So what does a straight talking, hard working, wear the same suit for forty years princess keep in her parlour? Now, we know. As Princess Anne became the latest royal to reveal her interior decor choices through the wonder of video calls, we were all given a reminder that this Windsor means business.
From her sensible paint choices to home accessories clearly purchased around the same time she bought the majority of her wardrobe, this room is pure Anne and you can only love her all the more for it. Here are six things to enjoy in this sneak peek into Princess Anne’s parlour.
A menagerie of china animals
We know Anne is a lover of the great outdoors and it appears that when she can’t be out and about in the natural world, she likes to surround herself with an alternative version made entirely of china. It is impossible to count how many little, porcelain animals there are dotted around the room but the number must be close to three figures. The only question is how she keeps them all clean amidst her packed royal diary.
No nonsense decor
This room is pretty much its owner’s personality in paint form. Anne is world famous for her down to earth attitude and that’s just what we get from her interior design choices. Plain walls in a kind of warm beige that goes with everything, solid wood furniture and discreet pictures in low key frames. No fuss, no frills, definitely no lace and, quite probably, no cushions as they would only encourage sitting around and that is not Anne’s style. At all.
A mirror worth reflecting on
We all know that Anne’s idea of royal wardrobe choices these days is something practical, warm and well worn and the mirror underlines that. There is absolutely no way for anyone to check whether their tie is straight, their hair is tidy or their make up is still on their faces given the amount of flowers and photos in front of it. The mirror is there because that is where one puts a mirror and it fills a gap. Move along, please.
Far too busy for flower arranging
And speaking of flowers, this is clearly not a princess who spends ages arranging her blooms. Those stems have been plonked in that vase and left there – you can even see a couple beginning to shed their petals. In fact, you just know that the flowers will sit there until they’ve started to wilt even more and then be dumped in the compost. Anne may well have been schooled in the finer arts of flower arranging but she is far too busy to put them into practise.
The least royal lampshade ever
Where did Anne get that lamp from? Nestled over one shoulder is a light and shade that will ring a bell with just about everyone. Get past the base that time forgot and you find one of those shades that we’ve all bought – plain and utilitarian and fine to do the job until we get round to getting the one we really want. Except Anne won’t be making that shopping trip because you just know this very practical light is as fancy as she’s getting because anything else is just not necessary.
Family comes first
However practical a princess is, her heart belongs to those she loves. It’s rather nice to see the range of family photos gathered around the princess. Like previous royal peeks into parlours, we can’t quite make them all out but she seems to have images of her children in their younger years dotted about the place with pride of place going to a wedding photo of her daughter, Zara, with husband, Mike Tindall.
One room, one princess, so much to enjoy.
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