Readers’ Favorite Outfits of 2018, Day/Cocktail: Results, Part 2!

Yesterday, we counted down the first five from your top 10 favorite royal Day/Cocktail outfits. Now we move right along to your final five…

#5. Queen Máxima at the Appeltjes van Oranje Awards in Natan

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Máxima’s worn this dress in a few ways. This year’s cocktail-style appearance with a big ol’ brooch and some good hair thrown in landed the #5 spot on your list.

#4. The Duchess of Cambridge at Kensington Palace in Emilia Wickstead

Kensington Palace

A little bit of tartan, some snow machine action, and a well fit cardigan grabbed Kate a spot on your countdown.

#3. Beatrice Borromeo at Monaco’s National Day in Armani Privé

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Chocolate velvet accents and a bit of couture made for one of the chicest winter hat outfits I’ve seen, and secured a princely spot on your countdown for Beatrice.

#2. The Duchess of Sussex in Australia in Oscar de la Renta

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The comments were full of quibbles but none of that could stop Meghan’s fairy tale moment from swooping in as your second favorite of 2018.

#1. The Duchess of Cambridge at the V&A in Erdem

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Whether you loved it for the swish or the fabric or the accessories or any other reason you please, the results are clear: Kate takes home the grand prize in your Day/Cocktail Division!

Did your picks make the cut?

Year in Review: 2018's Honorable Mentions

Did you fall in love with a 2018 royal outfit from someone not yet featured? Here, my friends, is the place to proclaim your love. The honorable mentions begin...

...right after this programming note: Our next post will be the Christmas round up, probably on the 26th, and then you'll want to stay tuned to cast your votes for your 2018 favorites!

Princess Eugenie in Zac Posen at her Wedding Reception

Alex Bramall/Royal Family

Our one limited glimpse of this gown in action is all I need to call it one of the most interesting - and intricately made - dresses of this royal year.

Princess Beatrice in Ralph & Russo at Princess Eugenie's Wedding

MOD Crown copyright 2018

Satisfying my need for more royal Ralph & Russo, this was a stunning turn for Princess Beatrice. Another contender for the year's best was her faux bow Gucci dress.

Lady Sarah Chatto in Jasper Conran at Princess Eugenie's Wedding

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Eugenie's wedding offered a few bests for the year. Sarah broke from her usual color schemes in a big way, to delightful effect. Another nod from the event goes to Lady Gabriella Windsor, who combined her blues in a fun way.

Princess Charlene in Oscar de la Renta at the Ocean Gala

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What, like a sparkly caped thing wasn't making this list?

Princess Sofia in Zetterberg Couture at the Nobel Prize Ceremony

Kungahuset/SVT

This high-impact gown won my heart at the Nobels. Sofia also impressed earlier in the year with her green halter top dress at the Polar Music Prize.

Princess Madeleine in Giambattista Valli at Princess Adrienne's Christening

Erika Gerdemark, Kungahuset.se

Did this floral really win me over, or was it just the fact that Madeleine wore pieces of the Cameo parure for the first time? Probably the latter, but hey, whatever makes it memorable.

Charlotte Casiraghi in Saint Laurent at the Rose Ball

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Listen, I just love the fact that what was arguably the most fun evening ensemble of the year came from Charlotte. Feathers for everybody!

Beatrice Borromeo at...a Bunch of Events

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I think I loved everything we covered Beatrice wedding this year, which is some kind of record: black velvet maternity from Alberta Ferretti at the Rose Ball, fur and fringe at the Ocean Gala, the delicious Armani Privé ensemble above from National Day, and the liquid gold number she wore to the National Day gala. 

What other royal outfits made your list of 2018 favorites?

Royal Outfits of the Day: Monaco National Day & Sussex Royal Variety Round Up

Time to clear the decks from Monday's big events, because there's another state visit happening and a holiday coming up. Let's do this snap judgement style. (Psst: Tomorrow is a US holiday but we will likely have a state visit post up, so do check in.)

Monaco's princely family celebrated National Day, starting with a Te Deum, review at the palace, and some window balcony appearances.

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Princess Charlene, in Akris: The hat can stay. So, that's something.

Princess Caroline, in Chanel: This hat can go. Or at least the lace band can go.

MonacoInfo

Princess Stephanie: Red! Color suits her.

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Tatiana Santo Domingo: She could nearly pass for a Windsor with her solid navy coat and Philip Treacy headpiece. It's the interesting shoes that give her away.

Princess Alexandra: Her mother's daughter in that suit, that's for sure.

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Beatrice Borromeo, in Armani Privé: Chocolate velvet accents? YES PLEASE. Winter neutrals done right.

Monaco Info

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The Babies: Grandma Caroline quite literally has her hands full these days. Two out of three 2018 family additions made their debuts: Francesco (son of Pierre and Beatrice) and Maximilian (son of Andrea and Tatiana).

The family also attended the evening gala.

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Princess Charlene, in Akris: To be impressed by her commitment to lining up her Order of St. Charles sash with the color division in her gown, or to be confused that it now looks like a racing stripe...that is the question.

Princess Caroline, in Stella McCartney: Queen Letizia's sublime appearance in a version of this dress is a hard act to follow. Not really advisable to try, honestly.

Beatrice Borromeo, in Armani Privé: Once again taking the prize. 

Elsewhere, on Monday the Duke and Duchess of Sussex attended the Royal Variety Performance.

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Duchess of Sussex, in Safiyaa: Nope. To all of it. Sorry. Blame it on that added halter strap (which is tacked on there like it was a hasty decision, which it probably wasn't, which makes it worse).

Tuesday Tidbits for October 30: Tiara Follow Ups and Other Stuff

To ease your tiara hangover after last week's splendor, some follow ups and other notes:

--Charlotte Casiraghi and her fiancé, Dimitri Rassam, welcomed a baby boy last week! The official announcement from Princess Caroline's office didn't mention a name, but it's being widely reported the little one is called Balthazar. The birth of Charlotte's second son finishes off the 2018 Casiraghi baby boom, in which Andrea Casiraghi and Tatiana Santo Domingo welcomed their third child (also a boy) in April, and Pierre Casiraghi and Beatrice Borromeo welcomed their second (another boy!) in May.

--Tiara follow up #1: Rick Evers asked Queen Máxima about the reappearance of the Stuart Tiara at the British state banquet. Among her comments were a note that she'd like to wear it more often in the future, and that it didn't give her a headache. I'm certainly ready to see it more. (Use the subtitles on the video below for a translation.)

--Tiara follow up #2: This link was in the comments on our Danish tiara event post last week, but if you didn't see it, it's a bit of fairy tale worth your time. It's video of Queen Margrethe and her guests dancing Les Lanciers quadrille. [YouTube]

--This is sad: Queen Elizabeth's last corgi, Whisper, has died, according to reports. She still has two dorgis, Candy and Vulcan. [Town & Country]

--And finally, over at the Jewel Vault, we finished out the Dutch/British state visit and also the Duchess of Cornwall had a second MAJOR diamond appearance for the week.

Clarence House

Coming up this week: A tiara and a wedding in Japan, and more...

Tidbits is your spot for royal topics we haven't covered separately on the blog, all week long. Please mind the comment policy, and enjoy!

Royal Outfit Grab Bag of the Day: Máxima, Victoria, Rania, Charlene

Checking in with a few other leading ladies before we head back to Sussexland...

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King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima visited Zeeland this week.

Shockingly enough, Máxima has been up to a bunch of hats and bright colors. (Warming up for her state visit to the UK next week, I hope.) This skirt reminds me of aerial photos of tulip fields. Claes Iversen shared a little Instagram look at these skirts from his Spring/Summer 2017 collection and how they're made. Very delicate and detailed.

Crown Princess Victoria and Prince Daniel visited Jordan, where they were received by King Abdullah and Queen Rania. The Swedish couple are also visiting Lebanon.
Royal Hashemite Court

Is it possible to avoid overdoing the design details on a dress by simply overloading it so much that your eyes have no choice but to gloss over some of the fussier bits? Victoria's dress is an experiment seeking an answer. (Mermaid scales. That's all I can get from this whole thing.) She does end up sort of pleasingly color-coordinated with Queen Rania's Ralph & Russo ensemble, though.

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Princess Charlene attended the 2018 Princess Grace Awards Gala.

Charlene doesn't do the big toothy grin thing in posed photos (which is her prerogative! I'm over people demanding smiles at all times) - and you don't even need one here to tell that she's quite pleased with her sassy Ralph Lauren evening suit. Blazers slung over the shoulders remain on my pet peeves list, but if there's someone who can pull this look off, it's Char.

Royal Dress of the Day: Princess Charlene's Glam Ocean Gala

A bunch of you contacted me about this appearance right away yesterday, because: 1) it's a caftan, 2) it's a CAPED caftan, and 3) hello, it sparkles. So...that's about as far up my alley as you can get, basically.

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Prince Albert and Princess Charlene attended the Monte-Carlo Gala for the Global Ocean last night.

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Charlene!! When she wants to bring it, she can BRING IT. And so she brought it, balancing out the sparkly shoulder on this Oscar de la Renta caped caftan with a big diamond cuff on the opposite wrist for good measure. I hope she dramatically swooped around all night long.

Oscar de la Renta Navy Embroidered Illusion and Stretch-Georgette Cape-Back Caftan (h/t to reader Anne)

One thing, though...while I've long since resigned myself to the fact that Charlene doesn't really wear tiaras and her events in Monaco aren't tiara events anyway, this gown is just crying out for the Ocean Tiara. That's all.

That's all about Charlene, I mean, because we also had some Casiraghi action in the house:

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Andrea Casiraghi and Tatiana Santo Domingo were there. This dress...feels about right for her.

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Pierre Casiraghi and Beatrice Borromeo were also on hand. Beatrice has fur and fringe going on, which is bonkers and super swishy and fun. Eh, why not?

Royal Outfit of the Day: Charlene at the Red Cross Ball

Prince Albert and Princess Charlene attended the 70th Red Cross Ball in Monaco.

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So we're doing The Little Mermaid of Monaco? That...is completely and totally fitting.

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The gown's a bit of a work of art itself, fully beaded with degradé Swarovski crystal scales in blue and gold, by Atelier Versace. For a state banquet? Nah. But this isn't that. This is a glitzy society event, and Charlene can get her mer-princess on any time.

Tuesday Tidbits for May 29: Birthday Leftovers and More

How's your sparkle hangover doing? Let's treat it with some leftover bits and pieces from that big Danish birthday bash plus other stuff:

--A highlight of Crown Prince Frederik's 50th birthday banquet - beyond, you know, the sparkle we so enjoyed - was Crown Princess Mary's speech. A sweet and funny tribute to her husband. Below is a video with English subtitles.

--The Danish royal family shared a clip of the documentary made for Crown Prince Frederik's birthday on YouTube. Really short, but interesting insights.

--One more leftover tidbit from the banquet: Did you notice that Crown Princess Mette-Marit wore the Order of the Elephant for the first time? According to Kjell Arne Totland, the Danish honor was bestowed upon Mette-Marit by Queen Margrethe in 2014 during the bicentennial celebrations of the Norwegian Constitution. This was her first opportunity to wear it. [Twitter]

--Princess Madeleine brought Princess Leonore along for Childhood Day on Sunday and they had a blast. She wore a baby blue suit and Princess Sofia wore a pale pink trouser suit yesterday, and between the two, I'm not sure I'm on board with the pastel suit revival. [Svenskdam, Instagram]

A post shared by Princess Madeleine of Sweden (@princess_madeleine_of_sweden) on May 27, 2018 at 10:58am PDT

--The Countess of Wessex has a new dress from Zimmerman, and she must really like it; she wore it twice in very short order, for a performance at the Newbury Spring Festival and for the Chelsea Flower Show. It's the perfect canvas for a long pendant necklace, even a bigger statement piece than the one she wore at the flower show. [Countess of Wessex Blog]

Royal Family

--Another new grandchild for Princess Caroline, in case you missed it: Pierre Casiraghi and Beatrice Borromeo welcomed Francesco Carlo Albert on May 21st. The couple's first son, Stefano, was born last year.

Coming up this week: I suppose we're due for a Letizia catch up, and more...

Tidbits is your spot for royal topics we haven't covered separately on the blog, all week long. Please mind the comment policy, and enjoy!

Tuesday Tidbits for May 1: More Babies, More Tiaras, More Etc.

We missed our Tidbits last week - blame it on the Cambridge kid - so let's catch up:

--Prince Louis of Cambridge wasn't the only one making his big entrance in April: Princess Caroline confirmed that Andrea Casiraghi and Tatiana Santo Domingo welcomed their third child, a son named Maximilian Rainier, on April 19th.

--In other recent arrival news, Princess Madeleine shared some sweet photos with baby Princess Adrienne. [Photos: Erika Gerdemark, Royal Court]

--A behind-the-scenes tiara peek! Historic Royal Palaces shared a fascinating video about getting the Fife tiaras ready for display at Kensington Palace.

--Along sorta similar lines, this is an interesting read: The Art of Dressing Mannequins in Rare and Historic Garments. [Atlas Obscura]

--Princess Isabella of Denmark turned 11 in April and her new birthday photos - taken by her mom, Crown Princess Mary - feature her favorite pastime: hanging out with Lancet the horse. Eleven-year-old me is retroactively jealous. [Photos: HRH The Crown Princess]

--And finally, here's a bonus tiara shot! The Khedive of Egypt Tiara, photographed as it takes part in an upcoming exhibition at Koldinghus (check out more info here in a previous Tidbits mention). Queen Margrethe, Princess Benedikte, and Queen Anne-Marie will team up to open the exhibition.

A post shared by DET DANSKE KONGEHUS (@detdanskekongehus) on Apr 30, 2018 at 5:15am PDT

Coming up this week: A Scandinavian update, and more...

Tidbits is your spot for royal topics we haven't covered separately on the blog, all week long. Please mind the comment policy, and enjoy!

Monday Tidbits for April 9: Couples Who Coordinate and More

Here we go:

--A little casual couple coordination courtesy of Charles and Camilla on their trip to Australia, which also provided opportunities to partake in some of their favorite activities, such as meeting dogs and wearing sunglasses. [Hello]

Clarence House

--More couple coordination from Harry and Meghan - a little more intentionally this time - as they visited trials for the Invictus Games. [Town & Country]

--Charlotte Casiraghi attended an event in New York and gave us the best glimpse yet at what we assume to be her engagement ring. [Paris Match]

A post shared by @miss_nostalgiamc on Apr 5, 2018 at 11:29am PDT

--And finally, April 8th marked the 200th anniversary of the birth of King Christian IX of Denmark, the "father-in-law of Europe". The story of his large family and their path through the royal families of Europe was told in a lovely documentary called A Royal Family and you can currently find it here. [YouTube]


Tidbits is your spot for royal topics we haven't covered separately on the blog, all week long. Please mind the comment policy, and enjoy!

Tuesday Tidbits for April 3: Stately Homes and More

April already? Time to plan your summer adventures:

--The Royal Collection Trust released a few photos teasing the exhibition accompanying this year's summer opening of Buckingham Palace. Prince and Patron will feature items selected by the Prince of Wales, in celebration of his 70th birthday. Swing by this summer on your way to Kensington Palace for some tiara love. [Zimbio]

--And while you're in a stately home mood: Chatsworth House, seat of the Duke of Devonshire, has undergone an enormous restoration and the results are stunning. Very worth a visit. [ITV, BBC]

ITV screencap

--Here is Princess Charlene rocking a sassy pair of shades for a rugby tournament. [Hello]

--A chilly King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia and their pup wished everyone a happy Easter. Meanwhile, in case you missed it last week, the date for Princess Adrienne's christening has been announced: June 8, Princess Madeleine and Chris O'Neill's wedding anniversary and also the date of Princess Leonore's christening.

Kungahuset.se

--And finally, over at the Jewel Vault, QEII warmed up for Easter with the traditional Royal Maundy Service and some questionable hat trim, plus she hung out with some Navy folks.


Tidbits is your spot for royal topics we haven't covered separately on the blog, all week long. Please mind the comment policy, and enjoy!

Princely Event of the Day: Monaco's Rose Ball

The Rose Ball in Monaco - theme this year: Manhattan - didn't deliver the costume glory of 2017, but I think a step back into pleasing blacks and pinks was just what the couture doctors ordered.

Princess Caroline, Charlotte Casiraghi, Pierre Casiraghi, Beatrice Borromeo, and Princess Alexandra joined Karl Lagerfeld for the Bal de la Rose this weekend.

A post shared by Gala Magazine Germany (@gala_magazin) on Mar 25, 2018 at 3:15am PDT

It's Chanel as you would expect for Princess Caroline and Princess Alexandra, with a splash of yummy black velvet from Beatrice Borromeo and a literal pouf of fun from Charlotte Casiraghi.

Chanel Couture (left and center), Alberta Ferretti Limited Edition (right) 
h/t to Heaven

Caroline's Chanel looks like one that her old pal Karl had in mind for her from the start. Alexandra's seems like just the kind of thing an 18-year-old with access to haute couture should wear and possibly the kind of thing that only an 18-year-old with access to haute couture should wear. Beatrice's dress is modified from the runway to accommodate the confirmation that she is indeed expecting a second child, as has been reported.

A post shared by HELLO! Canada Magazine (@hellocanadamag) on Mar 24, 2018 at 4:48pm PDT

Swipe through for more pics from the evening.

Maybe also on rumor confirmation patrol tonight (because these Casiraghis don't really issue statements about this stuff), Charlotte showed up with beau Dimitri Rassam in tow and a ring parked on her finger, leading many to assume that this is her confirmation of their reported engagement. If you're going to be the center of inquiring attention, might as well do it in a giant feathery pouf!

Saint Laurent
h/t to Heaven

I don't really know what we'd call this - a wrap? a feather duster run amok? a coordinated ostrich attack? - so I'll just call it GLAM. It's playful! Oh, I'm definitely here for this.

A Royal Wedding for the Weekend: Prince Christian of Hanover and Alessandra de Osma Tie the Knot

Big wedding gowns and big tiaras call for special weekend posts! Prince Christian of Hanover, the second son of Ernst August, Prince of Hanover, married Alessandra de Osma in a civil ceremony in London in November 2017. They married in a religious ceremony today in the bride's home country of Peru.

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Alessandra's gown is from designer Jorge Vázquez. If you made a royal wedding gown checklist, this one would manage to tick pretty much every single box: loads of lace, long sleeves, big train, big veil, big tiara. It's a proper princess dress and I think this bride, who is known as Sassa and who is described by Wikipedia as a "lawyer ex model", is pulling it off with aplomb.

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About that big tiara: the Hanover Floral Tiara is back! We just saw it last year, when Prince Christian's older brother, Prince Ernst August, married Ekaterina Malysheva; prior to that, it was worn by their stepmother, Princess Caroline, and their mother, Chantal Hochuli. Alessandra is wearing the tiara in a more upright fashion than her sister-in-law did, so it looks a lot bigger, and the height is helping to anchor that big dress.

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Princess Alexandra of Hanover, the groom's younger half-sister, attended the bride wearing Giambattista Valli Couture (above). The groom's father was also in attendance, after family tensions resulted in him missing his older son's wedding last year. Other guests included Pierre Casiraghi, Crown Prince Pavlos of Greece, the York sisters, and Kate Moss.

Royal Outfit of the Day: Charlene Brings the Bling

Maaaaaaaajor earring alert!

Prince Albert and Princess Charlene attended the 2018 Laureus World Sports Awards in Monaco yesterday.

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Big diamonds (Charlene did a bracelet, too) and a crisp white dress? That's like my kryptonite. One of many, many things that could qualify as my kryptonite, at least.

This dress also comes with a surprise sleeve, which - because I can't let it go without one teensy gripe - might be even better if reduced in volume just a hair.

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And this couple's ensemble comes with surprise sneakers! Your eyes do not deceive you, that is a pair of bright white sneakers and a tux. No, Albert hasn't suddenly decided to shake up his red carpet style; he's participating in the #SneakersforGood campaign that encouraged many attendees to throw a little comfort into their outfits for a good cause.

Princely Outfits of the Day: Charlene and her Patterns Celebrate Sainte Dévote

Two patterns in a row from Charlene - similar ones, at that - require a check-in:

Prince Albert, Princess Charlene, Prince Jacques, and Princess Gabriella attended the Feast of Saint Dévote in Monaco on Friday.

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Sign me up for this coat. Or for Princess Gabriella's sassy boots, but since I doubt they make those in my size, we'll just go with the coat. (The twins brought the awwws for this event, sharing a little hug. Here's a gallery.)

Loro Piana Reversible Coat
24Sèvres

You can sign me up for a knockoff of this coat, that is, because UFO No More identified it and it is an eye-watering $6,975. But it's cashmere! And reversible! Just in case you need any of the justifications that this princess doesn't need to care about.

Prince Albert and Princess Charlene attended a mass for the celebration of Saint Dévote on Saturday.

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Charlene was clearly still in a check mood the next day. This outfit is...remarkably un-Char-like, no? You could cut and paste this outfit onto any number of royal ladies, and that's not usually something I can say for a Charlene outfit. Is that for the better or for the worse? You tell me. I'm still getting over feeling this meh about something she wore that wasn't a shade of blergh.

Monday Tidbits for January 29: Family Time in Spain, and More

Royal tour action awaits us this week, but first:

--King Felipe turns 50 this week, so the royal house released some nice behind the scenes-style footage of the family together. It's sweet!

--Princess Athena, daughter of Prince Joachim and Princess Marie, turned 6 last week, and the Danish royal household is never short on new birthday portraits. Also sweet!

Keld Navntoft, Kongehuset

--Here's Princess Alexandra visiting The Old Moat Garden Centre last week, cheerfully reminding us that Queen Máxima isn't the only one that can wear all the colors and all the textures at once.

Royal Family

--Speaking of all the textures, this skirt and this shirt on Crown Princess Mary: yes or no?

A post shared by DET DANSKE KONGEHUS (@detdanskekongehus) on Jan 26, 2018 at 12:09pm PST

Coming up this week: Prints galore in Monaco, the Cambridges head to Sweden and Norway, and more...

Tidbits is your spot for royal topics we haven't covered separately on the blog, all week long. Please mind the comment policy, and enjoy!

Royal Jewels of the Day: An Engagement Ring Update

In 2013, I ran a series of posts on royal engagement rings from multiple royal families. (You can check them out here.) I have received many requests to update those posts in the years since, and while continuous updates are not a goal I can achieve, we have accumulated enough to do a little update post. Let's add a few from brides of the past five years (and of the year to come!):

Princess Eugenie of York

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We'll start with the most recent addition to the collection, the stunning ring shown off by Princess Eugenie as she and Jack Brooksbank posed in the Picture Gallery at Buckingham Palace after announcing their engagement yesterday. (Her Erdem dress, by the way, is a repeat.) The couple are thought to have designed the ring together.

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Carrying on the British royal family's love of a colored stone ring, this one is a padparadscha sapphire surrounded by diamonds, on a gold band. Padparadscha sapphires have a pinky-orange color that varies by stone. Pink engagement rings are a bit of a trend in some circles, from pink stones to rose gold settings, and unusual stone choices are having a new moment in engagement rings, too. But nestling the stone in a ring of diamonds brings it back to one of the most classic ring designs (and understandably draws easy comparisons between Eugenie's ring and those of her mother, or of her aunt and cousin-in-law). I've seen reports place the value of this ring anywhere from £7,000 to £100,000, so - as is always the case - you have to take these figures with a grain mountain of salt.

Meghan Markle

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Meghan Markle's engagement ring from Prince Harry joins Queen Elizabeth II's and the Countess of Wessex's rings on the all-diamond side of the family. The ring is by Cleave and Company and Harry is said to have helped design it; it features a center diamond from Botswana with two diamonds on either side from the personal collection of Diana, Princess of Wales, on a gold band. This will look good with a plain Welsh gold wedding band, assuming Meghan is given one in accordance with family tradition. More pictures are in our engagement post.

Princess Sofia of Sweden

Kungahuset/SVT

The main ladies of the Swedish royal family have a string of diamond engagement rings in classic settings. Prince Carl Philip added to the pile by proposing with a round diamond in a diamond halo on a split shank diamond band. Princess Sofia now wears it alongside her diamond wedding band.

Beatrice Borromeo

Bernd Schwabe - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0

There wasn't a here's the ring photoshoot when Pierre Casiraghi and Beatrice Borromeo got engaged, though it seems like this ring is the one: a pear-shaped stone with halo of diamonds on a diamond band. Early reports on their rumored engagement suggested that Pierre had proposed with a pink diamond ring; in some photos, the pear stone looks like it might have some color to it, but it's hard to tell. (Beatrice does have a pair of magnificent morganite earrings reportedly from Princess Caroline, so she is not without her pink stones.)

Ekaterina Malysheva

Axel Hindemith / CC BY-SA 3.0

I don't recall a presentation of the ring when Prince Ernst August of Hanover got engaged to Ekaterina Malysheva, either, so this might be a bit of guesswork as well. This ring with a central sapphire on a thick and detailed diamond band seems to be the one; the bride wore it during the wedding festivities. Sapphires once again prove to be one of the most popular royal engagement rings.

Readers' Favorite Outfits of 2017, Evening Division: Place Your Votes!

And now, it's time for the sparkle. Twenty-five gowns worn in 2017 are here for your evaluation and ranking fun in the evening division, a (hopefully) well-rounded selection of those that were popular in your comments on our Best of 2017 posts and throughout the year.

Links to past coverage are included below. You may select up to three outfits to vote for. Vote in the poll at the bottom of the page. (If you're unable to see the poll, try a different browser.) Voting will be open through noon Eastern time on January 3rd.

UPDATE: The poll is now closed.

One quick programming note before we dig in: Our next post will feature the first gowns of 2018 at the sparkling New Year's event in Denmark (and Japan!) on the evening of the 1st. See you then!

CasaReal, NRK, RVD, Italian presidency, Palais Princier

1. Queen Letizia at the Spanish/British State Banquet in Felipe Varela

2. Queen Mathilde at the Norway Birthday Gala in Armani

3. Queen Máxima at the Italian State Banquet in Jan Taminiau (also worn for King Willem-Alexander's Birthday)

4. Princess Charlene at the Laureus World Sports Awards in Carolina Herrera

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5. Queen Letizia at King Willem-Alexander's Birthday in Stella McCartney

Royal Family/Belgian Monarchy

 6. The Duchess of Cambridge at the Spanish/British State Banquet in Marchesa

7. Queen Mathilde at the Danish/Belgian State Banquet in Armani Privé

8. Crown Princess Mary at the Danish/Belgian State Banquet in Jesper Høvring (also worn for the New Year's Gala Banquet)

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9. Queen Máxima at the Argentina State Banquet in Jan Taminiau

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10. Princess Sofia at the Nobel Prize Ceremony in Ida Lanto

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 11. Princess Tatiana at the Norway Birthday Gala in Celia Kritharioti

12. The Countess of Wessex at the Norway Birthday Gala in Suzannah

13. Queen Margrethe at the Danish/Belgian State Banquet (also worn for the Norway Birthday Gala)

British Embassy/CasaReal/NRK

14. The Duchess of Cambridge in Paris in Jenny Packham

15. The Princess Royal at the Spanish Guildhall Banquet

16. Queen Letizia at the Spanish Guildhall Banquet in Carolina Herrera (originally identified as Armani)

17. Crown Princess Victoria at the Norway Birthday Gala in Elie Saab

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18. Crown Princess Mary at the New Year's Reception in Lasse Spangenberg (though this was a day event, the cape was debuted in the evening at the New Year's Gala Banquet and the overall look seems destined to be repeated for a gala, so let's call it evening)

Palais Princier/Kongehuset/SVT/Instagram

19. Princess Charlene at the Princess Grace Awards in Ralph Lauren

20. Queen Máxima at the Norway Birthday Gala in Jan Taminiau

21. Princess Madeleine at the Nobel Prize Ceremony in Séraphine

22. Princess Tatiana in Australia in Celia Kritharioti

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23. Crown Princess Mary at the Norway Birthday Dinner in Erdem

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24. Hereditary Grand Duchess Stéphanie in Cannes in Ralph Lauren

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25. The Duchess of Cambridge at the Diplomatic Reception in Jenny Packham


You may vote for up to THREE outfits. Ready? VOTE: