Monaco Princely Family

“The Future Princess of Monaco is Impeccable and Perfect!” Proclaims Famous Fashion Designer Karl Lagerfeld. Oh Boy…

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Hot off from the British royal wedding this past April 29, 2011, famous fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld has officially proclaimed, on the television network France2, that Charlene Wittstock is “…impeccable and perfect!”

According to the French newspaper, Nice-Matin, Mr. Lagerfeld is in love with Charlene’s sense of style and grace (no pun intended.)  For him, she is the ultimate up and coming fashionista.

Uh, okay… he pretty much says that about everyone.  Then days later he changes his mind.

He’s elderly so he can get away with saying such things.

Nonetheless, I will say that Miss Wittstock looked quite lovely at the royal wedding as well as at the pre-wedding reception in London hosted by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. But, I don’t agree with Mr. Lagerfeld’s comments.  Sure Charlene has her moments when she looks fantastic, but there are other times when she looks like a hot mess.

There I said it.  She’s not perfect.

To view Miss Wittstock’s fashion style whilst at the British royal wedding please click the links here,   here and here. 

Source:  Nice-Matin  Photos courtesy of:  Zimbio.com by Matthew Lloyd/Getty Images Europe and Billy Chappel/ALFAQUI

Dutch Royal Family

2011 Koninginnedag (Queen’s Day) in the Netherlands

The Koninginnedag (Queen’s Day) is always a fantastic event for avid royal watchers, and more importantly for the people of the Netherlands and this year did not disappoint.

This national holiday,held on April 30, honors Her Majesty Queen Beatrix’s birthday and this year the day was held at in the cities of Thorn and Weert, Netherlands.  The entire Dutch royal family including — of course — Her Majesty Queen Beatrix.  The queen mingled with the crowd of well-wishers and local dignitaries.  As usual there were lots of fun games, laughter, tons of food, and in the end it seems as if everyone — including the people of Thorn and Weert — had a blast.

To watch several videos please click the link here and here. To view photos please click here.

To learn more about Koningginnedag 2011 please click here. 

Royals in General, Vatican

European Royals Attend the Beatification of the late Pope John Paul II at the Vatican

On May 1, 2011, several European royals, heads of state, and thousands of people attended the beatification of the late Pope John Paul II in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican.  The ceremony was led by Pope Benedict XVI.

Here is a brief synopsis according to Rome Reports:

We welcome the wish of our brother Agostino Vallini Cardinale, our vicar general for the diocese of Rome. We also honor the call of many of our brothers  and the many faithful. With the blessing of  the Congregation for the Causes of Saints and with our Apostolic authority, we concede that the Venerable Servant of God,
John Paul II, pope, be called a blessed. With celebrations to be held  in sites under rules established by law, each year on October 22. ”

Moments later, the image of John Paul II was uncovered. They were moments of great devotion and inexplicable excitement. And so, the call to make him a “Santo Subito”came to be.

Sister Marie Simon Pierre, the French nun cured of Parkinson’s through his intercession and Sister Tobiana, the Polish nun who cared for John Paul II until his death, presented a relic with the blood of John Paul II to Pope Benedict XVI.

After the ceremony a new anthem in honor of John Paul II was sung. Then the pope and the cardinals prayed before the body of the new Blessed.

Hundreds of thousands of pilgrims who  flocked to Rome for the ceremony, may venerate John Paul II’s remains in the basilica. It will remain open until the last visitor goes through its doors.

In case you were wondering which European royals attended they are:  The Grand Duke and Duchess of Luxembourg, The Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume of Luxembourg, T.S.H.s Prince Hans-Adam and Princess Marie Aglae of Liechtenstein, T.R.H.s Prince Felipe and Princess Letizia of Asturias, Their Majesties King Albert II and Queen Paola of Belgium, and T.R.H.s the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester.  Missing from the ceremony was H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco and his fiancée, Charlene Wittstock.  It is unknown at this time as to why the Prince was absent.

There are many photos as well as videos from today’s ceremony so please click the links here,  here,  here,  here,  here,  here,  and here.

Royals in General

Blauw Bloed: Weekly Video News and Activities with All Your Favorite Royals

Good morning!  Yeah, it’s Sunday and it’s time for the Dutch royal program, Blauw Bloed.  In this episode Blauw Bloed host, Jeroen Snel, focuses on Her Majesty Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands as well as looking back at the British royal wedding between William and Catherine now the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

Click the link where it says Feestelijke Koninginnedguitzending to watch this week’s episode.   🙂

By the way, the connection for this episode seems a bit wonky (meaning it stops and starts), so just be patient.

British Royals

Official Royal Wedding Photos of Their Royal Highnesses, The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. Plus Other Information

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On April 30, 2011, Clarence House released the official royal wedding photos of Their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

Please click the link to view lots of unreleased images via Clarence House and the official website for the British monarchy here. 

In case you were wondering, these official photos were taken inside Buckingham Palace in the Throne Room.

It was also announced that the Duke and Duchess will take their honeymoon on a later date (supposedly at the end of this year.)  The reason for the delay, according to the BBC, is that The Duke of Cambridge (William) must report for work with the RAF on Monday.  Per the BBC’s Peter Hunt:

For a prince who’s desperate to lead a near “normal” life, the discussion about the decision to delay the honeymoon is another reminder of just how much scrutiny he and his wife will be subjected to.

Within moments of the announcement of their delayed honeymoon, theories were being advanced as to the reason. These included not wanting to be seen sunning themselves at a time of austerity; William’s commitment to his job; and a desire to play cat-and-mouse with the media.

In the meantime, the couple spent last night at Buckingham Palace and this afternoon were whisked away, via helicopter, to an undisclosed location in the United Kingdom.  To watch a video of the couple from this morning, outside of Buckingham Palace,  please click the link here. 


Photos courtesy of  royal.gov.uk by Hugo Burnand

Source: BBC News

British Royals, Royal Wedding

A Royal Wedding Wrap-up of Sorts: Part One

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Well, ladies and gentlemen I must say that the royal wedding between William and Catherine — now Their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge — was sweet, serene, and overall quite lovely.  Very British.

Now, for the all important information.  Who designed the dress:  Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen.  The bridesmaid’s dress is also a McQueen from the 2010 collection. The tiara is the Scroll (or Halo) tiara loaned to the Duchess by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.  Her earrings were a gift from her parents Michael and Carole Middleton.

For those of you who missed the ceremony you can watch the service all over again on the official You Tube channel for the British monarchy here (a total of 3 hours and 37 minutes including the arrival of guests and the royal family as well as the balcony wave-a-thon)

Second, the official website for the British monarchy has been updated to include the Duchess of Cambridge’s bio which you can read in full here and here.  

Third, there are so many photos from the wedding so please click here, here, here, here,  here, here,  here,  and here.

Finally, at the moment the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are at their wedding reception at Buckingham Palace.  The couple made a quite wardrobe change whilst at Clarence House before jetting off to their party.  Click here to view and here. Click to watch videos here and here.

 

Anyway, I am exhausted folks so I will add more information about tonight’s festivities later this evening.     🙂

OH!  One more thing… you might get a kick out of this clip inside Westminster Abbey after the ceremony was over and the guests finally left.  Click click here to watch.

 

 

Photo courtesy of: Zimbio.com by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images Europe, Zimbio.com by PacificCoastNews.com, Zimbio.com by WPA Pool/Getty Images Europe Zimbio.com by Bauer Griffin and Prince of Wales.gov.uk

British Royals, Royal Wedding

Official British Royal Wedding Program. Plus UPDATES!

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On the eve of the royal wedding between H.R.H. Prince William of Wales and Miss Catherine Middleton, the official program for the wedding has been released along with a lovely informal photo of the couple by famed photographer, Mario Testino.

To view the official wedding program, in PDF form, please click the link here.  

Plus an amazing set of photos inside Westminster Abbey as well as images in London, England.  Click here to view.

Here is the confirmed song that Miss Catherine Middleton will walk down the aisle to: I Was Glad by Sir Charles Hubert Hastings Parry

A nice gesture by H.R.H. Prince William of Wales.  Here is a video of him greeting and thanking the crowds near Buckingham Palace.  Click here to watch.

Video of the British royal family along with many foreign royals arriving at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel for a reception hosted by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II: Video 

Video of Miss Catherine Middleton arriving at the Goring Hotel in London.


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