The King’s Coat

The King's Coat

As with any royal occasion, I am always curious about the outfits. Today, Dutch King Willem-Alexander took the oath next to his wife Queen Máxima during a religious ceremony at the Nieuwe Kerk church in Amsterdam, marking the abdication of Queen Beatrix and the investiture of her eldest son. He became the first king of the Netherlands since 1890.

Queen Máxima of the Netherlands wore for the inauguration of her husband, a custom royal-blue gown by Dutch designer Jan Taminiau. Her floor-sweeping lace embellished dress was combined with a matching floor-sweeping cape, which reminded me a lot of Gwyneth Paltrow’s 2012 Tom Ford Oscar gown appearance.

But I couldn’t take my eyes of Willem-Alexander’s royal mantle, decorated with silver lions and ermine fur, it is a piece of art. The original dates to 1815, but it has been repaired and altered over the past century, and had been also worn for the investitures of his mother and grandmother.

I would love to have such an outerwear and thought immediately of Valentino‘s beautiful F/W 2013 collection where I spotted something similar on the runway, like a modernized version of the royal coat, made of red mink with an ermine collar.

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I am sure that I would feel like a real princess in it. More of Valentino will be coming up soon, so please stay tuned. It has been one of my favourite collections for the next season and I took some great pictures in the showroom in Paris as you can see in this little preview below.

LoL, Sandra

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Photos: REUTERS/Lex Van Lieshout/Pool, Valentino and © Sandra Bauknecht

My Photo Shoot with LV: The Art of Packing

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Last week, I spent some amazing days with Louis Vuitton in Munich for the opening of the gigantic new Maison that I will show you during the next days. Many celebrities from all over the world had flown in to attend the fun event. But there was a project I was even more excited about… Louis Vuitton asked me to be in a photo shoot for the ART OF PACKING.

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In my beautiful hotel room at the Charles Hotel, Ward, the in-house packing expert, explained me enthusiastically how packing efficiently could well be considered an art and gave me some tips which were funnily enough very similiar to my ‘method’. As I am very particular about my clothes and accessories, I have realized that I already master the art of packing pretty well given also the amount of travel I’ve been going through since I have started my blog.

So enjoy this step-by-step guide to filling a suitcase or travel bag. In my case, it is the Pégase 45 by Louis Vuitton, the best companion for a 24-hours trip that has the perfect size to take it on board of an aircraft.

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In order to maximize space in your luggage and to minimize creasing of your clothes, preparation is the key. It is very important to keep the global picture and that starts already with the right type of suitcase or travel bag for your occasion.

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1. Lay out all the items you would like to pack. Like this, you  will see what works well together and won’t take too much. Here you see all my looks. Isn’t it hard to believe that all of those will fit in my little Pégase?!

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2. Optimize weight. Instead of taking heavy shoe trees, stuff your heels with wrapping tissue.

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3. To protect your pieces, use separate felt bags for your shoes and accessories.

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4. Don’t forget to do the same with your jewelry in order to protect it from scratching.

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5. A smart way of packing is to use the empty space inside your bags or shoes for example and fill it with your small items. You could also roll up your belts to fit them in.

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6. To avoid creasing, it is indispensable to understand the nature of the fabrics of your clothes. For example, roll the uncomplicated materials such as denim or cashmere scarfs into tight, compact spirals to maximize suitcase space.

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7. Fold the clothes carefully and use wrapping paper for items that are delicate such as this embroidered top.

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8. Once you have all your items rolled or wrapped, you can get started to put them in your luggage. It is very important to put all the heavy ones in first.

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9. Another great way to minimize creasing of your delicate pieces is to stuff them with other clothes as I did here.

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10. The Pégase has two flaps to secure your clothes from moving up and down which is great. Can you imagine that everything that was laying on the bed fit in?!

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And there was still space to put the leopard print trenchcoat with its collar raised on top as the sun was shining.

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Without having to push or squeeze it, I closed my Pégase 45.

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And I have to admit that after having finished packing, I am usually pretty happy. Now, off to the airport! The next adventure is waiting…

My look: Cashmere top with Stephen Sprouse leopard print, dark blue leather pants, Noé BB bag in citron, bi-colour pumps, necklace and ring, all by Louis Vuitton.

LoL, Sandra

Sandra's_Closet_JS-080Photos: © Jamie McGregor Smith for Louis Vuitton