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Sparkling Royal Jewels From Around the World

The Best Royal Jewels of 2017: #4 (Princess Sofia’s Tiara Redesigned)

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JONATHAN NACKSTRAND/AFP/Getty Images
Who doesn’t love a good tiara transformation? And when a sparkler’s improved as much as this one was, there’s no doubt that it belongs on our year in review countdown…
#4: Princess Sofia’s Tiara Redesigned

Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images
Princess Sofia of Sweden received this diamond and emerald palmette tiara from her in-laws when she married Prince Carl Philip in 2015. The tiara, which was originally a necklace from Queen Silvia’s collection, was originally a closed piece that perched atop the wearer’s head.
Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images
But at the end of 2017, Sofia debuted a new configuration of her tiara, which is much more open and forms a kind of halo around her face. Even better, the tiara can now be worn in at least three settings: an all-diamond setting, a pearl setting, and an emerald setting. Magnificent!

Christmas in Motion: Baking with the Bernadottes

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Crown Princess Victoria, Princess Estelle, and Prince Daniel celebrate Christmas 2013 (screencapture)
Tis the season for holiday cheer, magpies! Today, we’re giving the bling a bit of a rest to focus on something even more precious: adorable GIFs of Sweden’s crown princely family baking Christmas cookies a few years ago. Enjoy!

This footage was taken as a part of the family’s Christmas greetings in 2013
Back then, Victoria and Daniel had been married for three and a half years, and they had one child: their daughter, Princess Estelle
Estelle was almost two when this footage was taken; she became a big sister when Prince Oscar was born in 2016
The Bernadottes have a tradition of releasing footage of cozy family scenes in the kitchen; similar video of Crown Princess Victoria with her parents and siblings was released in the 1980s
The casual images show a different side of a family that includes two future monarchs of Sweden
Crown Princess Victoria will one day become Sweden’s first female monarch in three centuries
And baby Estelle, who already showed an adorable independent streak in this video, will become Sweden’s fifth queen regnant
Appropriately, she already knew how to make a dramatic entrance and exit!

This Week in Royal Jewels: December 15-21

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December 15-21, 2017
It’s the last weekly jewel review of the year — we’re taking next week off for year-in-review posts — so I made sure it was an extra sparkly one! Don’t forget to vote for your favorites in the poll below!
YANN COATSALIOU/AFP/Getty Images
15. Princess Charlene of Monaco wore teeny sparkling stud earrings for the annual Children’s Christmas event at the Palais de Princier on Wednesday.

LISE AASERUD/AFP/Getty Images
14. A golden necklace and a Christmas tree pin were Queen Sonja of Norway’s jewelry choices for Wednesday’s Christmas photo session at the palace in Oslo.
Carlos Alvarez/Getty Images
13. Infanta Margarita (an aunt of King Felipe VI of Spain) wore pearls and a lovely floral brooch for the Padre Arrupe Foundation Christmas charity concert on Tuesday in Madrid.
BART MAAT/AFP/Getty Images

12. Queen Maxima of the Netherlands wore sparkling stud earrings and a coordinating necklace for dinner with the Secretary-General of the United Nations in The Hague on Thursday.
DANIEL MIHAILESCU/AFP/Getty Images
11. In Bucharest, Queen Silvia of Sweden wore multicolored pearls and a golden brooch to mourn the late King Michael of Romania on Saturday.
DANIEL MIHAILESCU/AFP/Getty Images
10. Queen Sofia of Spain, who was King Michael’s first cousin, wore multicolored pearls and stacks of gold rings as she celebrated the late monarch’s life in Romania on Saturday.
DANIEL MIHAILESCU/AFP/Getty Images
9. Sofia wore pearls, golden earrings, and an interesting brooch on Friday at the former royal palace in Bucharest (now the National Arts Museum), where King Michael’s body lay in state.
Carlos Alvarez/Getty Images
8. Queen Letizia of Spain wore her bezel-set diamond and Australian pearl drop earrings on Monday for the Accion Magistral Awards in Madrid.
DANIEL MIHAILESCU/AFP/Getty Images
7. At King Michael’s state funeral in Romania on Saturday, Queen Anne-Marie of Greece wore diamond and pearl earrings, layered necklaces, and an interesting pearl clip brooch.
DANIEL MIHAILESCU/AFP/Getty Images
6. Also attending the funeral: Princess Astrid of Belgium, who wore glittering earrings and a sparkling ring, and Princess Muna of Jordan (mother of the present king) who wore pearls.
Nicholas Hunt/Getty Images for Berggruen Institute
5. Princess Firyal, the former wife of Prince Muhammad bin Talal of Jordan, sparkled in major earrings at the Berggruen Prize Gala at the New York Public Library on Friday; not sure whether the sparkle on her dress is a brooch or an embellishment, but I’m enjoying it either way.
Victoria Jones – WPA Pool/Getty Images
4. In the Wales/Cornwall Christmas card this year, the Duchess of Cornwall wears her diamond floral suite; the photograph was taken at her private 70th birthday dinner, held at Highgrove in July.
JONAS EKSTROMER/AFP/Getty Images
3. On Wednesday, Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden wore the slim diamond earrings from the Brazilian Parure and one of the family’s diamond bow brooches for the annual meeting of the Swedish Academy in Stockholm.
JONAS EKSTROMER/AFP/Getty Images
2. For the Swedish academy meeting, Queen Silvia chose heirloom Bernadotte diamonds, including the Karl Johan earrings and one of the family’s lovely diamond brooches.
Steve Parsons – WPA Pool/Getty Images
1. My top vote of the week, no question, goes to the Hesse Diamond Jubilee Brooch, worn by the Duchess of Cornwall at the Olympia Horse Show on Friday. (Much more on this heirloom piece over here!)
Alexi Lubomirski via Getty Images
…but wait, there’s more! Our bonus jewel of the week: another great view of Meghan Markle’s engagement ring, courtesy of the romantic engagement pictures released by Kensington Palace on Thursday. Love it!