Queen Astrid of Belgium wears one of her wedding presents: the grand Nine Provinces Tiara
Belgian National Day 2015
This week, the Belgian royals gathered to celebrate the country’s national day, which marks the anniversary of King Leopold I’s reign.
The festivities began on Monday night, when King Philippe and Queen Mathilde attended a performance by the Belgian National Orchestra.
Queen Mathilde wore a gorgeous dress that I’m majorly coveting, plus a glittering pair of pendant earrings set with turquoises.
Princess Astrid and Prince Lorenz also attended the concert. Astrid wore pearl earrings and an elaborate pearl necklace.
On Tuesday morning, the family attended a Te Deum at the cathedral in Brussels.
Queen Mathilde, wearing white, greeted the crowd afterward. I love these dainty pearl drop earrings!
The Duchess of Brabant is looking more grown up by the minute, but no jewelry sightings yet!
After mass, it was time for the annual military parade. The royal family always views the parade from a platform.
You can catch a glimpse of Mathilde’s bracelet here. The king is wearing the purple sash of the Order of Leopold, which, like these celebrations, also commemorates the reign of King Leopold I.
King Philippe’s siblings and their spouses were also present. As usual, Princess Astrid wore military dress at the parade.
Princess Claire wore simple pearl earrings. Prince Laurent … took a phone call?
After the military parade, Philippe and Mathilde attended the annual party in the park. There was cake!
…which led to this! Should we add the “comic cake-feeding face” to the traditional slate of royal photo-ops, like the “horse racing grimace,” the “Wimbledon scowl,” and the “tree-planting stance”?
Mathilde wore a colorful pair of earrings to go with her colorful dress for the park festivities.
And that was a wrap on National Day 2015! Hope you had a wonderful party, Belgians!
Crown Princess Victoria’s Nobel Prize Jewels
One of the most delightful things about the Swedish royal family (from a jewelry perspective, anyway) is that every December 10th, without fail, they pull on their grandest gowns, pop on their tiaras, and head out to the annual distribution of the Nobel Prizes. Here’s a look at the jewels our Magpie of the Month, Crown Princess Victoria, has worn each time she’s attended the ceremony!
1995: For her first Nobel ceremony, Victoria wore her new Eighteenth Birthday Tiara, set with sapphires and diamonds, as well as a two-stranded pearl necklace, pearl and diamond earrings, and an oval-shaped diamond brooch
1997: The Four-Button Diamond Tiara (with the base wrapped in gray velvet), small diamond earrings, a diamond riviere, and the Bernadotte Diamond Bow Brooch
2000: The Four-Button Diamond Tiara (with the base wrapped in gray velvet), small diamond drop earrings, diamond riviere, diamond bracelets, and a butterfly brooch with white, pink, and blue gemstones
2000: For the dinner after the ceremony, she changed into a necklace set with pink and blue gemstones
2001: The Baden Fringe Tiara (with the base wrapped in gray velvet), small diamond drop earrings, diamond riviere with a round diamond pendant, diamond bracelets, and the ruby and diamond brooch
2003: The Four-Button Tiara, small diamond drop earrings, the necklace with pink and blue gemstones, diamond bracelets, and two diamond rosette brooches (on the front and back of the Seraphim sash)
2004: The Large Cut-Steel Tiara, pearl drop earrings, diamond riviere with pearl drop pendant, diamond bracelets, and a diamond rosette brooch
2005: The Baden Fringe Tiara (with the base wrapped in gray velvet), pearl and diamond earrings, the Processional Necklace, a diamond evening watch, diamond bracelets, and a diamond rosette brooch
2006: The Baden Fringe Tiara (with the base wrapped in gray velvet), earrings from the amethyst parure, diamond riviere with pear-shaped diamond pendant, small diamond rosette brooch, diamond bar brooch (at the back of the sash), and a diamond evening watch
2007: The Six-Button Tiara (with the base wrapped in gray velvet), small diamond pendant earrings, diamond riviere with Victoria of Baden’s diamond and pearl ivy brooch as a pendant, the diamond lozenge brooch, a small diamond brooch (at the back of the sash), diamond bracelets
2008: The Baden Fringe Tiara with the earrings, brooch, and bracelet from the amethyst parure
2009: The Six-Button Tiara, the amethyst parure necklace (without its pendant drop), earrings, and brooch, and a diamond evening watch
2010: The Large Cut-Steel Tiara, pearl drop earrrings, diamond riviere, the Bernadotte Diamond Bow Brooch, and a three-stranded pearl bracelet
2011: The Six-Button Tiara (with an added row of diamonds at the base) with the earrings, brooch, and hairpins from the Leuchtenberg Sapphire Parure
2013: The Four-Button Tiara (with an added row of diamonds at the base) with the necklace and small brooch from the Bernadotte Emerald Demi-Parure
2013: Victoria also wore the larger brooch from the emerald demi-parure in her hair, plus the family’s diamond bracelet with a chevron pattern
2014: The Baden Fringe Tiara, diamond riviere with the family’s diamond cross pendant, diamond earrings from the Brazilian parure, the ruby and diamond brooch, and the chevron-patterned diamond bracelet
2014: In her hair, she wore the diamond lozenge brooch; a diamond rosette secured the back of the Seraphim sash
