Memory Monday (2011 Wallachian State Tour)

We haven't had a history post in quite some time but we discovered some unposted photos in our archives. These are from the 2011 State Visit of Princess Xenia of Wallachia to the then recently reestablished Kingdom of Normandia and to the Principality of Swann. State visits take place when one nation wants to show friendship to another on an official level and they often include new political agreements being tabled or officiated. When Normandia restored its monarchy, the ancient Grand Principality of Wallachia were the first to show their acceptance and friendship toward the "new" Kingdom. Princess Xenia visited Queen Gloria and was treated to a State Banquet in honour of the political alliance. The Princess then moved on to the neighbouring Principality of Swann which is ruled by her cousin the Duke of Swann to cement old alliances and friendship. Here follows the photos from these two historic occasions. 

Isrik Palace in the capital City of Normandia played host to the restored Kingdom's first State Visit.

Queen Gloria greets her first official Head of State, the Grand Princess of Wallachia.

The banqueting table was set with historic gold and silver from the Isrik vaults. 

From left - the Baron Bagrazia, the Princess of Wallachia, Queen Gloria and her then fiance, the Count Szanguscko. 

Duke's Court Palace hosted the State Visit to the Principality of Swann.

The two cousins stand side by side in the center flanked by the Princess' husband the Baron Bagrazia and the Duke's sister, Princess Marie-Elizabeth.

We hope that this belated post comes to fill the glamour gap at this late stage in the year when busy schedules keep us from posting more often. We also look forward with great anticipation to the Christmas season of balls and New Year's sparkle.

Frivolous Fridays (Empress Crystobel's Fashions 2012)

It has been a week since our last post!!! What a shock but schedules are tight the closer we get to the holiday season. So we will post a bit early to try make up for it. One of the main logistic nightmares at the moment is the Christmas Ball which will now officially take place in the Islands of Arcwhite. Security arrangements alone for this year's "controversial" ball pose huge problems. Yet, amidst the up-hills we will post about fashions as a lighthearted distraction. 

Last week we gave a rundown of all fashions Princess Odeliah wore at all the major 2012 events she attended. Today we will feature those worn by Empress Crystobel. As the mother of the Emperor-in-waiting and the matriarch of the wealthiest family on earth, Empress Crystobel is the epitome of style and classic glamour. We always expect to be baffled by her jewellery in contrast to being impressed by her often "down toned" clothing choices. 

From left- At the Swann  Anniversary Celebration the Empress chose a decorative silver accented black ball gown, paired with her Amethyst Parure. Then for the wedding of Queen Gloria a chic pink mini skirt with her Ruskian Sapphires. Later in the year she chose an aquamarine knee length dress with velvet ruffled shoulders and paired it with a Halo Fringe Tiara. 

From left- At the Birthday Ball, Empress Crystobel wore plain white and rubies. Then early in 2012 at the Heads of the Royal Houses Meeting, pink and rubies and finally for the Concert held in her honour during her Scotney visit she wore salmon pink and rubies and diamonds mixed. 

When the Republic of Scotney opened it's borders to the Empress in a gesture of goodwill, Her Imperial Majesty wore stark black in mourning for her dead husband as she left lilies with the memorial in the capital. The stoic look is our favourite for the Empress in 2012. 

Her Imperial Majesty seemed to favour above all else, her rubies, fur and pink as a colour for 2012.

The official portrait released early in 2012 saw Empress Crystobel wear a traditional inspired print ball gown which she paired with her Black Pearl and Ruby Wedding Gift Parure last seen before the 96 Revolution. The dress, slightly altered, was later worn in public for the first time by her daughter-in-law, Princess Odeliah at the Swann Anniversary Celebration.

What is your favourite look for the Empress in 2012? One can only wonder in bedazzlement as to what everybody will be wearing at the Christmas Ball in December. 

Frivolous Fridays (Princess Odeliah's Fashions 2012)

For fun we thought we would post on fashion. It is a Fascinating Friday after all and showing the top fashions of a single character back-to-back might prove interesting and fun. Princess Odeliah would in a different era be considered the preeminent  Royal Lady but the Revolution has caused her to be the wife of an Emperor in waiting. Her husband however is still afforded his rank by courtesy and his vast wealth allows his wife amazing jewellery and couture. It must be said that the "humble farm girl" can hit a sweet spot sometimes but also sometimes misses the mark but hasn't been known to completely crash the fashion airplane. Let's look at what she wore to the major events in 2012 so far. 

From left- The Princess at the Heads of the Royal Houses Meeting in a plain, loose fitted, dark blue dress. Arriving with the Crown Prince Imperial at the Normandian Royal Wedding in a dark blue chic mini dress with black ruffled accent. At the Annual Knight's Gathering wearing tight fitting, timeless black velvet and ruffled shoulder accent. 

From left- Arriving at the Syldavian Investiture, which was seen as the most important Royal event of 2012 wearing Barbie International. Then in a huge ball gown with a very traditional feel, for the 15th Anniversary celebrations in the Principality of Swann. She adds to this dress her Engagement Tiara and matching Collar Necklace, both of Imperial scale and grandeur.

From left- At the Roswind/D'Pont Du Lac engagement wearing a black velvet mini and faux fur. At the Imperial Birthday Party in September wearing a glitzy pink Barbie International original. 

It seems that dark tones and pink are Princess Odeliah's favourite and that she prefers fitted dresses to vast ball gowns for official functions. 

The Crown Princess Imperial also seems to have a favourite tiara as it is the one most often worn. This tiara was especially made for the Princess upon her engagement. She chose to not wear it for the first year of her marriage and wore it for the first time at a Pariseum Fashion gala. What most people didn't realize was that it was the week of her first wedding anniversary, a subtle thank you to her husband for his kind gift. 

The Crown Princess Imperial also posed for three separate "State Portraits" in an attempt to bolster the Imperial image and popularity in the media.  For these she went all out with amazing dresses and official jewellery. 

For this portrait the Princess wore a Madame Frumsetta original. The stark black and white make for a very dramatic  image off-set by the spectacular Imperial Diamond Tiara and Necklace. It combines to make for a very effective statement of Imperial rank in austerity. This is our choice for the "perfect Imperial look".

Wearing a dress originally designed for her mother in law, Empress Crystobel and complimented with black fur and famous black pearl parure from her mother in law's collection. This portrait subtly implies family solidarity and historic continuity embellished by severe style and wealth. 

To show a softer side, Princess Odeliah chose a pink Barbie Original that she wore for the 2011 Christmas Ball. She pairs it with the rarely seen Blood Ruby Parure and a fur stole. The look is more down-toned by Royal standards in comparison to the preceding photos. It also gave the Princess a chance to wear the rubies, which often gets overlooked for major functions due to the smaller scale of the set. 

What is your favourite look for the Empress-to-be???

Tiaras and Trinkets on Tuesday (Wedding Tiaras)

Just to remind everybody, this blog is primarily to showcase the Royal Jewels of the world. It is only second priority to tell the stories of the respective Royals and lastly about their clothes and gossip. We do however keep the topic of gossip as a "tongue in cheek" as we wouldn't want to be boring. For today's post on jewellery we decided to post on the official and family tiaras worn especially on wedding days. These jewels might have significant symbolism of State or be imbued with intimate family history. Either way they are worn for their beauty and for making the wearer feel like a queen whether she is one or not. In this case not being a Queen probably means you are a Princess or at least a Lady becoming a Princess. 

For her wedding to the Duke of Swann in 1982, Princess Elizabeth wore her own Diamond Tiara from her Dowry Collection. She pairs it with the choker and a pair of earrings from the Swann Collection.

Princess Kirsten wore what has now become the unofficial tiara for Hanoverian brides. The Scotney Fringe Tiara can also be worn as a necklace and has been featured extensively in a post of its own. 

Queen Gloria of  Normandia was born as an Americanian with no title or thought of being Royal. She did however end up becoming a Queen through her grandmother who was a Normandian Princess. On her wedding day, she opted to tip the hat to her Americanian roots by wearing a "Big Apple" style top hat and no tiara. She did however add some historicity to the ensemble by wearing the earrings she wore on her Investiture as Queen and paired it with a brand new brooch. The jewellery contained aquamarines in reference to Normandia's National Colour of Light Blue.

The Von Bismarck wedding was the third highest profile wedding of 2010 and saw a spectacular set of jewellery taken out of the dusty vaults. Princess Maxima of Hanoveria who now has become Queen Consort of Syldavia was appropriately crowned on her wedding day by the Von Bismarck Family Tiara. 

Princess Isabella of Hispania wore her mother's bridal tiara and matching necklace. 

Being a ruling head of state, Princess Xenia of Wallachia wore what was required of her rank, namely the Crown of Wallachia, for her wedding day. The medieval style crown was off-set very effectively by the regal dress and the medieval cathedral in which the wedding took place. 

In a paradoxical turn of events, one of the least publicized weddings and also probably the smallest one saw not only a traditional wedding dress but also the official Tiara of the Queen's of Serbieski. In 2008, events involving ousted Royal Families were all but completely shunned. The wedding of Prince Paul of Serbieski and Lady Davina went almost unnoticed but did sport very historic jewels that would have been in keeping with her groom's former status. 

The Grand Duke of Hanoveria married Lady Alice D'Rothchild in the highest official profile wedding in 2010. As the ruler of Hanoveria, his marriage was celebrated nationally and internationally. For her big day, Lady Alice tipped the hat to her Franconian Noble Family by wearing her Dowry Tiara but embraced her new country and status as consort by wearing the official Grand Duchess' Necklace. 

The biggest media event of 2010 but strictly speaking only the second highest profile wedding due to the couple still being dethroned, was that of the Crown Prince Imperial and Odeliah Sorgenfrei. Princess Odeliah  dazzled all the guests with her amazing dress and by wearing the Imperial Tiara and Drop Pearl Earrings reserved for the Empress of the United Empire. All this was a show of custodianship of history  in the face of living in exile and in waiting for a hopeful restoration of the monarchy. 

Wonderful Weekends (Prince Dillon Graduates from Military Academy)

For today's post we celebrate with the Royal Family of Swann. His Royal Highness the Hereditary Duke of Swann, Prince Dillon, graduated from his two years in the Duke's Air Force Academy yesterday and received his "wings". It is tradition for members of the Princely House of Swann to serve in the military as soon as they have come of age. Prince Dillon was no exception. Even though the young Prince insisted on being treated like any other soldier, he did however have special concession for his personal security as the heir to the throne. As the Duke of Swann's cousin and only first born son within the Royal House, he is heir to the throne of Swann. Prince Dillon graduated from training with "exemplary conduct" and with the rank of staff sergeant. The ceremony was attended by the Duke of Swann himself who also handed out the highest awards to the now ex-cadets. Princess Marie-Elizabeth was also present wearing the Swann Family Tiara. 

The Duke of Swann and Princess Marie-Elizabeth proudly flank their nephew, Staff Sergeant Prince Dillon Swann, on his turning-out parade day in the Swann capital.

To commemorate the event a special photograph was taken at the turning out parade that will also serve as Prince Dillon's first official State Portrait as heir to the throne. This is done in light of the fact that the Duke of Swann has indicated that marriage and the producing of a direct line heir was not on the cards indefinitely. This means that Prince Dillon will now begin serving officially as a member of the Princely House and may represent the country on relevant state occasions. We look forward on seeing him on the red carpet and to an eventual future as a married man and Duke of Swann. 

The two official portraits released to commemorate Prince Dillon's graduation and induction as a representative member of the House of Swann.