Jewels of the Princely Baptism in Monaco
Prince Jacques and Princess Gabriella, the newest members of the Grimaldi family, were baptized yesterday morning in Monaco. Let’s have a look at the jewels (and hats!) on display!
Princess Charlene of Monaco, holding Prince Jacques, looked happier than I have ever, ever seen her. Apparently motherhood suits her! She’s wearing Dior — as are Gabriella and Jacques.
Charlene also had a hat perched at the back of her head, plus a pair of delicate pearl earrings.
She also had the small ribbon of the Order of Saint-Charles pinned to her jacket.
Princess Caroline, the babies’ aunt, wore blue — including a whopper of a hat — with earrings that look to combine both blue and pink.
Caroline also wore a small pendant necklace.
Princess Stephanie, another aunt, also wore blue, but with her usual lack of jewelry.
Three of the twins’ cousins — Princess Alexandra of Hanover, Pauline Ducruet, and Camille Gottlieb — also attended the baptism. Alexandra went light on the jewelry, while Pauline chose earrings and a stack of bracelets. And once again, Camille proves to be one of the most glamorous women at the event, with her chic earrings and printed scarf.
Jacques’s godmother, Diane de Polignac, chose simple pearl earrings for the baptism. Diane is a distant cousin of the family through Prince Rainier’s father, Pierre de Polignac; her uncle, Louis, was Prince Albert’s godfather. Diane is standing beside Jacques’s godfather, Christopher LeVine, Jr. He’s the grandson of Princess Grace’s sister, Lizanne. His father, Christopher Sr., was the best man at Prince Albert and Princess Charlene’s wedding.
Princess Gabriella’s godparents are Charlene’s brother, Gareth Wittstock, and Nerine Pienaar, who is the wife of a famous South African rugby player. She looked particularly elegant at the christening, with delicate jewels paired with a summery dress and hat.
There were a few other guests at the christening from non-reigning royal houses. Eleonora, the wife of Prince Serge of Yugoslavia, wore a floral headpiece with small earrings.
And it wouldn’t be an event in Monaco without Carlo and Camilla of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, would it? Camilla wore major blue earrings with her major blue and white outfit, plus a bracelet.
That’s it for the major participants at the baptism. Which pieces of jewelry were your favorites?
Sundays with the Queen: The Queen Mother’s Aquamarine Art Deco Brooch
Happy Mother’s Day to everyone celebrating in the US today! In honor of moms — or, rather, I suppose we should say mums, today we’re looking at a brooch from the Queen Mother’s collection: her aquamarine clip brooch.
On Friday, the Queen wore her mother’s aquamarine and diamond brooch to launch the 70th anniversary celebrations of VE Day. It’s the continuation of a trend: HM tends to wear brooches from her mother’s collection at events commemorating anniversaries from the First and Second World Wars, two events that were turning points in her mother’s life.
The Queen Mum was photographed in this diamond and aquamarine brooch as early as the 1940s. I believe you can see the brooch in the photograph above, taken of the Queen Mum in Stratford in April 1941.
I’m also rather intrigued by the possibility that this is the brooch that the Queen Mum actually wore on the balcony of Buckingham Palace on VE Day in 1945. The shape looks right, though I’ve not been able to find a clear enough photo to say for certain. (Here’s the best version I’ve found so far.) If it is the same brooch, I’m beyond impressed with the Queen and Angela Kelly.
The Queen inherited her mother’s extensive jewel collection in 2002, and she’s been slowly introducing various pieces into her own jewel rotation ever since. This brooch is a fairly new addition: she wore it for the first time last year at Royal Ascot.
The Queen Mum’s brooch is sometimes confused with the Queen’s own set of diamond and aquamarine clips, which were an eighteenth-birthday present from her parents. Those clips are sometimes identified as being made by Cartier (the company that popularized the style), but the Royal Collection has also identified the maker as Boucheron. The Queen sometimes wears the clips together as a single brooch, but more often, she wears them as a separate pair.
