Showing posts with label Other Royals. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Other Royals. Show all posts

Royal Visit of the Day: March 16

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    Last week, Jordan's King Abdullah and Queen Rania paid a visit to their Moroccan friends, King Mohammed and Princess Lalla Salma. Their productive working trip is our superficial check in on the sartorial stylings of two stunning consorts.
    Princess Lalla Salma greeted her friend in a stark white Ralph Lauren ensemble with a close fit jacket and trousers which is futuristic and retro at the same time (you say Star Trek, I say 1950s dentist). I like it, actually, but only because it's allowing her face and piles of glorious red hair to run the show. Queen Rania arrived in a Nina Ricci coat that should look familiar to you, since the Countess of Wessex sported the same one for her birthday feature in Harper's Bazaar earlier this year. Sophie wore it over a printed dress and many of you wished for the coat alone, so the sartorial genie has seen fit to grant your request. I like both coat interpretations, but Rania is winning the shoe game by a landslide.
     
    Day 2 dawned with a very standard set up on the fashion front. Basic white dress: check. Basic suit in a great color: check. Moving on.
    An official dinner was held, and thank heavens we got an opportunity to see one of Lalla Salma's amazing caftans. Another traditional fabric nod goes to Princess Sarvath El Hassan (above, left), who was one of the other royals in attendance (a group photo, along with other shots from the trip, can be seen here). As for Rania, she wore the most unusual outfit of her trip, a bedazzled bishop sleeve blouse from Andrew Gn with a full-length skirt.
    Left to Right: Queen Rania's Nina Ricci coat, Princess Lalla Salma's Ralph Lauren Spring 2014 RTW ensemble, Queen Rania's top and styling from Andrew Gn Pre-Fall 2014
    Much like Lalla Salma's white welcome outfit, if Rania's dinner outfit works, it's because it's on Rania in particular. These outfits play to each lady's unique style, at the very least. I do appreciate individuality if nothing else.

    Photos: Royal Hashemite Court/Queen Rania Instagram, Moda Operandi, Style.com

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Royal Visit of the Day: March 16


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Tiara Thursday (on a Friday): Empress Farah's Turquoise Tiara

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    The Duchess of Gloucester's outing of the Teck Turquoise Tiara this week has put me in a turquoise mood, so let's chat about a tiara that's grown to be rather a favorite of mine. This one was worn by Farah Pahlavi, the third wife and Empress (or Shahbanou) to the last Shah of Iran.
    Empress Farah's Turquoise Tiara
    It's only fitting that a great turquoise tiara would by a Persian shahbanou; mining of turquoise and decorating with the stone is part of Iran's history, and Persian turquoise is famed for its quality. More than one turquoise tiara is tied to the dynasty, but this is my favorite of the known options, like a colorful version of the Antique Pearl Tiara from the Netherlands. The base contains a central round turquoise stone with oval turquoises to the sides in a diamond framework, and a top of nine upright turquoise stones in a graduating height arrangement. A pair of pendant earrings were worn with the tiara, and there was also a turquoise necklace to pair with it.
    Farah
    This tiara was made for Farah's personal use, unlike the Noor-ol-Ain Tiara or her Seven Emerald Tiara, which were created as part of the crown jewels and remained with the state when the monarchy was abolished. However, the Empress did not take this tiara with her when she left the country, and today she does not wear tiaras to the royal events she attends. But when it was in use, she wore it to perfection (the high center point made it an especially good fit for the tall updos she sported back then), and it's a shame we don't get to see it today. But of course I would say that, since I think it might be my favorite of the Iranian tiaras.

    Where does this rank on your list of favorite Iranian tiaras?

    Photos: Wikimedia Commons

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

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


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Tiara Thursday: Queen Marie José's Beauharnais Pearl Tiara

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    Today's tiara is unusual for a variety of reasons.
    Queen Marie José's Beauharnais Pearl Tiara
    First, of course, is the design. Pearl tiaras are often more diamond heavy than pearl heavy, but the design of this coronet-like piece relies on small pearls to outline the engraved gold base and the triangular and fan motifs above it, with small diamonds just as accents. It was made around 1829 in Paris, making it one of the older tiaras still in existence today - but adding another point in the unusual column, it looks mostly the same today as it did back then. Many diadems dating back that far have been remodeled heavily over time, but this one has only been modified to add an extension piece at the back.
    Stéphanie
    The tiara belonged to the adopted daughter of Napoleon, Stéphanie de Beauharnais (1789-1860). Stéphanie married the Grand Duke of Baden, and she was pictured wearing the tiara (above). The tiara made its way to the Belgian royal family, who are related to Stéphanie courtesy of her granddaughter Princess Marie of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen, Countess of Flanders (1845-1912), and it eventually ended up in the possession of Princess Marie José of Belgium (1906-2001), daughter of King Albert I and granddaughter of the aforementioned Countess of Flanders. (It should be noted that some references to this tiara tie it back to Empress Joséphine, Napoleon's first wife, who died prior to the reported approximate creation date of the piece, and some paths of ownership tie it to Empress Charlotte of Mexico, born a Belgian princess, at some point.)
    Marie José
    The tiara's main modification came in 1924, when the band was extended at the back so that Princess Marie José could wear it in the fashionable style across the forehead to her first court ball. In 1930, the princess married the future King Umberto II of Italy. The tiara stayed in Queen Marie José's possession until her death in 2001, when it passed to her daughter, Princess Maria Gabriella of Savoy. It was auctioned at Christie's in 2007 (as were other pieces from the late queen's jewel collection, including the Empress Joséphine Tiara), and it sold for $85,190. Adding another layer to the rarity of the tiara's tale, it did not disapper into a private collection but was bought by the state of Baden-Württemberg in Germany. They purchased the tiara because of its link to the history of Mannheim Palace, which was the home of Stéphanie de Beauharnais. It is now part of the museum collection at the impressive Baroque palace.

    As pearl tiaras go: Yay or Nay?

    Photos: Christie's, Wikimedia

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Tiara Thursday: Queen Marie José's Beauharnais Pearl Tiara


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

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


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Tiara Thursday: The Russian Sapphire “Wave” Tiara

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    The Russian Sapphire "Wave" Tiara
    Today’s featured tiara is one that has been mentioned in the comments on just about every Romanov tiara we’ve covered of late, I think, so we’re overdue to give it a proper day in the spotlight. It’s an eye-catcher to be sure, and while pretty much every Russian imperial tiara has a bit of mystery to it, thanks to the course of history, this one comes with extra intrigue. It was essentially an unknown piece of Russian treasure until evidence of its existence was unearthed in 2012. You might expect such a discovery from the files of an historic jewelry house or perhaps the depths of a wealthy private collection, but this one came from a far more surprising source: the library of the United States Geological Survey (USGS), in Reston, Virginia.
    The Marie Feodorovna portrait and the sketch referenced below, with a detail of the tiara center
    Mineralogist and gemologist George F. Kunz (1856-1932), who worked for the USGS as well as Tiffany & Co., left his private library to the government agency when he died. Among his treasures was a large book with a nondescript exterior and a title plate in Russian that turned out to translate to The Russian Diamond Fund, with a publication date of 1922. The Diamond Fund is, to this day, the name for the Russian state’s store of their remaining crown jewels. Kunz’s book was a photo album of pieces of Russian jewelry. The USGS compared the album to another publication, Russia’s Treasure of Diamonds and Precious Stones, published in 1925 and regarded as the most complete inventory of the Russian crown jewels which were seized by the new state after the revolution, and discovered that most of the photos were printed there as well. But they also discovered that their 1922 album included photos of four additional pieces, mysteriously not included in the 1925 inventory and thus unknown to most jewel scholars: an emerald and diamond necklace, a sapphire and diamond bracelet, a sapphire and diamond bow brooch, and a sapphire and diamond diadem.
    Video: The USGS discusses the discovery
    The tiara in question includes nine large sapphires, each surrounded by arcs of diamonds ending in dangling diamond drops, a design reminiscent of breaking waves in the ocean. Investigation into its provenance produced a sketch that seems to depict the piece. The sketch is reproduced in Tiaras: A History of Splendour by Geoffrey Munn, where it is identified as a study by Nicholas Chevalier of the jewels worn to the 1874 wedding of Prince Alfred, Duke of Edinburgh and the Grand Duchess Marie Alexandrovna of Russia by Marie Feodorovna (née Dagmar of Denmark, 1847-1928), then the Tsarevna, wife of the heir. The same piece may be the diadem depicted in a portrait of her from the same year. (Note: The video above about the discovery briefly mentions the tiara belonging to Marie Alexandrovna instead, though the sketch itself points elsewhere as I’ve mentioned here.) These illustrations indicate that the tiara was originally worn attached to a traditional fabric covered kokoshnik headdress which was topped by what appears to be a diamond rivière.
    The large table of Russian jewels, top; all four jewels discovered in USGS photos, bottom
    Apart from that speculation, the rest of the story behind these four pieces remains a mystery. Three of them can be spotted on the table laden with bejeweled treasures above, but we don’t know why they were excluded from the 1925 inventory. The USGS research team was able to determine that the brooch was sold at an auction in 1927, but other record of what happened to these gems seems nonexistent so far. While it is possible that they still exist – it’s happened, things going missing for a century and then popping back up – they may also have been dismantled. Sad, but all too often true.

    Would this nab a spot on your list of favorite sapphire tiaras?

    Photos: USGS, USGS video, Wikimedia Commons

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Tiara Thursday: The Russian Sapphire “Wave” Tiara


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Sunday Tidbits for February 1: A Quadruple Queen Update and More

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    Let's get right to it, shall we? Tidbits ahoy:

    --Princess Nathalie of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg, daughter of Princess Benedikte of Denmark and Prince Richard of Sayn-W(etc., you know), and husband Alexander Johannsmann welcomed a baby girl named Louisa on January 28. The couple also have a son, Konstantin, born in 2010. [Kongehuset, Ridehesten]

    --Princess Alexandra of Hanover, competitive figure skater and the 15-year-old daughter of Princess Caroline of Monaco and the Prince of Hanover, represented Monaco in the European Youth Olympic Festival in Austria this week. Prince Albert joined his sister to cheer her on, and Alexandra gave an interview for the occasion (video below, in French). [PurePeople]


    --Queen Update #1: Queen Silvia looked very elegant in her tone on tone suit this week, helping hand out medals. [Kungahuset]
    Kungahuset.se

    --Queen Update #2: As did Queen Mathilde, wearing burgundy lace for the last of four New Year's receptions. [Paris Match]

    --Queen Update #3: Do I detect a bit of a flapper wave on Queen Paola here? [RTLPlaceRoyale Twitter]

    --Queen Update #4 (it counts, don't argue): Dame Helen Mirren rode the subway. [Gothamist]

    --Vanity Fair offers a peek inside Dudley House in London which has been restored to its former life as a grand society home by the Qatari ruling family and Sheikh Hamad bin Abdullah Al-Thani. [Vanity Fair]

    --All is not well with the family's quest to own every important property everywhere, though. Their plans to create a mega mansion in London were shot down this week. [Daily Mail]

    --And one joyous scarf wave to send us across the finish line: Prince Carl Philip made an official visit to Lyon, France this week, where he celebrated the Bucose d'Or chef competition with gusto. This gallery includes some from his trip plus Victoria, Daniel, and Estelle watching the European Figure Skating Championships. [Purepeople]


    Stay tuned for the week to come, we've got Spains and Danes and more on the way.

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Sunday Tidbits for January 25: From Farewells to Fashion Shows

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    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]

    --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]

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

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Tiara Thursday: The Murat Tiara

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    The Murat Tiara
    Built as a showcase for three large pearls, the Murat Tiara is a creation by Joseph Chaumet. It dates from 1920, when it was created as a wedding gift for the marriage of Prince Alexandre Murat (1889-1926) and Yvonne Gillois (1894-1961). The large pearls came from the Murat family. The center pearl, noted as an "exceptional treasure" at the time of the tiara's sale, is a baroque button-shaped natural pearl of over 75 carats (75.84 carats to be exact, or 303.37 grains). Two additional large pearls, also button-shaped and natural, were added to the sides of the design, adding some balance to the large centerpiece. The family also supplied most of the diamonds used for the design of acanthus foliage scrolls that accent the pearls.
    The Murat family's title goes back to the reign of Napoleon I, when Joachim Murat (1767-1815) rose up through the military and married Napoleon's sister Caroline Bonaparte. Titles were granted and eventually Joachim was King of Naples and Sicily (though all did not end well for him; he was ultimately executed for treason after the fall of Napoleon). The family maintained a prominent position in French society, and at the time of this tiara's creation, there still would have been plenty of tiara occasions for the new bride to attend.
    This is a tiara certainly intended to convey status, thanks to those enormous pearls. The design itself is grand enough to recall the family's roots, with an acanthus motif that would have fit in at Napoleon's court. The tiara originally had a separate bandeau on which it could be worn for additional height and an option to be worn at the forehead, in a style very much of the 1920s but also very much in the style of Empress Joséphine. All of that grandeur paid off when the tiara was auctioned at Sotheby's in 2012. Estimated to bring in up to $2,445,636, the tiara sold for $3,864,318.

    What do you say: A successful incorporation of large single gems?

    Photos:  Sotheby's, Miguel Medina/AFP

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Tiara Thursday: Alexandra Feodorovna's Emerald Bow Tiara

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    Alexandra Feodorovna's Emerald Bow Tiara
    As we’ve discussed before, if you’re searching for stones of exceptional quality and color, you need look no further than the collection that belonged to the Romanovs at the height of their splendor. The green stones featured in today’s tiara are one example, Colombian emeralds with what was said to have been a brilliant color. The center emerald is a sugarloaf cabochon, an unfaceted cut rising to a high point in the center, weighing in at around 23 carats. The emeralds were combined with South African diamonds in a design of upright loops alternating with bows in this tiara made to the order of Alexandra Feodorovna (1872-1918), wife of Tsar Nicholas II. It was crafted in gold and silver with removable elements in 1900 by imperial court jeweler Bolin.
    Alexandra Feodorovna
    The tiara was part of a matching set of jewels. Also made by Bolin for Alexandra at that time was a matching necklace and she was painted in 1907 by N.K. Bodarevsky (above) wearing what appears to be a matching brooch. A devant de corsage (dress ornament) of emeralds and diamonds with was made by another jeweler to the imperial family, Fabergé. The corsage was ordered by Alexandra Feodorovna’s sister, Elizabeth (1964-1918), who was married to Nicholas II’s uncle. The matching stones and bow design suggests that it was intended to be part of the same parure.
    A detail of the center element in the tiara (left), the devant de corsage (center top), the tiara displayed with other jewels to be sold (center bottom), and the necklace (right)
    Unfortunately, like so many other Romanov jewels, this parure has disappeared. It was sold by the Soviet government in the 1920s, after the overthrow of the monarchy. It’s hard to imagine it being successfully worn today, though; the tiara is actually a circlet, a complete circle, probably best worn with the elaborate hairstyles of the time, and a piece like the devant de corsage would scarcely be used with today’s fashions. The devant de corsage, however, is the one piece that has a version in existence today: a replica was made in 1985 for the Diamond Fund, the Russian state’s jewel collection.

    Who do you think could pull this set off, if it was around today?

    Photos: Fersman, Wikimedia Commons, USGS

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Sunday Tidbits for January 12: The Monday Edition

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Sunday Tidbits for January 12: The Monday Edition


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Tiara Thursday: Princess Kako's Tiara

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    It is standard practice in Japan's imperial household to provide each female member a tiara, either when they marry in to the family, or when they come of age at 20. Some of these are passed down, such as the two tiaras worn by Crown Princess Masako, and some are suspected to be reworkings of tiaras worn in the past by family members, but the imperial household remains one of the rare places where the purchase of a totally new parure still happens. The product of just such a commission was revealed at the end of last month.
    Princess Kako's Tiara
    Princess Kako of Akishino, second daughter of the Prince and Princess Akishino and granddaughter of the Emperor and Empress, turned 20 on December 29, 2014. In June 2013, it was announced that K. Mikimoto & Co. would be making her tiara and its matching set of jewelry after winning a bid between five jewelers for the honor. (The bidding process, as opposed to privately commissioning a selected jeweler, was introduced when creating the jewels for Princess Yōko of Mikasa's coming of age.) Mikimoto, a prestigious Japanese company known especially for their pearls, has a long history as an official jeweler to the imperial family. Their commission was for five pieces to be delivered the following March at a cost of approximately ¥30 million (about $250,000).
    Princess Kako in her parure, on her birthday (center and left) and at the New Year's reception (right)
    The resulting tiara is a series of linked scroll motifs around diamond clusters. The necklace is a mirror of the tiara's design, as is usually the case with these Japanese parures. Princess Kako also has earrings of round diamonds with a round diamond pendant, a design which is common to many of the family's jewel sets, a brooch, and at least one bracelet (she was wearing something sparkling on both wrists). She first wore the parure for her traditional coming of age visit to the Emperor and Empress, and then again a few days later for the annual New Year's court event.

    Video: Kako's first outing of her new tiara
    There's no mistaking this as a Japanese tiara, as it shares the all-white color scheme and somewhat generic design basis with many other sparkling headpieces in the family (I find it particularly reminiscent of her mother's tiara), and so it's a bit prone to get lost in the fray when the imperial ladies are all lined up. But on its own, I'm really charmed by this - then again, I am partial to tiaras with diamonds and scrolls - and can't help but wish someone would give me a birthday gift half this nice some day...sigh.

    Favorite new tiara, or forgettable on the whole?

    Photos: ANNNewsCH video

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Sunday Tidbits for January 4: The Holiday Greetings Roll On

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Sunday Tidbits for January 4: The Holiday Greetings Roll On


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Royal Fashion Awards: New Year's Receptions, 2015

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    Happy New Year! We get to kick it off in style with tiaras ablaze - which is the best way to start a new calendar, if you ask me. The first day of January brings us sparkling events in Denmark and Japan and plenty of royal fashion awards to go around.

    Best in Quantity
    The Japanese Imperial Ladies
    We start in Japan, where the Emperor and Empress, accompanied by the imperial family, received New Year's greetings from dignitaries. I always find it a little tricky to comment on the gowns here, since they are all conforming to the strictest protocols and there's not really room for personal expression. But you can't beat them when it comes to sheer numbers of tiaras on display. Each woman of age that is able to attend does, and they all have at least one parure to wear. The Empress has not worn a tiara for a while now, and that continues this year, but the rest are all sparkled up and ready to go. In the mix for the first time this year is Princess Kako, daughter of the Prince and Princess Akishino and granddaughter of the Emperor and Empress. She just turned 20 and got her brand new tiara, and we'll be chatting about that in depth soon.



    Next we go to Denmark, where the royal family holds a gala banquet for members of government and other VIPs. It is always one of the most formal events, if not the most formal event, of the year, and aound their shoulders they wear the collar of the Order of the Elephant, Denmark's highest order of chivalry. Click here for a gallery.

    Most Anticipated Repeat
    Queen Margrethe
    Margrethe is big on repeating gowns and she usually picks between two tiaras for this event (the Pearl Poire or the emeralds from the crown jewels; one notable exception was the year she wore her brand new tiara). So to see those emeralds and a green lace gown we've seen several times was entirely expected. She's also quite prone to wearing this particular giant fur wrap, so everybody say hello once again to the infamous Yeti Pelt.

    Most Surprising Repeat
    Princess Marie
    Princess Marie has had a run of new gowns for this banquet in years past, so I suppose she was due for a repeat. Still, I wouldn't have guessed she'd pick this particular one, worn to Princess Madeleine and Christopher O'Neill's wedding in 2013. I quite liked it as a light choice for a summer wedding, but I'm not sure it can stand up to a heavy gold collar. She wasn't all surprise, though, as she stuck to her standard diamond floral tiara.
     
    Best in New
    Crown Princess Mary
    Flipping things around, Mary - who has worn a repeated gown for the last few years - opted for something new. And I guess my love affair with white will continue strong in 2015, because I can rarely find fault with a simple belted white gown. I love it with her evening cloak, which always makes me want to buy an evening cloak just so I could say evening cloak more often in my daily life, and I love it with the elements of the Danish ruby parure. She always wears the rubies for the New Year's banquet, and this time she's gone for the tiara, the stud earrings with pearl drops, the simplified version of the necklace, the bracelet, and the ring. Lovely, and (no surprise here at all) my favorite for the night.

    Updated to add: A video of the royal arrivals for you, below, and you can click here for a video on the terribly grand table setting for the banquet.

    Who was your best dressed from this year's opening round of sparkle?

    We return to our regularly scheduled programming on Sunday!

    Photos: ANN News video, FNN video, Julian Parker/UK Press via Getty Images

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Year in Review: 2014's Honorable Mentions

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    We've reached the end of our year in review series! We've covered the events, the tiaras, and the best outfits from each of our most frequently featured royal women. But our regular players aren't the only ones churning out great appearances, of course, and so today belongs to the other outfits worn this year that you just can't forget. A few of my favorite 2014 things...

    Charlotte Casiraghi
    Charlotte Casiraghi's partnership with Gucci is paying off in the sartorial stakes. This Gucci dress was sleek in all the right ways, with just a hint of metallic to set things off.

    I'm a sucker for a good windowpane print and this Dior hits the spot. Add in a full skirt, and I'm well and truly done for - yes, the couture queen (couture sheikha) struck again this year.

    Princess Beatrice
    This one has all my favorites: bringing another designer into the royal mix (Nicholas Oakwell), a little full skirt, white, and colorful accessories (purple shoes, hello!). A winner all around for Beatrice.

    Princess Haya
    Someone has to bring the Eliza Doolittle flavor to Ascot each year. I'm pretty sure it's written right in the rules. And Haya did so in major fashion this year, instantly winning a spot on my best of the year list.

    Hey, I did warn you about my love affair with the color white. I could go on, but we'll cap it there and turn it over to you:

    What other sartorial moments will you remember from 2014?

    Photos:  Richard Bord/Wire Image, Stuart C. Wilson, and Chris Jackson via Getty Images; Qatar News Agency/Style.com

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