Weekly Royal Fashion Awards: June 16-22, and More

Best of the Week

Little bit of this, little bit of that...

Letizia at a meeting and at a mass to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the birth of Felipe's grandfather; Mathilde at an awards ceremony; Mette-Marit and Haakon hosting a dinner; Máxima on more province visits

Some of you were disappointed in a relatively tame Ascot showing last week; I was disappointed in a tame showing from everyone else in our regular cast of characters! This isn't everything, but it is the only things that held my attention: Letizia having some summer fun with color and in her proper princess best, Mathilde in a lovely print, Mette-Marit shaking up her hairdo, and Máxima in more hats-n'-jewels (and sharing a colorful thought with Charlotte Casiraghi in Giambattista Valli - there's two royals I never thought would end up in a sartorial comparison).

In other news, Sunday was National Day in Luxembourg!

L to R: Princess Tessy, Prince Louis, Princess Alexandra, the Hereditary Grand Duchess, the Hereditary Grand Duke, the Grand Duchess, the Grand Duke

A highlight of the celebrations is the Te Deum, for which the family gets all hatted up. This year, Alexandra wore Natan, Stéphanie was in Weill, and Maria Teresa sported Armani (these courtesy of Luxarazzi, where you can satisfy all your National Day needs). The highlight? MT wore some amethysts. Not terribly enchanted with the rest, I'm afraid. In the evening, there were tiaras - and more amethysts:

Maria Teresa wore the Belgian Scroll Tiara and her repeated Elie Saab gown, and Stéphanie wore an amethyst bandeau not seen in quite some time, which is delightful!

Judging by my inbox, though, there's a different tiara entirely that many of you are quite concerned about. Over the weekend Lady Melissa Percy, daughter of the Duke and Duchess of Northumberland, married Thomas van Straubenzee, longtime friend of Princes William and Harry, in what has repeatedly been billed as the society wedding of the year. The wedding pulled in a whole mess of well-known guests, but none upstaged the bride - and she made sure of that by her choice of headgear alone.

Video: News report on the wedding

Lady Melissa wore a large scrolling diamond tiara with a base of huge round diamonds. The tiara comes from the Percy family collection, and was worn to the coronation of Elizabeth II in 1953 by the then-Duchess, who was the bride's grandmother (she can be seen in the top pictures at this link). You could say that this was a secondary tiara in the collection, though, as the more important piece was the strawberry leaf coronet which included diamonds from a sword given to the third Duke by King George IV. It was worn to the 1953 coronation by the then-Dowager Duchess, who was Mistress of the Robes to the Queen Mother, but the tiara was stolen in 1963 while she was bringing it home from the jeweler to wear for a state banquet.

This is not the same diamond tiara worn at a rakish angle by Lady Melissa's sister, Lady Katie Percy, for her 2011 wedding to Patrick Valentine, so clearly the family collection's still doing just fine. (The two brides do appear to be wearing the same diamond necklace.) You may think Melissa bit off more tiara than she could chew, but I heartily applaud her go big or go home attitude! What a gorgeous tiara we wouldn't have seen otherwise...

Who was your best dressed last week?

Photos: Getty Images/ANB/Siste/ANP/DutchPhotoPress/WENN/Charles Caratini/SIP/Cour grand-ducale/RTL

Royal Fashion Awards: Luxembourg's National Day

Let's take a quick mid-Ascot break for a jaunt to Luxembourg, shall we? It's National Day over there, and the grand ducal family's been out for two days of festivities. On Friday, Grand Duke Henri and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa visited the town of Differdange while their oldest son, the Hereditary Grand Duke, and their daughter, Princess Alexandra, visited Esch-sur-Alzette. Friday night featured a torchlight procession and fireworks. On Saturday, the family united for the Te Deum; later, the Grand Duke, Grand Duchess, and Hereditary Grand Duke were present at a military parade. And all along there were fashions and hats and uniforms, oh my!

Best in Cute

Grand Duke Henri and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa, Friday

In Differdange (left) and at the Friday evening festivities (center and right)

Oh, these two. More than thirty years of marriage, and they can still bring the awwws. Maria Teresa opted for a double dose of suits with waist ties: first, an orange accent, and in the evening, a metallic number.

Best in Repeats

Grand Duchess Maria Teresa, Saturday

We saw this Natan coat and dress and Jane Taylor hat last month at the British Jubilee festivities; it was elegant then and it's elegant now. Just goes to show you that Natan can do some lovely things, a nice reminder as we approach the October wedding of the Hereditary Grand Duke. (We don't know who is making the bride's gown yet but with the sheer quantity of Benelux ladies sure to be present, he'll be busy no matter what.)

Best in Birthday Boys

Grand Duke Henri, Saturday

National Day is the official celebration of the Grand Duke's birthday (his actual birthday is April 16th), and he was looking dapper as ever in his uniform for the Te Deum and the military review and parade afterward.

Most in Need of a Companion

Prince Guillaume

On Friday (left) and Saturday (right)

Apparently Guillaume's fiancé, Countess Stéphanie de Lannoy, the future Hereditary Grand Duchess of Luxembourg, is going to stay incognito for the time being since she's not officially a member of the family. Sad. Anyway, we did get a bit of a taste of what the wedding will bring as the Te Deum was held at the Notre-Dame Cathedral in Luxembourg City just as the wedding will be on October 20th.

Gorgeous, no? As a side note, the schedule for the wedding celebrations has been released! The civil wedding will be held in the afternoon on October 19th, followed by a gala that evening. The wedding will be the next day as previously announced, at 11 in the morning. (I'll cut to the chase: this means our best bet for a tiara event will be the gala on October 19th if at all. Guests should be in hats for the morning wedding.)

Most Improved

Princess Alexandra

On Friday (left) and Saturday (right)

Alexandra can occasionally look like she's stolen her mother's clothes, which makes this girlish pink Carolina Herrera a refreshing change for this 21-year-old. And even though I missed Stéphanie, it was nice to see Alexandra accompany her brother on Friday.

Best Villian

Princess Tessy

On Saturday

No, no, I'm NOT talking about Tessy herself, but...is this not just a wee bit like the love child of Cruella de Vil and Alexis Carrington? (Which lets me say this: the devil wears Prada.)

Best in Other Brothers

Prince Félix

Prince Félix (left) and Prince Louis (right)

Rounding out the family on Saturday were two more sons of the Grand Duke and Grand Duchess, Prince Félix and Prince Louis (Tessy is Louis' wife). Missing in action was the youngest of the five grand ducal kids, Prince Sébastian, but I doubt he could have stolen this prize from the handsome Félix anyway.

There is traditionally a gala on the evening of National Day complete with tiaras, though whether or not pictures are released is sketchy from year to year. Fingers crossed we'll see something later.

Who's your sartorial favorite this National Day?

Photos: PPE/Wort/RTL/Cour grand ducale

Royal Fashion Awards: Luxembourg's National Day

Yesterday was National Day in Luxembourg! You know how I love it when the Lux royals come out to play. The family attends the Te Deum mass, and then the Grand Duke and Hereditary Grand Duke review troops and watch a parade with the Grand Duchess. And they get all dressed up and everything:

Best Pepto Bismol

Grand Duchess Maria Teresa

THIS IS A LOT OF PINK. I like the shape on her. I certainly do like my Grand Duchess in a bit of color and a pillbox hat. And yet...THIS IS A LOT OF PINK. Also, I'm concerned that the thing on her shoulder might be trying to eat her alive.

Worst U.M.O.

Princess Tessy

What's a U.M.O., you ask? It's an Unidentified Millinery Object. I feel like if Dale Chihuly did hats, this is the hat that Dale Chihuly would do. Except that he'd do it in a rainbow, and I'd probably have to like it on principle if he did. But he didn't, so I'm out. (And so, probably, are the rest of you that have no clue what in Chihuly hell I'm on about.) I'll say this for it: girlfriend seems to be working it. And so is her husband...really, Louis? A matching tie?

Worst Raincoat
Princess Alexandra

Look how lovely Princess Alexandra is. Another Alexandra to add to my list of royals that I want to hang with. And that's why this coat pains me so. Standing still, it's passable, but in action (see her walk here)....no. Nooooo.

We usually get a picture or two of the gala (think: MT in a tiara), so I'll update when those pop up.

On the day before National Day, the family gets the party started by visiting various spots around the country: on Wednesday, the Grand Duke and Duchess visited the municipality of Niederanven, and the Hereditary Grand Duke and his sister Princess Alexandra visited Esch-sur-Alzette. Then the whole family comes out for a band performance and fireworks show in the evening.

Best in Day-Glo

Princess Alexandra

Once again, Alexandra has worn Natan, and once again, I am dubious. But this is fairly suited to her age (as far as Natan goes) so I'll buy in. If nothing else, it made her easy to spot in the crowd, right?

Best in Sparkle

Maria Teresa in the Evening

Here's MT in her (and my) beloved Elie Saab. And while I could quibble over fit and what have you, I won't. Because this is super elegant and classy. Also, it sparkles.

Best in Red

Maria Teresa in Niederanven and Tessy at the Concert/Fireworks

Looks like Maria Teresa has a red version of the purple dress we just saw in Norway! Nothing wrong with that. Nothing wrong with Tessy here, either. Looks like she might have a little military flair going on in the jacket, which I love. (Also: Louis, if you're gonna match your tie to your wife, this is the way to go about it.)

Do you have any Luxembourg favorites?

Photos: PPE/v.d.Werf/Tageblatt

Royal Fashion Awards: National Day Celebrations in Luxembourg

I'm feeling very spoiled: first, my favorite Luxembourg royals turn out in force for Victoria's wedding, and then they just roll right into National Day celebrations.  I think you already know the gentleman will be getting equal billing alongside the ladies in this very special edition of the Royal Fashion Awards.

Day 1
Guillaume and his little sister Princess Alexandra visited Esch-sur-Alzette, while their parents the Grand Duke and Grand Duchess visited Diekirch during the day.  The evening brought a fireworks display and all the rest of the family. (Almost.  Where for art thou, Félix?  You are the most delicious of them all.)

Left to Right: Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume, Princess Alexandra (she wore just the pink sleeveless dress underneath during the day), Grand Duke Henri, Grand Duchess Maria Teresa, Prince Louis, Princess Tessy, Prince Sebastien

Day 2 - Day

In the morning, the family attended a Te Deum mass, and then the Grand Ducal couple and Guillaume reviewed a military parade.

L to R: Guillaume, Alexandra, Henri, Maria Teresa, Louis, Tessy, Sebastien

Day 2 - Evening

Gala time!  Very disappointed we aren't seeing Alexandra and Tessy here; both of them made tiara appearances two years ago.

Crown Princess Victoria has this Elie Saab in gray (and we just saw it, too).  The deep blue is gorgeous with her sapphire and diamond jewels, and I think we're working a new hairstyle here.  Love it, and love the gentlemen all dapper in their uniforms.

And now, for the awards.  Drumroll, please....

The "How old are you, again?" Awards

Princess Alexandra, Day 2 - Day, and Princess Tessy - Day 1

Alexandra went woefully older than her youthful age for the Te Deum, and for proof you need look no farther than the fact that Máxima wore the exact same thing on the exact same day.  Tessy ran straight in the opposite direction for the fireworks - this is like a little girl's party dress, not something you want to see on a mother of two.

The Coco Chanel Award
Princess Tessy, Day 2 - Day

Louis's baby mama turned it on for the Te Deum, didn't she?  This is trés chic.  A little black dress, barely accessorized - it may not actually be Chanel, but it's surely worthy of praise from the Great One herself.  A great multi-use choice for Tessy, who certainly doesn't have a need to go buying outfits suited solely for royal duty.

Fiercest Pose Award
Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume, Day 1

Dare I say, this is the most attractive picture of Guillaume I've ever seen?  And I'm predisposed to finding all his pictures attractive.  The beard, the stare....oh my.  Someone had to make up for Félix's absence.  Well done, G. 

Worst Dressed
Princess Alexandra, Day 2 - Day

Oh, NATAN.  A bow flopped straight on top of the boobs is flattering only to flat-chested runway models (who, coincidentally, are not exactly NATAN's target customer).  And the yellow....is it mustard?  Or something out of either end of a sickly baby?  On its own, I'm a big fan of the hat - she's working a whole International Princess of Mystery air here - but the wide brim combined with the lines of the dress are making her shorter and wider than she really is.  Alexandra, you're a lovely girl.  But please, wait at least 10 more years before you become a full-time NATAN patron.

Best Dressed
Grand Duchess Maria Teresa, Day 2 - Day

See what happens when our Grand Duchess gets it right?  Day 1 might have included some dodgy ruching choices, but this makes it all better.  The suit is divine, and the hat gives it a retro flair - my favorite MT is the MT that gets her Eva Perón on.

UPDATE!

A video from the National Day celebrations, as referenced by Mlle. Sunshine Awesome in the comments below, is online now: view it here.  It's a very interesting watch - Maria Teresa appears at around 9.30.  I grabbed a few quick screen caps:

 The dress Alexandra is wearing has many layers, like something Mette-Marit might wear.  It has great movement.  And Tessy is shining in fuchsia, which is an excellent complement to the family's turquoise tiara she's wearing.  Alexandra appears to be wearing the same tiara she's been seen in before, the smaller of the family's floral tiaras (they have at least 2 diamond-only floral ones that I'm aware of):

Photos: PPE/Nieboer/Mark Renders/Getty Images/Cour gr ducale/C. Hommel/Belga/RTL