Year in Review: The Duchess of Cambridge and Crown Princess Mette-Marit's Best of 2016

Next up in our 2016 close out, we'll take a look at the best outfits of the year from some of the royals we cover here. Royal trips are often gold mines for those great sartorial moments. So take a bow, Canada, because you brought out the best in not one but two of our royal regulars this year.

The Duchess of Cambridge

Embed from Getty Images

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, with Prince George and Princess Charlotte, arrived in Canada at the start of their September tour.

There were two Cambridge tours this year, which automatically gives us more best of the year candidates than ever before. I thought I'd go for one of the evening outfits, but in hindsight, I think the Canadian arrival outfit has the most staying power: a superbly tailored Jenny Packham blue ensemble with a maple leaf-adorned hat from Lock & Co. Prim and proper, but lovely in a thoroughly princess-y way. Also, it highlights a jewel on loan from the Queen - that diamond Maple Leaf Brooch - and she is continually delighting me by debuting new loans from the master vault.

Crown Princess Mette-Marit

MCpl Vincent Carbonneau, Rideau Hall

The Crown Prince and Crown Princess of Norway met with the Governor General of Canada at the start of their November tour.

I found this to be a quiet year on the sartorial front for our Norwegian crown princess - I confess, I love her most at huge events like royal weddings, and we were a little short on those this year - but she put together a lovely Canadian tour. The delight of seeing Mette-Marit in red is an easy pick in any year, honestly.

What are your picks for the best of 2016 for these ladies?

Royal Brooches (and Tiaras!) of the Day: October 7

Double the brooches and double the diadems to close out our week, as we check in with two sparkling queens: 

King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia are on a state visit to Germany this week.

Photo: Jonas Ekströmer/The Royal Court, Sweden

Queen Silvia brought the Connaught Tiara for the state banquet on the first day of their state visit to Germany, a great choice for a black tie banquet. She paired it with massive pearl earrings, a lovely diamond collet necklace, and a dress that I'm just not sure about.

Embed from Getty Images

Silvia's in her home country, so she upped her tiara power accordingly by bringing another tiara to wear for night two, bless her sparkly soul. And she wore it with purple!

Embed from Getty Images

'Twas the Baden Fringe Tiara! This was a lovely surprise. While the tiara has made the rounds in the family and has graced Silvia's head plenty of times in the past, it's so associated with Crown Princess Victoria that it feels a treat to see it featured on someone else.

Embed from Getty Images

But enough about the tiara. (I know, I can't believe I typed that either.) Let's talk about that brooch! Spectacular, isn't it? It's new - and by new, I mean old but criminally underused. Like the tiara, it was worn by Victoria of Baden. It can be seen in the picture below, just above the spot where Queen Victoria has strung the Baden Fringe across her person as though arming herself for battle.

What other long-unseen treats would you like to bring out, Your Maj? I, for one, am here for whatever you've got.

Queen Mathilde traveled to Paris to visit two exhibitions featuring the works of Belgian artists.

Photos: Belgian Monarchy

The Danish royal family went wild with the brooches at their parliament opening, Queen Silvia went for it in Germany, and Queen Mathilde hopped in on the action when she visited Paris. Brooches are having a good month.

Embed from Getty Images

This simple but intriguingly sleeved dress - in a killer color - is the perfect place to park a little sparkle. Mathilde debuted this brooch last year, I believe, and she's worn it several times since. (As well she should, it's gorgeous.) Let's all cross our fingers that this is merely a warm up for Mathilde and Philippe's state visit to Japan, which happens next week.

Royal Parliament Openings of the Day: October 5

Autumn rolls on, parliament openings roll on. This week: the Norwegians and the Danes.

Morten Brakestad/Stortinget via CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

King Harald, Queen Sonja, and Crown Prince Haakon paid their annual visit to Norway's parliament (Crown Princess Mette-Marit does not attend). The Queen wears either white, black, red, or some combination thereof. So that's all in order. This one's all about the uniforms, to be honest, as befits an occasion involving a speech from the throne.

Stortinget via CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Over in Denmark, Queen Margrethe, Crown Prince Frederik, Crown Princess Mary, Prince Joachim, Princess Marie, and Princess Benedikte went to their own parliament opening. There's no speech from the throne for the monarch here; the royal family listens to the proceedings, and it's your standard hats n' suits affair.

See videos here and here.

Well, it's hats for some people. Marie, I'm glad you wore a brooch (this unusual one was a gift from Queen Margrethe), but you're killing me with the headband thing.

Embed from Getty Images

Mary was in full chapeau mode. Though I'm a little divided on her choice - she's worn this hat without the side pouf before, why mess with perfection? - this is one hat that could potentially conceal a little mid-speech nap if need be. In other words, a perfect parliament opening hat.

Embed from Getty Images

(Also, any accessory that encourages her to wear her magnificent sapphire brooch from Crown Princess Margaret gets all the bonus points. Brooches for everyone!)

Royal Trip Update of the Day: September 27

Might this be the best version of a red-in-Canada outfit yet?

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge attended an evening reception at Government House on Monday, which was Day 3 of their Canada tour.

Embed from Getty Images

It just might be. This reception seems to be the most formal event on the itinerary, and she turned it up several notches accordingly. This is good, friends.

Preen by Thornton Bregazzi dress, via Net-a-porter

Sure, I'd swap the shoes - I'm usually a red shoe lover, and yet nope - but the dress is from Preen, a label that does these solid color, slightly full skirt dresses so well, and it works no matter what. This is very good.

Embed from Getty Images

With her repeated Soru earrings, we also have the second appearance of the Queen's Maple Leaf Brooch. Ya gotta give her credit for wearing that diamond-packed sucker every chance she gets, right? That's the spirit.

(Also on the jewel front, by the way, I talked a bit about Kate's earrings from Sunday and a pair from the Queen's jewel vault over at the Jewel Vault.)

The Cambridges in Canada: Your Open Post

And they're off! The Cambridge family has landed in Victoria, Canada, kicking off a week long tour.

Embed from Getty Images

You knew it was only a matter of time before William converted them all to the blue suit brigade. The Duchess is handling her part of the family coordination scheme in a blue Jenny Packham dress, with maple leaves all around (a blue Lock & Co. hat adorned with maple leaves - this is the same designer that did 2011's red maple leaf hat - plus the diamond Maple Leaf Brooch on loan again from the Queen). Really lovely.

We'll be checking in with the tour periodically over the next week on the blog. For those of you that want to discuss the whole thing as it happens, you're welcome to use this post throughout. As always, mind the comment policy and enjoy!

Royal Flashback of the Day: September 23

The Cambridge family lands in Canada on Saturday! Yes, we will have a weekend post once we see what sort of sartorial selection the arrival brings.

But first, let's flashback one more time to their 2011 visit to the country, and one more frequent royal tour feature: the good old flag interpretation.

By tsaiproject [CC BY 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

A white Reiss dress (repeated from the couple's engagement photographs) and a red maple leaf-adorned Lock & Co. hat made for an unmistakable interpretation of the Canadian flag for Canada Day festivities, with the Queen's diamond Maple Leaf Brooch added in for good measure. This outfit seems a bit...contrived, I want to say, but that's a silly thing to say when any outfit echoing a country's colors and/or motifs is by nature at least a little bit contrived. Still, some outfits seem to work a little harder at it than others.

Embed from Getty Images

This outfit, on the other hand, was a nod instead of a blinking arrow. A red Catherine Walker coat and a repeat of that loaner brooch closed out the Canadian leg of the tour. Can't ever go too wrong with the classics, can you?

So, what's to come? We'll find out this weekend. See you then.

Royal Event of the Day: September 21

Yesterday was Prinsjesdag in the Netherlands, when the monarch reads his speech from the throne to the government, and - relevant to our purposes - the Dutch royal ladies get all dressed up. It's usually a yearly highlight for Queen Máxima, but was it this year? LET'S DISCUSS:

Embed from Getty Images

(Hang on, bear with me for a second as I do my traditional explanation for those unfamiliar with this style of dress.) Hats with long skirts/dresses and sashes are the dress code for the day for the women, something that used to be pretty common at formal royal events, but which has died out over the years. No tiaras, because this is a day event; no sashes for the men, because those aren't worn with morning dress. Willem-Alexander, before becoming king, wore a uniform and used a sash with that. Now he wears a small order pin on his lapel, as does Prince Constantijn. (Okay, NOW let's discuss.)

Queen Máxima chose Claes Iversen as her designer for the day. She opted for a blue blouse tucked into a long golden skirt with blue embellishments and topped the whole thing with one of her favorite giant hats from Fabienne Delvigne. My first thought? This is what dressing for your sash looks like - she's all in tune with the Order of the Netherlands Lion here.

My second thought? If last year was the closest she's come to eveningwear territory at this event, this is a hard swing back to daywear, from the skirt+shirt combo to the sizable hat. Is it a swing for the better or a swing for the worse? I'm honestly not sure. I preferred last year's look, but she set the bar epically high for herself after that.

Embed from Getty Images

The best thing here is the best thing nearly every year: the jewels, of course. Those lusciously giant sapphire earrings and Queen Wilhelmina's huge sapphire bow brooch at her waist! The belt buckle placement is probably partly practical (big brooches are a tough sell on tops with no structure), and it is entirely genius with this outfit. Plus, if you ever need a reminder to sit up straight...

But wait, there's more! Prince Constantijn and Princess Laurentien were in attendance as usual, Laurentien sporting one of the family's bug brooches and big earrings previously worn by Máxima. Her sash is that of the Order of the House of Orange.

Embed from Getty Images

Whereas Máxima's Prinsjesdag outfits are clearly geared toward future gala gear reuse, her sister-in-law is stocking up for any future chain mail needs. And given her history with interesting fabrics at this event (last year, she went all Missoni-esque in a chevron knit; the year before, it was formal corduroy), she's right on brand. As ever, we commend her for keeping it interesting for us.

Photos: NOS screencaps, via Getty Images as indicated

Royal Jewel of the Day: Queen Josephine's Diamond Stomacher

The Swedish royal jewel collection is home to some of the oldest royal jewelry still in use, and with their creativity, not even pieces that went out of fashion long ago need waste away in the vault. For example:

Queen Josephine's Diamond Stomacher
Frankie Fouganthin/CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)

Josephine of Leuchtenberg (1807-1876) came to Sweden thanks to her marriage to the future King Oscar I, and several pieces in the Swedish royal jewel collection came to Sweden thanks to Queen Josephine. She had a diamond stomacher, also called a devant de corsage, in a design of rosettes and a bow hung with multiple pendants; in the picture below, she wears it with pearls as pendants. (She's also wearing the pearl version of the Leuchtenberg Sapphire Parure Tiara.)

Queen Josephine and the stomacher with pearls

Diamond pendants were primarily used in the stomacher, three inside and one larger pendant at the bottom. Subsequent queens consort Victoria of Baden (1862-1930) and Louise Mountbatten (1889-1965) were also pictured wearing the stomacher.

Queen Victoria

Stomachers pretty much went out of fashion as time went on, but with a little jewel creativity and a slight reconfigure, this one's been kept in good use for many further decades.

Embed from Getty Images

Princess Lilian wears Queen Josephine's Diamond Stomacher Necklace

With the addition of a diamond rivière, the large diamond devant de corsage became an even larger diamond necklace, and the necklace became a favorite of Princess Lilian (1915-2013). Lilian was the wife of King Carl Gustaf's uncle, Prince Bertil, and a much-loved member of the Swedish royal family. She showcased the necklace often and well.

Crown Princess Victoria in the necklace
Anna-Lena Ahlström, Kungahuset.se

Crown Princess Victoria wears Queen Josephine's Diamond Stomacher Necklace now. It's an unusual shape, one that seems to require special accommodation with gown necklines, which may be the reason she has only worn it a couple of times. She did show it off to perfection with an open neckline when she debuted it at Princess Madeleine's wedding in 2013 (below - you know I'll take any excuse to show that magnificent appearance again).

Victoria with the necklace and earrings
Frankie Fouganthin/CC BY-SA 3.0 

You may have noticed that the two smallest diamond pendants went missing when the stomacher became a necklace (you can see two empty hooks where they once hung in the close up at the top). Those were turned into a pair of diamond earrings, which Victoria is also wearing above. The earrings are favorites of Victoria's; Princess Sofia notably wore them on her wedding day.

Princess Sofia and the earrings
SVT

From one jewel into two stunning pieces? That's the jewel creativity of the Swedish royal family at its best, I say.

Royal Jewels of the Day: The Princess Royal's Diamond and Pearl Floral Brooch and Grima Earrings

The Princess Royal is a member of the IOC, president of the British Olympic Association, and a former Olympian herself, so she's the British royal family's rep at the Rio Olympics. Her greatest challenge in Rio so far? Standing next to struggling Team GB flag bearer Andy Murray, it seems.

Andy Murray makes his flag-bearing debut for @TeamGB ... fails hilariously #Rio2016 https://t.co/0JFVXE1cSIhttps://t.co/lWdKrgU50t

— ITV News (@itvnews) August 4, 2016

She's a gem, so let's talk about some of her gems. (YES, I can and will turn anything and everything back to the jewels. Look for my upcoming feature, Tiaras That Remind Me of the Olympic Rings.)

Embed from Getty Images

Wearing her Diamond and Pearl Floral Brooch and Grima Earrings, 2005

Once upon a time, a royal lady who was asked to christen a ship could count on receiving a nice jeweled bonus for her troubles. Princess Anne really cleaned up on that front in the 1960s and 1970s, receiving her lovely diamond Festoon Tiara as well as a handful of other jewels that have grown to be favorites over the years. Two of those jewels can be seen in the photo above.

When she christened the ship Esso Northumbria for the Esso Petroleum Company at the Swan Hunter Shipyard in 1969, Princess Anne received a pair of earrings with central pearls surrounded by gold and diamonds. They were the work of jeweler Andrew Grima, an artist who counted several members of the royal family as fans. The Queen still wears her Grima Ruby Brooch, which happens to be on display at the Palace of Holyroodhouse with the Fashioning a Reign exhibition at the moment.

Embed from Getty Images

Earrings worn with the pendants, 1969

The earrings have detachable pendants, as you can see in the above photo, but today we see the Princess Royal using the stud portion only, and she does so frequently. (Respect the glory of that hair, kids. Take your time.)

Embed from Getty Images

Sometimes she combines the Grima earrings with a diamond brooch, a spray with a flower of diamond petals and a pearl center. This brooch was also a gift from that 1969 ship christening, given by Swan Hunter. The floral brooch is more traditional in style, but the pieces are pulled together by their shared yellow gold setting. Something a little modern, something a little classic, and - combined with the many other pearls and gold jewels in her collection - two pieces to wear again and again. Like I said, she CLEANED. UP.

Royal Fashion Awards: Prince Oscar's Christening (Updated)

Programming Note: It's a holiday weekend in my corner of the world and a holiday weekend for the blog too! We will return on Wednesday.

Prince Oscar of Sweden, Duke of Skåne has been christened, and the Swedes have had another chance to break out the baby sash of the Order of the Seraphim. We’re all winners today. (Watch the ceremony here, and see our open post here.)

Nobody can outdo a baby in an elaborate royal christening gown – the one worn by Prince Oscar was first used in 1906 – but Oscar’s attentive entourage still brought their best for us to review. We've got some awards to hand out, yes we do.

Update: And we have some beautiful official photographs as well! Check them out throughout the entry, and click to enlarge.

Best in Family Coordination

Crown Princess Victoria & Co.

Anna-Lena Ahlström, Kungahuset.se

Victoria was summery in a white By Malina dress and Philip Treacy hat, and maybe just a touch sporty too, given the almost mesh-like effect of this dress and the mesh on the hat. A good look? Absolutely. Made even better by the addition of a Mini Me? You better believe it.

Read more about the brooches - portraits of the King - worn by the Swedish royal ladies here.

Princess Estelle matched her mother in white, with a wee fascinator occupying her usual hair bow spot like millinery training wheels for a future hat star. I think it’s the strand of pearls that really did me in.

Best in Other Family Coordination

Queen Silvia

Henrik Garlöv, Kungahuset.se

Another christening, another soft color, another shift dress for Queen Silvia. I can’t blame her for sticking to any of those, nor can I blame her for opting for an outfit that allows her to wear this pearl necklace. The outfit's standard, the hat's deceptively nonstandard - all business at the front, with a little sculptural party at the back.

You  know what I really loved about this choice? She coordinated perfectly with Daniel’s mother, Ewa Westling, who also looked quite elegant. How can you not love a united grandma front?

Most Dramatic Godmother Style

Princess Madeleine

Anna-Lena Ahlström, Kungahuset.se

I imagine Madeleine has already been fielding inquiries from Queen Máxima about this dress – no way does a sleeve this dramatic slip past our Dutch queen. Perhaps Madeleine needed some literal room up her sleeves for tricks with which to wrangle a squirmy Princess Leonore. Prince Nicolas, on the other hand, sat with Chris O'Neill and contentedly and hilariously played with what appeared to be a light-up toothbrush.

Madeleine's dress from Roksanda Ilincic

Madeleine exercised restraint in every other aspect of this outfit and balanced the interest of the sleeves with the texture of the floral headpiece, making this perhaps the most successful royal implementation yet of that mad Lumière sleeve.

Most Sparkling Godmother Style

Crown Princess Mette-Marit

Well, of course Mette-Marit didn’t wear a proper hat. (If you were expecting her to, you were just setting yourself up for disappointment, be honest.) I’ll accept it on grounds of pure sparkliness, from the headband to the pearl and diamond earrings to the diamond and aquamarine brooch interestingly deployed at her neckline.

Henrik Garlöv, Kungahuset.se

Even the dress seemed to have a bit of flash under the lights, which came as a welcome surprise. She's another that can work this schoolgirl neckline, even with the headband addition - but again, this one's taken up several notches by the jewels.

Best in Superhero Style

Princess Sofia

Embed from Getty Images

Is Sofia actively campaigning for a spot on my list of favorite royals? Because wearing a cape to a christening is one heckuva campaign strategy, I'll tell you that much.

This cape-back dress from Antonio Berardi (a designer I’d like to see more royals wear, by the way) is beyond fabulous. She’s got me excited for Prince Alexander’s christening already.

Most…Interesting in the Millinery Show

Princess Christina

Is it a giant goth flower? Is it the aftermath of a helicopter crash? Princess Christina’s millinery selection is a story prompt waiting to happen. Princess Margaretha, the only other one of King Carl Gustaf’s sisters to attend, was a more calming vision in purples.

Best of the Millinery Show

Crown Princess Mary

Embed from Getty Images

This christening was a sea of little fascinators and other hat-ish sorts of things. Thank the hat gods for Mary and her giant statement chapeau! This is a loud hat done in a quiet sort of way, though, not in an oops-I-got-lost-on-the-way-to-Ascot sort of way. (Although she could wear this to Ascot, and she should, so let's brainstorm a way to get her there tout de suite.)

Dress by Max Mara (per StyleofMary), hat by Susanne Juul

She sweeps the Best in Guest stakes with zero competition in sight. Very well played indeed.

Who makes your christening best dressed list?

A few more official photos for the road (all by Anna-Lena Ahlström, Kungahuset.se):

BIG thank you as always to Sarah from The Royals & I/Swedish Royal Clothing IDs for speedy dress identifications!

Photos: Kingahuset as indicated, SVT screencaps, Getty Images as indicated, Avenue32, Net-a-porter, Max Mara

Royal Flashback of the Day: March 30

When I dished out a healthy serving of praise to Queen Máxima earlier this month for elevating a simple gray pillbox hat with a trio of diamond pins, I knew it wasn't the first time she'd tried that trick. Another instance of this sneaky sparkle strategy brings us to one of my all-time favorite Máxima outfits, so, yay:

Embed from Getty Images

The (then-) Prince of Orange and Princess Máxima attended the wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge on April 29, 2011.

A lot of guests brought their sartorial A-game to William and Kate's wedding. Máxima is known for doing just that at all big occasions, as luck would have it, and she was at her best in this lovely lace Valentino top and skirt in a soft beige pink shade. She accessorized this outfit with a whole lot of diamonds.

That whole lot included a simple diamond rivière necklace, big diamond earrings, and five - FIVE - diamond star brooches riding along on the side of her Fabienne Delvigne hat. Those lucky Dutch royals have more than one set of diamond star brooches in their family collection; these are from the set that adorned the tiara Máxima wore on her own wedding day.

Embed from Getty Images

I'm not going to argue with more diamonds at any time of the day, obviously, but am I wrong that it doesn't seem overpowering here? The clothes are subtle enough to give the diamonds some space, and the diamonds add interest without taking over like some of her fashion jewelry might. It's a perfect outfit marriage.

Is this my All-Time Favorite Máxima Outfit: Non-Tiara Division? It's one of them, at least.

Photos: via Getty Images

Royal Hats of the Day: March 18

Queen Máxima has been a busy bee since returning home from her French state visit. A busy behatted bee, specifically. Autocorrect just tried to change specifically to spectacularly on me there, but that's your call to make:

Embed from Getty Images

Wednesday: Queen Máxima visited the Outsider Art Museum.

I'm so used to seeing her in hats with big brims or no brims, a short brim like this is destined to feel stumpy. You don't have to sell me on the animal print accessories, though; I'm all in.

Embed from Getty Images

Monday: Her Majesty presented the Geuzen Medal.

This is not so much a hat as it is a linen bagel. You can browse this gallery for proof or just take my word for it, I don't know how your Friday is going. (By the way, several readers have written to say that these repeated gold fan earrings are from JAR, exclusive jeweler and favorite of Princess Marie-Chantal. That's an interesting development for Máx and her statement jewelry love affair.)

Tuesday: King Willem-Alexander presented the Military Order of William to the Commando Corps with Queen Máxima in attendance. 
Photo: Defensie

I saved the best for last. She loves her a gray hat, and this one had something special: three diamond ears of wheat brooches from the family collection attached to the side of her gray pillbox hat. This is the second time Máxima has used these brooches (the first as a hair ornament during the couple's 2015 state visit to Canada), though she has yet to use them in their most familiar format, the Dutch Ears of Wheat Tiara.

NOS / L1 screencaps

I love this. I mean, of course I love this, but for more reasons than my standard love of unexpected jewel deployments. The Military Order of William (Militaire Willems-Orde, also Military William Order) is the oldest and highest Dutch honor, presented for bravery; this is an important event, and I love that she's brought out some old and important brooches for the occasion. Paired with a simple gray coat with gray lace underneath, it's an incredibly elegant look. (For more: Video here, second video here, gallery here.)

Royal Jewel of the Day: Queen Alexandrine's Diamond and Sapphire Pendant Brooch

Princess Marie of Denmark - wife to Prince Joachim, daughter-in-law to Queen Margrethe, soon-to-be birthday girl (she turns 40 on February 6th!) - doesn't have too many jewels with royal family history behind them at her disposal. The tiara she has on loan from Queen Margrethe is the main one, and that's pretty much par for the course in the Danish royal family. But she does get to wear this brooch:

Embed from Getty Images

2015: Princess Marie wears the brooch during the Dutch state visit

The focus in this brooch is on the ring of diamonds and sapphires that alternate around the edge, but perhaps the most impressive part is the large diamond cluster at the center. The jewel also has a removable diamond drop pendant. It can be worn as a brooch, or on a chain as a pendant necklace; Princess Marie has worn it with both a delicate chain and a more substantial necklace (seen in the last picture here).

Embed from Getty Images

2007: Queen Margrethe wears the brooch, sans pendant, at the beginning of a Swedish state visit to Denmark

It dates back at least to Queen Alexandrine (1879-1952), wife of Christian X, and has passed down through the Danish royal family since then. Queen Margrethe was the last to use it before it was given or loaned to Princess Marie. Marie first wore it as a pendant to the New Year's gala banquet in 2010, so some have speculated that it was a present for the birth of Marie and Joachim's first child (much in the same way Queen Margrethe gave Crown Princess Mary an heirloom sapphire and diamond brooch after the birth of Prince Christian).

Embed from Getty Images

2015: Worn as a pendant during Queen Margrethe's birthday celebrations

Much as Mary uses her heirloom, Marie exercises restraint in the use of her brooch. She wears it mainly for gala events and occasionally for special day events. I suppose there's something to be said for holding them for special occasions, but that sparkle...well, I'd find it hard to resist on a daily basis.

Photos: via Getty Images

Royal Jewels of the Day: The Danish Crown Pearls and Rubies

Queen Margrethe arrived at this year's New Year's Court banquet in Denmark in a flurry of fur and fabric, a burst of regal splendor that may have distracted you from one very valuable part of her ensemble: the pearl, ruby, and diamond set from the Danish crown jewels.

In Denmark, there are jewels that are privately owned by members of the royal family, there is a royal property trust (to which the Pearl Poire Tiara, also worn by Queen Margrethe last week, belongs), and there are the crown jewels. The crown jewels belong to the Danish state and are on public display at Rosenborg Castle. Four main sets of jewelry that can still be worn by the reigning queen are included in the crown jewels: an emerald and diamond tiara and accompanying parure, two sets of diamonds, and this set. Queen Margrethe borrows the jewels from Rosenborg for special occasions, but they cannot be worn outside of Denmark.

The set from the crown jewels, including earrings and a stomacher that can be worn in different configurations

The necklace of nineteen large pearls is the oldest piece in the collection, dating back to the 1600s. It belonged to Queen Charlotte Amalie (1650-1714), the wife of Christian V, but the necklace's roots might have a more scandalous flair: in the documentary De Kongelige Juveler*, Queen Margrethe mentions speculation that the pearls may have belonged to Leonora Christina, Countess Ulfeldt (1621-1698), who was imprisoned in the royal dungeon without trial for more than 20 years by Frederik III, her half-brother.

Leonora Christina, wearing a pearl necklace like the one in the crown jewels

Married off to Count Corfitz Ulfeldt in a political move by her father, her husband turned out to be a nefarious character (his Wikipedia entry doesn't hold back: "Commonly known and recognized as the most notorious traitor in Danish history."), and the couple were fugitives on the run after her half-brother took the throne. (Her Wiki entry also brings the intrigue: "She sometimes spent weeks disguised as a man, once fending off arrest from Danish pursuers at gunpoint, and another time the caresses of an infatuated barmaid, the latter proving the more difficult to escape.") Her eventual capture led to her lengthy imprisonment, from which she was released only after the death of her archenemy, Queen Sophie Amalie. The jewels confiscated from her may or may not have included these pearls.

Video: Queen Margrethe wears the pearl necklace with other jewels at the gala banquet for her 40th jubilee in 2012

After centuries worn by successive Danish queens, the pearls have seen their share of history with or without the speculative Leonora Christina connection. They had lost their luster after years without use when Queen Ingrid (1910-2000, wife of Frederik IX and mother to Queen Margrethe) began to wear them. As told by Queen Margrethe in the aforementioned documentary, Ingrid brought them back to life by borrowing them to wear at night next to her skin, and the necklace has been in regular use ever since. The design of the rest of the set, which includes more pearls and adds in diamonds and rubies, was finalized in 1840 by jeweler C.M. Weisshaupt for Queen Caroline Amalie (1796-1881, consort of Christian VIII).

Embed from Getty Images

Queen Margrethe wearing the set for her 75th birthday banquet in 2015

Queen Margrethe is very creative with her jewels, and she's worn this parure in many ways. The stomacher can be used as different pieces, a flexibility that allows her to wear it as a brooch in different sizes and with pieces attached to the pearl necklace. She has used the necklace with different brooches, and has combined it with different tiaras at her disposal, usually selecting the Pearl Poire Tiara or the Floral Aigrette Tiara. The necklace especially has become a staple of her important event wardrobe, and appearances have included the wedding of Prince Joachim and Alexandra Manley, the gala performance before the wedding of the Crown Prince couple, jubilee dinners, and her recent 75th birthday banquet. With a history this rich, it's easy to see the appeal.

*Several of you have asked about De Kongelige Juveler (The Royal Jewels), since it is not always available to stream online. SBS in Australia aired the English version of the documentary and they sell a DVD of the program, which you can purchase here. (Obviously, you'll need to make sure the DVD format is compatible.)

Photos: via Getty Images, Kongehuset, DKKS/Rosenborg Slot, DR video, Wikimedia Commons

Royal Christmas of the Day: December 27

I hope you all had a holiday weekend (or non-holiday weekend) as cozy and chic as the one the Windsors had.

Yes, I said chic! This might be the first time in the short history of this blog where I can honestly apply the word to pretty much all of the British royal family at once, at their annual march to Christmas service at Sandringham.

Embed from Getty Images

The Queen got things rolling in her jolly red coat and hat with snuggly fur trim. Change the fur to white and add a black belt with a gold buckle, and we'd really be in business. That fur trim did mean she went without a brooch, but other family members were ready and willing to pick up the slack in that department. You can read all about her brooch pick for her traditional Christmas speech over at the Jewel Vault, of course.

Embed from Getty Images

Here's one brooch stepping in, a diamond moth from the Duchess of Cornwall. She pinned it on this chic charcoal and black outfit - one of my favorites from Camilla's current wardrobe. She looks great in these coats with clean lines and selectively placed trim, and should buy them in bulk.

Lady Sarah Chatto also helped out in the brooch department, in a diamond and pearl star brooch that belonged to her mother, Princess Margaret. It's a lookalike to the Queen's Jardine Star Brooch, but that style is really quite common (the Princess Royal has one too).

Embed from Getty Images

Embed from Getty Images

She and Princess Beatrice represented the black coat team, a look which is not particularly interesting but is also hard to get wrong. It did make me glad for Princess Eugenie's shot of teal, though.

Embed from Getty Images

Princess Anne - who I like to imagine was having a stern conversation with her umbrella here, just daring it to defy her and attempt a windy getaway - sported a feather in her cap and a chicly cut light green coat.

Embed from Getty Images

And it was green for the Duchess of Cambridge as well, as her parade of new coats rolls on. I love the empire waist variation (when one has one's own coat museum, one can afford to switch it up), and of course I appreciate that she made a rare brooch appearance. The acorn motif brooch has been seen once before, in 2012, and is thought to be in her personal collection.

All that said, there was one family member that really swept the chic competition. I may need to make a quick addendum to my Best of 2015 honorable mentions...

Embed from Getty Images

Hello, Sophie! The added faux fur collar elevates the Countess of Wessex's Suzannah coat by about a million points for pure Christmas perfection.


On that chic note, the holiday hiatus is back in effect! We'll return with our annual coverage of the first tiara events of the year, the New Year's receptions in Denmark and Japan.

Photos: via Getty Images