Our look back at the royal jewels of Sandringham holiday celebrations continues today with a survey of the jewelry worn by Queen Camilla for the annual church service each Christmas Day.
Camilla began attending the royal family Christmas celebrations at Sandringham in December 2005, less than a year after her wedding to the Prince of Wales (now King Charles III). The then-Duchess of Cornwall wore diamond and pearl drop earrings and her three-stranded pearl necklace with the diamond and amethyst clasp for her first walk to church at St. Mary Magdalene on Christmas Day.
In December 2006, Camilla chose a ensemble in brown tones for Christmas Day, including a bold animal print hat with feather details. She also wore her favorite pearl drop earrings and her Cosmos clip brooches from Van Cleef & Arpels.
Purple was Camilla’s color of choice for Christmas Day 2007. She accessorized with her diamond and pearl drop earrings, a bangle bracelet, and her gorgeous pair of jeweled pansy brooches.
On Christmas Day in 2008, Camilla wore a lovely royal jewel that originally belonged to Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother: her diamond, enamel, and rock crystal brooch, which dates to the 1920s.
Camilla wore blue on Christmas Day in 2009, including a bold furry hat. Her jewels for the occasion were equally bold: her favorite pearl drop earrings and a vibrant peacock brooch made of gold and set with diamonds and sapphires.
Another furry hat accompanied Camilla to church near the Sandringham estate on a chilly Christmas morning in 2010. Her only visible jewels were her pearl drop earrings, though her coat had a little extra sparkle thanks to sequin embellishments on the collar.
The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall were joined for the first time by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge on Christmas Day at Sandringham in 2011. Camilla wore her pearl drop earrings with the Turquoise Shamrock Brooch for the occasion.
The pansy brooches were Camilla’s Christmas Day jewel of choice once again in December 2012. She again wore the brooches with purple, plus pearl drop earrings and her four-stranded pearl necklace with the round diamond clasp.
On Christmas Day in 2013, Camilla wore one of my favorite heirloom royal jewels: the Hesse Diamond Jubilee Brooch. The jewel was a gift to Queen Victoria in 1897 from her Hesse grandchildren to mark her Diamond Jubilee celebrations. Camilla later memorably wore this brooch for Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral in 2022.
Camilla stayed back at Sandringham on Christmas in 2014, as she was suffering from back pain. Pearls and diamonds accessorized Camilla’s gray and black ensemble the following year on Christmas Day in 2015: diamond and pearl drop earrings, her four-stranded pearl necklace with the diamond cross clasp, and her diamond moth brooch.
Insect-themed jewelry joined Camilla again at St. Mary Magdalene on Christmas Day in 2016. With a blue coat and black hat, she wore a second pair of diamond and pearl drop earrings, plus a diamond and sapphire butterfly brooch.
On Christmas Day in 2017, Camilla wore the Queen Mother’s Rock Crystal Brooch again to attend church near Sandringham, pairing it with a festive red and black ensemble.
A cold kept Camilla back at Sandringham House on Christmas Day in 2018, but in December 2019, she joined the rest of the royal family for their most recent public walk to church at St. Mary Magdalene. With a gorgeous blue velvet coat and hat, she wore pearl drop earrings, her four-stranded pearl necklace with the diamond cross clasp, and her diamond knot brooch.
Which jewels are you hoping to see the Queen Consort wear on Christmas Day this year?
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