Queen Mathilde and King Philippe attended the reopening of the La Monnaie/De Munt Opera House last week.
Sweet Queen Mathilde. She lulls you into a soothingly oblivious state
with her frequent calm and unobjectionable outfits. Yes, yes, more soft pink,
that's fine. Carry on. And then, when your guard is down, she blinds
you (literally) with a pair of Gold! Velvet! Trousers!
Belgian Monarchy
Clearly we must remain in a state of constant vigilance with this one. On the plus side, now we know what happened to all those sofas tossed when the 70s died.
With her Benelux BFF Máxima, on the other hand, we've already learned our lesson in vigilance. You never know what she'll turn up in. Her bathrobe and shower shoes, even.
Queen Máxima attended the LOEY Awards 2017 yesterday.
Honestly, though, the way people were talking about this outfit, I expected...more. More Máx-ness. I think it's pretty tame. Sometimes a girl just needs a day in flats, eh? I wouldn't want to see this with a pair of her matching pumps, I know that.
Zeus + Dione maxi dress of textured silk with velvet details (h/t ModeKoninginMaxima)
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge made a two day trip to Belgium on Sunday and Monday to join the King and Queen of the Belgians for events commemorating the 100th anniversary of the beginnings of the Battle of Passchendaele, or the Third Battle of Ypres, in World War I. On Sunday, they attended the Last Post ceremony at the Menin Gate Memorial.
Sgt Ross Tilly/MOD Crown Copyright 2017
We have our little fashion wheelhouse here, and this is one of the times when everything passes muster in a "let's not talk about the fashion too much" sort of way. That's precisely what you want. The Duchess paired up two repeats for the first events, her Alexander McQueen coat from Princess Charlotte's christening and her hat from Trooping the Colour 2015. She also wore a brooch she's used in the past.
Sgt Ross Tilly/MOD Crown Copyright 2017
The Queen chose a new outfit with a lace coat over a satiny dress, topped by a new Philip Treacy hat. It's a nice choice for an event that went into the evening, but still included full hats (which are usually more of a daytime thing).
Belgian Monarchy
The Prince of Wales joined the group on Monday at Tyne Cot Cemetery. Sir Timothy Laurence, husband of the Princess Royal, was there for both days; he is Vice Chairman of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
Once again, I think it basically checks out, sartorially speaking. The second day saw a new lace-topped dress from Natan appeared for Queen Mathilde, with a hat from Fabienne Delvigne. For the Duchess, it was a new Catherine Walker coat dress.
What intrigues me here is Kate's use of jewels, because I think jewel selections can help to convey, in a quiet manner, events of greater significance. The Duchess of Cambridge wore brooches on both days. While she's not a newcomer to brooches and while they definitely serve a functional purpose here - securing her traditional poppy for remembrance - they're enough of a step out of the usual to make it special.
Her brooch on the second day is a new loan to her from the Queen, the Pearl and Diamond Leaf Brooch, which I've covered at the Jewel Vault (not that there's much to say about it, it's kind of a mystery). She added in the Collingwood Pearl and Diamond Earrings from Diana, Princess of Wales, which she debuted at the Spanish state banquet. I'd call it adding a layer of gravitas to the ensemble, a wholly appropriate thing for such an event. Respectfully well played.
Belgium celebrated National Day last week. There were hats! There were sleeves! There was some seriously vibrant color coordinating!
Belgian Monarchy
Oh yes, those royal interpretations of the giant sleeve trend aren't going anywhere anytime soon. I'd deflate 'em a solid 20%, but they are doing an admirable job of bringing a little bit of trendiness to what is otherwise a firmly standard, non-trendy Queen Mathilde outfit.
Belgian Monarchy
Somewhere out there, Queen Máxima is leaning back with a smile on her face. And then she's dialing her Natan hotline and ordering up one of these for herself. With even bigger sleeves, I'm sure.
L to R: Princess Eléonore, Prince Gabriel, Queen Mathilde, King Philippe, Princess Elisabeth, Prince Emmanuel
Queen Mathilde's pink floral dress anchored a family color scheme of pinks, magentas, and purples. The purple sash of the Order of Leopold means not even King Philippe gets left out. It's also sort of a subtly perfect touch that 15-year-old Princess Elisabeth's dress is the closest match to her dad and his sash. (That dress, per ModeKoninginMathilde, is from Esmeralda Ammoun.)
Prince Lorenz, Princess Astrid, and Princess Claire (Prince Laurent was also present, though not shown here)
You know you're serious about the family color thing when the extended fam fits right in. In a year surprisingly lacking in hat interest, I find myself totally in love with Princess Claire's offering. Upside down salad bowls have never looked so good.
While the Brits were hatting it up at Ascot, Luxembourg's grand ducal family did the same for National Day. They even one upped them a bit by donning their best chapeaux and a selection of family tiaras. It was, however, a sadly small group this year; while most (if not all) of the Grand Duke and Grand Duchess' five kids usually join their parents for the event, this year they were joined only by the Hereditary Grand Duke and Hereditary Grand Duchess.
The Te Deum at the cathedral RTL screencap
Princess Stéphanie surely did her best to give us all the sartorial interest we were missing out on with a smaller family group. It was a valiant effort, primarily involving a hot pink cape dress which I probably should love, given my usual cape weakness.
RTL
And perhaps I would love it, if it were just a teensy bit less...craft project-y. Hmmmmmm.
Earlier at the official National Day ceremony; the ladies also wore these outfits for the National Day parade Cour grand-ducale/Claude Piscitelli/tous droits réservés
I preferred Stéphanie's offering from earlier in the day, an orange Paule Ka dress paired with some fun Rupert Sanderson shoes. Grand Duchess Maria Teresa did not opt for an outfit change between day events, simply adding a matching hat to her red Yves Dooms coat and dress. I can't blame her. That's classic as classic can be, and she looks absolutely impeccable.
Maria Teresa must have known she was looking good, because she turned up to the evening's gala wearing what is basically just the gown version of her day outfit. If it ain't broke, don't fix it, right?
The National Day gala Cour grand-ducale/Claude Piscitelli/tous droits réservés
The Grand Duchess wore, again, the Belgian Scroll Tiara. The Hereditary Grand Duchess wore the family's parure of oval amethysts, including the petite bandeau tiara she has worn in the past. The story here is that purple dress. That very familiar purple dress...
...there it is. Stéphanie's mother-in-law wore the dress in 2008 during a state visit to Sweden (a dress memorable to me because Maria Teresa apparently removed her tiara after seeing the Swedish royal family roll up without their diadems, awkward). The grand ducal family has one large, magical one-size-fits-all closet from which they all shop, or so it seems. Luxarazzi has an entire series of posts covering their clothes swapping twin moments. First they test my love for capes, now they're testing my love of purple and amethysts. Hmmmmmm.
In this busy royal week, we're swapping Tiara Thursday for a double dose of tiaras in action.
King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima are currently on a state visit to Italy and Vatican City, and the only surprising thing here is how long it took Máx to wear some Valentino.
Presidenza della Repubblica
Here's the arrival outfit. Perfectly lovely! It is from Natan, and the way that you know that is because it looks suspiciously familiar.
Belgian Monarchy
Yup, Queen Mathilde got there first with her own customized version. Perfectly lovely, I say again. But if we were going to go with a blush pink floral, then I'm going to pout that Máxima didn't repeat her perfect Valentino outfit from William and Kate's wedding.
Valentino was not her choice for the state banquet either, even though the designer himself - the master behind Máxima's wedding gown - was present for the event. She fulfilled another one of our requests instead.
We wanted a better look at the Jan Taminiau gown she wore to Willem-Alexander's 50th birthday party, and the Queen replied with a hearty "I'm right on top of that, Rose!" It's every bit as satisfyingly dramatic as I'd hoped.
Presidenza della Repubblica
Is it safe to call the Mellerio Ruby Tiara Queen Máxima's new favorite diadem, would you say? I'm saying yes. Feels like she's been gravitating toward it for events when she doesn't wear one of the bigger tiaras. The trellis necklace with its interchangeable clasp definitely is a current fave and who among us can blame her for that?
Bonus tiara! Prince Jaime of Bourbon-Parma, King Willem-Alexander's cousin, is the current Dutch ambassador to the Holy See, so he attended the state banquet with his wife, Princess Viktória. She borrowed a tiara from the Dutch vaults: the diamond base of the Antique Pearl Tiara, without any pearls. Máxima wore it this way when she attended Haakon and Mette-Marit's wedding while she was still a royal fiancée, and it was a great option for this black tie event. Viktória's diamond crescent brooch is also from the Dutch vaults.
This is day 2 of the trip, and everything but the hat is a page ripped straight out of Queen Letizia's book (seriously). Beating the heat in the sleekest possible way? Yes please.
There's the Valentino! It only took until a concert on day 2 for it to appear. This pink Valentino gown dates back to Frederik and Mary's wedding in 2004, and it got a makeover three years ago when she added some lace to the layers. But you can color me shocked that this wasn't an excuse for some new Valentino.
If this isn't the most perfectly fresh and clean take on a summer dress, I don't know what is. Get this queen out of the palace and onto a yacht, pronto.
Carolina Herrera dress, shown in midi length. Letizia wisely opted for a shorter version. CasaReal/Neiman Marcus
Better yet, get this dress to me and get me onto a yacht, pronto. There's crucial lounging and twirling to be done and this will be just right.
Queen Mathilde visited the Belgian province of Namur yesterday, supporting women in agriculture.
Royal Palace
So perfectly garden-y, no? Get this queen out to a field of flowers or a fresh green farm, pronto.
Kids, the day we all knew was coming has finally arrived: Queen Máxima's gone all in and decided that a business casual dress code should include tiaras too!
King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima hosted a gala reception for the Diplomatic Corps yesterday.
...or not. As entertaining as the couple are in their mismatched outfits here, that's just them arriving at the Royal Palace for the dinner. They don't actually live at the Royal Palace, you see; the Queen gets ready at home and is all set to go on arrival, while others (including the King, Princess Beatrix, and Princess Margriet) toss on their formal best after arriving. Willem-Alexander was properly white tie attired on the way out of the event. I'll have to keep the dream of business casual tiaras alive for another time.
Anyway, Máxima topped a ten-year-old Natan dress with the Württemberg Ornate Pearl Tiara, plus diamond and pearl earrings and a diamond and pearl strawberry leaf brooch from Queen Sophie (1818-1877). Some color would have been nice here, though? Even just a bit? Mega tiara appearances shouldn't be this blergh, is what I'm saying.
Princess Beatrix joined her daughter-in-law in pulling from the family stash of pearls and diamonds. The Pearl Button Tiara is getting around these days, having made its debut on Princess Mabel earlier this month.
And finally, Princess Margriet was looking saucy in sparkly green, with the Dutch Emerald Parure on top and hubby Pieter van Vollenhoven (see? White tie) by her side.
But wait! There's more! Tiaras were also on parade in Luxembourg yesterday.
Grand Duke Henri, Grand Duchess Maria Teresa, Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume, and Hereditary Grand Duchess Stéphanie hosted a state banquet for the President of Portugal during his state visit to Luxembourg.
SIP/Charles Caratini
Go ahead and give Maria Teresa alllllll the structured metallic dresses you've got, please and thank you. And let's hope she continues to accessorize them with massive diamond collet necklaces and the Belgian Scroll Tiara.
Despite her valiant effort to match her sash from Portugal's Order of Merit without looking like a bumblebee, Stéphanie's look suffers one major setback: her tiara. This modern diamond butterfly motif tiara (see it closer here, from another occasion) is never going to convince me it wasn't a clearance rack find at Claire's in another life, and that's that.
Sofia's just managing to win the battle with this loud floral - I am, for the most part, seeing her instead of her lace. I suspect this will ping the too short alarm for some of you, though I'd argue that any more of this would truly have swallowed her whole.
Meanwhile, in battles fought and lost...
King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima attended the annual Liberation Day concert on Friday.
I believe my record on loving simple floral frocks is clear. Lest there be any confusion, this Natan dress is great. Also, scoring a bouquet that matches one's print perfectly is basically peak queenly accessorizing.
Crown Princess Victoria attended the Swedish Patriotic Society's annual event.
I believe my record on fabulous royal blue frocks is also pretty clear. This one's a good match for this event; for these annual white tie events for various societies, the Swedish royal women wear long dresses and orders without tiaras, so this dress is a good dressy-but-not-too-dressy fit. (Plus, serious flashbacks to her 18th birthday.)
Crown Princess Mary opened an extension to Trygfondens Family House.
The shape of this coat is nothing special, but this magenta color should be used for all the things, all the time. Delish. (Unrelated, but the day before: Mary played along at the opening of Research Day, so there's now video of her dangling in the air and lifting a vehicle by herself. Gotta love a good sport.)
What a delightful state visit-y week it's been. Let's keep it going one more day and catch up with the Day 2 outfits from this week's visits. Spoiler alert, at least two of these ladies saved their category bests for last.
Netherlands/Argentina up first! A day of engagements followed by a ballet hosted by the President and First Lady of Argentina.
See this? By far the better of the day outfits Queen Máxima wore for the state visit. It's a Claes Iversen magenta coat with bedazzled starbursts, which is basically as Máx-tastic as a coat can get. (Banner week for this designer: Crown Princess Mary also wore his designs on this same day.)
Pardon me while I cut straight to the jewels in the evening. The Dutch collection is lucky enough to include more than one huge sapphire bow brooch; this version, which dates back to Queen Emma, has recently been used with an alternate citrine brooch in the center. The earrings are equally luscious and equally flexible, able to be worn in different settings. They were created using stones from Queen Wilhelmina's broken up Wedding Gift Parure.
Now over to you, Belgium/Denmark. A day of engagements - and a quick jog - followed by a concert hosted by the Belgian couple at the Black Diamond library in Copenhagen. (Sidebar: Black Diamond! All libraries should be named like James Bond movies.)
Belgian Monarchy
Hmm. As much as I love a cape sleeve and a little mixing and matching, Queen Mathilde's Esmeralda Ammoun jacket has me thinking some things are best left to Empress Michiko, and Crown Princess Mary's burgundy skirt leaves me craving the original pencil skirt that went with this top.
On the other hand, I have no hmms to share about this. LOVE IT ALL. Just as she did in the Netherlands last year, Mathilde waited to bring her best evening gown game until night 2 with this sparkly red Natan number. I'm feeling Mary's Jesper Høvring gown too. That color! Give me more, please.
Belgian Monarchy
Others were there too! It's the last day of state visit week, I cut to my faves. {shrug}
This is straight from the textbook for Royal Dressing 101: The Basic Coat + Hat Combo. (Also from the textbook for Royal Dressing 000: The Men Wore Suits.) Sometimes there really is nothing better than a simple coat or suit with strong lines, paired with an out-of-the-way hat. Princess Marie's repeated ensemble looks downright fussy next to the sleek run of mint-turquoise-aqua-blue-whateva on the other three ladies. Queen Mathilde's Natan outfit feels like 100 others she has in her closet, but when it works so well for her, can I argue? Nah.
Belgian Monarchy
Here's a shocker: my top marks for the day's class go to Crown Princess Mary. (Try and contain your surprise.) First, she used a new-to-her designer, the Dutch Danish designer Claes Iversen who we know mostly around here for his work for Queen Máxima; second, this is just a great coat. Throwing off the curve for everyone else as usual.
The evening's state banquet provided a glimpse into the textbook for Royal Dressing 102: Sash Coordination Strategies.
Obviously we need another Sash Check first: Philippe and Mathilde wore Denmark's highest order, the Order of the Elephant. Belgium's highest, the Order of Leopold, was worn in turn by Margrethe and Frederik. A lower Belgian order went to Mary and Joachim, the Order of the Crown, and another notch down went to Marie, the Order of Leopold II. (Now's a good time to drop a couple links to posts I wrote ages ago on the "rules" of wearing orders, useful for those with questions: the basics on the whats and whys, and what happens when countries get together.)
DR1 screencap
Queen Margrethe set off her purple sash by keeping the day's aqua theme going, and accented things with her Pearl Poire Tiara and the assembled parure that goes with it. I thought she looked spectacular - one of her best evening dresses of late.
Queen Mathilde took advantage of the fact that Denmark's Order of the Elephant blue sash goes with just about anything and sported a light orange Armani Privé gown. A complementary color strategy in the school of sash coordination is an advanced tactic. It's also, in this case, a real hard sell.
TV2 screencaps
She's almost got me sold on the full version of the diamond Nine Provinces Tiara, which I never would have believed possible in the days before she became queen consort, so the impossible is clearly within her reach.
Golden gowns will go with about anything too, a strategy taken by Mary and Marie (who wore her Diamond Floral Tiara). Crown Princess Mary took it a step further by opting to get a little sash coordination in there by matching her jewels to her burgundy sash - and it was the best surprise of the night.
DR1
This is the first time Mary has used the Danish Ruby Parure for a state visit, so she really made it count. Wearing the Ruby Parure Tiara, the studs from the Ruby Parure Earrings, and the full Ruby Parure Necklace added a necessary bit of color to her golden Jesper Høvring gown (which we just saw at this year's New Year Court). March 28th being Queen Ingrid's birthday was an added bonus. Valedictorian of the class, this one.
TV2
One more tiara for the road! Princess Elisabeth of Denmark was a lovely surprise to see at the state banquet, wearing her usual pick, Princess Thyra's Sapphire Tiara.
And finally, do yourself a favor and enjoy just a bit of the sparkle in action.
Plenty of royals hit the streets (and/or the palace hallways, I guess) last week on International Women's Day. Let's check in with a few of them, shall we?
Crown Princess Mary attended a concert in celebration of International Women's Day.
A military jacket with floral embroidery? SIGN ME UP. And unlike many of the super-detailed things I fall in love with that turn out to be thousands of dollars, this one's from Zara. Nice.
Zara
The Duchess of Cornwall hosted a reception at Buckingham Palace to celebrate the Women of the World Festival.
Clarence House
Perfect color choice, and a pretty great dress for her. That's Gillian Anderson she's greeting there, by the way.
Queen Máxima attended an event for the Single SuperMom Foundation.
Outfits of all one sparkly fabric and giant draped shawls basically kick the door to Golden Girls territory wide open (which might actually have been its own appropriate tribute here, come to think of it) but this Jan Taminiau ensemble works completely on a modern scale. A bit of chic, here.
Queen Mathilde and King Philippe received the Women of Peace at the palace.
Belgian Monarchy
We haven't featured Mathilde in a while, so here she is. You will not be surprised to learn that she's still going about her gently elegant business. The updo game is strong here.
Nicely navy, a decent conference look for anyone. I'll take that bag, please and thank you. (Also: Victoria's back! This was her first public appearance since December, after an extended family holiday.)
The Countess of Wessex had a day of engagements in Staffordshire yesterday.
Royal Family
I fear our fair Sophie is succumbing here to the lumbar support look, a serious downfall to the thick folded effect at the belt of this repeated Alexander McQueen jacket.
Queen Máxima visited a horticultural company yesterday.
I see Máxima's commitment to pushing the limits of horrific bug brooches hasn't died. She doesn't need a horticultural visit to make it happen, but she's not going to let that opportunity pass her by, either. {shudder}
Ten bucks says she matched colors on purpose. On the jewelry front, she's managed to find the least obtrusive spot for a waist brooch - it takes a second glance to even notice there's a jewel there - which puts the focus on her repeated Ole Lynggaard earrings.
Ole Lynggaard Gipsy earrings
King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima made a regional visit on Tuesday.
No need to be bothered if the dark clouds roll in when you've come equipped with a glow in the dark dress, see. I do love this color on her. I'm dubious as always about the coral wreath growing around her neck and ears, but the color can't be beat.
Queen Máxima's been up to a lot this month, and by a lot I mean a lot of big jewelry choices, a lot of coats, and a lot of her usual plays on volume. I was going to recap a few here, but then...
Queen Máxima opened the National Education Exhibition this week.
...look at that, got 'em all in one. Statement boots, long skirt, big belted jacket, detailed shirt, big earrings, saucy hat. That's a lotta stuff all at once, Máx. I'll give her this, though: I'm totally into the Indiana Jones hat for an engagement involving the banging of a big ol' gong.
The tail end of this week's Belgian/Dutch state visit brought much to admire: Designer switcheroos! Jaunty hats! Sneaky tiaras!
Day 2: The sovereign couples with the Dutch Prime Minister Belgian Royal Palace
Queen Mathilde's hat feels like it's not asymmetrical enough to be purposefully asymmetrical, if you know what I mean. Sort of just looks lopsided as is. Still, the Armani Privé coat is aces and an easy scene-stealer. (Queen Máxima wore her own fire engine red outfit with a big red hat yesterday, and I'm wondering how they missed that opportunity to twin it up.)
Usually the state banquet takes the top prize as my favorite event in any given state visit, but I don't know...the ladies might have saved their bests for night two. Máxima's tutti frutti-style necklace and bracelet should be worn All.The.Time. and they look sooooo good with this repeated Valentino green dress. Mathilde both snuck in an extra tiara appearance (that's her Laurel Wreath Tiara, worn as a necklace) annnnnnnd snuck in new designer: Jan Taminiau! This is an excellent move. It's both a nice nod to her hosts (Taminiau is Dutch, and a favorite of Máxima's), and just a great dress overall. Worth alllllll those extra letters.
Máxima finished the visit with a feather in her cap, as she is prone to do. And Mathilde finished the visit in an Esmeralda Ammoun outfit I feel like I've seen a million times, because we've seen so many interpretations of this basic type of lace placement (see also: Kate, Letizia). I guess that qualifies it as a classic, and this might be my favorite version. This has been an A+ trip from Mathilde, hasn't it?
As promised, King Philippe and Queen Mathilde kicked off their state visit to the Netherlands yesterday, where they were greeted by King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima.
For a pair of queens that adore a twin act in eye-searingly bright shades, the arrival outfits used an astonishingly understated color palette. Queen Máxima's Claes Iversen dress was let down by the brown poncho/cape/wrap/whatever she tossed on top for the outside stuff (it used to belong to her mother-in-law), so it was much improved indoors:
Queen Mathilde was in Natan, of course, and both wore Fabienne Delvigne hats. Gotta love that Mathilde upped her hat brim game for a visit to the queen of the giant hat brims, right?
Queen Mathilde also upped her game for the state banquet like we guessed she would, breaking out the full version of the Nine Provinces Tiara for only the second time and pairing it with a lovely soft pink gown from Pierre Gauthier.
Queen Máxima, I am sorry to report, did not do the same. I'm surprised this visit didn't rate more than a repeated Jan Taminiau gown and the Mellerio Ruby Tiara - I thought we'd see either the Württemberg Ornate Pearl Tiara or the Dutch Sapphire Tiara - but apparently she didn't consider my opinion. The nerve.
We did, however, get plenty of other Dutch tiaras to keep us occupied. Princess Beatrix went with the Dutch Diamond Bandeau and a smattering of diamond star brooches from the family collection. Princess Margriet wore the Pearl Button Tiara (which was her wedding tiara), and Princess Laurentien wore Queen Emma's Diamond Tiara (I'm liking that piece more and more each time it shows up). I do so love it when they turn up in full force.
Armistice Centenary Service
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*The Queen ** and members of the Royal Family attended the National Service
to mark the centenary of the Armistice at Westminster Abbey, London.*
*BBC*
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