All this wedding chatter, and we haven't even gotten to the most delicious part: the jewels on display. This affair may not have been anything like
Sweden's wedding on the gem scale, but there were plenty of ladies that brought the sparkle. And they deserve to be recognized for their dedication, don't you think?
First, we had lots of brooches on parade at the
pre-wedding dinner.
You know you have a spectacular collection when you can come up with the perfect complement to a gown of any color. Well played, Princess Michael.
On the necklace front, Julia Ogilvy and Tatiana brought some interesting designs out to play.
Choker-type jewels were bountiful, on Margrethe and Sonja above and on these ladies:
Anne's wearing a family jewel with quite a lot of history to it - Empress Marie Feodorovna's Sapphire Choker - and Alexandra's dipped into history as well in a choker once belonging to her mother. Interesting Alexandra tidbit: she wasn't wearing this when she arrived, but she was when she left. What happened there? Carrying it around in her purse to assess the bling on the other ladies before jumping full in? Most curious. Camilla and Anne-Marie I'm including not because they're particularly sparkly, but because I know we have some pearl fanatics in the house. Just for you, kids.
In the truly impressive necklace category:
No surprise to see the Queen in an impressive diamond tassel necklace, the size of her collection is staggering. But it was fantastic to see Mathilde in such a shiny gem, since her collection isn't that large. Sophie pulled a shocker too in one the most impressive necklaces she's ever worn, if you can get past the dress neckline to focus on it properly. And perhaps this is the reason the Duchess of Gloucester wore so much gray - she wanted to let her emeralds shine. An admirable motive.
At the wedding itself, I had no expectations of impressive gems. After all, it was a day affair. Of course you have the brooch brigade:
Queen Elizabeth wore her True Lover's Knot brooch, which was one of Queen Mary's gems - a selection sentimental in name, if nothing else. Margrethe went with one of her Georg Jensen daisy numbers, an obvious choice for the woman they call Daisy. Serena Linley and Crown Princess Victoria went for delicate pieces, and Camilla had a few smaller gems pinned on to pair with her underwhelming pearls. I don't know about you, but any occasion on which Camilla fails to bust out her
pearl choker with the big ol' pink stone on it is a missed opportunity in my book.
Much to my utter surprise and glee, a few ladies did bring their big guns to the wedding. First we have Máxima, of course. You know our magpie never misses an opportunity to shine, and here she is with a diamond riviere necklace, diamond earrings, and diamond stars stuck to her hat. Bless her heart.
The biggest surprise of the whole wedding affair, jewel wise, and the award for Best Magpie, goes to a shocker: Princess Mathilde! The Belgian ladies aren't known for their gems (they just don't have a big collection anymore, poor dears) so to see Mathilde was a true delight. That's her tiara, worn as a necklace. Plus a brooch and earrings. She wore a tiara! To a non-tiara day event! That's it, I'm officially joining the Mathilde fan club. Somebody get me a membership card.
Now, hold on before you jump down to the comments, because I can hear you all the way over here: WHERE IS THE BRIDE?? Well, that, my friends is what Tiara Thursdays are for. Until tomorrow...
