The Court Jeweller

Sparkling Royal Jewels From Around the World

Kate: A Year in Jewels (Part One)

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The Duchess of Cambridge celebrates her birthday tomorrow, which means that it’s a particularly good time to have a look at the jewels she wore in 2014. There were lots of familiar pieces in the mix, but also a few sparkling surprises. Which of Kate’s jewels did you covet most this year? (Stay tuned later today for part two!)

February 11: National Portrait Gallery
The Queen’s Nizam of Hyderabad necklace (Cartier), diamond wedding gift earrings

February 14: ICAP Art Room Opening
“Fortune” white gold pendant necklace (Mappin and Webb), green amethyst drop earrings (Kiki McDonough), “Ballon de Bleu” watch (Cartier)

February 17: Dramatic Arts Reception at Buckingham Palace
“Temple of Heaven” girandole earrings (Cassandra Goad)

March 17: St. Patrick’s Day with the Irish Guards
Queen Alexandra’s golden shamrock brooch (Cartier), green amethyst drop earrings (Kiki McDonough)
March 29: Budgett/Meade Wedding
“Temple of Heaven” girandole earrings (Cassandra Goad)

April 7: Arrival in New Zealand
The Queen’s Women of Auckland fern brooch, “Grace” stud earrings (Kiki McDonough)

April 9: Plunket Visit
Pearl drop earrings (Annoushka), “Ballon de Bleu” watch (Cartier)

April 10: Blenheim War Memorial
Diamond and sapphire earrings, commemorative poppy pin

April 10: State Reception
Diamond wedding gift bracelet, diamond wedding gift earrings

April 11: Auckland Harbour
“Grace” stud earrings (Kiki McDonough)

April 12: Rainbow Place Hospice
Diamond and emerald earrings, commemorative poppy pin

April 13: Palm Sunday at the Cathedral of St. Paul
The Queen’s Women of Auckland fern brooch, green amethyst drop earrings (Kiki McDonough)

April 13: Forsyth Barr Stadium
Green amethyst drop earrings (Kiki McDonough)

April 13: Amisfield Winery
Green amethyst drop earrings (Kiki McDonough)

April 14: Visit to Christchurch
Pearl drop earrings (Annoushka), “Fortune” white gold pendant necklace (Mappin and Webb), “Ballon de Bleu” watch (Cartier)

April 16: Royal New Zealand Police College
Diamond and sapphire earrings, “Ballon de Bleu” watch (Cartier)

April 16: Arrival in Australia
Pearl drop earrings (Annoushka), “Fortune” white gold pendant necklace (Mappin and Webb), “Ballon de Bleu” watch (Cartier)

April 17: Visit to the Blue Mountains
Diamond and sapphire earrings; “Fortune” white gold pendant necklace (Mappin and Webb); “Ballon de Bleu” watch (Cartier)

April 18: Sydney Royal Easter Show
Pearl drop earrings (Annoushka), “Ballon de Bleu” watch (Cartier)

April 19: Amberley Air Base
Diamond and sapphire earrings, “Fortune” white gold pendant necklace (Mappin and Webb), “Ballon de Bleu” watch (Cartier)

April 20: Easter Sunday in Sydney
Diamond earrings with pale blue drop, “Fortune” white gold pendant necklace (Mappin and Webb), “Ballon de Bleu” watch (Cartier)

April 20: Taronga Zoo
Citrine drop earrings (Kiki McDonough), “Woodland” charm necklace (Asprey)

April 22: National Indigenous Training Academy
“Double Leaf” earrings (Catherine Zoraida), “Woodland” charm necklace (Asprey), handmade bracelet

April 22: Uluru Cultural Center
“Double Leaf” earrings (Catherine Zoraida), handmade necklace

April 23: Visit to Adelaide
Pearl drop earrings (Annoushka), “Woodland” charm necklace (Asprey), “Ballon de Bleu” watch (Cartier)

April 24: National Arboretum Canberra
Diamond and emerald earrings

April 24: Government Reception
Diamond wedding gift earrings and bracelet, “Ballon de Bleu” watch (Cartier)

April 25: Australian National War Memorial
Diamond and sapphire earrings, enamel anemone pin

May 29: MacRosty Park
Citrine drop earrings (Kiki McDonough), Celtic wedding gift brooch

Happy New Year!

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Happy 2015, everybody! Hope you all had a safe and happy New Year’s celebration, maybe with a tiara and a little champagne? Today, I’m treating myself to a rare jewel blog day off, but here are links to the three Year in Review posts I’ve added to the site this week, just in case you missed them:
I have to tell all of you how grateful I am for the success that The Court Jeweller has had in 2014. It’s our one-year anniversary, and all of you have checked in nearly two million times to the blog! That’s ridiculous! I’m so proud of what the project has become so far, and a big part of that has been all of you reading and chatting with me here. Thank you so much! I’m really excited for the things I have in store for us in 2015, including lots of jewels: state visits, tiara trivia galore, and a big royal wedding!
My resolutions for 2015 are pretty simple: keep drooling over royal jewelry here on the blog (and, you know, a couple of non-jewel related things: learning German and working on the very beginning stages of a book project). What about the rest of you?

The Top Ten: Royal Jewel Moments of 2014

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Happy New Year, everybody! As the world counts down to 2015, it’s time for our last Top Ten post of the year. Here are my top ten royal jewel moments of 2014 — be sure to add your lists in the comments!

10. Kate’s New Emeralds
The Duchess of Cambridge surprised royal jewel lovers when she debuted a new emerald and diamond demi-parure during her visit to New York. The set, which includes earrings and a bracelet, features square-cut emeralds and yellow and white diamonds.



9. Christina in Aquamarines
In March, Princess Christina wore the Swedish Aquamarine Kokoshnik Tiara for the first time, bolstering hopes that Princess Margaretha has perhaps chosen to reunite the piece with the main Bernadotte line.

8. Charlene Wears Tiara
The notoriously tiara-shy Princess Charlene posed for Hola! in April wearing the Ocean Tiara created for her by Van Cleef and Arpels.

7. Alexandra Wedding Brooch Outing
For only the second time in her six decades as queen, Elizabeth II wore the brooch from Queen Alexandra’s Wedding Gift Parure while on a visit to Northern Ireland in June.

6. Mathilde’s Nine Provinces Debut
Queen Mathilde wore the tiara of Belgian queens, the Nine Provinces, in public for the first time at a state banquet in March. (She’d previously worn the tiara only in an official portrait.)

5. Kate Borrows the Nizam
Kate dipped her toe further into the waters of royal heirloom jewelry in February, when Queen Elizabeth II loaned her the magnificent Nizam of Hyderabad necklace for a gala event.

4. Máxima Debuts the Württemberg
At a state banquet in Japan, Queen Máxima wore her mother-in-law’s wedding tiara, the Württemberg Ornate Pearl, for the first time.

3. Elizabeth II’s Romanov Surprise
While visiting Pope Francis at the Vatican in April, Queen Elizabeth II pulled a Romanov sapphire, gold, and diamond brooch out of the vaults for the first time.

2. New Tiara for Marie
In March, Princess Marie finally wore the silver and amethyst Flora Danica Tiara for the first time.

1. Joyas de Pasar Farewell
Shortly before her husband’s abdication, Queen Sofia wore the jewels of the Spanish queen, the joyas de pasar, for a final time.