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

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

State Visit and Tiara Watch of the Day (Part 2!): March 19

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The state visit fun continues, and we shall forgo our usual tiara feature in favor of another lengthy state visit recap! (Gotta feast while you can, right? One never knows when the famine will return.)

First up, day two of the Danish/Dutch state visit, featuring King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima out and about with Crown Prince Frederik and Crown Princess Mary.
Máxima is a tailored Indiana Jones and Mary is a von Trapp on the lam and they are ready for an ADVENTURE and is it too much to ask that they take me with them??? I'm too busy plotting a movie staring these two as renegade explorers on a high stakes quest to bother complaining about the lack of color on hand here.
Máx conquered the wild Danish frontier in a Claes Iversen camel coat with LK Bennett shoes and a Fabienne Delvigne fedora. Mary rode alongside in a fedora of her own with a gray cape/poncho/thing which I need in the worst way and her tall taupe Valentino boots which I also need in the worst way. The gentlemen were also present. They wore suits.

Hang on, got an idea for that movie plot: Máxima Jones and The Quest for the Return Dinner Tiaras.
Yeah, no tiaras for us at last night's event. But Máxima continued to hit up that Dutch/Danish connection with another Claes Iversen design, the best one of the trip (and I say that as someone who doesn't particularly care for orange). She added a nice big diamond collet necklace, because this is MAX we're talking about, but the dress sparkled on its own.
Máx's outfit is an easy thumbs up, but I can't say the same for Mary's repeated empire waist ruffled black thing. The big gold Portuguese earrings are the only thing I'm enthusiastic about here, so I give it a meh overall.
Other things I'm not particularly feeling: Princess Marie's ensemble. The geometric sparklies are reading very dated to me on the top here. (For a video with Marie in full plus other attendees like Princess Benedikte and Princess Elisabeth, click here.)
Queen Margrethe is also not rousing my enthusiasm - that color is...not a favorite - but HOLD UP is Henrik really wearing a purple tux jacket or is that the light? Doesn't matter, he WINS. Game over.

Across the sea, another state visit was in progress - and this one did take care of our tiara needs. Travel with me to Norway...
president.lv
...where the President of Latvia just arrived yesterday for a state visit. Mette-Marit at the welcome ceremony is turning me into one of those people that gets twitchy about dress vs. coat length with her Valentino ruffle overload. Also, Sonja's hat is...interesting.
Mette-Marit's Valentino coat and dress
The evening state banquet delivered our tiara watch for the day. The Latvian president somewhat awkwardly sported his Norwegian order (there's a reason the riband isn't usually worn with black tie, and this is it right here), and the royal family wore their Latvian orders, and they all basically look the same unless you squint.
This is another of Queen Sonja's frequent repeats, and it is...also interesting. Gotta do something with your fabric scraps, I suppose. Anyway, she wore the big version of Queen Maud's Pearl and Diamond Tiara. More importantly, Mette-Marit wore a new white dress with the Amethyst Necklace Tiara and the necklace (click here for more)!!
It's like she knew there weren't going to be any tiaras in Denmark, and she threw us a bone by leaving Ye Olde Diamond Daisy Tiara at home for a change. Bless.

Photos: via Getty Images as indicated, Billed Bladet video, Latvia President, Valentino

Royal Wedding of the Week: February 6

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You know how I love a royal wedding on a Friday. This week, I'm in the mood for the wedding of Willem-Alexander and Máxima, and I'm dragging you down the procrastination black hole with me. I just love this one! It's got one of my favorite wedding gowns, a lot of emotion, and a whole lot more laughter than your average royal wedding. The big event went down on 2-2-2002, and we've covered it a few times in the past: the Valentino couture dress, the guests, the pre-wedding guests. I've shared video from the nuptials but I don't think we've had an all out re-watching extravaganza before, so let's do this thing (key parts embedded below, with links to extras):



5. The religious wedding. If you've only got time to watch one video, make it this one: the overhead view at the beginning is stunning, and the gorgeous tango (Adiós Nonino) performed in honor of the bride's Argentine roots is all the more touching when you recall that her parents were not in attendance.

6. For their exit and trip in the fabulous gold coach, click here.

7. And finally, the balcony scene. Classic, and a must for every proper royal wedding.

Happy Friday!

Potential Royal Couture of the Day: January 30

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It's Couture Week in Paris, where the Spring 2015 Haute Couture shows have been laying on the luxury. A quick rundown of some royal favorites today, and an opportunity to gaze at some pretty and pick your wish list for sightings on the royal runway. Click the designer names to see the whole collection.

Always the royal favorite, we're sure to see some of this on display at some point. This collection starts with Russian-inspired patterns which remind me of Crown Princess Mette-Marit's ability to take any folk art-type thing and give it a Scandinavian flair, and ends with some gowns that take the romance a bit too far by indulging in actual words flying across the fabric (something which always and forever feels gimmicky to me). The romantic angle does get me wondering if we'll see any more Valentino couture royal wedding gowns in 2015, though. Finally, we must note that there's plenty here that would make Sheikha Mozah happy, and there ought to be since the Qatari royal family owns the company.

I'm not sure midriffs and millinery have ever coexisted anywhere as much as they do in this season's Chanel show, but I am now officially eager to see what Princess Caroline and crew make of their next hat-wearing occasion.

I know some of you like to use the dependability of Elie Saab as a mark against his collections, but that's why I love them - always, without fail, pretty. We have some larger scale patterns this season, which are a nice break from the smaller scale and overall embellishment we've seen in past couture shows. There are some major gowns on display, gowns that make me wish the next Nobel Prize ceremony was next month instead of next December so Crown Princess Victoria could bring the label back up on stage. But a more likely appearance for these gems will be on the Luxembourg ladies, so let's get some gala occasions for them ASAP.

A few more fashion houses we might just see on the royal parade:
  • Giambattista Valli's got the florals that make Mette-Marit's knees go weak.
  • Ulyana Sergeenko has outfitted Sheikha Mozah in the past.
  • Ditto for Ralph & Russo. I'd like to see the Duchess of Cambridge try out this UK-based label, but this collection doesn't feel much like her.
  • Can't say I'm a big fan of the latest from Christian Dior, but most of what we see on the royal ladies (mainly Princess Charlene and Queen Mathilde, thanks to Dior's Belgian designer) is bespoke anyway.
And more! Indulge in the pretty on your Friday.

Photos: Style.com

Royal Holiday of the Day: December 29

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Hello again! I hope your celebrations - if you were celebrating - were plenty merry. Better late than never, we have a couple royal Christmas celebrations to check in with today.

In Denmark, Queen Margrethe packed the house (er, palace, Fredensborg Palace to be precise) with family this Christmas. For the first time since 2006, her two sisters, Queen Anne-Marie and Princess Benedikte, and most of their associated families joined the Danish royal family for the holiday. The result is one impressive group portrait:
Photo: Steen Brogaard
Nothing says Christmas quite like a game of who's who with the family photo. Extra snaps to Queen Margrethe and Prince Henrik and their color coordination.

Over in Britain, at Sandringham, the Windsors gathered for the holiday and made their traditional Christmas church run, starting with the Queen in the brightest color of them all.
Her unusual brooch choice as well as her Christmas broadcast have both been covered at the Jewel Vault, as always.
Princess Anne led the charge, as it should be, but she and her mother were alone in their colorful coats. We needed those shots of color, really, because most of the rest of the family defaulted to their favorite neutrals.
Princess Beatrice sported a RED Valentino coat, previously worn to Ascot, and some serious shoes that leave me applauding her shoe spirit if nothing else. (Let me update this to add: RED Valentino is a brand, an offshoot of Valentino, and not a reference to the color of her clearly un-red coat, for those of you that think I've gone color blind.)
The Duchess of Cambridge looked nice and cozy in a long Moloh coat, but I have to admit I preferred Autumn Phillips' touch of fur when it came to added winter warmth.
She and Princess Eugenie, with a welcome dose of pink in her hat, took my best dressed prize (apart from QEII, who as always is on her own level), but it was a pretty average showing on the sartorial front. To be expected, really. But the Countess of Wessex was determined to make up for it with her showing at church the Sunday after...
I mean, Sandringham is a hunting estate. Maybe she took this bad boy down herself.

That's all for now, folks. We're heading back into our semi-hiatus and will return at the end of the week for the year's first tiara events, the sparkling New Year's Courts!

Year in Review: Kate and Mette-Marit's 2014 Bests

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Each year, I like to pick a single Best of the Year outfit for each of the royal ladies we check in with most frequently. I chose these two royal ladies to kick things off because of one big similarity: I had a really hard time picking a best for both of them.

The Duchess of Cambridge
The thing about Kate is that she's a very consistent dresser. This works in her favor most of the time - nothing came to mind when I started pondering what her worst of the year would be, for example - but it sure did make it hard for me to pick any one thing that stood out as the year's best. I was tempted to name the recently reused Packham, but honestly that would have been because it gave us her two biggest jewel moments for the year and not because of the dress. So I flipped back through the year and emerged with this one in mind:
It almost feels too ordinary to be the year's best, if you know what I mean - and you will, once you see how many gowns make my list as we roll on - but I love the clean silhouette and the poppy print. It's also among the fruits of the Cambridge's New Zealand/Australia tour, certainly one of 2014's most memorable royal trips. So there you go: L.K. Bennett and blue poppies it is!

Crown Princess Mette-Marit
Mette-Marit stumped me for a different reason. You see, she usually turns up the volume and does her best sartorial work at international royal events, so I automatically start there when it comes to looking for her best of the year. But this year...we didn't really have any such events! So we're left with her events at home, which was a lot of similar day outfits, most of the Pia Tjelta by Ti Mo collection, and a handful of repeated gowns, sometimes revamped but leaving me longing for the original. Le sigh.
So I settled on a Valentino coat worn during the celebrations for the anniversary of Norway's constitution, a piece I like so much I picked it when it came time for her closet raid. I'm having a bit of a love affair with white this year, and nobody does it better than M-M, so it feels right after all. 

Your turn: What were your 2014 Kate and Mette-Marit favorites?

Photos: L.K. Bennett and CPL Shannon McCarthy / © Commonwealth of Australia, Department of Defence,  NRK.no/Style.com/Stortinget

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