Sandra‘s Closet

The Duchess of Cambridge has made an appearance to support her country at the 2012 Olympics all royally blue. Cheering on Great Britain’s Andy Murray, Middleton was spotted radiant and happy. It was the same stunning electric blue shift dress in which she helped to open a National Portrait Gallery exhibit in London earlier.

Here are all the details to shop the look: Royal blue shift dress by Stella McCartney, Abel pointed patent-leather pumps by Jimmy Choo and Trinity necklace by Cartier.

LoL, Sandra

All eyes are on Britain right now as the nation prepares for Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee. To celebrate, I would like to spotlight more of the signature style of the (grand)mother of all fashion icons and the cool Britannia must-have sweaters you need to pledge allegiance and join the party.

1 Tuck Union Jack-print silk-chiffon dress by Vivienne Westwood Gold Label
2 Long Ball Union Jack-print silk-georgette gown by Vivienne Westwood Gold Label
3 Aireshire printed cotton-jersey sweatshirt by Aubin & Wills
4 Union Jack Bag sequined merino wool sweater by Markus Lupfer
5 Crown sequined merino wool sweater by Markus Lupfer

For the previous post on the most stylish Union Jack accessories, please click here.

LoL, Sandra

2012 marks the 60th anniversary of the accession of Queen Elizabeth II. The celebration of her Diamond Jubilee will be going on throughout the year.
Interesting to know is that Queen Victoria in 1897 was the only other monarch in the histories of the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and a few other Commonealth realms to have celebrated a Diamond Jubilee.

Explore some of the cool limited editions to be launched for that special occassion:

In honour of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, Harrods has created together with the famous perfume house Bond N°9 a limited edition fragrance, called Harrods Jubilee . The scent consists of amber, musk and sandalwood along with Lantana leave, dry leave and mace. It is available now from the store’s Perfumery Hall and retails at £290 for a 100ml bottle.

In April 1926, Floris had released a pretty floral scent called Royal Arms to celebrate the birth of Princess Elizabeth earlier that month. It had notes of rose, violet and ylang ylang.

To commemorate the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, Floris, the only perfumer to hold a Royal Warrant from the Queen, slightly changed the original recipe but keeping the original floral character formed by essence of rose, the queen of flowers.

Royal Arms Diamond Edition EdP is on sale at John Lewis at £99 for a 100ml bottle (and at florislondon.com). There is also a limited amount of Royal Arms Diamond Edition in perfume strength which will be decanted into only six antique crystal dressing-table bottles of which one will surely be given to Her Majesty.

The most eccentric British fashion designers of all, Vivienne Westwood, pays tribute to Queen Elizabeth’s jubilee with an honorary collection featuring ready-to-wear and fashion jewelry that will be available in May in all Vivienne Westwood stores.

The Red Carpet Capsule Collection stays true to the opulent Westwood archive and was inspired by outfits that the Queen has actually worn. The patriotic designer’s logo is a royal ORB with a cross on top, bejewelled and impressive as befits the Queen of British fashion. Westwood became Dame Commander of the British Empire in the 2006 New Year’s Honours List “for services to fashion”.

For this royal occasion, the “Kaiser” Karl Lagerfeld, himself will be offering live commentary of the official event on French television channel France 2 on June 3. He will surely enjoy his latest assignment as fashion commentator as he already did last year, when the Chanel helmet participated in a French live broadcast about the wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, attracting five million viewers.

And there’s no doubt the Queenie is one seriously stylish muse. After 60 years on the throne the queen’s outfits on her thousands of visits and tours have proved she is a bastion of good taste and style. She loves tone on tone looks with blue being her favourite colour choice. I mean there has to be a reason that blue is called royal. I know this fact thanks to a recent report featured in Vogue magazine for which editors have studied every outfit Her Majesty has worn in the last 12 months.

A year ago, all eyes were on the royal wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton. Congrats to the couple on their first wedding anniversary today!

LoL, Sandra

Photos: Courtesy of Vivienne Westwood, Harrods, Floris, Getty Images and Vogue

Today, net-à-porter has released a gown almost identical to Pippa Middleton’s bridesmaid dress that she wore to her sister Kate’s royal wedding to Prince William on April 29 this year.

The cowl-neck dream designed by Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen, is not exactly the same and comes with minor differences to the original gown. It has for example a covered zip at the back instead of fabric buttons and the sleeves and neck seams have been alternated. Pippa’s version was made of heavy ivory silk and a customized order.

In the mood for pulling a Pippa? I just couldn’t resist…

LoL, Sandra

Charlene Wittstock, the future bride of Prince Albert, is known for her simple and classy elegance. The tall blonde has actually been a huge fan of Giorgio Armani’s work and she is said to tie the knot this July in a gown by Armani Privé.

Albert Kriemler, © Keystone

But recently she has been seen more and more in Albert Kriemler’s designs for Akris that she even wore for her engagement (see photo above) and during the festivities for the British Royal wedding. As for me, the Swiss brand seems to be the perfect match for the future princess.

Charlene once said that she likes Akris so much because of its modern approach to fashion. I would sign that sentence. Albert Kriemler has a huge talent to dress women very classy witout ever looking old or too conservative.

I am truly wondering who will be designing Charlene’s bridal dress and I am actually pretty convinced that Albert Kriemler has settled the race. After having further enquiried, the house of Akris gave me the following statement: „The good relations between Charlene Wittstock and us have further strengthened.“ That sounds pretty promising, doesn’t it?

Please enjoy the photos of Charlene wearing Akris below:

Charlene Wittstock and Prince Albert de Monaco  during their Ireland visit – © Wire Images

Charlene during the day in a casual elegant outfit © Abaca Press

Charlene  & Prince Albert de Monaco during their Ireland visit – © Getty Images

Charlene Wittstock in a double-faced coat and dress by Akris, also in grey, and carrying the house’s Allegra ostrich clutch, British Royal Wedding April 29 2011

Charlene Wittstock in a dove-gray Akris dress in silk dupioni, British Royal Wedding Pre- Dinner April 28 2011
This gives me pretty much of an idea how she would look like in an Akris bridal gown, just amazing!

LoL, Sandra

Engagement Photo: © Amadeo Turello – Courtesy of Akris

Finally we definitely know who is the designer behind Kate Middleton’s wedding gown. It’s Sarah Burton, the McQueen designer. I was right with my speculation a few weeks ago.

Kate, who is now Princess Catherine, or Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, stunned the crowd in an English and French Chantilly lace gown worn with a 2.70m long train and a silk tulle veil. The ivory duchesse satin shoes were also handmade by the McQueen team.

The look reminded of Princess Grace’s wedding dress in 1956. Sarah Burton captured Kate’s style in the right way, very classy and kind of simple for the house of McQueen. Only the draping at the back side of the dress seemed like a reference to the late designer. The Cartier tiara was lent to the bride by the queen.

Kate carried a secret love message by including „sweet william“ flowers in her bridal bouquet.

Here are some quotes of famous designers concerning the bridal look:

“She is very elegant,” Karl Lagerfeld said. “The dress is classic and goes very well in the Westminster decor. I love the modest veil with the Queen Mother’s Thirties scroll tiara and balanced volume of the whole gown. She’s radiant; She never was so beautiful.”

“Kate’s dress was beautiful,” Donatella Versace said. “She looked very regal.”

Designer Elie Saab added: “It was a very elegant dress, subtly refined and discreet, in keeping with her style. I would have liked it even more with a little extra volume and a longer train.”

Oh what a royal wedding – congrats to the newly wed couple!

LoL, Sandra

In case that you don’t want to miss the big event, you can enjoy the royal wedding at a royal location and book Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park’s wedding tour.

With special access and hosted tours by first-hand family members and associates of the royal family to Kensington Palace, Chartwell, Spencer House, Althorp and Westminster Abbey, all venues which members of the public have not had access to before, this promises to be the truly majestic stay. Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park also boasts the only private Royal Entrance from Hyde Park.

This exclusive itinerary for the Royal Wedding Tour at Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park is as follows:

Tuesday 26 April

Check in to the hotel. Pre dinner drinks and a welcome dinner, before retiring to a deluxe room.

Wednesday 27 April

A tour of Chartwell, Sir Winston Churchill’s family home in Kent since 1924, with a special greeting from a member of the Churchill family and lunch at the nearby private family home.

That evening guests depart for Spencer House, the home of the Spencer Family, for drinks on the terrace overlooking Green Park followed by a private tour and dinner in The Great Room designed by James Athenian Stuart.

Thursday 28 April

The morning begins with a visit to The British Museum followed by lunch at The Wallace Collection with a special visit with the Director Dame Ros Saville.

Dinner will take place at the home of a member of the royal family, at their private London townhouse.

Friday 29 April

Visit the Institute of Contemporary Art with exclusive use of the venue and roof terrace overlooking The Mall. Guests will have unrestricted views of the royal wedding parade, nestled above the crowded streets and hustle below. Toast the happy couple with a glass of champagne before a sumptuous three course lunch served in the gallery.

After returning to the hotel, guests will then depart for Kensington Palace where the evening will begin with drinks in the sunken garden, followed by a tour by esteemed curator Nigel Arch and dinner in the newly restored Kings Gallery.

Saturday 30 April

Begin the day with a visit to the setting of the royal wedding, Westminster Abbey, with the Dean. This senior church in London is where great coronations, weddings and burials take place, and is an historic Royal Peculiar (a church whose jurisdiction falls directly under the monarch).

The afternoon allows time for a leisurely roam around London or perhaps a visit to The Spa at Mandarin Oriental to soothe aching muscles and unwind tired minds, followed by dinner at one of the hotel’s celebrated restaurants, Bar Boulud, London or Dinner by Heston Blumenthal.

Sunday 01 May

The day starts with a trip to Northamptonshire for lunch at Althorp, the ancestral home of Diana Princess of Wales’ family since 1508.  A private visit and lunch will be hosted by a member of the Spencer family.

That evening, guests can enjoy a farewell dinner at the hotel before departing on Monday morning in majestic triumph.

The Royal Wedding Tour package is priced from GBP 11,300 for one person and GBP 18,800 for two people sharing the same accommodation.  Valid between 26 April and 01 May only, inclusive of Full English Breakfast, exclusive of VAT at 20% and 5% discretionary service charge, subject to availability.  Reservations can be made by contacting the hotel directly on +44 (0) 207 201 3618, on email or through the direct on-line reservations service, www.mandarinoriental.com/london.

And if you cannot get enough to commemorate this momentous occasion or you are a little insane, I recommend this fancy product: A refrigerator is being unveiled in tribute to the century’s super wedding. GDHA, a distributor for GE appliances in the UK, has launched a 5’9” side-by-side fridge freezer emblazoned with one of the official engagement photographs of the couple.

This is your chance to keep the royal romance fresh! And it is not an April Fool’s joke!

LoL, Sandra

Today, the official engagement photos of Kate and William shot by Mario Testino were released to the public.

The future bride stayed down to earth and wore two pieces out of her own closet, a simple belted Nanette gown by Reiss with ruffle detail across the front.
Since this dress is last season, there is no rush to get your hands on it. But Reiss would be foolish not to start remaking the dress and so the British high street brand announced that it will be re-leased and available beginning January 2011, as part of the Reiss S/S 2011 collection.

Kate’s white embroidered blouse worn for the more intimate photograph from Whistles is also to be reissued to allow customers to emulate Kate Middleton’s engagement outfit.

If I were Kate’s stylist, I would have gone for a more de luxe option. What do you think about this beautiful ruffled Valentino gown and embroidered Chloé blouse?
Both available at net-à-porter.
Aren’t those so much more glamorous?

LoL, Sandra

Valentino Woll-crepe mini dress

Chloé Silk knife-pleated blouse

Next year in spring or summer 2011, 30 years after the wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana, their son will finally tie the knot.

William proposed to Kate on a safari last month, but today the newly-engaged couple, both 28 years old,  faced the cameras for the first official engagement photo. Prince William honoured his late mother by giving his fiancée Kate Middleton the engagement ring which was Princess Diana’s from Prince Charles! The ring is an oval 18-carat sapphire surrounded by diamonds.

Kate, a classic beauty wore a bright blue wrap dress by Issa London. The fashion label founded by Brazilian designer Daniella Issa Helayel is known to be one of Kate’s favourites. Rumours are out that she might do the wedding gown as well.

The royal colour matched her massive ring and the dark blue suede pumps finished off her look perfectly. Two decades ago, Princess Diana wore the same shade as well for her engagement.
Kate and William looked so in love today that I am sure all of these similarities are meant to be and a good omen.

To a fashionable happy royal wedding!

LoL, Sandra