On Thursday, Princess Ariane, the youngest daughter of the King and Queen of the Netherlands, celebrated her 18th birthday. Since she’s now officially old enough to wear tiaras from the family collection, I’ve got a roundup of articles about some of the tiaras she might be spotted in over the years to come. Which ones are your favorites?
The Dutch Sapphire Necklace Tiara
The Dutch royal collection is absolutely packed with gorgeous jewels set with bright blue sapphires. Today, we’ve got a look at the smaller of the family’s two tiaras, worn in a glittering appearance by Queen Maxima more than a decade ago.
Queen Juliana’s Incredible Aquamarine Jewels
This aquamarine suite is a married parure, which means that the jewels are similar, and generally worn together as a set, but weren’t made as matching or coordinating pieces. Queen Juliana’s collection began on her 18th birthday—April 30, 1927, when she received this aquamarine and diamond tiara as a gift from her parents, Queen Wilhelmina and Prince Hendrik.
Princess Laurentien’s Lovely Diamond Laurel Wreath Tiara
This classic family tiara sparkled on Princess Laurentien, sister-in-law of the King of the Netherlands, as she attended a state banquet in honor of the visiting President of Argentina in March 2017. She wore a glittering gown in an interesting shade of chocolatey bronze for the occasion, decorated with diamonds.
The Dutch Emerald Parure Tiara
The Dutch royal family has one of the most versatile jewel collections in the world. They’re able to be creative and clever with their jewels, wearing them in various settings and forms. One of the most convertible diadems in the collection is the family’s emerald parure. And, in an unusual twist, the second setting of the tiara is actually larger and even more regal than its original form.
The Dutch Diamond Festoon Tiara
I’m classifying this piece as a tiara, but it began life as a completely different kind of royal jewel. The piece was originally set as a diamond festoon necklace. Made by Vita, the piece featured a diamond riviere from which five diamond festoons were suspended, with a single diamond collet in the middle of each festoon. The central festoon also featured another pendant diamond.
Princess Mabel’s Delightful Diamond Tiara
One of Mabel’s best tiara moments, if you ask me, took place in April 2013, on the night before her mother-in-law, Princess Beatrix, abdicated and her brother-in-law, King Willem-Alexander, succeeded the throne of the Netherlands. For a dinner held at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam on the night before the inauguration, Mabel arrived with her brother-in-law, Prince Constantijn, and his wife, Princess Laurentien.
Princess Wilhelmina’s Diamond Hair Comb
The Dutch royal tiara collection is full of enormous sparkling diadems, but the royal vaults also include more petite pieces. One of the most interesting is a small (but mighty!) diamond haircomb that belonged to Queen Wilhelmina.
For her wedding in 2002, Queen Máxima chose something of a frankentiara–a piece that features elements of two different items of jewelry mixed together to make a new tiara–for her wedding day.
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