Archives for January 2017

35 of Kate’s Best Jewels: 15-21

01.11.2017 by The Court Jeweller // Leave a Comment

(Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

We’re halfway through our birthday celebration countdown of 35 of Kate’s Best Jewels! The sparkle’s starting to amp up…

(Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

21. The Collins Tanzanite Suite: This versatile, vivid demi-parure of diamond and tanzanite jewels features a pair of earrings and a pendant necklace. One of its most prominent outings so far came at the beginning of the recent tour of Canada. (See more here!)

(Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

20. The Mouawad Ruby Demi-Parure: Reportedly one of Kate’s wedding gifts, this suite of jewels features a diamond and ruby fringe necklace with floral motifs and a matching bracelet. (More over here!)

(Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

19. The Robinson Pelham Pagoda Earrings: Kate and her mother, Carole, have both worn this pair of diamond and blue topaz earrings. They also have a coordinating necklace, which only Carole has so far worn. (More over here!)

(Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

18. The Diamond and Aquamarine Earrings: These petite white gold, diamond, and aquamarine earrings have become workhorses of Kate’s collection since their debut in Singapore five years ago. (More over here!)

(Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

17. The Diamond Cluster and Baguette Suite: Diamond earrings, a bracelet, and a ring in a distinctive cluster-and-baguette design make up this versatile set, which was reportedly a wedding gift from Prince Charles. (More over here!)

(Jack Taylor/Getty Images)

16. The Bahrain Pearl Earrings: On Remembrance Sunday in November, Kate debuted a pair of earrings borrowed from the Queen. The diamond and pearl earrings were made using pearls given to the Queen as a wedding present by the nation of Bahrain in 1947.

(Phil Noble – WPA Pool/Getty Images, Anthony Devlin – Pool/Getty Images)

15. The Sapphire and Emerald Cluster Earrings: Kate owns two very similar pair of diamond cluster earrings, one with sapphire centers and the other with emeralds. Both have been regular parts of her daytime jewelry rotation since the early years of her marriage. (More on the sapphires over here and the emeralds over here!)

Our countdown of Kate’s best jewels continues on Thursday afternoon!

Book Review: Daisy Goodwin’s Victoria

01.11.2017 by The Court Jeweller // Leave a Comment

Ahead of this Sunday’s upcoming premiere of Victoria on Masterpiece here in the United States, I ordered a copy of Daisy Goodwin’s companion novel. I’ve really enjoyed Goodwin’s novels in the past, so I had high hopes for this one — but, unfortunately, it didn’t quite live up to my expectations.

Goodwin is the screenwriter for the Victoria series, and she notes in the book’s acknowledgments that she wrote the novel as she was writing the screenplay for the series. This makes a lot of sense to me, because at times, the book feels a lot like a novelization, broken up cinematically into scenes and moments rather than following a more novelistic structure.

The book is also full of exposition, and there were many times that I wanted Goodwin to use a subtler hand and “show” us what was happening rather than “telling.” This isn’t a problem exclusive to this book — lots of historical fiction has trouble balancing the fascinating historical source material and with the plotting and characterization of a novel. But the book “explains” the situation often when it would be more exciting to simply lay the scene and let it happen. Goodwin clearly doesn’t want the reader to get lost in the historical references, but she also doesn’t really trust readers to understand the history on their own.

For me, the last problem of the book was the focus on romance over all other parts of Victoria’s early life. (I fully expect that to be a problem with the miniseries, too, given some earlier reviews I’ve read.) I thought the book was most interesting when it was exploring Victoria’s relationship with her mother and her burgeoning interests in the politics of visibility as monarch. But the book spends much more time developing a romantic relationship between Victoria and her prime minister, Lord Melbourne, and then exploring the beginnings of the relationship between Victoria and Albert.

I think the bottom line is probably this: if you like learning about history through fiction (and lots of people do!), this may be something you’d be interested in, especially if you’re not particularly versed in the details of Victoria’s life. But get ready for lots of emphasis on Victoria’s feelings for the men in her life (and an attempt to turn Lord Melbourne into a Byronic hero) and a little fast-and-loose playing with historical fact. I think you also might like it if you’ve already seen the miniseries and you’re looking for something to tide yourself over until the new season debuts.

Honestly, though, my recommendation is to skip Victoria and turn to one of Goodwin’s earlier novels. I really enjoyed The American Heiress, which is loosely based on the life of Consuelo Vanderbilt. For those who want more on Queen Victoria’s life, I’d nudge you in the direction of Julia Baird’s recent biography instead.

Victoria is currently available at Amazon.com (and other retailers)

Note: The links in this post are Amazon affiliate links, and I receive a small portion of the proceeds if you make a purchase through any of the links. I purchased this book using the proceeds from those Amazon sales; I use all of the funds to buy more materials for review here at the blog.

35 of Kate’s Best Jewels: 22-28

01.10.2017 by The Court Jeweller // Leave a Comment

(Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

Part two of our countdown of 35 of Kate’s best jewels continues now!

(Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

28. Kiki Lavender Amethyst Earrings: Worn for the first time during the visit to Bhutan, these earrings feature diamonds and gorgeous pale purple amethysts. (See close-ups here!)

(EDDIE MULHOLLAND/AFP/Getty Images)

27. Cartier Trinity Suite: A large, diamond encrusted Cartier Trinity Pendant Necklace and a matching pair of hoop earrings have been Kate’s choice, appropriately, for numerous events related to the Olympic Games. (More over here!)

(Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

26. Amrapali Lapis Earrings: Another jewelry debut from the tour of India, these earrings feature large, vivid lapis lazulis and diamonds. (More over here!)

(Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

25. The Oak Leaf Brooch: Kate’s worn this brooch, which features her family oak leaf/acorn symbols, for various occasions, including Christmas at Sandringham. (More over here!)

(Ian Gavan/Getty Images)

24. Kiki Lola Blue Topaz Earrings: These large hoop earrings, which are set with blue topazes and diamonds, have been Kate’s selection for both daytime and evening events. (See more here!)

(Chris Jackson/Getty Images)

23. Soru Baroque Pearl Earrings: Large baroque pearls and Swarovski crystals are featured in these earrings from Soru Jewellery, which Kate has worn several times over the last few years, including a memorable outing in Canada. (See more from that event here!)

(Chris Jackson/AFP/Getty Images)

22. The Gold Shamrock Brooch: Kate has been wearing the royal family’s gold and emerald shamrock brooch since 2011, and she often sports it on St. Patrick’s Day to hand out shamrocks to the Irish Guards. (More over here!)