Week in Review: Crown Princess Victoria, 26 February-3 March

1. Taking wee Estelle out for a walk, as snapped by uncle Carl Philip. All together now: awwww.

Photo: Kungahuset

Sunday Brooch: The Williamson Diamond

Just so you know in advance, this is perhaps my favorite of Queen Elizabeth's brooches: the Williamson Diamond Brooch.

This brooch is all about its center stone: a 23.6 carat pink diamond - the finest pink diamond in existence, according to the Royal Collection. It comes from Tanzania, where it was discovered by a group of children under a tree outside a mine owned by Dr. John Williamson. Dr. Williamson, a Canadian geologist, decided to give the diamond to Princess Elizabeth as a wedding gift in 1947. The stone was cut down from its original rough weight of 54 carats into a round brilliant the following year in London, and a new brooch in the form of a jonquil was made by Cartier to complement the diamond in 1953 (using diamonds also provided by Williamson).

Receiving the pink diamond with (a slightly envious, perhaps?) Queen Mary

This pretty thing is one of the queen's favorites. She wore it for her Silver Jubilee celebrations in 1977 as well as for the weddings of Charles and Diana in 1981 and Edward and Sophie in 1999.

There's a very sweet story involved with this brooch: one of the children that Dr. Williamson asked to bless the original stone and wish the princess luck before sending it off grew up and earned himself the honor of an MBE and an invitation to an investiture with the queen. He wrote to the queen in advance of his ceremony and told her his story; on the big day, she wore the brooch just for him.

In action on Silver Jubilee day

This is one of the pieces that will be on display in "The Queen's Diamonds" exhibit this summer at Buckingham Palace - surely a must see if you're lucky enough to be in the London vicinity.

Photos: Royal Collection/Queen Elizabeth II/PA

Flashback Friday: Coronation Guests and Their Jewels

A model displaying coronets and tiaras for the coronation

The impending coronation of Queen Elizabeth II sent the invited guests into a frenzy of preparation. This was to be a post-war celebration for all time - even grander than the previous coronation in 1937, and everyone strove to show up in their very best. The aristocracy set about dusting off carriages to take them to Westminster Abbey and rustling up the proper robes and coronets for their rank in the nobility. They also broke out their finest jewels from the depths of storage in banks and vaults to produce the sparkliest gathering in Britain for a long time, certainly a level of glitter that hasn't been seen since.

With 8,251 guests in attendance, cataloging all the jewels on show is probably an impossible feat (at the least, a life's work which I am far too lazy to attempt). But we can take a look at few of the photographed guests with notable jewels, and that's just what we'll do today, starting with the royal family:

The complete consort crown of the Queen Mother; the Queen Mother, Princess Margaret and a very bored Prince Charles during the coronation; the Halo Scroll Tiara

Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, wore the circlet from her queen consort crown, complete with the Koh-i-Noor diamond in the center. Her crown was made for her for her husband's 1937 coronation as Queen Mary's crown was unexpectedly going to be in use on Queen Mary (who decided to break tradition and attend in 1937). Princess Margaret wore the Halo Scroll Tiara, one of her regular tiaras when she was younger. It was loaned to her by the queen and is obviously now famous for its appearance on the Duchess of Cambridge's wedding day. Like most of the women in the royal family, Elizabeth and Margaret were both dressed by Norman Hartnell.

Left to Right: the Kent family (the Duke of Kent, Prince Michael, the Duchess, Princess Alexandra), the Kent Festoon Tiara (above), the Gloucester Honeysuckle Tiara (below), the Gloucester family (Prince William, the Duchess, Prince Richard, the Duke)

The Duchess of Gloucester wore her Honeysuckle Tiara; there are a few different options for the center stone here, and she went with diamonds for coronation day. This is worn often now by the current Duchess of Gloucester. The Duchess of Kent wore her diamond and pearl tiara. Her daughter Princess Alexandra went without a tiara, but did have her princess' coronet.

L to R: Princess Mary (two photos), Princess Marie Louise, the Cartier Indian Tiara

Princess Mary, the Princess Royal and the Countess of Harewood, was one of the most bedecked royal ladies. She wore a massive diamond scroll tiara with an interchangeable center element - here, she's using a sapphire brooch given to her by her mother, Queen Mary, which is in the same style as Prince Albert's Sapphire Brooch. She's also wearing a huge diamond and sapphire ornament from her husband on her dress and the diamond and sapphire necklace given to her by her father (along with Queen Victoria's Sapphire Coronet) for her wedding. These items were all auctioned off after her death. Princess Marie Louise wore her Cartier Indian Tiara with diamonds, sapphires, and pearls which is now worn by the Duchess of Gloucester. "Cousin Louie" was not a Princess of the United Kingdom but a Princess of Schleswig-Holstein (she dropped the Schleswig-Holstein when the family ditched their German titles). As such, she wasn't entitled to the same robe and wore a simple velvet train instead.

Tradition says that other reigning monarchs don't usually attend coronations (or whatever they may be called in any given country). Thus, the turnout for the coronation of Elizabeth II was rich with heirs and others, from which a few tiaras can be picked out.

L to R: Crown Princess Märtha, Empress Joséphine's Emerald Tiara (above), the Belgian Scroll Tiara (below), Hereditary Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte

Norway's Crown Princess Märtha wore Empress Joséphine's massive emerald tiara, while the then Hereditary Grand Duchess of Luxembourg, Joséphine-Charlotte, wore her own Belgian Scroll Tiara.

The Countess of Barcelona and the Fleur de Lys Tiara

Spain was an exiled monarchy at the time, but they were well represented with the Countess of Barcelona (mother of the current king) in the biggest Spanish tiara, the Fleur de Lys.

L to R: The Portland family, the Essex tiara (above), the Portland tiara (below), Mrs. Churchill

Moving away from royalty, the Duchess of Portland wore the massive Portland Diamond Tiara (a second Portland option to the sapphire tiara that made your Top 15). Clementine Churchill, wife to then Prime Minister Winston Churchill, borrowed the diamond Essex Tiara made for Adele, Countess of Essex for the day.

L to R: Earl and Countess Mountbatten, the Mountbatten tiara (above), the Spencer tiara (below), the Countess Spencer

The Countess Mountbatten wore the diamond Mountbatten Tiara, now sold off. The Countess Spencer (that would be Diana, Princess of Wales' grandmother) wore the other diamond Spencer tiara, which is...well...different from the one most know and many love. It still belongs to the Spencers and is currently on tour with the traveling Diana exhibit, though Diana never wore it.

L to R: The Marchioness of Cambridge, the Westminster Halo Tiara (above), the Marchioness' tiara (below), the Duchess of Westminster

The Marchioness of Cambridge wore a tiara of stars and pearl spikes which is an absolute dead ringer for a tiara currently owned by Princess Benedikte of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg and frequently worn by her two daughters. The Duchess of Westminster wore the Westminster Halo Tiara, which must have made quite the impression amongst the coronation sea of tiaras. The tiara has since been sold by the family.

As I said, with more than 8,000 guests in attendance, there's plenty more tiara hunting. But for now, this will be the sparkly end to our look at Queen Elizabeth's coronation.

Photos: Corbis/Royal Collection/Queen Elizabeth II/Getty Images/Geoffrey Munn

Random Royal Appreciation: Sophie in the West Indies

Queen Elizabeth is sending her family far and wide to celebrate her Diamond Jubilee while she and the Duke of Edinburgh stay in the United Kingdom. The Earl and Countess of Wessex have kicked it all off with their ongoing tour of the West Indies, where Sophie has debuted a distinctly Caribbean take on her usual wardrobe.

I won't go so far as to say every outfit Sophie has worn so far has been a hit, but overall I'm loving her easy and breezy take on her typical style. Sleeveless or looser cuts with her hair up is perfect for the climate, and she's even brought out some fun prints which seem extra appropriate here.

I could do without the black flower off a little girl's party dress for the state dinner they attended in Barbados, but the dress itself is great for her. It's just one of several notable repeats during the trip: we've seen her hat from William and Catherine's wedding, her hat from Garter Day, her dress from Albert and Charlene's wedding, and this dress from Albert's coronation.

The tour began on February 21st and lasts until March 7th. The Wessexes have hit St. Lucia, Barbados, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Grenada, and Trinidad and Tobago as far as these pictures go; the tour will take them to Montserrat, St. Kitts and Nevis, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda before they head home. This last bit is overlapping with Prince Harry's first overseas tour - all of that when we next pick up with the Touring Windsors.

How do you think Sophie's doing so far?

Photos: British Monarchy/Press Association/UK in Barbados/Trinidad and Tobago News

Tiara Thursday: The Cameo Tiara

This entry was updated and revisited in 2016, click here.

Reviewing the tiaras worn at the wedding of Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel brought to my attention that we've never really looked closely at Victoria's bridal tiara. Shall we take a temporary break from diamonds and do just that? (Temporary break, loves. I said temporary.)

The Cameo Tiara

The Swedish tiara collection has some of the oldest tiaras still in use, and this is one such diadem. Its first owner was Empress Joséphine, who likely received it as a gift from her husband Napoleon sometime around 1809. Cameos were much more popular back then; the seven used in this tiara were made first and were not intended to go together which is why they are all different in size and color. The popularity of the medium has faded enough today that I think we can get by simply calling this one the Cameo Tiara - it's not exactly a common thing nowadays.

Left to Right: Queen Hortense, Queen Josephine, Crown Princess Margaret, Princess Ingrid (later Queen of Denmark), Princess Sibylla

Though the tiara was worn in a painting by Joséphine's daughter Queen Hortense of Holland, it ended up in the hands of the empress' granddaughter, Josephine of Leuchtenberg. Josephine #2 brought the tiara to Sweden through her marriage to the future King Oscar I of Sweden and Norway, and it has stayed there ever since.

It's currently in the hands of King Carl Gustaf, but the path down the family line hasn't been a straight one: Josephine left it to her daughter Princess Eugénie, who left it to her nephew Prince Eugén. Eugen loaned it to his niece by marriage, Crown Princess Margaret, and eventually gave it to Princess Sibylla of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha when she married Prince Gustaf Adolf in 1932. Sibylla lent it to her sister-in-law, the future Queen Ingrid of Denmark, for a costume ball and ultimately left it to her son, King Carl Gustaf.

Brides, L to R: Princess Birgitta, Princess Désirée, Queen Silvia, Crown Princess Victoria

While it was in Sibylla's hands, another family tradition began: using the Cameo Tiara as a wedding crown. Two of the King Carl Gustaf's sisters used it for their weddings: Princess Birgitta in 1961 and Princess Désirée in 1964. Queen Silvia solidified the tradition when she wore it to marry Carl Gustaf in 1976 (by this time, Sibylla had passed away and the tiara belonged to the king), and now she's shared it with the first of her daughters to marry, Crown Princess Victoria in 2010.

Details of the center cameo with Cupid and Psyche, and all sides of the tiara

To those of us accustomed to purely white bridal ensembles, this is an interesting change of pace. But really, it's not that surprising of a choice for a Swedish bride: it's nearly a crown shape which echoes the Swedish tradition of bridal crowns, and the center cameo depicts the love story of Cupid and Psyche (as has been reported by the Royal Court; others say it is Venus and Cupid). The cameos are framed in pearls and sit on a base of gold and seed pearls.

Queen Silvia

The tiara is also a part of a parure, though it's unclear when the parure came together and if it was originally intended to be a set. Today that set includes the tiara, a pair of earrings, a necklace, a brooch, and two bracelets, and is worn by Queen Silvia. She doesn't opt for the cameos often, but I think it has more impact when used sparingly anyway. For a woman that enjoys putting together a whole look from hair to gown, I can see the appeal of a challenge like this tiara.

Is this unusual piece a yay or a nay for you?

Photos: BEW/Svenskdam/Daylife/Getty Images