Tiara Thursday (on a Tuesday, with a Programming Note): The Tiaras of Queen Silvia

The blog is taking a break for the rest of the week. Here's a whole bunch of sparkle to tide you over:

Queen Silvia has plenty of tiara variety at her disposal with the extensive Swedish collection, and she has made good use of it throughout her marriage. That said, observing which tiaras she selects for which events quickly shows a loose pattern: the Braganza for the biggest occasions, the Leuchtenberg sapphires and the Nine Prong alternating for important occasions that don't warrant the Braganza, and everything else thrown in here and there for the rest. Excepting special occasions, she tends to be the sole wearer of many of the tiaras she favors.

So, as we approach another Nobel ceremony, a tiara retrospective is needed for our Swedish queen. Stick around to vote for your favorite! (And see previously: Victoria's tiaras, and Madeleine's tiaras.)

We have covered all of these in depth before, so click on the tiara name for details as always.

The Braganza Tiara

Kungahuset/Bruno Ehrs

The largest tiara at her disposal, this is a true big gun and she treats it like one, bringing it out only for the most special occasions (state banquets for fellow monarchs, Crown Princess Victoria's wedding, that sort of thing). She's never worn this one to the Nobel ceremony.

The Leuchtenberg Sapphire Parure Tiara

Nobel Prize video screencap

Tiara #1 of her two favorites, and one we see her wear on the regular. She wore it earlier this year for Prince Carl Philip's wedding, completing a run of her three most important tiaras for the weddings of her three children.

The Nine Prong Tiara

Frankie Fouganthin via Wikimedia Commons

And this is #2 of the Silvia favorites. It's said to be pretty rigid and hard to wear if it doesn't naturally fit you, but it must fit Queen Silvia like a dream because she wears it all the time. It was her choice for Princess Madeleine's wedding in 2013.

The Connaught Tiara

View image | gettyimages.com

Though the Connaught has been shared with other family members on occasion (really just family weddings in recent years) and the drops have been worn by her daughters, it's usually worn only by Queen Silvia. She wore it to the gala held the night before her wedding, making it the first tiara she ever wore in public.

The Modern Fringe Tiara

There's a double tiara appearance above: the Connaught on the head and the Modern Fringe around the neck. I have a hunch this one is now Princess Madeleine's, and I doubt we'll see it on Queen Silvia again. Time will tell.

The Cameo Tiara

And this would be the second tiara she wore, on her wedding day. With the exception of Crown Princess Victoria on her own wedding day, this tiara is also a Silvia-only piece now.

Queen Josephine's Amethyst Tiara

View image | gettyimages.com

Queen Silvia "created" this tiara by placing a heavy necklace in the family collection on a tiara frame. The amethysts have since been shared with other family members (which you know makes me happy, amethyst lover that I am).

The Edward VII Ruby Tiara

Presidência da República Portuguesa

There's some family controversy behind this tiara that resulted in scarce use for several years, but its gaining speed now. It is an Edwardian piece difficult to wear with modern hairstyles, but luckily Queen Silvia knows a few things about tricky tiaras.

And Others...

Fotocollectie Anefo via Wikimedia Commons

The remainder of Queen Silvia's picks from the Swedish tiara collection are less likely to be seen on her today. Perhaps not coincidentally, all of these are favorites for others in the family:

• The Baden Fringe Tiara: This is the designated "crown princess" tiara for the family, and Silvia's use of it backed off once Crown Princess Victoria began to wear it.
• The Cut Steel Tiara: Who can forget the tiara Queen Silvia is said to have discovered in a cabinet in the palace? (Well, someone can, I guess, since it ended up in the cabinet in the first place.) Today it is a favorite of Crown Princess Victoria and Princess Christina and not a frequent choice for Silvia, though she has commented on how pleasantly light it is to wear.
• The Six Button Tiara: I'm not going to lie, I feel my well-documented dislike of the button tiaras is slightly vindicated by the fact that Queen Silvia avoids them both. She has worn the Six Button once at least; to my knowledge, she's never publicly worn the Four Button Tiara. Perhaps this is simply because she has enough pieces reserved for the queen without dipping into those frequently shared by the princesses, but I think I'll stick to my own theory.

Now the choice is yours: Vote!

The blog will return on Sunday. (We will be up and running over at the Jewel Vault though, where a trip is happening at the end of the week.) Happy Thanksgiving!