My favorite royal of the year...drumroll please...is Princess Isabella of Denmark. Awww yeah. From Isabella's entertaining antics to the grouchy stylings of Grace van Cutsem, this year seemed to bring an extra dose of moments when important grown-up royal happenings were paused for a dose of cuteness. I'm all for anyone that doesn't take everything so freaking seriously all. the. time.
My favorite royal trend of the year...has to be all the love for the not-so-popular royals. The Windsors have, for a very long time, been the best-known and most popular royal family, internationally speaking. But this year, some of that extra attention thrown their way seems to have spilled over to some of the other royal families on the block. My inbox fills more and more with requests to feature non-European royals here on this site (I'll be working on that in the new year, I promise). As someone who has always needed more bling and action than the British royal family alone can provide, I give this movement a big ol' round of jumpy claps.
My favorite royal couple of the year...is definitely Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip. There were lots of wonderful tours this year: the Cambridges in North America, a whole bunch of visits from the Dutch royals, the Danes in Australia. But I think my favorites have been those undertaken by Queen Elizabeth and the Duke of Edinburgh. They received a warm welcome in Australia and made a truly historic stop in Ireland that seemed to reaffirm just why the Queen is the best in the run up to her diamond jubilee year. And sartorially speaking, it's always nice to feature her here. We debate so much, and people take such strong stands on the other royals; the warmth that her lifetime pass brings out is wonderful to see. More, please, in the Year of the Diamond Jubilee - and a big sigh of relief that Prince Philip's doing okay and will be right there with her. There's no better dynamic duo around.
My favorite royal thing of the year...is royal weddings. Just all of them, anything to do with them, I'm not picky. I won't try to name any particular moment of any particular royal wedding this year as a favorite, but I'll just say that the wealth of wedded bliss this year has been fantastic. For all the goodies its brought us to discuss, yes; but also for the numbers of you that have joined the party here because of one royal wedding or another. It really is so much more fun with all of you here, chiming in, making sure I don't feel like a crazy person, talking to myself. I hope you know that each and every comment and email makes my day, even when we don't agree. Anyway, I fear we're going to go into withdrawal in 2012...let's all wish hard we get one or two big ones to delight in.
What were your favorite royal things for the year?
(And be sure to save your least favorite royal things for next week!)
Photos: Purepeople/Abaca/Svenskdam/Daylife/Getty Images
