Of Royal Weddings And Rumours

Hello-Hello, welcome back to the ‘real world,’ it truly feels like summer now, the fireworks and celebration of freedom yesterday make it seem more seasonal.

Today’s post might be considered ‘old news,’ and many readers may have already read about it, so do accept our apology if it is somewhat stale information! Of course, we are talking about this weekend’s wedding in Monaco. Festivities really began with an Eagles concert last Thursday night, below we see Prince Albert II and Charlene with the band.

Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images

As a refresher for those not quite as obsessed not entirely up to speed on how things work, there were two ceremonies for the former Charlene Wittstock and Prince Albert, the first was Friday’s civil ceremony, below we see the couple at that event. The bride wore a powder blue pantsuit she is said to have co-designed with Karl Lagerfeld, the Grand Pooh-bah of Chanel.

Getty Image via The Daily Mail

Crowds watched the ceremony on giant screens set up outside the Palace.

Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images

The religious ceremony was held Saturday and the (now) Princess Charlene was stunning. Here we see her father escorting her in to the courtyard of the Palace in Monaco, where the mass was celebrated.

Bauer-Griffin

The dress was created by Giorgio Armani, the bride is a longtime customer of the house.

Bauer-Griffin

Here is another angle better showing the dress and train.

WENN via Clebitchy

Princess Caroline’s daughter, Charlotte Casiraghi, was pretty in pink at the Catholic Mass.

Eric Gaillard/Reuters

We see her again with her Albert’s sisters, Princesses Stephanie and Caroline of Monaco.

Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images

For the evening’s festivities there was another gorgeous gown for the bride.

via The Daily Mail

That night there was a formal dinner, and Princess Charlene changed into another gown, also designed by Armani, with ruffled tiers of sparkling white fabric.

The weekend was filled with functions mandating very serious party frocks, and even a tiara or two. Some refer to Princess Caroline’s children as the next generation of royals, here we see Pierre Casiraghi, Charlotte Casiraghi and Andrea Casiraghi on their way into the formal dinner Saturday night.

EPA via The Daily Mail

As one might expect, there was royalty everywhere.

Below left, Sweden’s Crown Princess Victoria and her husband Prince Daniel, on the right we see  Princess Mary of Denmark with Prince Philippe of Belgium.

 

Prince Louis Alphonse of Bourbon and Princess Marie Marguerite are seen on the left, and on the right Prince Laurent of Belgium.

 

Italy’s Prince Carlo of Bourbon-Two Sicilies is shown lower left, on the right we see Thailand’s Princess Sirivannavari Nariratana.

 

Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg and Grand Duchess Maria-Teresa of Luxembourg are seen lower left, on the right we show Princess Sophia and Prince Alois of Liechtenstein.

There were also fireworks.

Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images

But perhaps not the kind everyone expected.

Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images

It seems there may be some truth to the unfortunate rumors surrounding the wedding, allegations involving more illegitimate children fathered by Prince Albert, one hypothetically born in the last 2 years. (Ms. Wittstock moved to Monaco to be closer to Prince Albert several years ago.) From the London Telegraph:

“But sources cited by the French press on Sunday said the former Charlene Wittstock, 33, had even tried to take refuge in her country’s embassy in Paris in an attempt to get out of the wedding.

Instead senior Palace officials confiscated her passport and then persuaded her to take part in the weekend’s nuptials.”

The story was originally reported last week by a French newspaper and largely ignored by ‘mainstream media’. But “palace confirmation” of some aspects of the story have moved the rumors onto more prominent pages of newspapers, many the kind of publications that don’t generally traffic in such discussion.

More from the story in The Telegraph:

“The sources said that when Charlene visited Paris in May to try on her white-silk Armani wedding dress she “took refuge” in the South African embassy.

Later that month she also tried to escape during the Monaco Formula 1 Grand Prix, they alleged. Then, last week, she allegedly had her passport confiscated en route to Nice airport via the helicopter service which runs between regularly between Monaco and France.

Senior police officials were reported to have confirmed the passport confiscation to Le Figaro newspaper last week.”

Both the bride and the Palace denied the rumors last week. The tears shed by the Princess consort (technically her title) during Saturday’s mass only served to heighten the tone and tenor of the conversation, the internet fed the fire.  There are numerous video clips of the bride’s tears making their way around the internet and I watched one. As someone who wept with joy (so much I had difficulty mopping up during the ceremony!) during her wedding, these do not look like happy tears.

Monaco Television/Reuters

On the other hand, I don’t know the bride and have no idea if she was filled with joy or sorrow. Either way, she did make a beautiful bride, and it was a lovely wedding; we hope the rumors are found to be false and the marriage is a happy one.

Until next, may your day be summery and bright. 🙂

ADDITIONAL PHOTO CREDITS:

• Gerard Julien/AFP/Getty Images
• Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images
• Sean Gallup/Getty Images
• Emma Foster/Pool/Reuters

About That Other Royal Wedding & The Pope Gets An iPad

Hello-Hello, it is a simply gorgeous day here in The Great Midwest, sunny, breezy, beautiful.

Today we look at this weekend’s big doings in Monaco, where Prince Albert II is marrying Charlene Wittstock.

Eric Gaillard/Reuters

The tiny principality is getting gussied up for the marriage of Grace Kelly’s only son and the former South African Olympic swimmer.  Below we show the couple at a horse-jumping competition this weekend, left to right: the Prince, Ms. Wittstock, the Prince’s niece, Charlotte Casiraghi and his sister Princess Caroline of Hanover.

Eric Gaillard/Reuters

An article about the wedding in the Times last week has generated a significant amount of buzz, in part because it does not portray Ms. Wittstock’s life as particularly enjoyable.

“FOR four years, Charlene Wittstock lived mostly in the shadows, waiting for Prince Albert II of Monaco to propose.

With no job, no college degree and no knowledge of French, she was installed by him in a small apartment in the center of the tiny Mediterranean principality, far away from home in South Africa. With no official status, she appeared at the side of the prince when summoned, to smile a lot but to say little.”

Lionel Cironneau/AP

Above, the couple at a parade in Monaco last week, below they are shown at Formula Events, also last month.

Eric Gaillard-Reuters / Pascal Le Segretain-Getty

Back to the article by Elaine Sciolino:

Asked in the same interview whether she was afraid of protocol and the relentless glare of the press, she choked. “No, I am not nervous, or … I’m quite excited actually, so …” she said. She then turned to Prince Albert, asking, “What do you want me to say?”

“No, it’s fine!” he assured her.

To be fair, the couple often appear to be enjoying each other’s company immensely. The stress that comes with a massive production like this weekend’s dual ceremonies and accompanying hoopla would be expected to have an impact. Below we see the Prince and Ms. Wittstock at a fundraiser in Cannes this May.

Francois Mori/AP Photo

The piece touches on a sensitive topic:

Ms. Wittstock has been both praised and vilified for appearing to imitate the style of Albert’s mother, who died in a car crash in 1982. Ms. Wittstock sometimes wears the same blond chignon, muted colors, and elegant, tailored dresses as did Princess Grace.

Getty Images

Yet we have to ask, if one wants to appear well put-together, chic, elegant and approachable, how else do they dress other than in garments with clean, unfussy lines in solid colors?  On a more positive note, the story shares this:

“No strangers to tabloid snipes, Prince Albert’s sisters, Princesses Caroline and Stéphanie, have taken Ms. Wittstock under their wings. In an interview with Paris Match, Princess Stéphanie described Ms. Wittstock as “strong” but “very sensitive.” She added, “I try to reassure her. To help her.”

One can only shudder when thinking how much they have dealt with the tabloids over the years.

An Associated Press story that started running this weekend is also getting a lot of play, it looks at phenomenon the couple will be unable to overcome: “Monaco’s long-awaited bride competing with 2 icons: Princess Grace and Princess Kate“.

“And as if the blue-eyed Hollywood beauty-turned-beloved princess didn’t cast a long enough shadow, Albert’s long-awaited marriage to Wittstock comes on the heels of the royal wedding of the decade, Kate Middleton’s union with Britain’s Prince William.”

Below, the couple is seen heading into that April 29th wedding of Prince William to Kate Middleton.

Carl D Souza/AFP/Getty

True confession: yours truly is very fond of the coat worn by Ms. Wittstock to the wedding. (Very fond.)  Back to a bit more from the the AP article:

With the help of Giorgio Armani, Wittstock has blossomed over the years into the very picture of understated chic, in beige sheath dresses and sharp-lined gray pantsuits.

When her engagement was announced last June, there was little doubt the Italian couturier would design Wittstock’s wedding dress. That also meant there has been none of the frenetic guessing games that surrounded the identity of the designer of Kate Middleton’s wedding gown, kept under lock-down until the moment the now-Duchess of Cambridge stepped into Westminster Abbey.

There has been no lack of online conversation about “why aren’t people more interested in the Monaco wedding?!” Several reasons come to mind:

• despite the allure of Princess Grace and all she embodies, to a younger generation the emotional appeal has never equaled that of an older demographic
• Prince Albert is not a young man, nor is he perceived with the same royal cachet enjoyed by Prince William and Prince Harry, plus there are those pesky issues of infidelity and out-of-wedlock children
• While Monaco carries a certain fairytale cachet it lacks power; it is often gazed at as a wee, tiny, “isn’t-it-a-cute-Kingdom?”; it also lacks power players, like Queen Elizabeth.

The very premise of the second article we feature begs debate: does anyone know that Ms. Wittstock believes herself to be in competition with either Princess Grace or the Duchess of Cambridge? While it is only natural to hope you fill a spouse with pride and aren’t compared negatively to a parent, let alone a deceased icon of Grace’s standing, your correspondent imagines the bride-to-be has her hands full dealing with this weekend’s events and all that follows, it sounds like more than enough to keep her mind on things other than how her wedding compares to that of her husband’s parents or the couple several countries over on the map.

At any rate, we’ll probably be camped out in front of the either the television or computer this weekend, reveling in some of the pretty pictures, hoping it is a dream come true for everyone involved. .

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Next, two very quick items, the first making us ask, have you ever seen such a sad scene on the runway?

PHOTOS: Imaxtree via Fashionista

Apparently this unhappy young man cried all the way down the runway at Paris Fashion Week, Fashionista has more on the weepy spectacle.

The nature of our second little tidbit mandates we advise TQM (The Queen Mother) to step away from the computer.

Imagine the voice of the Great and Powerful Oz from behind the curtain booming at TQM:

“There’s nothing to see here, move along.”

“We said step AWAY from the computer.”

There, that’s better. (We feared the following might send her into orbit.)

Via Mashable

That is not a joke, it is the first Tweet from Pope Benedict XVI, suggesting followers (of the Lord, not Twitter followers) might want to visit the Vatican’s new site.

Via News.va (The Vatican Today)

We can proudly say TQM is an early adopter, starting to use her iThing (as she calls it) *long* before the Pope started using his. (By at least a week, heh, heh, heh.)

On that remarkable image we say goodbye until next time!

Signs of Panic for Monaco Wedding? A “Preppy Revival” & Kate Middleton’s Prep Look (Again)

Hello-Hello, and happy Monday.

There is an abundance of news to share, we begin with a story about the upcoming wedding of Monaco’s Prince Albert to Charlene Wittstock, seen below heading into Westminster Abbey for the marriage of Kate Middleton and Prince William.

Chris Jackson/Getty Image

The Sunday Times (London) carried a story titled “Alarm Bells Ring for Albert’s Wedding”.

With only two months to go before the 53-year-old Albert exchanges vows with Charlene Wittstock, a former Olympic swimmer from South Africa, invitations have yet to be sent out. “Albert and Charlene” wedding memorabilia is not yet ready. Nor is the commemorative postage stamp or a “Princess Charlene” rose that was supposed to have been created by now.”

With all due respect to the Principality, the lack of a commemorative stamp or hybrid floral component hardly seems catastrophic.  However, one would think those invitations need to get in the mail fairly soon. And there are other issues we hadn’t thought about. Back to Matthew Campbell’s article:

“Another worry is that Albert could end up being embarrassed by the mothers of his illegitimate children.”

Perhaps the most glaring part of that sentence was “mothers,” as in plural? Multiple offspring? Recognizing much of the world finds the American perspective on monogamy and children born out-of-wedlock to be provincial, we remain convinced Albert’s mother, Princess Grace would not be thrilled at the situation.  More on the offspring from Mr. Campbell:

“Nicole Coste, a former Togolese air hostess and mother of Alexandre, 7, has a record of turning up uninvited at Monaco’s red carpet events and is said to have been signed up by German media to give an account of Albert’s big day.

It is not known whether Albert’s 19-year-old Californian daughter, Jazmin, and her mother are on the guest list. They may turn up anyway, furious at the rejection.”

Below we see the couple awarding Rafael Nadal the winner’s cup at last month’s Monte Carlo Masters tournament.

Claude Paris/AP Photo

The event does sound as though it has the potential to get a bit off the track (understatement of the week), at the very least an interesting case study for those studying such things. One last portion of the story:

“Displaying signs of panic, the palace protocol chief in charge of the wedding has sent for reinforcements, hiring two experienced French wedding planners. It is hoped, at least, that the date, time and venues of festivities will not be subject to further changes…”

To read the entire story click here to visit a forum with the entire post (the Times is available by subscription only). There is an official wedding website for the media.

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Several stories referencing the prep aesthetic have surfaced in the last several days, below we share part of a story from Savannah Now, sister site to the Savannah Morning News.  From an “An Ode to Mommy Fashion“:

“There is also the preppy mom of uniformed preparatory school children. Her uniform is collared shirts and conservative solids and plaids.

Old-school brands like Brooks Brothers, Lilly Pulitzer and Ralph Lauren are returning this preppy look to popularity. Does your mom delight in her latest look from Lilly? Does she casually toss her sweater over her shoulders while watching your tennis match? Yes, preppy mom is back!”

The piece is illustrated with a vintage Time magazine cover.

Time Inc. via Savannah Now

If that doesn’t evoke wistful thoughts of another time, a more civil and genteel time, I don’t know what will.

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Next, a story looking at “The Preppy Revival in Fashion”

“It’s been patronised by icons from Grace Kelly and Jackie Onassis to Jennifer Aniston and Gwyneth Paltrow but, give or take the odd overnight fad (the choppy “Rachel” haircut in the 1990s for example), it’s never dominated fashion.

Now it appears that Alexa Chung’s white cuffs were the tip of the iceberg. The global preppy movement currently bubbling under the fashion radar is not going to be merely a “revival”.

Writer Julia Robson’s story ran in The National (UAE), offering an international perspective.

“New preppy, though, is more glamorous and distances itself from campus and vintage looks. Think everyone’s new favourite fashionista Kate Middleton – who never looks anything but exquisite in her pared-down, impeccably ironed clothes – and you are good to go.

New preppy isn’t about Charlotte Olympia clunky platforms or Hervé Leger cleavage dresses. It’s classic Burberry raincoats, neatly pressed cream silk blouses and dainty hats all the way. It involves quality labels, conservative styles, not wearing too much make-up or tampering with natural hair colour (though brunette home hair-dye is seeing off its rival, blonde).”

Ms. Robson wisely distinguishes between classics and fads.

“Amazingly, by preserving… fundamental preppy stalwarts such as classic raincoats, brands like Ralph Lauren and Burberry look fresher than ever. The fashion designer Tommy Hilfiger is particularly enjoying a fashion “moment”.

Not surprisingly, Prep World, Mr. Hilfiger’s collaborative collection with Lisa Birnbach, is mentioned, as is the quirky “Meet the Hilfigers” campaign.

Craig McDean via Design Scene

Click here for the entire story, it makes for a good read.

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Speaking of Mr.Hilfiger, add his name to the list of designers who would like to dress Kate Middleton the Duchess of Cambridge.  From Vogue UK:

“”Catherine has a very classic yet modern style,” Hilfiger told us. “I would love to dress her and I think she already has the makings of the perfect preppy!”

That list of designers is lengthy indeed.

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We leave you with a few images from the weekend’s events.

Al Bello/Getty Images

Mornings at a racetrack are indescribable, stripped of the frou-frou accompanying the actual race. This is especially so at marquee events.

Al Bello/Getty Images

As always, the hats were delightful.

John Sommers II/Reuters

Matthew Stockman/Getty Images

Rob Carr/Getty Images

The more whimsical chapeaux are also fun.

Jeff Haynes/Reuters

It was an amazing race.

Travis Lindquist/Getty Images

Hopefully Animal Kingdom had a little treat with his dinner. 🙂

Garry Jones/AP

Black Fleece Spring 2011, The Apocalypse is Here

Hello-Hello, and happy Friday to all those anticipating a little rest and rejuvenation this weekend.

We begin today with an early look at this spring’s Black Fleece line from Brooks Brothers.

Brooks Brothers Black Fleece

There are a number of looks we find very appealing. We realize frequent readers may be surprised by this opinion, considering our tedious, relentless excoriation less-than-positive thoughts on Black Fleece designer Thom Browne’s previous collections.

Brooks Brothers Black Fleece

To be sure, not everything works for us.

Brooks Brothers Black Fleece

The staggered hemline on the navy skirt above left isn’t a look we are fond of, but the grosgrain trimmed cardigan holds promise. The pleated skirt is something we’ll want to try on, it is one of those pieces that is all about fit and drape: it is either going to look stunning or make women look three miles wide.

Mr. Browne’s tailoring prowess is especially evident in the outerwear.

Brooks Brothers Black Fleece

Unfortunately that talent cannot rescue the men’s collection for spring.

The designer’s shrunken silhouettes hold no appeal for The Consort; he embraces his fuddy-duddiness, clearly these are not looks for him.

It appears most of the accessories retain their classic lines.

Robert Mitra/WWD

This is true of both the men’s and women’s collections, captured by WWD‘s Robert Mitra at the Brooks’ spring preview.

The designer’s signature grosgrain stripe can be seen on many styles.

There are several dresses we are eager to see in person, the eggshell with ruched/shirred bodice, and the black with the center bow on the front, a style we have coveted since first seeing it back in September.

Frankly, we are more than surprised by our positive reaction to the spring line. Black Fleece targets a far hipper, trendier place than that occupied by your faithful scribe here at The Prepatorium. Truly, we nurture our inner frump, our optimism about the group is rather unusual. If you would like to see the spring lookbooks, click here to visit the Black Fleece FB pages.

One additional Black Fleece note, the Brooks Brothers clearance sale underway does offer significant savings opportunities on exquisite pieces, like the Knit Jacket shown lower left at $275 (it was $550), the silk dress is similarly priced, as is the entire fall/winter collection.

For those more interested in standard fare, the retailer has added more images to its FB albums for standard Brooks Brothers apparel and accessories.

Brooks Brothers

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We do have an update on one royal wedding gown: Charlene Wittstock, Prince Albert of Monaco’s fiancee, has selected Giorgio Armani to create her dress for the July nuptials.

Via Hello!

The former Olympian has shown a fondness for the designer’s work, above we see her in two different Armani styles.

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Finally, another sure sign The End Times are near.

Via CNN Marquee

Our Twitter friend KK pointed out the news that a novel hypothetically penned by one of our Anti-Prep Wall of Shame members is a Times’ bestseller.  Behold this Sunday’s list:

NY Times

Clearly in our You Can’t Make This Stuff Up category, here is how the Snookums reacted to the news via her Twitter feed:

Via CNN Marquee Blog

Indeed.

On that terrifying thought we bid you adieu until next time, may everyone stay safe and dry this weekend!

 

ADDITIONAL PHOTO CREDITS:

• Robert Mitra/Women’s Wear Daily

The Overlooked Royal Wedding? (Plus a Pink & Green Turkey!)

Hello-Hello, and welcome to a Wednesday before Thanksgiving.  We shall be brief as things are careening wildly out of control a tad busy here at the Prepatorium, and we also need to work on tonight’s Black Friday post.

Today we have an update on what some are calling the “overlooked royal wedding”.

Bruno Bebert/AP

We refer of course, to the nuptials of Monaco’s Prince Albert and fiancee Charlene Wittstock.  Above we see Ms. Wittstock alongside Princess Caroline and the Prince at last Friday’s annual Monaco Day Gala.  Ms. Wittstock was making her first ceremonial appearances as a royal fiancée.

As expected, the engagement of Prince Williams and Kate Middleton has generated an extraordinary amount of media coverage and will continue to do so.  We may well be in the minority, but we don’t think of the Prince William and Kate Middleton wedding as overshadowing or eclipsing the events in Monaco; they are two separate events in very different circumstances.

Prince Albert’s engagement to the South African-born Olympic swimmer was announced in June, the wedding is next summer.  July 2nd there will be an open-air ceremony in the palace courtyard, followed by a religious ceremony on the 3rd, presumably led by Monaco’s Archbishop.

Below, Ms. Wittstock is seen at another National Day event, she is wearing Giorgio Armani Privé. 

The silk suit featured a nipped-in waist and oversized button closure on the jacket.  Trivia fans may be interested in knowing it is the first time a royal fiancée has taken part in a national day appearance. From these photos it seems she has the royal wave down pat.

Valery Hache/AFP/Getty

One unfortunate similarity shared by Kate Middleton and Charlene Wittstock, both face comparisons to their predecessors.  Miss Middleton is being measured against Princess Diana, Ms. Wittstock to Princess Grace, with many writers already saying the latter shares the “icy-cool blonde beauty” of Princess Grace.  AOL’s StyleList carried a post entitled “Charlene Wittstock, Gracy Kelly Spitting Images of Each Other,” using this image.

Via StyleList

From the StyleList post:

“Take a look at photos of the former princess and the princess-to-be. Do you see what we see?
Sculpted, dark blonde hair. Light eyes. High cheekbones. Silky skin. Heart-shaped faces. Slim, elegant figures. Not to mention, impeccable tastes in fashion.”

To be sure, the public interest in the activities, fashions, and everything else involving the two beautiful young ladies will only intensify. Below, Ms. Wittstock on the cover of December’s Tatler.

Tatler Magazine

She is stunning, with an understated elegance that is timeless, and appears ideally suited to her role.

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We leave you with what can only be described as a very preppy turkey, via A Honey of a Deal.

Via A Honey of a Deal

With that we say gobble-gobble, may your Thanksgiving be filled with love and laughter!

ADDITIONAL PHOTO CREDITS:

• Lionel Cironneau/Reuters