Royal Outfit of the Day: September 30

Royal Outfit of the Day: September 30

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Video: This weekend, Queen Mathilde and daughter Princess Elisabeth attended the Genee International Ballet Competition in Antwerp.

I should like this. Full skirt with an unexpected and interesting tone on tone enlarged snake print detail, killer earrings (look at the sparkle on video!). And yet. AND YET.

Royal Blog - Photos - Mathilde de Belgique et sa fille Élisabeth, réunies pour le plus beau des... http://t.co/o8Geksh9Ll @Royal_Matcher
— Paris Match (@ParisMatch) September 29, 2014

Click the link above for a gallery.

Well, this falls into all the sneaky traps of using shiny fabric, doesn't it? Each wrinkle, each area that could use better tailoring, it all gets magnified. The high neckline and unadorned front make one serious wall o' shine. It just seems...stiff, on the whole.

Queen Mathilde & Princess Elisabeth @ finale of Genée International #Ballet Competition #Antwerpen @RADheadquarters pic.twitter.com/QrVCwdiEF0
— Place Royale (@RTLPlaceRoyale) September 28, 2014

I'd probably love this in coat form, so you could have a non-shiny dress underneath to break things up, or maybe if the neckline wasn't so high and plain. What say you?

Royal Outfit of the Day: May 14

Royal Outfit of the Day: May 14

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Mary Donaldson attended a banquet hosted by Queen Margrethe at Christiansborg Palace before her 2004 wedding to the Crown Prince.

We've been covering a few of the guests at Frederik and Mary's wedding (with more to come) since this week marks their tenth wedding anniversary, but today we're stepping back a few days to cover a Great Moment in Tiara History: Mary's first ever tiara appearance. (!) You have to love the Danish royals for sticking to their tiara guns - even before wearing a tiara for her wedding, Mary had worn the Danish Ruby Parure for this event and then for the gala concert. Since she was wearing the rubies twice in just a couple days (!), she took two different approaches: emphasizing the rubies with her red gown for the concert worn with her hair down, and emphasizing the diamonds with this number from Malene Birger, worn with her hair up. The gown is a richly patterned silver fabric, almost the palest of ice blues, with a slim front silhouette and a train at the back, topped by a black ribbon and rosette detail.

Video: The banquet

(You should watch that video. If not for Mary, then for this:

Oh Daisy, you glorious creature.)

It's hard to imagine the thoughts that must have been swirling through Mary's head here. (Primarily: How can my sleeves ever possibly measure up?) In her own words:

"That first evening when I wore the ruby set, there was so much new, there was so much overwhelming for me. It wasn't just the jewelry, it was the significance of the whole event, of the whole period, of the whole time which I was going through. So I don't really think I thought so much about what I had on in terms of jewelry except that it felt new and somewhat unusual to have such a significant piece of jewelry on. Everything that was going on at that time was part of a very new and overwhelming time. I mean it wasn't just the jewelry, it was also the dress, I mean I had never worn a dress like this before...the whole thing was overwhelming." - Crown Princess Mary, speaking in the documentary De Kongelige Juveler

Needless to say, she handles it like proper royal champ. Me, I would be doing cartwheels. Mental cartwheels, actually, but only because I'd fall over if I tried the real thing.

Photos: Polfoto/DR1

Royal Outfit of the Day: March 31

Royal Outfit of the Day: March 31

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Princess Charlene attended the Rose Ball with the princely family. She wore a blue Akris gown and diamond and sapphire earrings made to match her Ocean Necklace/Tiara. Also in attendance was Princess Caroline, wearing Chanel, right down to the sneakers.

I was all about Charlene's dress - she looks fabulous, really - until I saw what's happening at the bottom. (Can we kill this sheer trend? Can we kill it with fire?) I have thus decided to pretend this look only exists from the waist up.

The rest of the crew was there, including a princess-y Beatrice Borromeo and Chanel-clad Princess Caroline and Charlotte Casiraghi. Click here for a gallery. And yes, your eyes do not deceive you - Caroline was sporting the same sneakers Karl Lagerfeld (designer of the ball) sent down the runway not so long ago, and my prediction that she'd be the royal to try these out came true. I guess she was injured, since she was using a cane, but let's be honest: she didn't need a reason for these.

Photos: Reuters/Getty/Palais Princier/Style.com

Royal Outfit of the Day: February 20

Royal Outfit of the Day: February 20

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King Philippe and Queen Mathilde continued their introductory country visits, spending the day in Italy. Mathilde wore a custom layered Armani dress and jacket with a matching hat. The fabric was seen in different form on the runway at the latest Armani Privé couture show (shown upper right corner).

She wore Armani - of course she wore Armani, she and Queen Paola both have a tradition of using Armani for special events, and this fits the special event definition. Mathilde's really been going all out with these last few introductory visits, and using an Italian designer in Italy fits in perfectly. I would rank this as the most sophisticated look we've seen yet.

Photos: RTL/VTM/Getty/Style.com