Showing posts with label Japanese New Year. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Japanese New Year. Show all posts

01 January 2018

Royal Fashion Awards: New Year Receptions, 2018

Greetings and Happy New Year! We always get to start off the year with tiaras around here, courtesy of the sparkling New Year receptions held in Japan and Denmark, and there’s no better way to celebrate. And sometimes, we even get a few early contenders for the best outfits of the new year…

Best in Brand New
Crown Princess Mary
Kongehuset
Red gowns ruled the royal scene in 2017, and if Crown Princess Mary has any say in it, that trend will be going strong right into 2018. In a classic shape pepped up with a little neckline interest – and the perfect sleeve and neckline configuration to wear the golden collar of the Order of the Elephant, so clearly a well-planned design – this red gown is a serious winner. The gown the custom work of Soeren Le Schmidt (as found by Heaven), continuing Mary’s exploration of the best that Danish design has to offer.

DR
Mary always wears her Danish Ruby Parure here, since it’s often the most formal event of the year, which makes the red gown an even better choice. This year her selections from the flexible ruby set include the tiara, the full version of the earrings (oh, do I love any opportunity to see those earrings in their full glory), the hairpins, the bracelet, and the ring. It seems like she might have done some more tinkering with the Ruby Parure Tiara, by the way; the middle seems a little less flat this time around. I wonder if one of the three hairpins has been added back in.




Most Coordinated in Repeats
Queen Margrethe and Princess Marie
Kongehuset
All of the Danish royal ladies were very gown-to-accessory coordinated this year. Queen Margrethe has worn this green lace dress for this occasion in the past (with these jewels) (and with her trusty Yeti wrap, obvs) and it’s a natural match for the Danish Emerald Parure. The emeralds are part of the Crown Jewels.

Kongehuset/DR
Princess Marie wore this gold and white Rikke Gudnitz dress to the Belgian state banquet last year. It shines even more here as it picks up the gold in her Order of the Elephant chain splendidly. She wore her Diamond Floral Tiara, as she usually does.

Best in Bulk Diamonds and Pearls
The Japanese Imperial Family
ANN
You can always count on the Japanese ladies to start your year with all the diamonds and pearls your heart desires. Empress Michiko, who no longer wears tiaras, led the way draped in her favorite diaphanous cape sleeves and multiple strands of pearls.

JNN
Because she'll be marrying in 2018, this was Princess Mako's last appearance at this gala, and the countdown of her last appearances in her tiara and parure continues. Her mother, Princess Kiko, was also in her own tiara and parure.

ANN
In addition to the multiple ladies that appeared in front of the cameras, Crown Princess Masako was seen arriving in the Japanese Pearl Sunburst Tiara. See her, and more pics, in this gallery.


Who makes your best dressed list for 2018's gala New Year receptions?
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01 January 2017

Royal Fashion Awards: New Year Receptions, 2017

Happy New Year! We're here to start things off as we always do: with tiaras, courtesy of glittering New Year events in Denmark and Japan. A gala banquet in Denmark is one of the most formal events of the year for the Danish royal family, where they wear the golden collars of the Order of the Elephant. In Japan, the imperial family gathers for a formal reception, and it's tiaras all around for everyone. We'll start our awards in Denmark:

Most Heavily Adorned
Queen Margrethe
Queen Margrethe always arrives to the New Year banquet in a flurry of fabric and jewels, with her trademark Yeti pelt fur wrap swinging. This year was all of that times ten, because her gown - a repeat from her 70th birthday celebrations - ended up looking like she was wearing two gowns at once under that wrap.
DR screencaps
She's also wearing the stomacher from the Danish crown pearl, ruby, and diamond set as a necklace. That's a lotta look by itself, let alone with the gold chain and the Pearl Poire Tiara and all the rest. Luckily, she's a woman with enough gravitas to pull it all off.

Biggest Test in Capes
Crown Princess Mary
Crown Princess Mary opted to start the new year by testing my love of capes. This is the first time we've seen her Jesper Høvring gown in action (she wore it in a portrait last year), and it is a golden dream, very swoopy and grand in motion. (Check out video of the royal family's arrival here or here.) I'm just afraid it's being let down by the cape, which doesn't feel magnificent enough to go with this gown.
DR
I'm with her on the rest of it, though: the Danish Ruby Parure with the full version of the earrings, the hair pins in back, and the brooch used at her neckline. Fabulous.

Most Slinky in Metallics
Princess Marie
I couldn't believe it when Princess Marie got out of the car: could she really be wearing a simple, slinky metallic sheath? She usually adds some froof to the equation. And so she had and I just didn't see it right away, in the form of a ruffle at the side of this new Ole Yde gown.
DR
The ruffle is subtle, and the bronze color makes an excellent showcase for her golden collar. Her Diamond Floral Tiara is never a bad idea. I think this might be her best New Year outing in quite some time.

Most Impressive in Group Sparkle
The Japanese Imperial Family
ANN screencaps. See video here.
An impressive amount of sparkle here even with fewer tiaras than usual, because some family members are still observing mourning for Prince Mikasa. Empress Michiko no longer wears tiaras, but was elegant in pearls; the ladies of the Akishino family came with the full force of their diamond parures (Princess Kiko in the Akishino Tiara, plus Princess Mako in her tiara and Princess Kako in her tiara.) Crown Princess Masako arrived in the Japanese Pearl Sunburst Tiara.

Who's your best dressed to kick off the new year?

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01 January 2016

Royal Fashion Awards: New Year Receptions, 2016

Happy New Year! I love starting a fresh year, and love it even more so because we get to kick it off here with some serious sparkle. In Japan, they bring together all available family members for a state reception filled with tiaras; in Denmark, they attend the New Year’s banquet, one of the most formal events of the year and an occasion to wear the golden chains of the Order of the Elephant and some of their best jewels.


In Japan...

Most Sparkle Power
The Imperial Ladies
Left to Right: Kiko, Princess Akishino; Princess Mako of Akishino; Princess Kako of Akishino; Hanako, Princess Hitachi; Nobuko, Princess Tomohito of Mikasa; Princess Akiko of Mikasa; Princess Yōko of Mikasa; Hisako, Princess Takamado; Princess Tsuguko of Takamado; Princess Ayako of Takamado
Like I always say, for sheer tiara quantity, you can’t beat a mass gathering of the women of the Japanese imperial family. Each woman has her own parure to wear, and though the use of strictly white jewels can start to appear monotonous (what a thing to say about diamonds, right?!), there’s a style here for every taste. We've only featured two of the tiaras on display: the Akishino Tiara and Princess Kako's Tiara.
Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko
2012 was the last time we saw Empress Michiko wear a tiara to this event. She’s stopped wearing them altogether, probably because of problems with the added weight. I do miss the Imperial Chrysanthemum Tiara, but I also can’t argue with that wonderful large brooch pinned in stomacher fashion. The Empress doesn't lack in sparkle simply because she goes tiara-free, that's for sure.


In Denmark...

Best in Repeats, Standard Division
Queen Margrethe
Queen Margrethe is a champion dress repeater, and I'm all for that when it means my favorite of her new gowns - the one worn to 2015’s Dutch state visit and to one of her birthday dinners - comes back. She paired the dress again with the Pearl Poire Tiara; her necklace, brooch, and earrings come from the pearl, diamond, and ruby set belonging to the Danish crown jewels.
Prince Henrik made his first appearance since the surprising announcement that he would be retiring from most public duties in 2016. I wasn’t surprised that the Prince Consort made the decision – he’s 81, and seemed to have more trouble getting around lately – but I was surprised that Queen Margrethe decided to make a big official announcement as part of her traditional New Year’s Eve speech. (Since I know someone will ask, Queen Margrethe has said in the past that she will not consider abdication.) He'll still make the occasional public appearance, so he's not disappearing.

Best in New Déjà Vu
Princess Marie
Princess Marie’s white skirt and top are new, but the shape and the combo of a detailed top and plain skirt give me flashbacks to her blue/gray peplum outfit from 2014. It’s a good look anyway, and I love her hair with her usual Diamond Floral Tiara.


Best in Repeats, Creative Division, and Best in Show
Crown Princess Mary
Mary is also a champion dress repeater, and you just knew she had something up her sleeve when she wore a separate top and skirt for her amazing BAMBI Award appearance in 2014. When she first emerged from the car this evening, I thought she had a blue version made of her beloved reconfigured red velvet gown, but no! 
There’s a creative reuse twist: the skirt from her sparkling navy blue Jesper Høvring ensemble has been recycled here with a new navy velvet top with a built-in train (the train on the original blue skirt was still there, underneath the velvet). The matching embellishment on the sleeves tied the pieces together, and the skirt was quite swoopy and spectacular in movement. ADORE.
She paired it with the Danish Ruby Parure (tiara, earrings, and hairpins), which is what she wears every year for this event.


A most auspicious start to 2016, I'd say. So tell me:

Who are you declaring the best dressed of the night?



P.S.: Next post will be a new tidbits edition on Monday!

Photos: ANN News video screencap, Twitter as noted, Getty Images, DR1 video screencap
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01 January 2015

Royal Fashion Awards: New Year's Receptions, 2015

Happy New Year! We get to kick it off in style with tiaras ablaze - which is the best way to start a new calendar, if you ask me. The first day of January brings us sparkling events in Denmark and Japan and plenty of royal fashion awards to go around.

Best in Quantity
The Japanese Imperial Ladies
We start in Japan, where the Emperor and Empress, accompanied by the imperial family, received New Year's greetings from dignitaries. I always find it a little tricky to comment on the gowns here, since they are all conforming to the strictest protocols and there's not really room for personal expression. But you can't beat them when it comes to sheer numbers of tiaras on display. Each woman of age that is able to attend does, and they all have at least one parure to wear. The Empress has not worn a tiara for a while now, and that continues this year, but the rest are all sparkled up and ready to go. In the mix for the first time this year is Princess Kako, daughter of the Prince and Princess Akishino and granddaughter of the Emperor and Empress. She just turned 20 and got her brand new tiara, and we'll be chatting about that in depth soon.



Next we go to Denmark, where the royal family holds a gala banquet for members of government and other VIPs. It is always one of the most formal events, if not the most formal event, of the year, and aound their shoulders they wear the collar of the Order of the Elephant, Denmark's highest order of chivalry. Click here for a gallery.

Most Anticipated Repeat
Queen Margrethe
Margrethe is big on repeating gowns and she usually picks between two tiaras for this event (the Pearl Poire or the emeralds from the crown jewels; one notable exception was the year she wore her brand new tiara). So to see those emeralds and a green lace gown we've seen several times was entirely expected. She's also quite prone to wearing this particular giant fur wrap, so everybody say hello once again to the infamous Yeti Pelt.

Most Surprising Repeat
Princess Marie
Princess Marie has had a run of new gowns for this banquet in years past, so I suppose she was due for a repeat. Still, I wouldn't have guessed she'd pick this particular one, worn to Princess Madeleine and Christopher O'Neill's wedding in 2013. I quite liked it as a light choice for a summer wedding, but I'm not sure it can stand up to a heavy gold collar. She wasn't all surprise, though, as she stuck to her standard diamond floral tiara.
 
Best in New
Crown Princess Mary
Flipping things around, Mary - who has worn a repeated gown for the last few years - opted for something new. And I guess my love affair with white will continue strong in 2015, because I can rarely find fault with a simple belted white gown. I love it with her evening cloak, which always makes me want to buy an evening cloak just so I could say evening cloak more often in my daily life, and I love it with the elements of the Danish ruby parure. She always wears the rubies for the New Year's banquet, and this time she's gone for the tiara, the stud earrings with pearl drops, the simplified version of the necklace, the bracelet, and the ring. Lovely, and (no surprise here at all) my favorite for the night.

Updated to add: A video of the royal arrivals for you, below, and you can click here for a video on the terribly grand table setting for the banquet.

Who was your best dressed from this year's opening round of sparkle?

We return to our regularly scheduled programming on Sunday!

Photos: ANN News video, FNN video, Julian Parker/UK Press via Getty Images
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02 January 2014

Royal Fashion Awards: New Year, New Sparkle

And so it is time, once again, to ring in a new year of royal splendor in the way we always do: with tiaras! The Danish royal family wastes no time busting out their finery, holding the first of a series of New Year's events with a banquet on January 1. It's time for tiaras, gowns, uniforms, and the extra fancy collars from the Order of the Elephant:

Video: The royal family arrives

Best Repeated Variety
Queen Margrethe
The Queen can be counted on to repeat a gown for the event, but she's the only one of the three ladies here that changes up her tiara choice from year to year, so there's that. This year she repeated a favorite apple green gown which is quite flattering and paired it with her traditional Yeti pelt fur wrap and the Danish Emerald Parure from the crown jewels. She also wore this combo in 2011 for the same event.

Most Stretched Repeat
Crown Princess Mary
The banquet has become Mary's yearly opportunity to display just how creative she can get with the many pieces of the Danish Ruby Parure - and normally, I love it. But...maybe sticking the brooch on a piece of velvet and calling it a choker is stretching it just a tad, hmm? The choker is a new incarnation of this burgundy velvet dress, which is making its third appearance at the event and has been revamped from its original maternity form.

Best in New
Princess Marie
Making sure we don't drown in repeated gowns, Marie's here to save the day in a new number with a printed peplum top and a solid skirt with a train. The way she's pinned on her collar is just lovely, but I'm missing the small portrait brooch of Queen Margrethe (as worn by Mary) - we've seen Marie wear the honor previously, but not tonight. A picky request, though, from a completely elegant appearance. She is wearing her regular diamond floral tiara.

And an Honorable Mention to...
Helle Thorning-Schmidt
I know basically two things about Denmark's prime minister: she likes a good selfie, and she knows exactly how to dress herself for gala events when she's thrown in with tiara-wearing ladies. All politics aside, she's my tiara-less best dressed for the evening. I mean, this is just gorgeous.

There are two additional receptions in Denmark to be held yet (neither with tiaras, but still fancy court dress).

UPDATE: And here's the sparkly event in Japan, in the video below!
For the second year in a row, Empress Michiko has chosen not to wear a tiara, I believe for medical reasons (extra weight on the head can be troublesome if you have a back issues and things like that). At the beginning, we see the Crown Princess arrive in the pearl-tipped diamond fringe tiara. She does not appear at the audience itself, so the arrival is all we get. The rest of the imperial ladies are sporting their individual tiaras.

Who wins your best dressed award?

Photos: DR1/BilledBladet/Scanpix
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07 January 2013

Royal Fashion Awards: More New Year's Fun

After donning tiaras and assorted finery for the January 1st banquet, the Danish royal family continues on for two more days (on the 3rd and 4th) with more courts, or levees, or receptions, or whatever you wanna call 'em. They are held for specific groups of people, and feature Margrethe, Henrik, Frederik, and Mary (no Joachim, and no Marie). They ditch the tiaras because these are daytime events, but the court dress is still gloriously old school.

Best in Repeats
Crown Princess Mary
These are my two favorite outfits she's worn in the past for these events, and she's brought them back like a parade of greatest hits for my enjoyment (even sticking one of her ruby hairpins in on the second day for a little bit of fancy)! I get the repeating - these are expensive outfits, and are hard to reuse elsewhere - but I do hope that she will refrain from repeating the same stuff every single year, like someone else...

Worst in Repeats
Queen Margrethe
It's not just that she wore the same outfit two days in a row, it's that this is what she does every year. (Click here for last year, for example.) It's a very Margrethe thing to wear and it suits her, no doubt, but...can we leave the uniforms to those representing the military?

Best in Sparkle
The Japanese Royal Family
The Danish royal family is not the only family that holds a New Year's event, of course. The Japanese royal family makes an equally sparkly appearance on the 1st.
Unfortunately, this year it seems the Empress has gone without a tiara (we usually see the Imperial Chrysanthemum Tiara). Luckily, she brings back up in the form of many princesses and their army of tiaras. They might not be as high on the radar as other royal families around the world, but when they really get rolling, it's hard to compete with their sparkle.

Who's your favorite in this last batch of New Year fun?

Photos: Getty Images/Scanpix/Kongehuset
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04 January 2012

Royal Fashion Awards: Sparkling New Year's Receptions

Happy New Year! I hope you're not feeling the aftermath of your celebrations too harshly, but just in case you are, I have something to help take away the pain: tiaras. Two royal families in particular celebrate the New Year the right way, by bringing out their most formal duds and headgear.

Denmark, January 1st
We'll start in Denmark, where they hold a few different events for various dignitaries and so on in the first days of each new year. The first is the most formal, requiring tiaras and the very fancy pants collar of the Order of the Elephant (Denmark's' highest order of chivalry) instead of the usual sash. 

Best Repeat
Crown Princess Mary
This is a reworked version of one of my very favorite Mary looks of all time, from her maternity wear (and previously worn for this same event, see it here), and it is WONDERFUL. All covered up and princess-y with a killer train to boot? Seriously, I'm all kinds of jumpy claps about this. With the magical dress redo, she's paired pieces of the Danish Ruby Parure (as expected, she always wears this for this grand event): the tiara, the brooch on her waistband, the smaller version of the earrings with what looks like a black pearl drop, and SQUEE - something new! - what seems to be the leftover bits from her tiara redesign worked into her hair. Oh, man. She just set the bar very, very high for 2012.

Most Predictable Repeat
Queen Margrethe
A typical repeated Margrethe dress, paired with the Pearl Poire Tiara and a giant fur. Typical Margrethe...but what more could you want?

Happiest Appearance
Princess Elisabeth
 With Princess Marie at home, hopefully all cozy and comfy waiting for her baby to arrive, I was so happy to get a glimpse of a substitute tiara-sporting royal! This is Princess Elisabeth, first cousin of Queen Margrethe, and this is her sapphire tiara which came from Princess Thyra (a daughter of Frederik VIII) via her mother. Elisabeth never married and never had children, so many wonder if her jewels might make it back into the main royal line someday (long may she live, of course). In the mean time, she seems to be taking the Victoria route with her all blue sparkle. Well done!

Most Bedazzled
The Men
Left to Right: Prince Joachim, Crown Prince Frederik, Prince Henrik
You know why the ladies have to do it up so high with the tiaras and all that? Look at what they have to compete with! The Danish men have the most ornamented military uniforms around, from Joachim's Nutcracker attire to Frederik's Vegas shoulders and Henrik's major hat. You have to be regal indeed to pull this stuff off. Well played, gents.

Denmark, January 3rd
A second New Year's Court has been held for members of the Diplomatic Corps. This time the reception is during the day, so no tiaras are involved. 

Worst Redo
Crown Princess Mary
Here we have what seems to be a second cut up repeated New Year’s Court dress, this time from Mary’s first appearance in 2006. And this time…well, my jumpy claps are gone. The train’s been lopped off (why? Oh, poor train. I mourn the death of the train.), and a waistband’s been added. It really needed the updo, the train, and all the jewels to keep it from being a plain ol’ straight jacket.

Most Staunch Tradition
Queen Margrethe
Oh, Marge. She wears this same thing each year. The furs and the fur trim. Classic Daisy.

Most Up and Down
The Men
At first, it seemed to me that the men were the unequivocal best dressed for the second New Year’s Court. But then I saw Henrik’s hat (better or worse than the upturned mop from Court #1?). And then I realized that, just after the lovely Janet entertained us in the comments with the tale of Fred and Mary laughing in an interview about old Freddles’ elephant flying off while dancing, Henrik’s elephant flew off and Fred picked it up. Oh, gents. Good thing the ladies have it together. 

Denmark, January 4th
The final New Year's Court is also a day event, with no tiaras but an otherwise formal dress code.

Best Repeat Streak
Crown Princess Mary
Woohoo! Three repeats in a row, but this time we're back to my favorites: this blue gown and jacket combo worn at the courts in 2008 and 2010 is purely regal. An excellent comeback, after I wasn't so impressed with yesterday's look.

Most in Need of a Wash
Queen Margrethe
Oh, Marge, come on now. Even Prince Henrik changed his outfit from yesterday! Tradition is tradition, but I'm bored. Good thing we're done for the year.


Japan, January 1st
Next, we're on to Japan. The imperial family turns out en masse for a reception for various diplomats and dignitaries, and it's the sparkliest gathering around.

Best in Tradition
Empress Michiko
Empress Michiko does the same thing every year, her Imperial Chrysanthemum Tiara and a white gown. Regal as can be, though, so who can blame her? We also must give a tip o' the sartorial hat to Emperor Akihito there - glad to see him out and about after his hospitalization last month.

Best in Tiara Quantities
The Japanese Princesses
Loooook at all these tiaras. Sparkle for days! After the Emperor and Empress there, we have the imperial princesses. And they are, left to right (take a big breath, this is a long list): Princess Akishino (named Kiko, wife of the Emperor's second son Akishino), Princess Mako of Akishino (Kiko and Akishino's oldest daughter), Princess Hitachi (sister-in-law of the Emperor), Princess Akiko and Princess Yōko of Mikasa (daughters of the Emperor's first cousin), Princess Takamado (wife of the Emperor's late cousin) and her oldest daughter, Princess Tsuguko (she has two other daughters who are just out of this shot). PHEW. Apologies in advance if that's not 100% correct, but many thanks to reader Anne for sending all of it in. So, anyway, you can't really see many of these tiaras, but the princesses seem to get a tiara (often with a matching necklace) when they marry in or when they reach the age of 20 (the age of majority) for those born into the family. Most of them, beyond the Crown Princess and the Empress, seem to only have the one set at their disposal. And they're all diamonds or diamonds and pearls...no non-white jewels for this family.

Best in Unseen
Crown Princess Masako
Crown Princess Masako stays mostly out of sight as she's still being treated for the psychological ailments that come from a tough adjustment to royal life and pressure surrounding her inability to produce a male heir for the family, but it's always nice to get a smiling glimpse of her, here with her husband Crown Prince Naruhito and her daughter Aiko. Masako's wearing a diamond and pearl-tipped sunburst tiara which formerly belonged to the Empress. 

Who do you think did sparkle best for the New Year?

Photos: PPE/Nieboer/Billed Bladet/Hanne Juul/Anthon Unger/Tarik Mikkel Khan/Ekstra Bladet/yuko2ch/PPE/Colourpress/Kongsted/rpp/Jens Norgaard Larsen/BT/Martin Heoin/SN
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