Royal Fashion Awards: Garter Day 2011

You guys, I love Garter Day. Celebrating the oldest order of chivalry in the world? How much more royal can you get? Most of the gentlemen and selected ladies turn up in their Hogwarts finest (yes, I did make a Harry Potter reference last year, and I will make one every year that we do this thang), but we do get a few ladies that turn up in their English-hatted best for our entertainment too. So let's get to business and throw some awards out on the table.

Best Future Repeat

The Duchess of Cambridge

I saw two opinions on this Katherine Hooker coat and Rachel Trevor-Morgan hat today: OMGAMAZINGOMGSOPRETTY, or ...why is she dressing like a 60-year-old? I could agree with you either way, actually. This is very similar to what the Countess of Wessex has been wearing lately, and the Countess is 46 years old. It's very similar to the silhouette that Camilla wore today, and Camilla is 63 years old. But there's a reason why this style crosses generations: it's universally flattering. It's like the International Princess Uniform. And you know we'll be seeing this for as many years to come as Kate's figure/tailor will allow.

Best in Benjamin Button

The Countess of Wessex

Speaking of the 46-year-old Countess...damn. Sophie looks younger than she did when she married Edward, no? Loving her with her hair up. Thus, I hereby confer a second Benjamin Button title (the first belongs to dear Marie-Chantal, of course) on our Sophie. Well played, Countess.

Best in Froof

The Duchess of Cornwall

This lady has a tremendous ability to pull off a wackadoodle hat. Personally, I love it when she whips that talent out and lets it shine, and this harried Cousin It chapeau is just the thing. Add in a new coat, flattering as can be, and I'm sold.

Best in Bling

Queen Elizabeth

This is one of the times when she brings out the serious daytime bling - every year, the Queen's earrings are killer. Now, these are some sapphire and diamond earrings: Kate, take note. (Yet another reason why I love Garter Day: excuses for diamonds in the daylight are always welcome!)

Best Knight

Princess Alexandra

Garter Knights, left to right: the Duke of Edinburgh, Princess Alexandra of Kent, the Duke of Gloucester, the Duke of York, the Princess Royal, the Duke of Kent, the Prince of Wales, the Earl of Wessex, the Duke of Cambridge

I heart Princess Alexandra, plain and simple. There's no one more elegant, especially in velvet and feathers. As I threw out on Twitter earlier today, we need to get a petition started for Alexandra to take Kate under her wing and teach her the Princess way. Who's with me?

Best Enthusiasm

Lady Louise Windsor

And you thought smiley Kate and her blushing husband were the tops of the cute tree. Good thing Louise, watching from the side with her school chums, is here to show you what's up. More Louise, please!

Best Theme

Lady Sarah Chatto

You know how I don't like neutrals. You know how I don't like it when people wear the same thing over and over again. Well, I'm breaking all my rules. Here's Lady Sarah (attending because one of her sons was pageboy for the Queen this year), looking a whole lot like she did yesterday, and a whole lot like she did at the wedding, and I don't care. This lady is on a one-woman crusade to bring back 1950s glam, and I am behind her all the way. You go, Lady Sarah! Show 'em how it's done!

Worst in Mysterious

The Duchess of Gloucester

Here's Birgitte, only seen because she's sitting next to Anne. You can also see her hiding between Kate and the gentleman on the right in the first picture in this post. Barely visible because once again she's not worn anything of note. How sad! She's so utterly lovely (and a total candidate for another Benjamin Button award, I'm telling you). I'm not saying she should start borrowing from the millinery closet of Princess Beatrice, but we could do a little better than navy/black, right?

Who topped your best-dressed list at the Garter Ceremony?

Photos: Getty Images/Daylife/Reuters/Isopix/Newspix/Belga

Week in Review: The Duchess of Cambridge, 5-11 June

Here's what Catherine wore from 5-11 June:

1. Out shopping, 9 June. Oh! A serious color, you know I love that.
2. More shopping, 9 June. Two shopping outfits on the same day...that's the life, my friends. Where can I sign up for that? Harry, call me.
3. Attending the ARK Gala, 9 June, a) on Kate, b) from Jenny Packham and shoes from LK Bennett. She also carried a Prada clutch and wore Links of London earrings. Similar dresses have been worn on Gossip Girl and by Dita von Teese (of all the people you never thought Kate would be lumped in with...). Everybody was gushing over this one; personally, I found it very encouraging. I'm choosing to consider this a baby step into magpie territory: start small, just some sparkle on the gown, and before you know it, she'll be piling on the diamonds. Right? (Just nod and smile. If I'm wrong, I'd prefer to let the disappointment set in gradually over the years.) I am also choosing to consider this a step into serious shoe territory: pink with bows? Yes, please! Let's bring these babies out again with a shorter skirt so they can really shine.
4. Trooping the Colour, 11 June, a) on Kate, and b) the coat from Alexander McQueen. The hat is from Philip Treacy, and is a black version of the one Queen Sonja wore to Kate's wedding (talk about another person you never thought you'd lump Kate's style in with). I was totally bored when I saw her in the carriage; the coat just looked like a plain cream suit, and the hat is weird. I was all prepped to take another neutral nap. But I can't hate now, because she wore McQueen, and it does have the potential for fierceness. I'm not sure she's quite there yet (like I said, she's still missing the riding crop...), but once again I am encouraged.
5. Attending the wedding of Sam Waley-Cohen and Annabell Ballin, 11 June. And for her next trick to make me declare this a good week, Kate pulled out the ultimate illusion: she dressed her sister up like this...and stood next to her. SHAZAM! Kate looks amazing! She could have worn anything, really, so this repeated dress and hat from the morning certainly make the grade. Listen, if you can come up with any shred of logic for the things The Pips has thrown together here...I need to know. Report back in the comments.

Best and Worst of the Week

The sparkly thing wins the week, because, well, hello. Logic tells us that Outfit 2 has to be the worst, because we can't go calling anything in living color bad, nor can we do that for McQueen, and my hands are tied on number 5 because of the magic Fug Pippa trick. So, there you have it. What say you?

(Pssst: before someone asks, week in review posts end on Saturday, that's why the blue number isn't here. Besides, we have to save some color for next week, just in case we need it.)

Photos: Popsugar/Arthur Edwards/Rota/Daily Mail/Jenny Packham/LK Bennett/Getty Images/Daylife/Net-a-porter

Week in Review: Princess Beatrice, 24-30 April

Here's what Beatrice wore from 24-30 April:

1. Easter at Windsor, 24 April. One of her more sane outfits, as it turns out.
2. Pre-wedding dinner before the royal wedding, 28 April, a) on Beatrice, and b) from Australian designer Rachel Gilbert. Love that she gave a little love to some fashion from Down Under.
3. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's wedding, 29 April, a) on Beatrice, and b) from Valentino Couture. As we determined on the wedding day, this is the hat that keeps on giving: Facebook fans, tribute websites, memes galore.
4. The evening party after the wedding, 29 April, a) on Beatrice, and b) from Marchesa. I'm not the biggest Marchesa fan, but this color is luscious. It's better when I don't include the pic of it tucked up behind her.

Those of you still wondering WHAT Bea was thinking (which is all of you) might find this video interesting. A crew from ABC News ran into Beatrice at Philip Treacy's salon just before the wedding. She tells them that she has no idea what he's designing for her; she trusts him, apparently. So: is it Bea's fault, or is it Treacy's? And which is worse? (You'll also see Cynthia McFadden trying on the hat that Treacy made for Zara Phillips. If I'm Zara, I'm about to call up and read this guy the riot act. You let a journalist's head touch my hat???)

Photos: Getty Images/Daylife/Style.com/Net-a-porter/Rachel Gilbert

Week in Review: Princess Eugenie, 24-30 April

Here's what Eugenie wore from 24-30 April:

1. Easter at Windsor, 24 April.
2. Pre-wedding dinner before the royal wedding, 28 April.
3. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's wedding, 29 April.
4. The evening party after the wedding, 29 April.

Yup, I still like her in Vivienne Westwood, wedding outfit and all. More, please!

Photos: Reuters/Getty/Daylife

Month in Review: Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie, June

Here's what Princesses Beatrice and Eugenie wore in June:

Beatrice

1. AEGON Tennis Championships, 10 June.  Clearly not expecting to be photographed.
2. Trooping the Colour, 12 June.
3. Leaving Whiskey Mist bar, 15 June.  Blue must be this princess's favorite color, hmm?
4. Ascot, Day 3, 17 June.  The nuttiest of the Philip Treacy hats she put on display this month.
5. Ascot, Day 5, 19 June.
6. Attending Sentebale reception in New York, 26 June.
7. Attending Prince Harry's polo match in New York, 27 June.  Clearly a short trip to New York, as evidenced by the efficiency of the packing: same jacket and bag as yesterday.
8. Elephant Parade auction, 30 June.

Eugenie

1. Trooping the Colour, 12 June.
2. Ascot, Day 3, 17 June.  All Philip Treacy hats, all the time.  This one is my least favorite.  It's so...random.
3. Ascot, Day 5, 19 June.
4. Working at Christie's in London, 23 June.
5. Christie's, 24 June.
6. Christie's, 25 June.
7. Elephant Parade auction, 30 June.  Must be her favorite necklace.

Best and Worst of the Month

Not a bad month for Bea.  She's looking fantastic these days, after getting in shape for her marathon.  I almost picked #6 as best - seriously, she looked fantastic in NYC - but I the more I look at this flapper-style Ascot getup, the more I love it.  This is the kind of sartorial experimentation a young princess should do; it's so much fun.  Sure, the skirt's a little on the short side, but at least she didn't end up in the same situation Eugenie did.  The white skirt Eug sported at the Elephant Parade was even shorter, but at least she didn't wear that to work.

Photos: Ian Gavan/Getty Images/Newspix/Belga/Enigma/Indigo/ActionPress/BEW/FilmMagic/Stuart Wilson/PA Photos/otherimagepress.com/IBL/John Gichigi/WENN.com

Top 10 Best Royal Wedding Dresses: #3. HRH The Duchess of Cornwall

Camilla Parker-Bowles & HRH The Prince of Wales

April 9, 2005

Sometimes it's all about working with what you have.  Let's be blunt here:  Camilla had neither youth nor great beauty on her side when she married Charles, and comparisons were bound to be made to his last wedding (which featured, of course, a woman who has become iconic for her youth and beauty).  What won me over on Camilla's wedding day was that she didn't attempt to be the second coming of Diana.  She didn't try and go there with the white gown, the train, and the tiara.  She stuck with who she is, and managed to pull off a double wedding dress triumph.

 She enlisted the design help of Robinson Valentine for her 30-years-in-the-making big day.  For the civil service, they created a delicate cream silk chiffon dress and with a detail of woven disks made in Switzerland at the hem.  Over that, she wore an oyster silk basket weave coat featuring herringbone embroidery.  At her lapel, a Prince of Wales feather brooch.  Beige shoes from LK Bennett, a purse from Launer, and headgear from Philip Treacy rounded out the look.

Subtle gold embroidery on the blessing dress.

Later, for the service of blessing, Camilla changed into a porcelain blue silk coat dress with the slightest of trains that was woven with 5 varieties of gold thread.  The effect, intricate yet subtle, made the bride glow in the light of St. George's Chapel.  She wore grey silk shoes and a gold headdress, again from LK Bennett and Philip Treacy, respectively.

If these dresses aren't extraordinary enough on their own, consider this:  Robinson Valentine had only 6 weeks to pull the whole thing off!  Impressive job indeed.  Two fantastically crafted wedding outfits, two major wins.

Click here to see all of the Top 10 dresses!

Photos: Stephen Hird/Reuters/Corbis/ROTA/Anwar Hussein Collection/Getty Images/Tim Graham Picture Library