Fashion Awards: Catherine One Year Later

It has been a year since Catherine Middleton married Prince William of Wales in a ceremony on April 29, 2011 at Westminster Abbey in London. Since then she has wowed us with her style. Here are my favourites of her first year as a duchess:

Casual Wear

In Canada Day 6

Casual looks are hard to chose since they are casual. I liked them all (like I do with all Kate’s clothes) yet, I liked when Kate was in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories while visiting Canada in July of 2011.

Coats

All of them!

I love every single jacket Kate has worn. I would love to buy all these coats ASAP. My all time favourite jackets would be at Garter Day, in Calgary, Canada, Zara Phillips’s Wedding, Christmas, and in Liverpool.

Dresses

In Canada Day 4 and Attending African Cats

I love all of Kate’s dresses, I would love to wear all of them but, I can’t. I know I only put a ribbon on only one dress but I realized I liked 2 so I am just going with that.

Best Skirts

In the US Day 12

Kate has only worn 2 skirts in her marriage with William. Since I didn’t like the Military inspired outfit, I liked the other one that she wore in the US.

Earrings

At National Memorial Arboretum Appeal

I love all of the earrings Kate has ever worn. My favourite would be to the National Memorial Arboretum Appeal Gala.

Evening Dresses

At the ARK 10th Anniversary Gala Dinner

I love ever single evening dress Kate has ever worn but my favourites would be the one where she wore to the ARK 10th Anniversary Gala Dinner and at the Military Sun Awards and to the premiere of War Horse.

Wedding Wednesday: Royal Engagement Rings*

So, I guess I never thought this but, let’s get the thing that starts the Weddings happen: The Engagement Rings.

Sapphire

(Left to Right: Duchess of Cambridge, Princess of Wales, Princess Marie-Chantal of Greece, The Princess Royal, Princess Tatiana of Greece)

Rubies

(Left to Right: Crown Princess Mary of Denmark, Countess of Frederiksborg, Crown Princess Mette-Marit of Norway, Duchess of Brabant, Princess Martha Louise, Duchess of York)

Small Diamonds

(Left to Right: Princess Madeleine of Sweden, Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden, Zara Phillips, Princess Nathalie of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleberg, Autumn Phillips, Princess Alexia of Greece and Denmark)

Medium Sized Diamonds

(Left to Right: Lady Sarah Chatto, Queen Beatrix, Princess Charlene, Queen Elizabeth II, Empress Michiko)

Gigantic Diamonds

(Left to Right: Princess Soraya of Iran, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, Princess Grace of Monaco, Crown Princess Sarah of Brunei, Queen Paola of the Belgians, Duchess of Cornwall)

Multi Coloured

(Left to Right: Princess Marie of Denmark, Princess Maxima of the Netherlands)

Other Rings

(Left to right: Princess Letizia, Queen Silvia of Sweden, – Kinda hard to see, sorry – Countess of Wessex)
UPDATE

I have found new engagement rings. Left to right: Wallis Simpson, Top Middle (Emerald) Queen Fabiola of the Belgians, Bottom Middle (Black and White Picture) Princess Margaret, top Middle (Sapphire) Queen Anne-Marie of Greece, Bottom Middle (Diamond) Queen Rania of Jordan, Right top (Big Diamond) Viscountess Linley, bottom left (Scattered Diamonds) Princess Mabel.
UPDATE

The Hereditary Grand Duke of Luxembourg (Guillaume) became engaged to Countess Stephanie de Lannoy on April 26, 2012.

Tiara Town

Jewel Spotlights

Jewel Collections

   

Royal Tiaras

Every Tuesday is Tiara Tuesday. Here we have Royal Tiaras from the countries below:

Belgium

  

Britain

   

 

Denmark

   

Greece

Jordan

Luxembourg

Monaco

 

Netherlands

   

Norway

  

Spain

 

Sweden

   

Jewel Events

Nothing is better than Tiaras! We have some Jewel Celebrations here:

My Top 15 Tiaras: #10: The Leuchtenberg Sapphire Parure Tiara

This gem has a provenance similar to another huge Scandinavian diadem: Empress Joséphine's Emerald Tiara, now in the possession of Norway's royal family. The sapphires are thought to have been a wedding gift from Napoléon to Princess Augusta of Bavaria, Duchess of Leuchtenberg, when she married Eugène de Beauharnais (Empress Joséphine's son).

  

Left to Right: Queen Victoria, Queen Louise, Princess Sibylla, Princess Birgitta

It makes the journey to Sweden with Augusta's daughter, Josephine, who was the Queen consort of Oscar I of Sweden and Norway. The parure is now in the family foundation in Sweden, and has been worn mostly by queens and those acting as first ladies of the country, though there are exceptions to that rule: one being when King Carl Gustaf's sister, Princess Birgitta, wore it for Carl Gustaf and Silvia's pre-wedding ball in 1976.

Birgitta's outing of the sapphires was the last time they were worn by anyone other than Queen Silvia (to date). She's made this one of her staples, and has explored all sorts of color combinations with the luscious blue sapphires.

It's also flexible in form: the tiara is comprised of 11 separate sections, meaning you can adjust the circumference to suit your needs (it even stores flat in its case, which is quite interesting). This tiara is large and surely has a significant weight to it - but it is still a favorite, and I wonder if the flexibility factors into that. Surely the ability to form it to suit your head shape makes for a more comfortable tiara-wearing experience.

The tiara is the headliner in a full parure of jewellery. Today, that parure is composed of the tiara, earrings, a necklace, a brooch, and two hairpins. The earrings are relatively new to the set: Queen Victoria didn't wear earrings, so she either gave the originals away or had them remade into something else. Queen Louise (as Crown Princess) converted two of the four original hairpins into a set of earrings to complete the parure once again.