MT @Luxarazzi: Dinner for President Hollande http://t.co/vD79PArPAk pic.twitter.com/2P4tHWWT4n
— Sydney Luxarazzi (@SydneyLux) March 6, 2015

--And here's the model herself: Queen Mathilde made a short visit to Washington, D.C. for a "Girls Impacted by Conflict and Civil Unrest" symposium. Still hobbling around with the aid of crutches and occasionally a wheelchair after injuring her knee, she was overheard explaining that her kids now call her maman Robocop. [7sur7]

Stop violence against young women and girls in armed conflicts: symposium @ICRW in Washington DC #Girls Will pic.twitter.com/qAOuV06JX7
— Belgian Royal Palace (@MonarchieBe) March 6, 2015

--The Duke of Cambridge wrapped up his Asian tour in China this week, and not a moment too soon. The length of the trip clearly left him unable to tell the real penguins from the fakes, and unable to remember that you can't make conversation with either. [Kensington Palace Storify]

View image | gettyimages.com

--Meanwhile, back at the ranch, the Duchess of Cambridge donned a cheery Erdem frock for an unofficial outing to the Goring Hotel. [Express]

--Over at the Jewel Vault, we covered not just the state visit from Mexico this week, but also the newly updated portrait of QEII that will adorn coins in the U.K. [Jewel Vault]

--And finally: A carriage made for King William IV was sold at auction this week. Was it you? Did you buy it? Can I borrow it? My work commute really could use a little pepping up, you know. [ITV]

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Sunday Tidbits for February 22: Birthday Girls, History Girls, and More

In this week's tidbits, we've got some current events and some way way back events and everything in between...

--Princess Leonore of Sweden (daughter of Princess Madeleine and Chris O'Neill) turned 1 this week! New pictures were released by the Swedish court to mark the occasion. [Kungahuset]


Brigitte Grenfeldt / Kungahuset.se

--And we have two more birthday girls over in Luxembourg: Princess Stéphanie turned 31 and Princess Alexandra turned 24. [Wort, Royalista]

--From the Royals We Hardly Ever Cover category: The King and Queen of Tonga were received by the Pope at the Vatican this week. [Vatican Radio, RomeReports]




--The first part of the BBC documentary Reinventing the Royals, which was slightly postponed after apparent legal intervention from the royals, is available for viewing at the BBC site (geo-restricted) or on YouTube. [Radio Times, BBC Live Player, YouTube]

--Crown Princess Mary visited Ethiopia as part of her work on women's rights and health. Here's an article in English, and photo gallery 1 and gallery 2 from the trip. [Sydney Morning Herald, BT]

Welcome to Crown Princess Mary of Denmark! She's at the Addis Ababa Fistula hospital for a cup of tea with Dr Hamlin pic.twitter.com/ierh9ayDqw
— Hamlin Fistula (@fistulaethiopia) February 18, 2015


--Interesting: Facial recognition software indicates that a painting thought to depict Jane Seymour may in fact be Anne Boleyn. [Artnet News]

--The Hairpin takes the history of celebrity stylists waaaaay back, profiling Rose Bertin, stylist to Marie Antoinette and others in her court. [The Hairpin]

--A Russian tycoon has donated items formerly belonging to the Yusupov family (you may recall them from our discussion of their long lost rock crystal tiara) back to the Russian national archive. The pieces include a Faberge egg and a pocket watch made for the last tsar's coronation. [Daily Mail]

--Heads up, America: Chaz and Cams are on their way! The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall will visit Washington, D.C. and Louisville, Kentucky from March 17th-20th. Their visit will include a meeting at the White House with President Obama and Vice President Biden, and a visit to Mount Vernon, home of George Washington. You can read more about the visit at their official site. [Clarence House]

--And finally, don't ever tell me being a royal isn't all glamour, all the time: Here's the Prince of Wales celebrating the 150th anniversary of the London sewer system this week. [BBC Video]

View image | gettyimages.com

Stay tuned for next week, we'll be checking out the fruits of fashion week and more!

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Sunday Tidbits for February 15: Diamonds and Wine and Other Stuff

And to balance out the extravagance, we'll start today's tidbits with an Anne Update:

--The Princess Royal spent some time in uniform this week, which is how you know that all is right in the world. She handled a Buckingham Palace investiture, including bestowing a damehood on fashion designer Zandra Rhodes, and made a naval visit. In uniform with her signature sport shades and a hard hat = the ultimate Anne experience. [BBC, Royal Navy Facebook]

The Princess Royal visits #HMSWestminster and #FleetDivingGroup. HRH is Commodore-in-Chief of #HMNBPortsmouth pic.twitter.com/VdLKWc5SEI
— BritishMonarchy (@BritishMonarchy) February 9, 2015

--Also, here's a little peek at that infamous 'do of hers, while attending a reception this week:

The Princess Royal meets guests at a #MND reception to celebrate the success of the #icebucketchallenge. Her Royal Highness is Royal Patron of the Motor Neurone Disease Association.
A photo posted by The British Monarchy (@the_british_monarchy) on Feb 12, 2015 at 11:03am PST

--Prince Hans-Adam II of Liechtenstein is celebrating his 70th birthday, and Luxarazzi is posting long interviews (which they have very kindly translated into English) with him and his family members. It's a nice glimpse into the lives and personalities of this low profile reigning family. [Luxarazzi]

--A 100 carat "perfect" diamond, touted as the largest perfect emerald cut ever to be auctioned, will be sold at Sotheby's in New York in April. The pre-sale estimate? A cool $19-$25 million. [ITV, Observer]


--Queen Letizia once again sported her combo of red ex-crop top dress and rainbow earrings on a visit to a winery with her husband. Add that to the list of royal engagements I'd gladly take on. [Hola]

View image | gettyimages.com

--And finally, have some more wine, why not: Here's a video of Prince Felix of Luxembourg showing off the wines at the vineyard he and Princess Claire run in France, Château des Crostes. [Video in French. Azur TV, via Luxarazzi]

Photos: Getty Images, Twitter, and Instagram as noted

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Royal Remembrance of the Week: January 28

Yesterday was the 70th anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz concentration camp, a day which is also honored as International Holocaust Remembrance Day. The day was marked with a service at Auschwitz in Poland and in events around the world, and royals from many countries joined in the commemorations. This is not the lighter stuff that we usually (and purposefully) stick to around here; this is really nothing to do with the sartorial side of things. But sometimes it's important just to take a moment and remember.


View image | gettyimages.com
Among the royal contingent paying their respects in Poland were the King and Queen of the Netherlands and the King and Queen of the Belgians. Willem-Alexander wore a kippah (yarmulke), which was a touching gesture.

View image | gettyimages.com
The Crown Princes of Denmark and Norway were also in attendance, as was the Crown Princess of Sweden and the Hereditary Grand Duke and Grand Duchess of Luxembourg.

View image | gettyimages.com
Below, Guillaume and Stéphanie laid a wreath at the camp.

View image | gettyimages.com

Holocaust memorial events were also held around the world, some drawing royal attendance.

View image | gettyimages.com
The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall attended a memorial in London, and Crown Princess Mette-Marit joined in the events in Oslo.

View image | gettyimages.com
Many others not shown here also participated in various events at home, including the King and Queen of Sweden, Prince Daniel, and the King of Spain. The attendance of this particular set of people is not the point of these events, of course, but I can't help but find it lovely to see so many in our frame of reference united, from whatever location, to commemorate and to remember this important moment in history.

If you would like to watch the entire ceremony from Auschwitz, you may do so below.



Photos: Getty Images as indicated

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Sunday Tidbits for January 25: From Farewells to Fashion Shows

Seems we have an awful lot of royal deaths lately. That can stop anytime soon. But for the moment, that's where we must begin:

--Johan Martin Ferner, husband of Princess Astrid of Norway, passed away on Saturday. He was 87 years old. Ferner, a businessman, married Princess Astrid in 1961, and the couple had five children together. [Royal Court of Norway]


In 2012, celebrating Princess Astrid's 80th birthday: Princess Astrid and Mr. Ferner, center, the late Princess Ragnhild and husband Erling Lorentzen, left, and King Harald and Queen Sonja, right.
Photo: Sven Gj. Gjeruldsen / Det kongelige hoff

--The King of Saudi Arabia, Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, also passed away late last week. He was 90 years old and came to the throne in 2005, though he had been the country's de facto ruler since 1995. The Prince of Wales, the Crown Prince of Norway, and the Kings of Spain, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Jordan are among the dignitaries who traveled to Saudi Arabia to pay their respects and greet the new sovereign, King Salman. Salman was half-brother to the late king and served as crown prince; the throne currently passes between the sons of the first King of Saudi Arabia and a council exists within the large family to vote on the succession. [NY Times, Washington Post]

El Rey trasladó sus condolencias por la muerte del Rey de Arabia Saudí a @KingSalman http://t.co/9nApSsxuQh pic.twitter.com/daVweRc2TL
— Casa de S.M. el Rey (@CasaReal) January 24, 2015

--With Abdullah's passing, Queen Elizabeth II is now the world's oldest living monarch. [ITV]

--On a lighter note, an excellent anecdote told by a former British ambassador to Saudi Arabia has been flying around: King Abdullah, while still crown prince, visited the Queen at Balmoral and was treated to a tour of the estate. Much to his surprise (and slight terror), the Queen took the wheel of the Land Rover herself. And that's how you welcome the ruler of a country where women aren't allowed to drive, kids. [Twitter]

--Continuing to lighten things up a bit here: Princess Athena of Denmark, daughter of Prince Joachim and Princess Marie, turned three years old this week. Berlingske has some of her new photos plus a little gallery of her little life so far. [Berlingske]

--At the Danish monarchy's site, you'll find the latest engagement of Crown Princess Mary, in black and gray basics. [Kongehuset]

--Luxarazzi is shining a spotlight on the diamond and ruby necklace belonging to the lovely Princess Sibilla of Luxembourg. [Luxarazzi]

--Are you in need of a wearable portrait of the Prince of Wales? Sure you are! Vivienne Westwood's got you covered. Her recent menswear collection featured nods to the Prince's style and pictures of both Charles and the Queen. [Hello]

Vivienne Westwood pays tribute to Prince Charles with latest collection http://t.co/xC1K04nXdL pic.twitter.com/YB9vOG1yYS
— HELLO! (@hellomag) January 21, 2015

Stay tuned for Monday, we have matters of a Belgian sort to discuss. Prep your waffle maker for the occasion.

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Sunday Tidbits for January 12: The Monday Edition

A day late and a dollar short, as they say, but here we are with your weekly tidbits/your weekly open thread:

--King Abdullah and Queen Rania of Jordan were among the world leaders joining the Paris unity rally this weekend following the tragic attacks at Charlie Hebdo last week. Many other sovereigns sent condolences to the French president; Grand Duchess Maria Teresa joined Luxembourg's anti-terror rally. [CNN, Luxarazzi]

View image | gettyimages.com

--Crown Prince Haakon and Crown Princess Mette-Marit are back in action, with events including their annual Day of the Wise Men conference for young leaders at their home this week. [Kongehuset Facebook]

--Go behind the scenes with the annual documentary Året med kungafamiljen (The Year with the Royal Family) (the Swedish royal family, specifically). [SVT]



--Prince Vincent and Princess Josephine of Denmark turned four this week, and new photographs were released to mark the occasion. The pictures were taken during the family's visit to Greenland last year, as was their Christmas card photo. [Kongehuset.dk, Twitter]

Could the #Danish royal twins get any cuter? New adorable pics released today! http://t.co/u83JED9vpw pic.twitter.com/oVbkGjaGQr
— HELLO! Canada (@HelloCanada) January 8, 2015

--PBS aired ITV's The Queen's Garden, a documentary about (you'll never guess) the Buckingham Palace gardens, last night. The episode is streaming on the PBS website if you missed it. You can also still stream it on ITV's player. (Links may not be viewable everywhere.) [PBS, ITV]

--The Japanese imperial family got all done up court dress-style to listen to the New Year's lectures, an annual event which leaves me in awe of the family's ability to stay awake and focused at all times. [Imperial Family of Japan Blog]



--And finally, Zara Phillips has been in Australia, wearing a boatload of jewelry and a hat like a carnival game come to life, just aim your bean bag through the top and you could win 50 points and a pink stuffed panda bear. I think headgear that encourages people to toss things at you should probably be discouraged, right? [Hello]

View image | gettyimages.com

Photos: Thierry Chesnot via Getty Images, SVT video, @HelloCanada, FNNNewsCH video, Matt Roberts via Getty Images

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Sunday Tidbits for January 4: The Holiday Greetings Roll On

Queen Elizabeth II's annual Christmas broadcast is pretty well known around the world, but many of her sovereign colleagues have a similar speech to offer this time of the year. I've thrown several of them together in today's tidbits, because they're quite interesting in comparison. Just a snippet tells you something about that monarch, I think, from their levels of expression down to their choices of teleprompters and editing vs. none of that fancy business. Also included below are other greetings for the new year and random news bits, so read on...

--King Philippe does a version of his message for the season in each of Belgium's three official languages, and this year he started off with a tribute to the late Queen Fabiola. Here's an article with some highlights in English and a video. [Deredactie]


Deredactie video
The Belgian royal family also published some new family photos for the holiday:

Merry Christmas and happy New Year! pic.twitter.com/CwVNcWhJ4B
— Belgian Royal Palace (@MonarchieBe) December 24, 2014

--Queen Elizabeth II's Christmas message was covered at the Jewel Vault along with the jewels she wore to deliver it. Also covered over there in the past week was my annual round up of her year in jewels, where we recall what was new (a ton!) and count up what was worn most often (did you know that QEII wore close to 70 brooches this year? True story). [Jewel Vault]


British monarchy video

--Queen Margrethe II looked smashing in purple for her annual New Year's speech, and needless to say it delights me that both queens regnant opted for my favorite color. You can watch the speech here, or read the text in English here. And here's a gallery of her changing looks during this speech over the years, always a fun walk through time. [YouTube, Kongehuset, BT]


Kongehuset video

--Grand Duke Henri was one of many to make note of this year of commemoration in his Christmas speech. Here's video and English text. [Wort]


Wort video

--Prince Albert II highlighted the birth of the new twins in his New Year message, video below and English translation here. [YouTube, Royal Correspondent]



--King Willem-Alexander joined Queen Máxima's side of the family in Argentina for Christmas, while his speech played at home. Here's video, the full text, or an article in English. The family also posed for a pre-holiday photocall while in Argentina. [Het Koninklijk Huis and YouTube, Dutchnews.nl, NOS]


RVD/Frank van Beek

--King Harald V gets points from me for a New Year's Eve speech delivered in a tux, though reading note cards while standing does give me some unpleasant flashbacks to high school speech class. You can view the speech here, or read excerpts in English here. [Kongehuset YouTube, The Norway Post]


Kongehuset video

--King Carl XVI Gustaf is bit of a hand talker, compared to his colleagues, isn't he? Formulate your own deep thoughts on the matter by viewing his Christmas message or reading it (in Swedish) here. [Kungahuset]


SVT video
The family also released a new photo for the new year, taken last July. And the court recently confirmed that Princess Madeleine and her family have moved from New York City back to Sweden for the time being. [The Local]


Anna-Lena Ahlström / Kungahuset.se

--King Felipe VI's first Christmas message as king was a bit more political than most, dealing with some of the big issues on his plate right now (corruption, Catalonian separation). Made for an interesting contrast, the informal family photos displayed beside him and a serious message, I thought. You can see it here or read an article in English here. [CasarealTV YouTube, BBC]


CasarealTV video

--Emperor Akihito continues greeting the new year in Japan, joining the family to greet thousands of well-wishers at the Imperial Palace. Click here for pictures. The imperial couple also releases poems for the occasion. [Japan Today, Imperial Family of Japan blog]



--And finally, the Jordanian royal family sends us greetings for 2015 via social media, naturally. [Queen Rania Instagram]

كل عام وانتم بخير. ونسأل الله الأمن والسلام في عام ٢٠١٥ #عائلة #سلام #حب #حب_الأردن #الأردن From our family to yours, May 2015 bring us all peace and happiness… #Family #Peace #Love #LoveJO #Jordan
Una foto publicada por Queen Rania Al Abdullah (@queenrania) el Dic 12, 2014 at 9:57 PST


Stay tuned for Monday, we have British business to attend to...

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Year in Review: 2014's Tiara Moments

I'm in it for the tiaras, I think my stance on that is pretty clear. So it wouldn't be a Year in Review without a look at the tiara appearances we covered here and at the Jewel Vault in 2014 (and minus the ones that I forgot, because you know that's inevitable). You can click the links below or scroll through the posts on this blog by clicking here.

It won't surprise you to learn that I am officially crowning Máxima the Tiara Queen of 2014, with not only a large number of tiara events but also a large variety of tiaras worn for those events. Elsewhere, we saw a couple new pieces debuted, and a couple debuts of old pieces on new people. But perhaps the most important thing we saw in 2014 was the return of full state banquets (and thus tiaras) in Spain and Belgium, both countries having taken a few years off in the midst of economy and government problems. Grand returns ended up being the theme of my favorite tiara moments for the year.


January
The year started as it always does with glittering New Year's Court events in Denmark and Japan, giving us our yearly appearance of Mary's rubies, always a highlight in my book.

View image | gettyimages.com


February
Tatiana Santo Domingo wore a fringe tiara for her religious wedding, although we didn't get a great look.


March
The Swedish royal court put out a new official photo of Crown Princess Victoria and the King, in which she sported her recent favorite, the Cut Steel Tiara. Princess Marie wore her new tiara for the first time for an official dinner, a piece we've been waiting to see in use since 2011. Tiaras came out again in Denmark for a state visit from Turkey, and tiara intrigue came to Sweden when Princess Christina wore the Swedish Aquamarine Kokoshnik Tiara to an official dinner, bringing up questions about its ownership. Elsewhere, a state visit from China to the Netherlands brought out the pearls.


April
Tiaras returned to Belgium and Queen Mathilde again wore the bandeau of the Nine Provinces Tiara when the Chinese moved their state visit game over a country. King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia visited King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima, and Máxima pulled together a pretty fab look with her favorite Dutch Diamond Bandeau.

View image | gettyimages.com
Another of my favorite tiara moments came in April too, when the U.K. hosted an historic state visit from Ireland and the Queen used the occasion to bring the Cambridge emeralds back after a long absence.


And we must not forget, April also brought us what seemed like a genuine Tiara Miracle: Charlene finally wore her Ocean Tiara. For a magazine shoot, but we'll take what we can get.




May

May brought several tiara appearances: a look at the Diplomatic Corps reception in the Netherlands, new formal pictures marking Frederik and Mary's 10th wedding anniversary (again with the rubies), a state visit from Israel to Norway, and a state visit from Luxembourg to Poland.

 
June
Prince Albert visited the Netherlands, and there were tiaras even though Charlene stayed home. Plenty of state visits happened in June, including a trip to France for the British and the last state visit of King Juan Carlos' reign. The return of tiara banquets in Spain and Queen Sofia's use of the major Fleur de Lys Tiara as her farewell put this one on my list of best tiara moments for the year.
View image | gettyimages.com


Norway hosted a state visit from Germany and the Dutch visited Poland with the Ruby Peacock Tiara in tow. Over in Luxembourg, Princess Stéphanie debuted a twee new tiara for the National Day gala.


July
Queen Paola loaned a tiara to her new granddaughter-in-law for a little royal wedding sparkle.


September
A state visit from Estonia to Norway brought us back to our tiara ways after the slow summer season.



October
Princess Noriko of Takamado kicked off the month donning her tiara for the last time as she bid farewell to the Imperial Family before her wedding. The Norwegians had two tiara events in a week, first with a state visit from India and second with their annual gala for parliament. (And in case you're counting, that adds up to a whole year of appearances of the Diamond Daisy Tiara for Mette-Marit, with no variety in sight.) A state visit from Singapore to Britain got thrown in the mix, and the month ended with dueling state visits: Felipe and Letizia hosting the first incoming state visit of Felipe's reign, and Willem-Alexander and Máxima traveling for a state visit to Japan. Máxima's debut outing of the Württemberg Ornate Pearl Tiara coupled with the return of Crown Princess Masako clock in jointly on my list of best tiara moments this year.



November
Amethysts and an excellent Elie Saab gown featured when Luxembourg hosted a state visit from Germany, but a dinner at the Swedish Royal Palace failed to wow me. Princess Margriet brought a tiara to America for the Stuyvesant Ball, wearing the star version of the Pearl Button Tiara for the first time, and a royal wedding in Morocco gave us a little sparkle variety.


December
The Duchess of Cornwall was resplendent in her family tiara for the Buckingham Palace Diplomatic Reception but obviously the main tiara event in December was and will always be the Nobel Prize Ceremony and the King's Dinner! Featuring the return of the Baden Fringe Tiara, another on my list of favorite tiara moments for the year.



Phew! Not a bad year, eh? (Remind me of that when we hit a tiara dead spot in 2015.) Now, over to you:


What were your favorite tiara moments in 2014?


Photos: Julian Parker/UK Press, Frank Van Beek/AFP, Pool all via Getty Images / RTE video / Hola / NewsJapan video / SVT video

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Royal Wedding Anniversary of the Day: December 5

#173830424 / gettyimages.com
Mathilde d'Udekem d'Acoz married the Duke of Brabant on December 4, 1999.
These two royal lovebirds celebrated their 15th wedding anniversary yesterday!



More video: Part 2, Part 3
We refreshed our look at Mathilde's Natan wedding gown last year, before Philippe took the throne. So today, in addition to some video, we have a sampling of some of the guests at this wedding.


#115117172 / gettyimages.com
The cozy December affair brought a number of classy winter wedding ensembles from the royal guests - not about the flash, but about rich materials and hats. With brims and everything. Kind of a nice change every now and then from the more, uh, inventive stuff we see these days.


#52113222 / gettyimages.com
Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte of Luxembourg, the King and Queen of the Belgians
Like Queen Paola, for example. That's a queen's outfit, right there. Not a particularly fun color, but elegant to the end. And showing off the true advantage of a wide brim hat, allowing those that missed the hat trend to hide behind (yes, that's the rather hat-allergic Queen Sofia back there).


#115117156 / gettyimages.com
Princess Astrid of Belgium and husband Archduke Lorenz of Austria-Este
The abundance of fabulous materials has me saying something I usually don't get to say: I think Princess Astrid, sister of the groom, might be my best dressed guest. I'm all about that fur draped over that suit and the jaunty contrasting angle on the hat. All about it.


#115117153 / gettyimages.com
The then-Hereditary Grand Duke and Hereditary Grand Duchess of Luxembourg
Maria Teresa got the memo. She looks cozy and chic.


#115117146 / gettyimages.com
Queen Silvia of Sweden
Silvia's hat is veering a little close to summer material, I'd say, but she pulls it off.


#115117148 / gettyimages.com
The Grand Duke and Grand Duchess of Luxembourg, Queen Fabiola of Belgium
Joséphine-Charlotte makes neutrals into a little something extra with her choice of fabric, and Fabiola makes hats into a little something extra with her addition of a baby blue Big Bird right on top. Fabiola knows we need someone to bring the feathery goodness, otherwise it just wouldn't be a royal wedding. (Update: Hours after this was posted, it was announced that Fabiola passed away today at the age of 86.)

You know who also would never let us down on the feather front?

#115117145 / gettyimages.com
The Queen of Denmark
Ah, Daisy. It takes a proper queen to pull off the smushed up raven headdress. Gotta love her!

Photos: Via Getty Images, as indicated

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Royal Wedding Anniversary of the Day: December 5

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http://msallenfamily.blogspot.com/2014/12/royal-wedding-anniversary-of-day.html

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