How to narrow down all of the exciting tiara appearances this year into five choices? It was hard work but these are the ones I can’t stop thinking about!
Queen Camilla expands her tiara collection. Again.
One thing can’t be said about Queen Camilla? She doesn’t pin herself down with jewellery. Ever since King Charles ascended the throne and she became the de facto ‘ruler’ of the royal jewels, Queen Camilla has made sure to wear many different tiaras. While she still has her favourites, her old standbys from her days as Duchess of Cornwall, she’s made inroads with the tiaras favoured—and only worn—by Queen Elizabeth II, and tiaras previously earmarked for other royal women.
Cue the Queen Elizabeth Aquamarine Tiara, which the late queen only wore once. Press reports call it the Aquamarine Ribbon tiara and the Five Aquamarine Tiara, and it’s previously been associated with the Duchess of Edinburgh. But Queen Camilla arrived for the Diplomatic Reception at Buckingham Palace on 19 November with this beautiful aquamarine tiara atop her head.
The origins of this aquamarine tiara have never been publicly revealed, but Queen Elizabeth II wore it once in Canada in 1970 and then it disappeared until Sophie started wearing it in 2012.
With Queen Camilla’s white blond hair, it’s a perfect tiara for her and an unexpected choice for a queen who appears determined to try out as many tiara variants as possible.
- Princess Catharina-Amalia, the star
Ahead of her 18th birthday, the future queen of the Netherlands revealed in an authorised biography that she loved jewellery and knew everything about the royal jewels. So when she came of age, veteran royal watchers knew it was only a matter of time before she started attending white-tie events and the chance to wear tiaras publicly.
While Princess Amalia had a few tiara events this year, I’m choosing the Portuguese State Banquet on 10 December, when she wore the Dutch Star Tiara. It’s a perfect callback to one of her mother’s starter tiaras, in fact the one she wore for her wedding, and it’s one of the most fun tiaras any royal family has in their collection.
Queen Mary dripping in emeralds as she wears Denmark’s Crown Jewels for the first time
Each royal family has tiaras reserved only for their queen, and with the change in throne in Denmark, that meant Queen Mary, after nearly 20 years as Crown Princess, suddenly had access to a new set of jewels: the Crown Jewels.
The Danish Royal Court shared new official portraits of King Frederik and Queen Mary in all of their finery three months after their accession, and Mary stunned in emeralds from the top of her head on down, sporting the gems from the Crown Jewels for the first time.
The Danish Emerald Parure tiara dates back to the reign of King Christian VIII, who commissioned it for his wife, Queen Caroline Amalie, around 1840.
Queen Mary’s Danish Rose Diamond Bandeau
As we found out this year, gaining access to the Crown Jewels meant that Queen Mary could create her own pieces. Enter the Danish Rose Diamond Bandeau, a small but stunning tiara of rose cut diamonds that once belonged to Princess Charlotte Amalie of Denmark in the 18th century.
The Danish Royal Court shared: “With the creation of the new frame, The Queen and the Royal Collection are resuming the old tradition of adapting the crown jewels to the demands and needs of the times. This in many ways marks a new path for the Danish crown jewels, uniting the different traditions that have surrounded these four iconic jewelry sets–a path between revitalization and continuity.”
Queen Mary debuted the Danish Rose Diamond Bandeau in early December at a State Banquet for the President of Egypt.
Princess Madeleine gets busy with the royal jewellery box after a long gap
It’s been a while since we’ve seen Princess Madeleine in a tiara—the royal only just moved back to Sweden after many years abroad in Florida this past June—so seeing her at the Nobel Prize ceremony in early December was a treat. It’s always a delight to see how the royal women dress and Princess Madeleine didn’t disappoint this year.
While Princess Madeleine stunned in a dark green Fadi El Khoury evening gown, atop her head sat the Connaught Tiara, a drop diamond tiara first introduced to Sweden in 1905 with the marriage of Margaret of Connaught to Crown Prince Gustaf Adolf. It was the perfect complement to the dark green gown and emerald jewellery Princess Madeleine chose to complete the look.
