Category Archives: Luxembourg

Austrian-Luxembourg Wedding 40 Years On

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 Princess Marie-Astrid of Luxembourg and Archduke Carl Christian of Austria were married 40 years ago on February 6, 1982. Marie-Astrid wore the Congo Diamond Necklace Tiara, a convertible necklace made by Van Cleef and Arpels and gifted to her mother, Princess Josephine of Belgium, when she married Grand Duke Jean of Luxembourg in 1953 by the Belgian colony of Congo (this piece has a fascinating history explained over at The Court Jeweller). Not only was the streamlined tiara one with tangible family connections, it made a great counterpoint to Marie-Astrid’s ruffle trimmed dress.

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Images from Getty as indicated

Liechtenstein Royal Wedding

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Princess Maria Anunciata of Liechtenstein (daughter of Princess Margaretha of Luxembourg and Prince Nikolaus of Liechtenstein) was married to Emanuele Musini on Saturday. The ceremony was held The wedding was held at  the Schottenkirche, a baroque 12th century parish church in Vienna (an intimate civil ceremony took place in June at the Villa della Tenuta di Fassia in Italy).

The bride wore a Valentino gown made of satin with a curved neckline and fitted bodice that extended to a full skirt. A balloon hem on the skirt and train linked with the gown’s statement balloon sleeves.

An exquisite elbow length lace veil with detailed border toped the gown, anchored by the Habsburg Fringe tiara, a diadem from the bride’s paternal royal family collection. The spiky tiara contrasted beautifully with the romantic floral veil and blossoms studded through Maria Anunciata’s hair.

 

Five wee bridesmaids in silk frocks with botanical green sashes and white floral headdresses attended the bride, carefully maneuvering her exquisite veil.

For the evening reception held at the magnificent 16th century Liechtenstein Garden Palace, Maria Anunciata wore a silk chiffon gown with deep V neckline, horizontally drapedn beaded torso and flowing skirt. In a lovely nod to her mother’s family, she wore the Luxembourg Vine Leaves tiara, beautifully placed as a bandeau over the crown of her head.

We adore a daytime royal wedding ceremony because it means there will be hats!! Mother of the bride Princess Margaretha topped a pink bouclé Chanel dress with a horizontally pleated pink pillbox. Her younger daughter, Princess Marie-Astrid, wore a halo bandeau covered in a vibrant floral print.

 

Hereditary Grand Duchess Stéphanie topped a vibrant floral dress with a wheat coloured sinamay hat with gently raised brim on one side. The hat is simply trimmed with a wide hatband that loops into an interesting large abstract bow.

Princess Claire of Luxembourg wore a bright fuchsia pink bandeau encased in crin that tied in a large bow at the nape of her neck. It  is the “Hotel Party” design by Mimoki.

Princess Alexandra of Luxembourg tucked a fresh floral spray into her chignon. Her aunt, Archduchess Marie-Astrid, wore an navy rolled sinamay leaf fascinator with dotted veil while Countess Marie-Christine de Limburg-Stirum wore a sculpted dusky pink headpiece.

Archduchess Gabriella wore a bandeau headpiece that appears to be trimmed in salmon pink striped feathers.

Princess Sibilla repeated a lime sinamay hat with curving brim trimmed with silk flowers on one side. Countess Diane de Nassau topped her floral Zimmerman dress with a pink sinamay picture hat with rolled sinamay leaves, roses and feathers around the base of the crown in place of a hatband.

Princess Isabelle of Liechtenstein, pictured at the far right of the group photo below, wore a wide-brimmed, lemon yellow sinamay hat with upswept brim and large bow on the side

Princess Laetitia of Belgium wore a bandeau headpiece of overlapping green feathers.

Hereditary Princess Cleopatra of Oettingen-Spielberg wore a black knotted halo bandeau headpiece wrapped in a black dotted veil. While members of the Hanover and Casiraghi families were in attendance, they did not wear hats.

As more photos of guests become available, I will update this post. In the meantime- which hats at this wedding stand out most to you?

Images from social media as indicated  

Christening of Princess Estelle, Nine Years On: Royal Guests & Extended Family

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t’s no surprise that Princess Estelle’s christening on May 22, 2012 was also attended by numerous royal guests and extended members of the Swedish royal family.

Queen Margrethe wore a navy straw wide-brimmed picture hat. Navy dotted white tulle overlaid the open-weave straw brim and a large flower of white feathers adored the piece on the side. The scale of the piece is such a contrast from the brimless and short-brimmed hats we’re used to seeing on the Danish queen today and while the tulle looks overly fussy to me now, it links the hat well to Margrethe’s dotted ensemble.

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Queen Mathilde (was was Crown Princess at the time, wore a layered calot hat in the same taupe silk chiffon as her skirt. It’s not an terribly exciting hat but anything with more presence likely would have competed with her elaborate beaded jacket and the overall look is certainly festive, however subdued.

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Princess Máxima, who would become queen a year later, stood out in a red suit and Fabienne Delvigne ruched turban. The turban is beautifully draped and pairs well with the modern-vintage vibe of the suit, the vibrant colour giving some much needed pep at an event that, as we’ve seen, saw so many pale and neutral ensembles. Trust Máxima to liven things up.

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Princess Märtha Louise wore a pale straw pink hat with layered raw-edge brim. The jaunty angle provided by the brim’s sidesweeping shape gave it lovely lift and that unfinished edge, echoed on the hat’s wide hatband, contrasted well with the smooth silk of Märtha’s jacket. With diamond chandelier earrings and an ecru and blush striped dress, it was a great look for her.

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As this was Countess Stéphanie de Lannoy’s first major royal event (she and Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume would marry five months later), it wasn’t a surprise that she dipped into her future mother-in-law’s closet for a hat. This grey pleated silk abaca headpiece by Fabienne Delvigne requires some millinery courage to pull off and while I wasn’t thrilled about its pairing with this grey bouclé jacket, Stéphanie still wore it well.

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The King’s sisters were all in attendance, Princess Margaretha in a grey pillbox with side bow, Princess Birgitta in a white rose fascinator and Princess Désirée in a red Garbo hat with relaxed brim. Princess Christina wore a disc headpiece in navy straw painted with white Swiss dots, edged in white binding and trimmed with navy and white feathers (see a better view of it at Crown Princess Victoria’s 40th birthday celebration here).

Princess Christina’s daughter-in-laws, Emma Magnussen, Vicky Andren and Frida Bergström were all in attendance. Emma’s navy crin headpiece featured a birdcage-style transparent brim and was studded in slim feathers. Vicky’s taupe straw hat was trimmed in a triple stacked hatband with straw flower and goose feathers on the side.

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Frida Bergström (4th row, far left) wore a loden green pillbox hat swathed in a gold dotted net veil. Also seen in the photo above are Countess Marianne Bernadott (3rd row, far left in front of Frida) in a mint green brimmed hat (see a better view at a later wearing here) and Dagmar von Arbin (4th row, 4th from left) in a purple straw pillbox studded with silk flowers (see a better view at Prince Oscar’s christening here). After the palate of very pale neutrals we saw in the first post, the brighter spring hues seen in the photo above give some welcome vibrancy to this event!

Nearly a decade on, which hats stand out most to you from this event?  To see hats worn by Princess Estelle’s family members and godparents, jump over to this post. 

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Photos from Getty as indicated; SVT and the Swedish Monarchy

Bourbon Parma Wedding Ten Years On: Family & Guests

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Prince Carlos and Princess Annemarie of Bourbon-Parma celebrated their 10th anniversary last week. Yesterday we looked at the bride’s attire– today we look at hats worn by family and royal guests.

The groom’s mother, Princess Irene wore a statement pinwheel fascinator of purple feathers. Fascinators such as this one were still popular at the time (we’ll see several more at this wedding) and while this one was on-trend in terms of style and the colour was lovely, I think its scale overwhelmed Irene.

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Princess Margarita, who attended the bride and helped maneuver her 4 meter long train, topped and adorable red coat with a pleated bandeau headpiece trimmed with feathers on one side. The scale of the piece is lovely on her and just right for a head-to-toe ensemble in one colour- a bigger hat would have been too much. While bandeau headpieces are very popular today, this one was ahead of its time!

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Princess Carolina paired her stunning amethyst silk dress with a silvery grey straw fasciator studded with purple and grey feathers. As far as fascinators go, the crescent shape of this this one worked really well, not only to frame Carolina’s face but to give some presence to the piece. Both the shape and colour made the piece a great pairing for the dress, linking with the handpainted pattern on the skirt and complimenting, rather than competing with the cowl neckline. While fascinators such as these seem a bit dated now and the feather placement on this design isn’t perfect, ten years ago, I adored this look on Carolina.

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Queen Beatrix wore one of her signature oversize pillboxes, this one in the loveliest shade of slate blue. The hat paired beautifully with her both her blue jacquard silk dress and her fur-trimmed cape, the latter giving the most wonderful “ice queen” vibe, in the best possible way.

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Princess Máxima wore a simple black beret percher overlaid in pale grey and black net veil by Dutch milliner Irene Bussemaker. The veil is the star on this design, adding wonderful texture and softness to the otherwise stark piece. It’s not a showstopper hat for Máxima but, I suspect, that was the intent.

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Princess Laurentien topped another head-to-to red ensemble in a percher saucer hat trimmed in red guinea fowl feathers. While the numerous textures in this overall look might seem a bit much, they save it from being one note. I think the hat was a triumph, its scale so great on Laurentien (particularly with her characteristically sassy haircut) and the feathers a whimsical yet effective touch.

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Princess Mabel leaned into the fasciator trend with a large headpiece of black feathers. A decade of time since first seeing this outfit has not warmed me any more to it- while the fascinator linked with the coat and the top linked with the skirt and shoes, these two halves seemed at odds and the overall look just didn’t mesh.

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While Princess Margriet, Princess Annette and Princess Anita  did not wear hats, Princess Marilene topped her Valentino coat with a lilac crin bow fascinator studded with goose and coque feathers, net veiling and tulle. While the design was fine, I’ve always felt her lovely coat deserved a much more refined hat. Something wide brimmed in felt the same shade as the coat’s velvet bow would have been so much better.

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Princess Aimee wore a white fascinator of ruffled straw. I prefer the look of this fascinator, which almost reads as a cocktail hat, to the feather explosions seen on other heads here, but always felt it was too summery for a November wedding. Perhaps she had planned to wear it for the originally scheduled date in August? Either way, cocktail hats were popular ten years ago and I think something in navy felt would have made a better pairing.

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The final Dutch royal hat at this wedding was worn by Princess Christina. Her tangerine straw callot was studded with black and orange feathers. The hat’s link to the black, yellow, caramel and coral floral print on Christina’s coat is obvious yet still incongruous…  and too Halloween-y. I think a solid colour hat would have been the way to go here.

The only hat on a royal guest was this wonderful purple felt cloche worn by Countess Diane of Nassau, wife of Prince Jean of Luxembourg. The design appears to be trimmed with a pair of slim, layered hatbands and a ruffled side bow at the side with feathers. It’s a classic piece that was elevated by its unexpected, yet very effective pairing with Diane’s fuchsia frock.

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Looking back at past events is always an interesting glimpse at style trends at that time and this flashback is no exception. Which millinery looks have best stood the test of time? Which do you think are best left in the past?

Photos from Getty as indicated; PPE/Nieboer; PPE/Nieboer; PPE/Nieboer; Olivier Polet/Corbis, and Olivier Polet/Corbis, via Getty; Patrick van Katwijk/Monarchy Press; Patrick van Katwijk/Monarchy Press; PPE/Nieboer; Corbis; PPE/Nieboer; Corbis; PPE/Nieboer; Mark Renders/Getty Images; Jeroen Van Der Mejde/ANP Photo News

Monaco Royal Wedding: Guests from Belgium, Luxembourg and Liechtenstein

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We continue our look back at the July 2, 2011 religious wedding of Prince Albert and Princess Charlene with hats worn by guests from the royal houses of Belgium, Luxembourg and Liechtenstein.

Queen Paola topped a sparkly grey ensemble with a matching picture hat trimmed with pleated silk abaca draped over the crown and fanned out around the brim. I’m all for creative trims on hats and while I like the texture this silk abaca lends to the look, it’s not entirely harmonious with the hat (was it plonked on top because the hat needed ‘something’?) or with the overall ensemble.

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Designer: Fabienne Delvigne

Princess Mathilde topped her streamlined purple cape collar dress with an equally sleek charcoal straw percher hat with flying bow. It was such a sophisticated look for Mathilde, the grey accessories beautifully contrasting with the purple frock, her fantastic hairstyle perfectly showing off the hat, and the silver sparkle of the hat’s straw metallic weave linking wonderfully with her waterfall diamond brooch. Très chic.

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Designer: Philip Treacy. Dress by Armani

Princess Astrid made a strong millinery statement in an oversize cloche hat in natural straw with tall, rounded crown and extended, mushroom shaped brim edged in fringe.  The exaggerated shape was a little awkward, but I think it was the hat’s fringe, which matched her pale green Chanel bouclé suit, that took it over the top. It was a haute couture look for certain but was it attractive? I’m not sure.

Designer: likely Maison Michel

Princess Claire also wore a hat with exaggerated natural straw brim, but to greater success. Along with the wide cartwheel brim, her romantic picture hat featured a pillbox-shaped crown with flat top and sides covered in pink silk and a playful pink silk sash sewn free-form on one side. The sash is one of the unexpected but prettiest trims I’ve seen on a picture hat and the hat, along with Claire’s retro-styled jacket and full-skirted frock was another one of my favourite ensembles at this event. It was just so, so lovely.


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Designer: Fabienne Delvigne

Grand Duchess Maria Teresa sparkled in a headpiece of spiky silver metallic dahlia flowers with silver pearl centers and cut grey feathers. It was a sassy design that suited Maria Teresa really well but that may have been better matched with a different outfit. Maybe a more vibrant dress? Maybe with less competing sparkle? I think disco ball jackets might be best reserved for after dark.

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Designer: unknown. Dress and jacket by Elie Saab. 

Princess Sophie of Liechtenstein paired her blue silk dress and coat with a wide brimmed straw saucer. These extended saucers continue to be an interesting, smoothly curvy take on a picture hat (thanks Philip Treacy!) and the a wider transparent brim on this design brought lovely lightness around Sophie’s face. Like the Grand Duchess, I think some colour variation would bring some welcome contrast here- the little bit of cream from the scarf at her shoulder and belt aren’t enough to save the ensemble from being too blue. Change out the hat for ecru straw instead of blue and I think we’d have had a winner here.

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Designer: Philip Treacy

How do you think these looks, and in particular, these hats, fare nine years on?

Jump to this post for an index of other royal hats that appeared at this wedding. 

Photos from Getty as indicated; Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images; Bauer Griffin; SIPA