WEDDING FLOWERS: Sweden
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Showing posts with label Sweden. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sweden. Show all posts

Sunday Tidbits for April 26: Three Queens and More...

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Let's get right to it, shall we? Your tidbits for the week:

--Events surrounding the centenary of the Gallipoli Campaign have been covered over at the Jewel Vault, from QEII and her gang to Crown Princess Mary. [Jewel Vault]

--Update on the state of Queen Silvia's fashionably injured shoulder: Scarf slings are hot this season, as displayed at the Silvia Home's Inspiration Day. [Expressen, Kungahuset]
Kungahuset.se

--Look who stopped by London just to be cute with some flowers: Princess Beatrix! (Multitasker that she is, she also managed to fit in celebrations of the 140th anniversary of the King Willem Fund between the cuteness.) [Getty]

--This dress on Hereditary Grand Duchess Stéphanie is good...from certain views. [Luxarazzi]

--Three pieces from the fascinating Devonshire Parure are on loan to Tate Britain in London for another month as part of the exhibit Sculpture Victorious: Art in an Age of Invention, 1837-1901. [Chatsworth House, with thanks to Joyce for the tip!]

--This week in Royals Striding with Purpose (that's the title of my next blog), Crown Princess Mary celebrated the jubilee of the Maternity Foundation. [Getty]

--Crown Prince Haakon and Crown Princess Mette-Marit visited a research ship which is frozen waaaay up north in the Arctic Ocean. Their trip included an icy camp out overnight, and gave us the headline (according to my browser's stilted translation) METTE-MARIT FROZEN IN ICE FIELDS: Will probably be taken out by helicopter later today. Much like a fine white wine, you want your M-M chilled to just the right temperature before you remove her. [Se og Hør]


Lots of stuff coming up this week, including some questionable outfits that require your verdict, and also the annual King's Day in the Netherlands (which will probably also yield some questionable outfits that require your verdict, let's be honest).

Photos: via Getty Images as indicated, Twitter, Kungahuset

Royal Style Twins of the Day: April 24

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Today, we're flashing back...way back...to a week ago, in Copenhagen, where the reception for Queen Margrethe's birthday at City Hall featured some style twin moments worthy of a closer look.

First up: Crown Princess Mette-Marit and Crown Princess Victoria and their twin appearances with, uh, themselves.
Above, in Copenhagen in 2010 for Margrethe's 70th birthday, and below, also in Copenhagen for Margrethe's birthday, five years on. Mette-Marit's even wearing the same gold headband, which (as the Royal Hats Blog points out) she's worn in several different ways.
"So, whaddya think...same thing this time, except different?" "AGREED."

For the same same thing, you need look no further than the Mexican state visit to the United Kingdom a month earlier.
Mexico's first lady, Angélica Rivera de Peña, sported Mette-Marit's Alexander McQueen coat first. It's an A-line crepe coat in ivory with a double lapel detail, and the only surprising thing about this is that one of the British royal McQueen fans didn't beat both ladies to it. (Perhaps they will join the party later on. I'd love to see this one belted, just to shake it up.) Unusually for one who loves the colorful accessories, I prefer the First Lady's black touches to the Crown Princess' gold/red/nude mix in this Who wore it best? battle.

Our other twin - nay, triplet! - moment from the City Hall event comes from Crown Princess Mary and the gray hat she paired with her Oscar de la Renta coat dress.
As soon as she emerged with this chapeau, I thought it looked familiar - Kate-esque, I said - and indeed it was. From favored royal milliner Jane Taylor, this is a hat we should know well by now.
Zara Phillips sported the same gray version to Cheltenham over a year ago. She paired it with a truly unfortunate outfit that I will pretend I did not see since baby Mia was just a few weeks old at the time. But the original royal example comes from the Countess of Wessex, who wore a version in a different color and material to Ascot in 2013, paired with an Emilia Wickstead outfit in gorgeous vibrant teal. (An outfit that would get a lookalike of its own when the Duchess of Cambridge wore a similar number in New Zealand last year. It's just a chain that never ends.)
Mary's got the lock on sophistication in accessory pairing, but Sophie's version is a welcome shot of color. I'll call this one a tie and I'll take both for myself, outfits and all, thanks very much.

Your turn: Which versions of these twin appearances are your faves?

Photos: via Getty Images as indicated, Net-a-Porter, ITN video

Sunday Tidbits for April 19: The Non-Danish Event Edition

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It's been a pretty big week for royal news outside of the recent Danish festivities, so I present a totally Dane-free tidbits for your enjoyment! Except for...the times when a reference or two slips in there. You can't expect a girl to go cold turkey.

--Tatiana Santo Domingo and Andrea Casiraghi welcomed their second child! The baby girl, born on April 12, is reportedly named India. [Hello]

--In other princely news, reports say the wedding of Pierre Casiraghi and Beatrice Borromeo will be in two parts: a civil wedding in Monaco at the end of July, and a religious wedding on Lake Maggiore (where her family has a private island) on August 1st. [Hello]

--The invitations for Prince Carl Philip and Sofia Hellqvist's wedding are out! They have an orange border and are tied with an orange ribbon, perhaps a clue to the upcoming color scheme. Aftonbladet published what they claimed was a list of the invitees, which was swiftly declared incorrect by the royal court. It wasn't anything you wouldn't have guessed based on the guest list for Princess Madeleine's wedding, really. Queen Margrethe said she received an invitation in her press conference this week; she's one of Carl Philip's godparents. The invites also confirmed what most were guessing regarding dress codes: tiaras will be worn by the guests that have them at the wedding itself, and the dinner the night before will be black tie (no tiaras). The wedding is on June 13. [Svenskdam, Aftonbladet]

--Brunei had a royal wedding of their own: Prince Abdul Malik, second son of the Sultan, and Dayangku Raabi’atul ‘Adawiyyah Pengiran Haji Bolkiah celebrated their wedding earlier this month in a typically lavish and sparkling ceremony. Below is a video from their wedding banquet, where the bride wore purple and a mahooosive ruby tiara that has also been worn by Queen Saleha. [Royalista]

--We missed Grand Duchess Maria Teresa at the Danish birthday dinner, but the Luxembourg couple did release a new set of official photographs to mark Grand Duke Henri's 60th birthday. That's a great outfit on MT, no? [Luxarazzi]
© 2015 Cour grand-ducale / Christian Aschman / tous droits réservés

--And we also missed Queen Sonja, so here she is in New York City, where she opened an exhibition and attended the American-Scandinavian Foundation Gala Dinner. The brooch hanging from her pearl necklace was one of Queen Maud's wedding gifts. [Zimbio]

--Over at the Jewel Vault: another new/new-to-us brooch for QEII!

--And finally... They've released pictures of Prince Harry at work in Australia, and it's good to see that they've followed the basic rules for any Harry publicity: uniforms and cute kids. And while you're in a punch-drunk Harry mood, the Fug Girls present "25 Reasons Harry Should Give You High Hopes for Royal Baby 2.0." [Telegraph, Cosmopolitan]

Photos: Cour grand-ducale and via Getty Images

Royal Fashion Awards: Queen Margrethe's Fredensborg Birthday Dinner

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The last event of Queen Margrethe's birthday fiesta was a dinner at Fredensborg Palace, not to be confused with the dinner at Christiansborg Palace last night. Did you think we were going to repeat our palaces in the same birthday celebration? Don't be ridiculous.

I had hope that this evening's black tie dinner would be a tiara event. (A similar dinner back in 2010 was with tiaras, for example.) That hope, however, was dashed. SO CRUELLY DASHED. My faith in Margrethe's capacity for sartorial splendor has been shaken to its very core! How will we ever recover from this travesty??

Alright, I'm over it. Let's work with what we've got:

Most Side Eye in Accessories
Queen Margrethe
Sorry, birthday girl, but I'm giving you the side eye real hard here. The accessorizing, specifically - it was a great dress when she wore it to the Dutch state visit, and it still is now. But it's got cool and muted tones, and that turquoise and gold set is all kinds of bright and warm, and the contrast is making me cringe. (The necklace was a birthday gift from Prince Henrik, a new addition to her modern turquoise set which includes pieces he gave her for previous birthdays. Which is fantastic - and the necklace is the best piece of the set! - but still not at its best with this dress.) She also snuck a piece of the Floral Aigrette Tiara in her hair. Ordinarily I'd be all over that, but instead, I'm just wondering why she didn't just make the dinner a tiara thing and let the other ladies play too. It's possible I'm not entirely over it.


Most Likely Best
Crown Princess Mary
Even my faith in Mary's ability to pull off a great outfit is shaken. I think I like this one...I might even like the center part low ponytail. Hmm. I reserve the right to change my judgement.


Most Overshadowed
Princess Marie
Here's Marie again, looking fine again. But I'm not looking at her, I'm looking at Hef over there.


Most...Floatiest
Princess Benedikte
Just go with it, okay? Floaty is the only word I've got for this dress, and you wouldn't have been able to stop me from swooping around with my wings fluttering behind me right in the middle of dinner. That's why she's the princess and I am NOT. (One of the many reasons...)


Most Confusing
Queen Anne-Marie
I thought this was the same dress she wore to yesterday's dinner. But it's not. It's very slightly different. Used up those Best in Usual titles a little too soon, I guess.


Most on the Mend
Queen Silvia
I think the latest addition to our ongoing saga of Silvia and her attempts to stylishly heal her shoulder is a scarf cover for whatever device she's chosen this time. I don't know. Sil, you're adorable.

Most Typical
Crown Princess Mette-Marit
I originally posted this as Most Mysterious, because M-M sure did a good job evading the television camera. But sure enough, it's just another typical Mette-Marit flower power frock by Giambattista Valli.


Most Welcome Relief
Crown Princess Victoria
If we can't have tiaras, at least we have Elie Saab. (Her sister's Elie Saab, to be precise.) And on that sigh of relief...

...we're done! Do scroll through and make sure you haven't missed any of the events. We'll return to our regularly scheduled programming on Sunday.

Who was your best dressed at the Fredensborg dinner?

Photos:via Getty Images as indicated, DR1 video, Elie Saab

Royal Fashion Awards: Queen Margrethe’s Birthday, Day Events

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A morning wake up call with song (and canons!) marked the start of Queen Margrethe’s actual birthday, and the busiest day of birthday festivities. Our visiting royals are now down to the fellow Nordic monarchs, with the addition of Crown Princess Victoria, Prince Daniel, Crown Prince Haakon, and Crown Princess Mette-Marit.
Margrethe's morning wake up
Some quality balcony time with the whole family and their guests was followed by a carriage ride through Copenhagen for the Queen and the Crown Prince and Crown Princess, who were standing in for Prince Henrik, still sick with the flu. With hats in place, they convened at Copenhagen’s Town Hall for a round of interpretive dance (because hey, why not) and a reception. Meanwhile, we convene for our next round of royal fashion awards…


Best of All, Birthday or Not
Queen Margrethe
Actual, audible awws from me when Daisy stepped out on the balcony, in this fresh color, flattering cut, and her whopper of a diamond daisy brooch, made from her grandmother’s stones for her mother and subsequently given to her. She’s the best dressed of them all, and that’s not just a birthday given.


Best in Accessory Additions
Crown Princess Mary
Mary reused a gorgeous navy Oscar de la Renta coat dress with an embellished neckline, and I loved that she went with gray accessories instead of trying to coat herself in navy from head to toe. I also loved her hat, which looked quite familiar and for good reason: Zara Phillips has worn the same one, and the Countess of Wessex has worn a similar model. It’s by Jane Taylor.


Biggest in Accessory Additions
Princess Marie
I speak not, obviously of her hat – which still did not manage to stay on the good side of the wind gods despite its wee stature – but of her brooch. Everyone wore commemorative birthday medals, but Marie added an enormous bird on the other side. I'm loving that choice with this outfit, actually, just wishing that pesky medal wasn't competing. (But I suppose politeness has to win every now and then, le sigh.)


Best in Sisters
Princess Benedikte and Queen Anne-Marie
Yeah, I’m running out of ways to say they’re typical as always, these two. They both had fab ruby earrings, and Benedikte wore her famous koosh ball hat, and that's all I got.


Most Dubious in Hats, Part 1
Crown Princess Mette-Marit
Is this a prop from The Tudors, or what? This has to be a prop of some sort. Yeah, from the same Gothic horror set that gives us those skull earrings, perhaps.
Otherwise, M-M in white, check and check.


Most Continued Sartorial Dedication
Queen Silvia
And how did Queen Sil accommodate her arm injury today? A purple cape. A PURPLE CAPE. Omigod. She's going to force me to declare her my favorite royal of EVER by the time this is done, isn't she.


Most Dubious in Hats, Part 2
Crown Princess Victoria
Points for a Georg Jensen daisy brooch, okay, but that hat. Hmm. I thought it was just a novelty, a little sentimental touch, when she imitated an old hat of her mother’s at Princess Leonore’s christening. But now there’s a second version in white. It's not terrible or anything, but...this is the hat you bulk buy, V? Really?
Also shown: Victoria's Chanel dress, runway version

And that's that!

But it's not really that, because there is one more birthday event left to come: a dinner at Fredensborg Palace. The open post is still up and running with all your live link info and a place to chat about that if you like.

But as far as this post is concerned...

Who was your best dressed at the day events?


Photos: via Getty Images as indicated, DR1 video, Lyst, Jane Taylor Millinery, Style.com

Royal Fashion Awards: Queen Margrethe’s Christiansborg Birthday Dinner

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Queen Margrethe and the Danish royal family were joined for an official dinner for her 75th birthday by fellow European sovereigns, and: YAY. That's all I have to say. Well, I have quite a lot more to say, as you will see from this lengthy and picture-laden entry, but that's the gist of it.

A couple notes: If we’ve covered these jewels in the past (and we usually have!), there will be a link. Most of these people are wearing the light blue Order of the Elephant from Denmark, which is usually given to sovereigns and their spouses, plus those in the Danish family. If foreign royals are wearing a different sash, it’s because they haven’t had a chance to receive the Order of the Elephant yet (they’re usually given at state visits, and occasionally at other times; here's my explainer post on that).

Now, to the awards:

Best in Coincidences
Queen Margrethe
Tuesday’s post featured a flashback to an epic Margrethe outfit using the Floral Aigrette Tiara and pieces of the ruby, diamond, and pearl set from the crown jewels – and that’s precisely what she gave us again! And in a flowing red dress, because why not? She is the birthday girl, after all. (And she flew solo, because Henrik is out with the flu.)


Best in Repeats
Crown Princess Mary
You saw me die over this Birgit Hallstein gown when Mary wore it previously. And then you saw me die over it in another format when Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt wore something similar to the New Year’s Court in 2014. And here we go again! Mary paired it this time with the tiara, small earrings, bracelet, and hair clips from the Danish Ruby Parure. This is both stunning and understated – in other words, the perfect choice. And in an inadvertent twin episode, PM Helle wore her version again, too!
Helle Thorning-Schmidt on the right

Best in Old Favorites, Part 1
Princess Marie
Marie loves a good peplum gown and she loves her Diamond Floral Tiara (which is her only solid option for an event like this, having just one other tiara at her disposal which is much more informal), so this navy lace peplum and tiara combo was entirely expected. But it’s also entirely lovely! She's also wearing a brooch from Queen Alexandrine as a pendant, so she's fully loaded with her family heirlooms.

Best in Old Favorites, Part 2
Queen Anne-Marie
I almost did another flashback to the birthday celebrations in 2010 today, which would have featured this exact same gown and Greek Emerald Parure pairing on Anne-Marie. She wears the heck out of her gowns and she wears the heck out of those emeralds, and I can’t say I blame her on either count.

Best in Beach Cover-Up Gravitas
Princess Benedikte
On anyone else, this floaty top layer would be a swimsuit cover-up, tossed on as they flew in from a day at the beach. But Princess B. can carry anything off, and now it's magically part of a gala gown (mind you, the Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg Fringe Tiara and a solid smattering of diamonds doesn't hurt, either!).

Best in Extended Tiaras
Countess Sussie and Princess Elisabeth
Married to Count Ingolf of Rosenborg, cousin to the Queen, Countess Sussie (on the left) usually brings us a sighting of Queen Alexandrine’s Fringe Tiara, and so it is here. Also a cousin of Queen Margrethe, Princess Elisabeth (on the right) usually brings us a sighting of Princess Thyra’s Sapphire Tiara, and so it was yet again. File both these tiaras under "not a fave, but lovely to see."

Best in Solo Gentlemen
King Harald and Grand Duke Henri
I make no excuses for paying more attention to the ladies around here, but a little love for the gents in attendance without their better halves: Harald and Henri! Dashing in their uniforms all on their own (and I love Harald completing the Scandinavian Sovereign Trio there, which should be the name of their a cappella group). An engagement in New York is occupying Queen Sonja, and I'm not sure what happened to Grand Duchess Maria Teresa.

Best in Splendor Dedication
Queen Silvia
Silvia injured her shoulder a while back, and it appeared she had some sort of support fashioned out of her dress material for her bad arm, not for one second risking her sartorial splendor for some random injury. THIS IS TRUE DEDICATION, PEOPLE. All the applause to you, Queen Sil. (And to your fabulous Leuchtenberg Sapphires too!)

Best in Big Guns
Queen Mathilde
Together with her almost unbearably shiny repeated Armani Privé gown, Mathilde gave us a tiara debut: the full version of the Nine Provinces Tiara! She's worn the bandeau, but this was the first time she's added the top arches in. I think this might be the first time I've actually liked this pointy wall of diamonds, so credit to Mathilde for making that happen.

Most Meh in Understated
Queen Máxima
Well, she can’t bear full responsibility for bringing the jumpy claps every single time, I suppose. And leave it to Máxima to wear a tiki hut skirt and still make my understated list, eh? She went standard with the Diamond Bandeau Tiara, her favorite, but she did pin the brooch from the Stuart Tiara parure to her waist. She's just teasing us, at this point, keeping us waiting for an appearance of the elusive beast itself.

Best in NEW TIARAS!
Queen Letizia
Never mind that Máx went standard, Letizia picked up the slack with an elusive tiara of her own! Made by Ansorena and reportedly a gift from Felipe, we've been waiting years to see this one in action. The center brooch has been seen, but not the tiara. It was nearing apocryphal status, for heaven’s sake, but a foreign tiara engagement proved the perfect place to finally bring it out of hiding.
We will have to give this one the full Tiara Thursday treatment later on (a couple Spanish articles about the tiara: one, two).
I'm reserving judgement until then. But for now, for simply showing us something I had completely given up on, she wins all the jumpy claps!

Stay tuned...the festivities continue with a full day of events tomorrow and another dinner tomorrow. For now:

Who was your best dressed at this dinner?

Photos: Julian Parker/UK Press via Getty Images, DR1 video, Ansorena

Royal Outfit Grab Bag of the Day: April 15

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Look!
Queen Letizia attended the 2nd Congress of Rare Childhood Diseases yesterday.
See, I haven't forgotten that people exist outside of Denmark.
She also visited the Artillery Military Academy this week.
I'm just holding on because the promise of a big royal gathering is a lot more interesting than some of the other stuff that's been going on, see. This Hugo Boss red coat is the highlight of Letizia's recent outings, all of which have been perfectly fine but not much else.

Sofia Hellqvist, Queen Silvia, King Carl Gustaf, and Crown Princess Victoria attended the Global Child Forum Partners' Day.
Over in Sweden, I spy one of my favorite current Victoria outfits, a rainbow-licious Preen dress, but it's all covered up. So the most notable thing here is simply that this is Sofia's first royal event without Prince Carl Philip at her side.

King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima attended the Koningsdag Concert yesterday.
And here's Máxima in a lovely blue houndstooth dress from Michael Kors, but yet again, the clothes aren't the highlight. Watch the video. Could Willem-Alexander be any cuter here? He could not, I tell you.

We'll be back later with an open post for those that want to chat about the Danish festivities, so stay tuned!

Photos: via Getty Images as indicated, Kungahuset.se

Sunday Tidbits for April 5: Dizziness and More on Your Easter Sunday

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Happy Easter to all you Easter-celebratin' types! Just a few tidbits for your Sunday fun:

--Here's the official joint monogram for Prince Carl Philip and Sofia Hellqvist, designed in part by Carl Philip himself. It's very...swirly. Excessive scrutiny may cause dizziness. [Kungahuset]

--Speaking of dizziness: Here's Prince Harry, flying upside down in a Spitfire. [BBC]

--Dutch Princesses Margriet and Laurentien joined forces with Belgium's Princess Astrid and her daughter-in-law Elisabetta for the awarding of the Princess Margriet Award for Culture this week. [Paris Match, Telegraaf video]

--Says it all right in the title: The Violent, Royal Story of How Tartan Became Your Favorite Plaid. [Jezebel]

--Here's Luxarazzi on the details behind one of the most interesting (and big!) brooches worn in Luxembourg. [Luxarazzi]

--And finally, we had a corgi race, why not one with lambs too? The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall are celebrating their 10th wedding anniversary this week, and we will be (and have been already) celebrating over at the Jewel Vault. Stay tuned over there! [Express]

And stay tuned over here too, as we have Easter stuff and more coming your way this week! (The scoop on QEII's Easter gems can already be found at the Vault, as always...)

Photos: Kungahuset, Telegraaf video, via Getty Images
Royal Flashback of the Week: April 3

Royal Flashback of the Week: April 3

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Queen Margrethe's 70th birthday celebrations in 2010 gave us one of the most fun royal photo ops in recent years, when Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary rounded up the other "heir couples" (as they were at the time) in attendance and went for a jolly little stroll across the cobblestones on their way to the last big event of the multi-day party, a private dinner for Queen Margrethe at Fredensborg Palace (you can see video of this here).
L to R: Princess Máxima and the Prince of Orange, the Crown Princess and Crown Prince of Norway, the Crown Princess of Sweden and Daniel Westling, the Crown Princess and Crown Prince of Denmark
This dinner had a black tie n' tiaras dress code, which I always love because 1) tiaras and 2) gowns that don't have to hold up to an array of orders and whatnot are often a lot more interesting. And sure enough, these ladies were up to the task in gowns that were the perfect thing for a tiara opportunity without all the extra clutter (...well, for the most part).
Mary wore a one shoulder teal Kenth Fredin dress with flattering draping across the body. This was one of her first "proper princess" gowns, a repeat worn to the couple's engagement dinner in 2003, and it's always been a hit. She paired it this time with the Midnight Tiara, earrings, and brooch, and this gown is the best match that set has met yet (in my un-humble and slightly rhyming opinion).
Mette-Marit's Nina Skarra dress was a fresh take on all the things she loves: a fresh petal-like take on her beloved ruffle skirts, and a fresh take on her pastel repertoire with a bright pink belt on that icy blue background. She revamped this gown last year, changing the bodice and adding sleeves and removing the belt, making it more useful as a gala gown to support her sashes and such but making me miss the original take. She wore her standard Diamond Daisy Tiara with this. (Moment of silence for an all-time great tiara hair moment. Amen.)
Máxima wore this spectacular Carolina Herrera blue floral one shoulder gown, which would have been too much in most gala situations, but was just right with a sprinkling of sapphires and the Dutch Sapphire Necklace Tiara. I've been hoping she'd become a big Herrera customer ever since, but I'm still waiting.
And finally, Victoria, my least favorite of the lot in prison break BCBG Max Azria stripes. She did not wear a tiara, sticking a family heirloom brooch in her hair instead. The sportiness of this dress makes it a hard match to any sort of delicate jewelry, and I can only think the Diamond Bandeau might have done the trick. Anyway, this appearance was so fun, even a tiara lover like me can get over that real quick. I don't have my hopes up too high for a repeat of this little jaunt anytime soon, but if we got one, I'd give it all the jumpy claps.

Photos: via Getty Images as indicated

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