Kate is diamonds & pearls for diplomatic reception

British Royals Camilla Duchess of Cornwall Jewelry Kate Middleton Prince William Tiara Event

Kate is diamonds & pearls for diplomatic reception

by katemiddletonreview226 Comments on Kate is diamonds & pearls for diplomatic reception

It’s that time of year again! The time where we get car photos of royals in tiaras arriving to the annual diplomatic reception. Kate Middleton and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall both brought the bling to their car shots, while Prince William and Prince Charles were… there.

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Kate wore the Cambridge Lover’s Knot Tiara (really Queen Mary’s Lover’s Knot Tiara, but whatevs) and Diana’s Collingwood Pearl and Diamond Earrings. The necklace is another loan from the Queen: one of the Diamond Collet Necklaces. Which one is anyone’s guess since they all look the same and there has been no palace confirmation.

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Kate wore a white scoop-neck gown with beading. No idea about the designer, but Jenny Packham or Alexander McQueen are good guesses based on her previous choices in evening wear.

Due to the lack of good photos, no idea if Kate is wearing the Royal Family Order or not. We’ll have to wait until her next State Banquet to see if she’s received it.

I think Kate looks pretty in this necklace, and I’d like to see this gown in full view. She really does need a new updo, though; this one is so boring.

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I know that many people dislike Camilla for various reasons, but I like Camilla because Camilla knows what’s up. Camilla knows we want nice photos of the tiara, so she turns her head toward the camera even in the car so that photographers can get a good shot of her tiara. I appreciate that.

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Camilla wore her standard stuff: the Greville Honeycomb Tiara; her pear drop diamond earrings; four strand pearl choker with a large diamond clasp; a repeated white gown; and the Royal Victorian Order. Her Royal Family Order is hidden by the cape.

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226 thoughts on “Kate is diamonds & pearls for diplomatic reception”

  1. I’m actually surprised about the many loans of jewels Kate has got from The Queen. Maybe they do have a close relationship.

    1. I don’t think the Queen values the jewels the same as the RFO. It’s not like she can wear all of them all at once anyway. Meghan will get loans too.

        1. I imagine the Queen takes the long view. There will be poorly performing monarchs and family members, as long as it continues, I suppose. It would be interesting to hear, in their words, the purpose and value of the institution. I imagine Charles could mount a defence, I’m not sure about William or Harry.

          2. I was just rewatching The Crown in preparation for the new season (2 days!!!) and there’s a scene with Elizabeth and Queen Mary in which QM says that nobility gives commoners something to aspire to, to lift them out of their ordinary lives. I wonder if that idea still prevails within the family.

          3. Yep, Jen. This is H&M’s keen future- ‘magical princing’ as Hera calls it.

            We’ve just had a taste of the fairy dust. The Commonwealth is quivering in anticipation. They will heal all on their exotic holitours.

          4. Oh jeez Jen, he said that? I missed that gem but it now confirms my opinion of his special snowflake status. Get OVER yourself buddy, ugh, and stop drinking the palace kool-aid- that sh^t is spiked!

        2. I am not seeing any indication that the Queen is any way hopeless about William and Kate. There have been tidbits here and there that she would prefer that the younger royals do less of this or more of that but that is to be expected given that they represent different generations.

    2. Again, Diana didn’t even get that many loans from the Queen. And the worst of it is that William’a wife has no idea how to wear or accentuate the pieces. You would think that while Carole was teaching her child how ensnare William, she would have taught her work ethic, how to wear jewelry, do a proper curtsy, etc.

      1. Diana had her own jewelry, though, and Charles did spoil the crap outta her. William isn’t so generous. Kate buys herself push presents, and all that, the shopkeepers confirm it. It’s kinda sad he disregards her that much and won’t buy her anything nice with all his money from his mum.

        He did help the Middletons purchase their manor home though, so there’s that.

        3. And Kate just spends her father-in-law’s money, which is taxpayer money, with like $200k this year alone for how many engagements? It’s egregious, really.

          1. Agreed – her clothing budget, vs for number of engagements done, is disgusting. They (and I include future Meghan and Harry in this) should be “paid” by Charles for their work. The more they work, the bigger clothing budget they should be given. There is just no way she needs to be spending almost a quarter of a million dollars for 50-60 days worked. Especially since she even sometimes wears repeats or “sporty” clothes that might cost list $100-200.

            But I guess Charles just doesn’t care or view it like some of us. Which is a shame, IMO.

          2. All royal ladies spend a lot on clothes – Madeleine who does no huge amount of engagements was wearing a coat priced around fourteen thousand euros for the christening – and not a classic coat either. We don’t know who paid, we don’t know what she paid – but it still is a lot. I can just imagine the outcry if Kate or Meghan wore something like that.

            We also don’t know what William may buy Kate – even if we assume she buys all the Kiki jewellery herself, we don’t know what else she may own that we haven’t seen or who gave her what. Maybe he gave her those emerald earrings she wore in NYC, maybe they were a Middle Eastern wedding gift – we don’t know.

            I don’t recall Charles buying much for Diana, other than that one heart-shaped necklace and maybe one other modern piece. He has bought a lot for Camilla (It’s the old-fashioned view that’s what you do for your mistress – not your wife!) I think it’s Charles’ way of compensating her for not being popular – he’s far more defensive of her than William is of Kate.

            I have a lot of things i complain about with Kate – work and wardrobe malfunctions being top of the list – but I have no quarrel with her curtsy. It looks fine by me and I was trained by nuns to curtsy. (My mum didn’t teach me either – but then my husband may be a prince in my mind, but she didn’t expect me to marry one.)

          3. Charles bought Diana several pieces.

            ETA: A quick look through Diana’s Jewels and here’s what I found that were gifts from Charles:

            gold weave bracelet – http://dianasjewels.net/Bracelets/AADS001944.jpg
            diamond and emerald bracelet – http://dianasjewels.net/Bracelets/0000330068-021.jpg
            diamond and emerald earrings – http://dianasjewels.net/Earrings/dim0702.jpg
            dark grey and natural pearl necklace – http://dianasjewels.net/Necklaces/AADS002507.jpg
            gold ‘William’ circle pendant – http://dianasjewels.net/Necklaces/Di_polo_spotty_mclark.JPG

          4. @Julia

            “I don’t recall Charles buying much for Diana, other than that one heart-shaped necklace and maybe one other modern piece. He has bought a lot for Camilla (It’s the old-fashioned view that’s what you do for your mistress – not your wife!)”

            Considering your obvious bias, let’s see your receipts. Unless you believe that you don’t owe us readers any facts/evidence to back up your assertions.

          5. Our moderator has made a list – they include the heart-shaped necklace I referred to and the grey pearls which were the modern piece I referred to. I forgot the gold bracelet which was given before they married and I think he also gave her a watch.

            There are some other unidentified pieces but some only appeared after the separation – for instance the Swan Lake set seems unlikely to have been from Charles.
            I didn’t know the emerald bracelet and the earrings were known to be positively gifts from Charles. But I still don’t consider that a huge amount given the amount he is suspected to have given Camilla in the same time period – it tends to be easier to identify what he gave to Camilla because they often seem to come from van Cleef & Arpels although again they could be from someone else.

            We don’t have receipts for what William may have given Kate – it could include those emerald earrings. We assume it doesn’t include the ruby set she wore once – I thought that was supposed to have been a personal gift – but we don’t know who from and the royals – especially these days are disinclined to attribute who gives gifts. Then there are those expensive earrings Kate wore to the BAFTAs which weren’t Kiki’s. I seem to recall they are morganite or kunzite – not sure which. Too late to do too much research.

            So there is quite as much supposition as to what William hasn’t given Kate as what Charles gave Diana. It could be he hasn’t given Kate much – it could be she hasn’t worn in public everything he has given.

            I’m not sure what obvious bias you refer to – I don’t have any great attachment to either Charles or William.However, as someone who wears a family ring (from an unhappy marriage no less – although mine is very happy )- I’m always puzzled why people seem to mind that so much.

        4. People who work very hard climbing the social ladder get the broad strokes of behavior right but miss on the details. The Middletons probably didn’t have enough money for serious jewelry. Often they will cultivate or even hire a mentor to burnish the rough edges and fill in the gaps, but the Middletons seem averse to expert advice.

          1. The shopkeepers talked about it because she had an eternity band. They were like,oh, no, she bough tit herself, when asked because the media went into crazy mode about what a wonderful husband William was buying her that. Same wit any jewelry they claim to be from him–Kate buys it herself!

          2. Devil’s advocate re Kate buying her own jewelry:

            It’s entirely possible that William ‘bought’ Kate those pieces in that he paid for them, but let her pick them out herself. Maybe Kate wants to pick out her own jewelry so she knows it’s something she likes and wants. Or maybe William knows he knows nothing about jewelry. Just because Kate is going to the shop and picking it out herself doesn’t mean it wasn’t still a gift from William. For example: I pick out and shop for all my gifts from my mom. I’ll tell her what I want and she’ll either okay me using her credit card to buy it or I will buy it myself and she’ll pay me back. That doesn’t mean those things aren’t still gifts. Maybe William and Kate have that kind of set up. Not saying 100% that they do, but we don’t know what their discussions are or what set up and understanding they have in their relationship. It could be a number of things.

          3. KMR

            Great devil advocating. Unless the rumours are hitting the mark and he is a cheapskate. (evidence: Ring of Doom, lack of other know jewellery). Also, she has shown up at stores alone, buying her known jewellery, like the eternity band.

            Also, if he is buying the Kikis, he’s still a cheapskate. She may prefer the Kikis but he could show her the error of her ways. Any insanely cherishing, rich as Croesus husband would 🙂 .

          4. More devil’s advocating:

            It may truly have just been a lovely gesture on William’s part in that he truly wanted to give his future wife a piece of his mother’s jewelry. William may not have minded that the ring was from a marriage that ended in divorce, only caring that it was a ring his mother wore. That’s what he said in the engagement interview. I know we’ve conspiracy-theorized the choice of this ring to death, but it may really have just been William wanting to give his wife a piece of his mother’s jewelry.

            Again, showing up to a store alone and being the one to physically use the credit card doesn’t mean those pieces weren’t gifts. As I said, I am the one who picks out, shops, and physically buys my own gifts from my mom, but she pays and it’s very clear that it is a gift from her. The store clerk has no idea that it’s a gift because I don’t talk about my purchases – if asked, the store clerk would say I picked it out and bought it myself (as the store clerk did about Kate’s eternity band) – but both my mom and I understand that it is a gift. I know we have a negative bias toward William and Kate, but we don’t know what understanding they have about whether those pieces Kate bought were actually gifts from William.

            If I were married and my husband told me I shouldn’t buy the jewelry I like, and instead should buy something else, I’d be very angry. I would consider it quite rude and condescending. So I disagree that any rich husband should show his wife the error of her ways in terms of what jewelry she likes.

          5. My mom decided on the engagement ring style she wanted but my dad still showed up with her and didn’t make her buy it in her own. I understand the comparison with a parent, but if a husband who doesn’t have an actual job can’t be bothered to be there when his wife picks jewelry, it’s not really a gift.
            I also think it’s unlikely William paid for anything. I think Charles has paid for it.

          6. @Nic919 I agree with KMR. My dad and mom always share finances accts and to the point that my mom manages everything on her own. if my dad wanted to get my mom a gift, it is more like just a go signal for her to buy. And my mom would just tell him what she wants and all the details including the price. My dad wanted her to get what she wants too and no matter what the price is as well. Also, my dad has no patience for shopping and would just sit in mall or waiting area someplace or just pick us up after. If he is impatient to do simple mall shopping what more for buying jewelry, which he is not fond of in the first place. So what usually happens is that my mom does it on her own or with me. As weird as it may be, it does happen to them and it is their own arrangement. Every married couple have their own ways or system of doing things. Maybe William is like that too. Maybe that’s how theyre arrangement is in terms of shopping or gift giving. Just because they have a different arrangement from yours or what you believe should be, doesnt mean it’s wrong or an indication that it is not a gift.

        1. Oh I disagree. I think it’s definitely an art – like having some kind of internal jewelry aesthetic. I don’t particularly like Camilla, but she can wear the HELL out of some major jewels. (Although I do give major props to some of Camilla’s patronages like the kits for rape survivors and her annual Christmas party for kids! …I guess maybe I like her a little 😉 )

          1. I’m not a huge fan of Camilla’s. Yet she can pull of big pieces easily. She wears the jewels. Unlike Kate where the jewels and her clothes wear her. She looks like a little girl playing dress up in my opinion. She is a clothes horse. For no reason should she be given the allowance she has. As for William not buying her jewels. He probably figures she has Big Blue. What other jewelry could she possibly want.

          3. I just adore seeing Camilla in her bling. She looks awesome. I do think she has made Charles happy so whatever went on in the past (the affair was wrong but ‘normal’ for that aristocratic peer group and she was NOT responsible for Di’s death) I give her credit for that. I like Charles, he’s a hard worker like many of that generation. I’m afraid we’ve seen the last of his kind. Kate looks washed out, a bit haggard and William looks petulant and sulky. I’m so over these two. More Camilla and those fabulous jewels please!

        2. How to wear jewelry IS important and it is an art, esp for the royals and big time aristos.

          William’s wife is clotheshorse only in she spends a lot on clothes. She cannot wear clothes to save her life. Her sense of style is permanently in the toilet.

      3. +1 Leah. The jewels are beautiful, but something gets lost in translation when worn by Kate. Her updue is dated with some strange swirl of hair/ hairpiece that looks like it was an afterthought.

        She looks like a kid going to a tea party, especially with the heavy makeup. The jewels overwhelm her, and she lacks that special presence to highlight the jewels. Diana and Leti are examples of ladies who look regal in photos, and create a magical aura that brings their jewels to life.

      4. Oh Leah, there you go again, spouting off a bunch of your made up facts. Where do you come up with this crap and can you even back up half of it?

        You’re nothing but a blown up mean girl who has nothing better to do than spread lies about people you profess to hate.

    3. Well, she was loaned the diamond bracelet the queen got from philip for her own wedding, so it seems they are really close. I mean i don’t have a diamond bracelet (…yet ;D), but I would only loan a bracelet that I received from my husband for our wedding to very few people and family members I am very close with… so I guess they are close 🙂

      1. I think the fact that the Queen has loaned Kate her engagement bracelet shows that the Queen has esteem and affection for Kate.

        1. Or perhaps the Queen doesn’t really value the piece as it is well known Phillip enjoyed the company of other women. As did her son Charles when he was married. She does wear Diana’s ring and that’s not exactly a symbol of fidelity.

          1. If by saying that “Phillip enjoyed the company of other women” you mean that Philip has had affairs, that is not well known. I don’t know if Prince Philip has been completely faithful, but it is not well known that he has not.

          2. ” . . . it is well known Phillip enjoyed the company of other women. As did her son Charles when he was married.”

            And Diana enjoyed the company of other men when she was married.

          3. On the subject of Philip enjoying other ladies, it’s interesting to note how the publoc narrative on this has changed. In the 80s it was repeated with certainty and the ladies named.

            Then again, growing up, even with Diana, the royals were not popular.

            Actually, Diana was popular, but the rest of the royals not so much. A minute or two of Andrew and Fergie being popular, lots of mocking Edward. Dislike for Charles because of Diana’s antics and a cold Queen.

            These days, the Queen and Philip are loved, and most of the family is on neutral ground as far as affection. Exception the York family. And Philip’s previously rock solid belief in his philandering has been erased and now it’s rumours in the ether that no one can quite pinpoint. He’s been PR-d as much as the rest of them.

        1. OK. It seems like the Queen prefers to wear her engagement bracelets in portraits more than to events. The Queen has a vault brimming over with jewelry, and overall she is not that generous when it comes to sharing, but because there are so many jewels in the vault the woman in the BRF still sport a decent selection.

          Has the Queen lent out to Kate, Anne, Sophie or Camilla any jewels that she wears frequently?

        2. The queen normally does not loan out jewellery she wears often which makes me think she views these loans as long term. (As I mentioned elsewhere, they are always loans for tax reasons.)

          I don’t know how much we can guess one way or the other by what she loans out. She did loan Kate a pair of earrings she wore back in 2012, I believe but most of what has been loaned to Kate or Sophie aren’t pieces she’s worn in a long time. She did loan Diana necklaces she has since occasionally worn but none of them are pieces she wore often. Almost all of Camilla’s jewellery loans come from the queen mum – the queen did retain some pieces from her mother – a few because they were designated for the monarch only – others – brooches mainly – perhaps because of sentiment or personal taste.

    4. Agree Kitty, it’s surprising HM loans Kate jewelry but gave her no order. Weird.

      Off topic: Yesterday I watched a video on YouTube named “Most Beautiful Royal Wedding Cakes”. When the wedding cake of William and Kate is showed, it’s stated that 3 tyres of the cake has been saved for the christening of their future children. I know pieces of these cakes are saved but what caught my attention was the number 3. I don’t know if it’s coincidence that Kate is having her third child or is a norm to save 3 pieces for future christenings. Does anyone know the truth about these cakes?

      1. Usually you serve the top tier for your child’s christening. (We didn’t because everyone ate our yummy cake!)

        I don’t know of any other tradition afterwards with the other tiers.

      2. Jamel – I wonder when the video was made? Maybe someone made it recently (with Harry & Meghan’s wedding now officially in a few months), and they said the three tier thing because it’s now known they’ll have 3 children. Or was it the pastry chef who made the cake saying it?

        My recollection from the time of the wedding was that they had only saved the top tier.

      3. Jamal, I think it’s very telling that Kate has no order yet. Makes you wonder what The Queen really thinks of her work ethic.

    5. I don’t think loaning the jewels is quite a big deal for the Queen. She has so many, and many don’t get worn for years at a time. Most are inherited and some were gifts. Has the Queen purchased any big set of jewels inches last 50 years?(Side note, can you imagine people saving their money to buy Kate a tiara, the way they did for the Queen and her Girls of Great Britain and Ireland tiara?) If I were to read anything into the loans, it is that the Queen is trying to make Kate look more royal to the public. Perhaps because Kate still doesn’t seem royal, perhaps because H&M are so popular, perhaps she hates thise Kiki nibblets….who knows why.

      1. “can you imagine people saving their money to buy Kate a tiara, the way they did for the Queen and her Girls of Great Britain and Ireland tiara?)’ I wonder if that can still happen today?

  2. There’s a picture from another angle of them leaving I believe with no sign of an RFO. I think it’s one reason HM loans out jewelry to her–that and Kate has no jewelry of her own like this to wear. William’s cheap, and Kate is whether we like it or not future consort.

    Kate looks really nice but the make-up is heavy. She still makes the jewels look chintzy and cheap compared to Camilla. I bet the gown is another Jenny Packham sparkle mess.

    William always looks so nasty and angry, far beyond some bored generic face.

        1. And that’s because you probably use those highly academic publications, the Daily Mail and People magazine as the basis for your sought after opinions.

    2. I thought it was interesting that the Daily Mail’s article mentioned that Camilla was possibly wearing her RFO, and then had a couple of paragraphs describing its significance and listing the current royal women who have one–almost pointing to and highlighting the absence of Kate’s name on that list.

      There are have been several articles lately–and not all about Meghan either–that have praised other royal women’s work ethic, choice of clothing, lifestyle before marriage, and even their mothers’ roles, that seem to be shooting indirect barbs at Kate and the Middletons. One even called Carole furrociously socially ambitious. If not a new tone in the press, it seems to be recently reappearing more even though the Cambridges are being seen out and about a bit more now. I’d love to know what’s going on behind the scenes with the press.

      1. I suspect that Meghan is friendlier to the press right now and she sells more papers for them. They don’t need to be as nice to the surly Cambridges. And playing up a rivalry also helps sell papers.

    3. It’s incredible to me that Kate has managed to assemble over half a million pounds worth of jewels (worn publicly), most of them kikis, and doesn’t have a decent set to wear at state occassions without borrowing from HM.

      It seems like such a waste of money because except for the cartier set (rings necklace and matching earrings) all of it has no resale value even if they are known to come from her wardrobe.

    4. Besides Harry, what other grandchildren, or their spouses, have received an RFO? I recall comment that Harry probably received his Order due to his military service in a war zone.

  3. Camilla and Kate look fab (what we can see of them).
    I l.o.v.e the Greville Honeycomb Tiara. I think it quite spectacular.
    Camilla’s hair stylist certainly knows how to do ‘tiara hair’.

  4. Still no RFO for William’s wife. *laughs out loud*

    She does look nice, BUT and I would say this if Meghan wore it as well, but that Cambridge Tiara should be stuck in the royal jewelry vault for a few generations. It is too strongly associated with Diana.

    Lord knows William’s wife loves to Diana cosplay, but I don’t think it does her any favors and it wouldn’t do Meghan any good either. Not that Meghan would probably ever get the chance to wear that tiara, but still.

    And I too believe that the Queen gives William’s wife jewels to make up for that RFO she hasn’t gotten in six years of marriage. SHAME, SHAME. (sorry, had to throw that Game of Thrones reference in.)

    1. The Queen takes duty seriously and while she won’t be obvious about certain things, she isn’t going to give an RFO unless she feels Kate deserves it. She has dedicated her entire life to service and duty and had four kids. I am sure she has no sympathy for Kate being unable to do a quarter of what she did, while reviewing the red boxes every day on top of engagements. Outside of Kate tripling her numbers, I think the Queen may never give her an order. It’s her way of saying :”take duty seriously “.

      Also, Kate needs to speak with Pippa. Her little show at the hospital was disgraceful and it reflects poorly on Kate. And since Kate remains quite close to her family, she is able to control this behaviour. Carole and Pippa also ended up at the Straubenzee memorial service.., again just for the spotlight. Those two look pathetic.

      1. I don’t expect HM to give it to Kate. She’ll get Charles’s order I’m sure but not HM’s. If Kate does get it it’s more “you’ve stuck around this long and had 3+ kids”.

        1. Me either, and I really don’t think it has anything to do with her perceived value to the family. Kate will likely get one from Charles, William, and George and maybe even George’s kid depending on lifespans. That’s three, maybe four. I think it’s more realistic thinking that she doesn’t need that many. Sure, it seems weird now and people loooooove to read into it, but I just don’t think it’s that big of a deal.

          1. If you think the family order isn’t important, then you gaven’t been observing royal families long enough or you don’t u derstand how seriously these people (the royal club) take these things.

      2. I too groaned at Pippa and Carole being there. They are more royal than the royals. I also side-eyed Cressida being there.

        1. Not a fan of many aristos/rich set but the Middletons are friends with that family even before so why not? And these people run in the same circles same as the Curzon and Bonas. The whole aristo and elite group support each other more often than not. Cress attended this event many times already and probably even before dating Harry and we just didnt know. They were invited for sure and they didnt invite themselves. There’s no need to side-eye when they were there for reasonable purpose. Side-eye them if they crash the event or make a scandal while at it.

        2. While the Middletons are not perfect, IMO their association with the BRF is a positive thing. They have not experienced any scandals anywhere near the levels of the BRF and have made their millions through hard work.
          Their inclusion in royal events shows William’s respect for his wife’s side of the family. It shows how far the royals have come from their snobby and ridiculous perception of being superior to non royals.

          1. Um. Uncle Gary, anybody? Look that guy up. Maison de Bang Bang. Drug trafficking. Quite scandalous IMO.

            William considers himself a Middleton. Royal commentators have even mentioned it, they have his loyalty–not his royal family who pays his bills and gives him everything he could ever want, because they don’t worship him like the god of their own making (and it’s the RF’s fault for creating the monster that is William!).

            HM has been accepting towards them because it makes them look good.

          2. Yes,I am aware of Uncle Gary. Technically he is not a Middleton and he is still a smaller controversy compared to William’s uncle, Prince Andrew.
            You say ‘gives him everything he could ever want’.I disagree with that.I believe that the Middletons give William the privacy ,lack of stiffness and warmness that the Royal Family has never given him.A different type of comfort. Plus , William blames the Royal Family for their treatment of Diana.

          3. The problem is that William, while respecting the family of his wife, has no respect for his own and disrespected them multiple times, putting his grasping in-laws above his own blood. You don’t do that.

          4. I guess I just don’t fully see how William has disrespected his own family? I’m married, we spend quite a significant amount of time with my in-laws, it’s not a competition. Maybe he is respecting the wishes of his wife to spend time with her family. My husband is coming to spend time with my family for Christmas this year…he isn’t disrespecting his family to do that.

          5. Charles doesn’t see his grandkids very much and creating the shadow court at Middleton Manor was not very respectful either, especially considering there aren’t many years left when the Queen and Phillip will be alive. Will and Kate live within walking distance to Sandringham and could have had the Middletons stay there like they had in past years, but they chose to create a separate event, which also replicated the hunting on Boxing Day, because of course that is what all environmentalists do. William gets treated like a god by the Middletons and that is why he is with them more than his own family, who calls him out on his bs. He doesn’t have the lifestyle he does without the riches of the BRF, but he doesn’t act like he knows that.

            It was very telling that Meghan had mentioned how she had met with Charles several times, and Camilla certainly had nice words and Meghan even met the Spencer side. William did not do that with Kate. You don’t see them really associate with Zara and Mike, who William used to be close with, and they have children of similar age.

          6. Shadow court? Seriously, this is what I don’t get, they went to Christmas at his in-laws. They attended Church, which as the future head of it, was probably a good idea. Some of the biggest environmentalists I know also hunt, it is how we control the animal populations. I just think some times the criticism is so exaggerated. There are things to criticize them for, the lack of work effort being the big one. The speculation over whether they spend time with Charles and Camilla and whether Kate met the Spencers is just speculation, we have no idea. My kids spend an infinite more time with my in-laws than with my parents…again, it isn’t a competition and we aren’t being disrespectful to my parents, it is just the way the timing works out.

          7. In all fairness, I believe at some point, either William or his fiancee talked about meeting or being around Charles. I do know that at the start, there seemed to be a warm relationship between Charles, William and his wife. They did a few engagements together and then Charles did at least 2 engagements with his daughter-in-law.

            After that, radio silence.

          8. Nic19 Kate did meet and socialize with Diana’s side- they were all at his air graduation together (sorry I don’t know the formal name, but after the big breakup where Kate wore the white coat. Late sat with his Spencer aunts and chatted with them), and going even farther back there are pics of a young Will and Kate at some sort of social function where Kate is wearing a strapless red dress and they and laughing and talking with Diana’s sister Jane Fellowes (I think, she’s the one with reddish hair, right?). Just because Kate didn’t brag about knowing them in her engagement interview doesn’t mean that she also didn’t get time with them before
            engagement.

          9. Leah & Nic919 I would just say that both William and Harry had significant amounts of trauma in their respective childhoods/young adulthoods. The fact that they look for comfort and security outside of their family isn’t so surprising. Now, whether the Middleton’s manipulated the heck out of that situation is a fair and valid point. I cannot imagine growing up in an environment of scheming & plotting courtiers, warring parents, and loving but distant extended family. That is not a recipe for a well adjusted adult. We think we know, and you may think William is just awful, but there’s a lot we don’t know and will never be privy to. Like Meghan likes to say, there’s a lot of layers.
            As far as Christmas last year and the rival court I think The Other Julia has some very valid points about the timing of that, plus things would have been set in motion timing wise for the 20th Anniversary of Diana’s death plans and the books on Charles and Camilla coming out this summer to make for very unpleasant family relations between Charles and sons. Just food for thought.

          10. William and Kate spending Christmas with the Middletons, calling paparazzi, making themselves up a separate ‘court’ than his grandmother who was very ill and both of them elderly tells me all about how they feel about their family. It’s cruel and cold, imo, full stop, and nothing more, nothing less. They want to be the center of attention. They’ll take the money but won’t spend time with them and don’t allow his father to be a grandfather because he’s no Middleton. It’s so, so bizarre but they’re all probably insanely dysfunctional and I’m sure W&K are continuing their own family dysfunction. Sad for the kids.

          11. It wasn’t the paparazzi that were photographing the Cambs outside the church last year, it was the royal photographers, and royal reporters were there, too. KP called the royal press to cover it and set up a barricade and everything.

      3. Some believe that Kate not having or not wearing the RFO is tied to William’s hardline stance on ivory.

        I am in the camp that believes that she has not gotten it because of her lack of royal work, however I do not believe that the Queen holds Kate in low esteem, the Queen loaning out her engagement bracelets to Kate, especially when she has not loaned them out to any other royal woman, is a helluva indicator that Kate is not on the Queen’s bad side.

        The Queen reads her red boxes every day because she is the Queen and has been doing this for over sixty years due to her ascending the throne at her father’s early death. When the Queen was the direct heir with a sick father she jaunted off to Malta to play sailor’s wife. If her father lived longer she could have been very well been a combination of sailor’s wife, country squirette and working royal.

        What did Pippa do during her hospital visit that was disgraceful?

        1. Mugging for the cameras is the disgraceful part. You don’t visit a hospital with sick kids and pose with the cameras, but instead interact with the kids. Why there was media following Pippa anyway? She is a nobody and since hospitals are government funded, it’s not like people are going to start donating because Pippa showed up. She’s not a royal. The timing and wearing a very similar style of outfit that Meghan wore is also way too obvious.

          It is also false that the Queen partied in Malta and not much of anything. She happened to be visit a few weeks here and there but she wasn’t there full time. That story was put out to explain why Kate was doing nothing right after the marriage despite initially claiming to hit the ground running. The Queen happened to be doing a tour for her father when he died so she stepped up doing work early on. Sophie stepped up pretty early and she is nowhere near the line of succession. So again the excuses about why Kate couldn’t work from day one fall flat.

          1. The stories about the Queen spending time in Malta preceded Kate. Pretty much every article, book or documentary about young adult Princess Elizabeth discusses her time in Malta, especially if one of the Mountbatten sisters is a participant.

            I certainly did not say that the Queen partied in Malta and did nothing else. To be sure William is not a shining example of a working royal but he, as heir to the heir, has carried out tours and other royal duties on behalf of the monarch since becoming an adult including when he was serving in the military and working for the EAAA, and Kate has carried out duties since her and William’s engagement in 2010. I am certainly not an apologist for William, Kate and their lack of work ethic, I can cast aspersions at their laziness with the best of them, but I am not going to project my dissatisfaction and disapproval of them on the Queen.

            Re Pippa, I saw a couple of pictures where she is looking at the camera but in most pictures she is engaged with the person she is visiting.

            If the camera is there, there is nothing wrong with looking at the camera IMO. If you want the patron to be solely focused on who they are visiting, then photographers should not even be present at the event. Not too long ago a royal photographer called out Kate for not bothering to looking towards the photographers, rather she was focused on the person she was walking next to.

            Re Meghan getting a RFO. To me it is theoretically possible for her to get the RFO before Kate but I don’t see it happening. Meghan is attached to Harry, and while he works, he is not chomping at the bit to do royal work and has actually made it known that he is not keen on bread and butter royal work. I can see Meghan coming out the gate working, and furthermore will be more poised and better at certain aspects like speechmaking, but my guess is that the Ginger Nutmegs will start a family soon (understandably) and that may (understandably) impede how much royal work they do.

            Assuming that the Queen is around long enough, while I don’t think that Meghan will get the RFO sooner than Kate, I do predict that it will not take as many years for Meghan to get the RFO as it will Kate, which makes sense because when Kate married in William was in the RAF and then did the air ambulance thing, while when Meghan marries Harry, she is marrying a full-time working royal. At least I think she is, I remember the announcement being made about the Cambridges increasing their workload when they moved to London in Fall 2017, was a similar announcement made about Harry?

          2. There have been announcements every year that the Cambridges would increase their workload and it never pans out. William now seems to have picked up, but as it stands Harry actually has more engagements so far this year.

            I am not saying the Malta story is made up, but the Queen did not stay there full time. Here is a story from the Malta times which states she stated there several months between 1949 and 1951… not the entire 2 years straight. https://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20151115/life-features/Queen-Elizabeth-s-stays-in-Malta-over-the-years.592305

            So even when the Queen “wasn’t working” she was still working and doing a few appearances on the island and mostly doing an extended visit during the Christmas holidays. That is completely different from Kate and William not working at all for years. And she picked up duties as her father’s health was getting worse. Prince Phillip was looking to slow down 6 years ago and retire when he turned 90 but it only happened this summer.

            And we can say Harry doesn’t work enough compared to his other relatives, that is fair, but William is the heir to the PoW. He gets to be King, not Harry. He should be working the most after Charles, but he never has. Perhaps William will pick it up, but as with everything Cambridge, they have cried keen way too often and will need solid years of high engagement numbers before we know it’s real.

          3. I did not say that the Queen lived in Malta, nor did I say that the Queen did not do royal work during her young adult years.

            Your claim that William and Kate have not worked “at all for years” is untrue.

            Going back to my original point, I am in the camp that believes that Kate has not gotten the RFO due to her lack of royal work, but I don’t think it means that the Queen disapproves of the choices that William and Kate have made regarding their royal work, or lack thereof.

          4. I’m sure HM is quite happy with William and Kate doing anything they want. HM has proven time and again to not have very good judgment with her family, and they all coddle William and let him do everything he wants lest he have a tantrum.

      4. @Nic919 – “The Queen takes duty seriously and while she won’t be obvious about certain things, she isn’t going to give an RFO unless she feels Kate deserves it.”

        My question though is: if Meghan comes out of the gate and works works works (and, IMO, she already got to work sooner and better than Kate did after her engagement), will the queen give orders to Meghan before Kate?? I can’t imagine this will happen (and William will throw a strop!!) so would they then get them at the same time, with Kate just getting hers so it doesn’t look bad?

        What do you all think? I really cannot imagine the s—storm if Meghan got orders and Kate still didn’t have them.

        @aaa – I wouldn’t necessarily call Pippa’s visit “disgraceful” but she certainly did mug for the cameras in many of the pictures. Instead of just focusing on the sick children and letting the photos fall where they may, it seemed more like the children were just props for her posing and huge smiles. I also wasn’t crazy about her outfit which seemed too “look at my body” for this type of visit.

        1. Harry has a Royal Victorian Order that William doesn’t have so I guess it is possible. We are going to see how much Meghan really ends up working so I think it could happen if she really does the work.

          Keep in mind that the Queen made a rule to raise the level of blood princesses over married ones. She isn’t going to give an RFO just because.

          1. What does the Royal Victorian Order that Harry got stand for and how long has he had it? Does William have any orders?

          2. He has the Order of the Garter, which he gets for being the heir to the PoW. I believe he also has the Order of the Thistle, which is the Scottish version.
            The RVO is more about service, which Harry has done more of than William.

        2. Re Pippa, as I noted above, there were some pictures where she looked at the camera but in most of the pictures I saw she was engaged with the patient or others in the room.

          I saw still pictures, not a video, and it is hard for me to conclude that she was more focused on the camera than the patients, and again in most of the pictures I saw, she was not looking at the camera.

          Also as I stated above, I don’t have a problem with someone looking towards the camera, if that is a no-no, then photographers should not be present at the event.

          1. What I find interesting is that Pips is pipping at the post (ha!) around the very same time that Harry has introduced Meghan to the public. Meanwhile her big sis is suddenly papped on that very same day of the walkabout. I guess there’s a lot of pipping and papping with Pips and sis 🙂 .

            Coincidence? I think not.

            And what’s even more rankling is the notion that Pips gets publicity like royalty for showing up aristo ‘noblesse oblige’ like at a hospital. She is a nobody.

          2. Pippa seems more engaged than Kate ever does. I think she’s like Meghan, a hustler. Gonna use whatever connections she has and make more of ’em.

    2. It’s odd, Leah, but unlike the Ring of Doom, which William’s wife flaunts at every opportunity, she seems weighed down and intimidated by the Cambridge Tiara. She never seems happy to wear it, just like every other bit of royal bling it seems, except for Precious. I find it puzzling.

    1. I would love to see Meghan there, but Harry doesn’t usually go to those things, so I doubt he will be there. I wonder if Meghan will go to the Queen’s Christmas lunch.

      1. Didn’t Harry go last year? Or was that a state dinner? I definitely remember him at one of these types of events in the past year or so.

        1. He went to the Spanish state dinner over the summer. He’s never been to the diplomatic reception.

          1. William didn’t go until he was married either, I believe. I would say they may be called on in the future as the older cousins pass on. Charles will most likely want them there.

    1. Still can’t see whether Kate is wearing the RFO or not. The car is blocking her left shoulder where the RFO would sit.

      1. Oh yeah no RFO view but you can see the necklace which if im not mistaken is something similar to the Queen’s coronation necklace, if that’s not the necklace itself. Camilla was loaned that right? Can you ID it?

          1. True it must be since it is shorter. The BRF has tons of collet necklaces I wonder if they still have all those. Queen Mary made a turtleneck choker out of them. Haha! Two were left to the HM but Queen Mum got a new one for the coronation which is with Camilla?

        2. It’s one of the Queen’s diamond collet necklaces, but not sure which since they mostly look the same. I don’t think it’s that coronation necklace, though. Camilla has worn the coronation necklace before, yes.

          2. It seems like there are different necklaces being referred to as Coronation necklaces. I don’t think that is wrong per se, but as aly28 noted above, the coronation necklace that Camilla wears is the one that was made especially for Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother for her coronation. She wore the new necklace along with the necklace that Queen Victoria commissioned and that the current Queen and Queens Mary and Alexandra wore at their coronations.

            I am not 100% sure but I don’t think that the coronation necklace that goes back to Queen Victoria has been worn by non-Queens.

          3. There is one coronation necklace and it isn’t likely to be worn unless by the queen on very important state occasions or in the event of a coronation -when I would assume (with no enthusiasm but that’s not the point) that Camilla will wear it.

            There is also the Queen Victoria jubilee necklace likely to only be worn by the queen, except Princess Alexandra liked it so well that her husband had a copy made for her that she still wears.

        1. Okay. I have not seen that photo. That photo was not in the DM article when I posted my comment.

      2. Between the heavy makeup and that godawful hair net she looks like one of the lunch ladies from my elementary school days. That was the late 80s, early 90s.

        1. Now that you mention it, she looks like the lunch ladies from my elementary school days too. Only I go back to the early 1960’s!

      3. When I was 14 my mother took me to the Clinique counter to learn how to apply makeup so that I would actually understand how to not look like I was just applying it haphazardly. I so wish Kate could have had that experience. Or know to hire a makeup artist, at least for big events.

        1. My sister is getting married in 10 days and I’m forking over the money to get my hair and makeup professionally done so that I look good in the pictures!

  9. Both tiaras are so beautiful and Kate necklace got me all jelly. It doesn’t look like Kate has a RFO, I would have thought she would have gotten one this year? But I wondered if it’s because she wasn’t a full time royal for the better part of the year?.. obvi she will get one eventually soooo.. also asking for a bitchy ‘friend’ Should Camilla get her lips filled or something, she has those fine lines older women tend to get with lipstick running amok. I know, I know ‘my friend’ is very shallow.

    1. I think Camilla has ‘smoker’s mouth’ where you get wrinkles around your lips from years of lip puckering while sucking on cigarettes. For those interested in wrinkle prevention, you are advised to avoid straws for the same reason.

      1. I don’t know if Kate stopped smoking, but she has the early signs of that as well. Smoking ages your skin overall and I think that it is one of the factors, along with excessive suntanning that has aged Kate and Pippa’s skin beyond their years.

    2. I’m a few months shy of 50 and I’m just now starting to see those lines. I’ve never smoked. My mother and grandmothers had them too, so I think it’s genetic. If anyone knows of something that would treat them without a trip to a clinic, please tell me. I don’t mind the crow’s feet — they’re laugh lines. But the lip wrinkles make me look like a joyless old prude.

      1. The old treatment is glycerine (glycerol) and water mixture or, new treatment is hyaluronic (hyaluronan) acid serum, especially if either product is applied after a facial steam or a shower. It plumps the skin by attracting and holding water in the skin. Both are available at stores. The ingredient sodium hyaluronate found in skin creams is a derivative of hyaluronic acid. Regular use of either product keeps the skin plumped.

  10. I always hope for the Delhi Durbar tiara at this event for Camilla but I won’t cry over the Boucheron Honeycomb. I do love those diamond whoppers.

    I’m gonna put my money on Jenny Packham for Kate’s gown. And no RFO because her lazy butt hasn’t earned it.

  11. Camilla and Kate are beautiful here. I’m so in love with diamond collet necklaces! Wow! I think these loans from the Queen are her unofficial will for the future, and she had already given away her unworn jewelry to Camilla, Shophie, Kate, Anne etc.

  12. I’m very interested in what this dress looks like. I wonder if the overall effect if we see the dress would be more striking. I also think that the diamond necklace help make the tiara look better. As to why she gets more loans, I don’t know what the Queen bases her decision but it’s nice that we see more jewelry because Kate’s personal jewelry just doesn’t have great impact.

  13. Both ladies look very nice. Not the tiniest surprise with Camilla, but that has to be expected. Hopefully, we will see Kate’s dress in full at another occasion. From the small bits you could see, I think I will like it. I have no complaints about her updo or make-up. They look both fine to me?
    Wiliam’s facial expression in the first pic made me chuckle, because I could swear that we have seen this exact expression at least three times before. I even double checked if it might have been a pic from two years ago (same angle, same tiara, same face…). In the third pic he has the exact same look: http://katemiddletonreview.com/2015/12/08/kate-middleton-wears-princess-dianas-tiara-to-diplomatic-reception/ It’s hilarious.

    1. Oh my gosh you’re right. What would you say this look is? Mild annoyance? Contempt of photographers? Disapproval mixed with constipation?

    3. But..but…surely that expression is because a policeman fell off his bike? Did a Policeman fall off his bike the previous two years also?? ?

  14. I think Kate is a natural girl, the less the better. I thought she looked best when she wore the smaller tiara, I think it was the same one that she wore on her wedding day. Just like with her make up, she looks so much nicer, IMO, when her jewelry and clothing are more minimalist. Not meant as a criticism, I am that way as well. Otherwise, the tiara, clothes, make up wear her instead of her wearing them.

    2. I agree with you here, Kris. I’m hoping that as she advances into her life as queen consort, she will find a middle ground style that works for her.

    4. Agree, Kris. It will be a sad day when Camilla is gone, because I don’t think we will see these large tiaras anymore, or any of the large parures. You need a big, poofy hairstyle and a big personality to pull them off. I can’t imagine the younger royals wearing them. Again, it’s a style thing, a generational thing, but when I think of royalty, I think bling.

      2. Do you think some of the old jewelry and tiaras will be dismantled and refashioned into new pieces? Previous wearers did that with the jewelry and tiaras.

    5. The “less is more” look is definitely when she looks her best. She tends to the heavy handed and over embellished for the glitzy events and it’s a tough combo when you don’t have a large presence (ie Camilla, Maxima). Although that necklace looks very pretty on her- can you imagine wearing that many diamonds at once?? I’m sure she really felt like a princess that night.

  15. I wonder why they don’t publish any photos for the Reception? It’s a rare chance for those of us who love clothes and tiaras to see the family dressed to the nines.

  16. Recently a reporter on twitter made a snark comment after taking pictures of Kate at an event where he said “I got some great pics of Kate’s hair tonight” because Kate never looked at the photographers. Other reporters chimed in and said the Queen has a way of looking towards cameras so that photographers see her face. It seems Camilla is doing that here as well. I wonder why Kate wont?

          1. Which is why I don’t believe the kings cross photos were haphazard. She is looking straight at the camera and smiling, something she never does when it is an unwanted paparazzi photo.

  17. I wish they would find a better way to get us photographs than these car shots – perhaps arrival photographs. These car shots aren’t flattering to the royals and the public would like to see the dresses.

    I love this necklace on Kate. The previous loans didn’t really suit her in my opinion, too tight around her neck, too fiddly – although the pearl choker might be nice with a different neckline. I think this simple but magnificent necklace suits her well and isn’t as constricting as the others. I think some of the Middle Eastern jewellery with modern designs that aren’t ideal on the queen would be good loans for Kate and possibly Meghan. I could see Kate looking fantastic in the sapphire loop necklace (lengthened again) and Meghan in the emerald tassel necklace.

    I’m fine with the Lover’s Knot. It fits with Kate being a Cambridge – and I don’t see a point in making too much of a sacred cow out of jewellery – although I wouldn’t like to see Camilla in Diana pieces – given the difficult past. However, to me the Lover’s Knot seemed meant for Diana – something about her colouring and had a magic it doesn’t have with Kate.

    I don’t recall Charles giving a lot of jewellery to Diana – other than that lovely heart necklace after William’s birth. She didn’t wear many family pieces after her wedding either except the tiara. The only major family piece I recall, besides the Spencer tiara, was the diamond necklace with the black gown. It belonged to her mother. Diana wore loans from the queen – particularly the emeralds and the POW feather – and her Middle Eastern jewels. I think she also bought jewellery herself.

    Given the times. I would expect Kate to be more circumspect about jewellery gifts – the eighties were a completely different era – so I believe loans are wise. Kate has worn her mother’s blue topaz jewellery but I wouldn’t expect the Middletons to have a lot of fine jewellery – or Meghan’s family or Sophie’s either – and wonder why people think that’s odd – to me, it would look pretentious if the Middletons went out buying a lot of jewellery for Kate to wear and not every family has pieces to hand down.

    I’m still not convinced there isn’t an ivory issue with the royal order – I can’t imagine Kate wearing ivory after William’s remarks and yet if they made it out of something else, it would call attention to the ladies who do wear ivory. The family order has never been that closely linked to work. Still, I can’t imagine Kate won’t have it in the end – as it speaks to being a royal during the life of a particular monarch more than anything.

    For instance Camilla has done a fraction of the work Diana did, yet she received the Royal Victorian Order when Diana – after the same time, did not. It’s thought Charles pushed for Camilla to have it. He also has given more jewels to Camilla – perhaps in an effort to show how much he supports her. I’m not a Camilla supporter so will comment no further. But it does show there’s more to orders than work actually done.

    I’m also not a Middleton supporter but won’t fault them for attending an event they were obviously invited to. However, Carole’s skirt did seem very short to me for her age – even with dark tights.

      1. I don’t know why Diana only wore that tiara except it was a loan from her family, and the one she wore at her wedding. Didn’t a Spencer tiara with loops sell recently? I can’t remember.

        My recollection is Kate wore blue topaz earrings to a Bond film premiere that were thought to belong to Carole who wore them first. (I’m thinking Carole wore them to the wedding but can’t quite remember.)

        Kate has worn a couple of unexplained pieces thought to be possible wedding gifts that might have come from the Middle East – or not. One is the ruby set she wore in the autumn after the wedding, the other the emerald earrings she wore in Manhattan at the St. Andrew’s dinner when she was pregnant with Charlotte that could be part of a larger set. I think at the moment, Kate is wise not to debut too much new big jewellery. She may have things we haven’t yet seen.

        One of Diana’s sets came as wedding gift but another came following a Middle Eastern tour around 1985-86 – I can’t remember which year. Camilla has worn a lot of jewellery that were Middle Eastern gifts but this has been controversial – even to the point of saying Charles pushes for Middle Eastern tours to get jewels for Camilla. (I don’t believe this – tours are arranged by the foreign office – but much of Camilla’s Middle Eastern jewels are ugly-awful to my eyes and although I believe in preserving historic gems – those heavy necklaces could be redesigned without any complaint from me.) I was a little shocked at the amount of new jewellery Camilla has worn but she has pulled back a bit recently – although those earrings she wore to the Spanish state dinner seem likely to be a gift from Charles. It was a big birthday year for her.

        Diana famously borrowed jewellery from shops early on which didn’t prove wise. She did far more evening events than Kate but she wore a lot of the same jewellery over and over. Up until William’s birth Diana borrowed several pieces from the queen but whilst she continued to wear her borrowed emerald necklace often, she borrowed less as the marriage broke down over the years – which makes sense in retrospect.

        Mostly we assume the pearl and sapphire choker was made from a brooch given to Diana by the queen mum – but there’s always a chance it was a loan. The reason loans from the monarch are so frequent rather than gifts is for tax reasons – the monarch is exempt from inheritance tax as I understand, so jewellery can be passed down without tax consequences. It seems possible that some of Margaret’s jewellery once thought to be gifts like the lotus tiara may have been loans.

        Since in past generations – a lot of wonderful historic jewels were lost to auctions after being passed down to junior members of the family – I would love to see a jewel foundation like the Swedes have that allow for loans but keeps things from being given away.

        One correction on my above comment – the Lover’s Knot is inspired by a Cambridge tiara but not officially Cambridge itself.

        1. Poor poor Kate I kind of feel sorry for her. She is married to a man who is to cheap to buy his wife her own jewelry. She has to wear her dead mother In laws jewelry, I would find that a little to creepy. Kate deserves her own jewelry.

        2. As I said above, I wear a dead woman’s jewellery including a ring from an unhappy marriage and it bothers me not at all – in fact I like the family connection. So to each their own but if I were Kate I would be thrilled to wear Diana’s things since both he and Harry were clearly devoted to their mum.

    2. Re Diana and the Spencer jewels, I did think it odd that she never wore the other Spencer Tiara and in fact I never knew there was another Spencer tiara till recently.

      Didn’t William’s wife get any jewels as gifts from foreign countries at her wedding? I remember Diana made out like a bandit.

      Are there pics of William’s wife wearing her mother’s blue topaz jewelry? I can’t recall.

      1. Diana did get jewels from some middle eastern nations, but 1) she was POW and 2) it was the 80s, the era of big bling. Gifts that extravagant today would seem wasteful and tacky. But don’t worry, they still get gifts like free travel on private planes/yachts and free vacations at private and exotic locations.

          1. Didn’t Kate wear a beautiful diamond and ruby statement necklace shortly after the wedding- the event where she wore that black velvet McQueen. She looked absolutely stunning and I thought I heard the jewelry was a wedding gift from a Middle Eastern country??

    3. “I’m still not convinced there isn’t an ivory issue with the royal order – I can’t imagine Kate wearing ivory after William’s remarks and yet if they made it out of something else, it would call attention to the ladies who do wear ivory.”

      Or, William’s wife simply has not deserved the order according to the queen. Occam’s razor and all that.

      1. Considering how much the Middleyons show off anything gifted by the Queen, be it material or access to am exclusive event, if Kate had that order, she would wear it. And Carole would smooth Willuam’s ruffled feathers. It wouldn’t ge the first time William was a hypocrite about something.

  18. Oh to be a fly on the wall at one of these receptions. Wasn’t it this event that William made a joke about the Diplomats wearing ‘fancy dress’? (For non-brits / ESL:They were in their national costumes and William joked they were dressed as if for Halloween. Their dress is indeed ‘fancy’ but the term is derogatory and insulting unless it’s Halloween or a costume party). His sense of humour has to be at the expense of others, he must be a pain to live with.

    1. That comment was basically racist because many of the fancy outfits as he described them are persons from African countries.
      I also don’t buy the no RFO because it has ivory since William still hunts. You are a hyprocrite when you hunt animals for sport and claim to be for the environment.

      1. No one is going to deny William or Harry their hypocrisy – but William has spoken out about ivory in Buckingham Palace being destroyed – so he is hardly indifferent.

        https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2014/feb/17/prince-william-buckingham-palace-ivory-destroyed.

        We’re speaking about priceless antiques of long dead elephants – so the age of the ivory is not at issue.

        Hunting can be necessary for environment control but whether the royal family’s shooting parties fit that description is open to debate – country people would argue it’s part of country management – others find it excessive.

        Whilst William’s comment could be see as racist – Harry made an openly racist remark I won’t repeat here – all in good fun according to the palace – which is why many see him as a hypocrite calling out people as to Meghan (as well as her openly courting publicity in Vanity Fair – Seward’s argument.) One wonders what Meghan thinks of some of Harry’s past conduct – she probably puts it down to ‘youthful follies’ but I know people who stopped caring for Harry because of that remark – and others because of that earlier fancy dress party. However, it is a racist term widely used unfortunately, but more common in Britain than the States so perhaps Meghan doesn’t understand how seriously many people saw it – as I recall, the soldier in question didn’t comment – but family members did.

        Regardless of where it is from, including Sofia’s outfit, I try to refer to such outfits as national dress rather than costumes but the terms are often used loosely.

        1. You do know that Harry was not responsible for the Nazi uniform. The owner of the Fancy Dress shop spoke to the press afterwards and stated that it was William who chose it for Harry to wear and of course Harry got thrown under the bus to protect William.

          On a lighter note Wiliam has revealed that George played a sheep in his first school nativity play.

          1. You put it on – you’re responsible for it in my book especially since Harry was certainly old enough to make his own decisions and should have had enough knowledge to know it would be offensive if discovered – which doesn’t mean William didn’t have responsibility for it too. Both probably thought they would never be caught.

            I don’t think either man is really a racist – but I don’t believe either are saints.

          2. I agree, Julia. Regardless of who picked it out, Harry put it on. Harry wasn’t a toddler, he was old enough to know not to wear a Nazi costume even if his brother picked it out for him.

          4. Or maybe his own brother stitched him up because he knows Harry’s not the brightest tool in the box. Actually it was a recurring theme in their childhood. My point is that it’s not black and white, Harry’s was still a teenager, and probably neither knew the ramifications of their choice. Stupid, uneducated and tactless maybe but racist no.

          5. Harry was 20, Mrs BBV. I also don’t think he would be chuffed that the excuse is that he is not that bright.

            I certainly don’t think this was a racist statement. But it was ignorant, given they are considered future leaders with mucho power and influence. It’s the indifference and ignorance of these future ‘leaders’ that is dismaying. And so far, IMO, they have proved that dismay to be legitimate.

          6. Maven we all know Harry’s not the sharpest tool. He’s made a career of doing stupid things and having to apologise afterwards. To me his saving grace is that he’s nice but dim. He doesn’t set out to be cruel or mean. He’s just a bit thick. I dare say he wouldn’t like my description but he would be the first to admit academia is not his strength. Like his Mother, his intelligence is emotional.

            I find it more forgiveable than William’s meanness. William who uses others as the butt of his humour. Who has made it a life’s work of hanging Harry out to dry so he can get away with it. He did it when they were children and he still does it today.

            Harry, for all his shortcomings is not cruel, spiteful or mean spirited.

          1. It just shows the fact William is a total jerk.

            I mean, he dressed as a ‘Native’ at this party, but nobody cares. Let’s focus on the Nazi costume he bullied his brother into wearing (and Harry should have been smarter about it for sure).

            It just is more evidence William is an a-hole, because he sits and laughs while Harry takes the fall for everything when his own behavior through out his life has been far worse.

          2. @Ellie

            Again, it’s embarrassing that you keep reiterating that story. You keep saying William ‘bullied’ him into it as if he put a gun to Harry’s head. Just stop. Harry know’s his family’s history with both grandparents fighting the Nazis and he humiliated them by wearing that costume in public. Stop bringing up William because unless a photo or video comes out of William threatening to do him serious harm unless he wore it proves nothing about him.

          3. When you see how these two are together–that Harry does everything William says and allows William to bully him in front of the media, calling him stupid, mocking him, etc–you won’t be so surprised at Harry doing whatever William tells him, when Harry should have long ago grown a backbone and told him to eff off and did the right thing. They both are in the wrong but everyone focuses on Harry.

            It’s embarrassing imo you keep defending William when there’s a very good reason he gets brought up with this incident because he was a part of it, and dressed up as a ‘Native’ which is just as offensive imo. But got off scot-free of course. Harry’s always the punching bag and people bring up stupid garbage he did over 10 years ago, but William is the one who never gets raked over the coals.

            Quite frankly I doubt either of them know their family’s history with the Nazis or anything. Neither strike me as well read.

          4. I think it’s fair to bring up that William picked out the Nazi costume for Harry to wear, but at the end of the day, bullied or not, Harry still chose to put the costume on and therefore he absorbs the majority of the responsibility for wearing it. William should absolutely be called out for his costume, too. But William wearing an offensive costume, too, doesn’t negate or absolve Harry of his offensive costume. They both should be called out for their offensive costumes.

          5. @Jessica

            Why is it embarrassing and why shouldn’t I repeat it if I feel it’s overlooked and relevant? You make it sound as if I churn the comment out on a weekly basis. Just how many times have I mentioned it for it to be too many and quite frankly if that was the case the embarrassment would be mine to feel, not yours. It is not your place to tell me what anecdotes I may or may not use to support my assertions and opinions.

          6. @Ellie

            No one is defending William but there is no picture of him in a Nazi or native costume. Very simple, not sure why you aren’t getting that. Where is the article with the shopkeeper because I can never find it? My point is that you and I weren’t there to witness it so I can’t harp on something that I’m not 100% certain happened. But you want to dismiss a 20-year-old wearing a Nazi costume is 100% embarrassing.

            Also everyone knows QEII and PP participated in WWII; it’s always mentioned so you don’t have to be well-read to know that. I’m sure it’s come up in casual conversation over the years.

          7. Because to much of what all the RF does is cleared up off the internet. With all due respect that is common knowledge. The whitewashing and sanitising of principals internet history has cleaned alsorts from the records. Kate’s background in particular has been reinvented, Meghan’s will be and the future King……a lot of it doesn’t even get there is the first place. What does it’s played in such a way as to ensure Harry is bad cop, William the good cop. e.g drugs shame, Club H at Highgrove, Guy Pelly, William knocking his teeth out when drunk, Rattlebone Inn, Wiliam swimming in a moat when drunk and being hauled out by his RPO,s …….there are literally dozens of stories that have been wiped to protect the reputation of William and Harry has been the fall guy in many of them.

          8. Wait what? William swam in a moat drunk? When did this happen? I already knew about the Club H and William being so drunk at a friend’s wedding (wasn’t it Guy Pelly’s wedding??), that he got a tooth or two knocked out while dancing but not the moat story.

          9. If William dressed in a Nazi costume it would be on the cover of every single magazine and we’d be talking about it right now. No one thinks William is perfect but for whatever reason people feel the need to defend every single negative thing Harry has done and somehow try to blame it on William.

            This isn’t favoritism on my end because I have no positive feelings about William; most people think he’s just there and prefers Harry. I just don’t get the obsession with trying to dismiss the fact that Harry was foolish enough to be photographed wearing a Nazi costume.

          10. A costume that Wiliam rented for him to wear…..and stupid, dense Harry wore it because his big brother, who should have known better, gave it to him to wear.

            I don’t see why a picture of William wearing a Nazi uniform wouldn’t be surpressed it a picture of him having sex has been, in fact several pictures. And other less than ‘Royal’ incidents usually when copious amounts of alcohol have been sunk.

            You ought to read Piers Morgan ‘The Insider’ as to how deals are done in the press, especially Royal deals. Trade off to protect William and PoW is commonplace but in it’s place there needs to be an alternative…….usually a Harry misdemeanour which will shift copy. Daft, common senseless Harry has a history of providing the alternative story in spades. It really is common knowledge.

            No one is giving Harry a free pass that I can see, it’s just as an older brother you would expect William to look out for him a bit more not land him in it up to his neck……repeatedly so he can protect his ‘Kingly’ reputation. As product of a British boarding school my parents and my house mistresses expected me to look out for my baby sister. It’s the done thing and the fact that these two are supposed to have had each other’s backs through Eton, through Diana’s death, through their singular Royal roles begs the question why did William throw Harry to the wolves not once but repeatedly?

        3. William doesn’t hunt for sustenance. When indigenous people hunt that is one thing but the royal family has no need to ever hunt. That is why William is a hypocrite on the environmental issue. He did not need to hunt on Boxing Day last year but did it because it’s tradition. Sorry that is not respecting the environment.

      2. “Hunting can be necessary for environment control but whether the royal family’s shooting parties fit that description is open to debate ”

        @Julia

        No, it’s not. It’s outright slaughter for pleasure on a massive scale. Indeed, for them, they are “parties”, revelling in blood and terror. For fun.

          1. Herazeus will know this as she has written about it before; if I recall correctly, some birds are bred on royal estates so that they are just targets. I don’t think that is about balancing out the eco system but just humouring privileged people in pursuit of their hobby, killing animals for sport.

  19. Camilla’s tiara hair is right up there with the Swedes! Some of the best. Love that she can rock all that bling! Are her earrings by Graff? It also looks like she’s lost some weight in her face.
    I used to give Kate the benefit of the doubt with her makeup, that she applied it heavy for the photos. I now just think she doesn’t know how to do event makeup. It borders in the clownish. I wish she would accept help and get a proper makeup artist along with hairstylist. Tired of her essentially three hairstyles: down with sausage curls, boring updo or twee like half up-half down. Branch out and be Letiza hair bold!
    I too don’t like these car photos because I want to see the complete ensemble. If I had access to that necklace, I’d wear it grocery shopping just because I could!?? and I want to see what the Queen is wearing

  20. My heavens, the bling on Camilla! She is fairly dripping in jewels, the height of opulence. Reminds me of Queen Mary who largely exceeds everyone except the Romanovs.

    1. I love the fact that her hairdresser gets it……and does Tiara Hair. Kate really does need to get a replacement for Mrs Cook Tucker who may well have cut William & Harry’s hair since they were children. She needs a stylist not someone who pops in to give a quick blow out.

  21. My husband looked more loving and engaged with me today than William does to Kate, and we were in a cab, on our way to marriage therapy. (not joking).

  22. After reading the comments today, I am starting to have a theory about QEII’s jewelry loans to Kate. Obviously, we don’t know the specifics of how all Diana’s jewelry was or will be divided between William and Harry. I think it is safe to say that when Kate shows up in a more substantial piece or pieces, like say the Saudi Sapphires, people are going to go nuts. No matter the occasion, all most people will be talking about is Kate wearing Diana’s jewels. If William really wanted to stick it to his father, he could hold off letting Kate wear them until Charles’s coronation. It could be his way of having Mummy there. So maybe, part of the Queen’s thinking is better to have Kate wearing loans from her, then to have her showing up in some of Diana’s major pieces. I am still thinking about this idea – I may not have all the bugs out of it yet.

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