The Queen Fashion, Jewelry, and Accessories

[Curryong]

I was on my favourite strictly historical forum reading away, and the topic of Michael Fagan came up. He was the drunk who broke into BP decades ago and ended up sitting on the end of the Queen's bed having a chat for quite some time with HM, much to her annoyance.

Anyway, he apparently stated afterwards  that he had seen 'her wig on a wig stand'. I found this a bit startling as the news that the Queen wears wigs must have escaped me. A poster there (this discussion was years ago) wrote that the Palace later explained/admitted that the Queen did have wigs for different occasions. I wondered whether a BP spokesperson had in fact said such a thing. Can anybody remember that?

Very elderly women do sometimes suffer hair loss, bald patches and thinning of hair. The Queen's hair has always been so thick and springy. Have wigs been the answer? !!

[TLLK]

I wonder if she's chosen to wear them over the years. She has always had naturally curly hair but like many women has likely experienced some hair loss over time. I recall that her mother's hair was quite thin when she was in her 90's.

[Curryong]

Yes, the QM's hair was noticeably thin from her eighties on. She did have much finer hair than her daughters though. Both Elizabeth and Margaret always had plenty of thick hair.

[Amabel2]

but at the time of the Michael Fagan incident she was only midlde aged.  Was she really likely to be wearing a wig at that stage?  the queen's hair looks natural to me now.. so how likely is it?

[Curryong]

It may be, it may not. In certain decades of the 20th century it was very fashionable to have a wig or two if you had a bad hair day, or wanted a change of style. Wigs are very natural looking nowadays. And some old ladies, though not me Thank God, do sometimes have very thin hair so it might be true in recent years.

[Princess Cassandra]

It's also possible that she has always had some sort of hairpiece for tiara events.  They are so less common now, but it used to be that she would wear them even to cinema premieres.  They would perhaps be more comfortable with a cushion of matching wig hair. 

[Curryong]

It's also possible that she has always had some sort of hairpiece for tiara events.  They are so less common now, but it used to be that she would wear them even to cinema premieres.  They would perhaps be more comfortable with a cushion of matching wig hair.

I think certainly the QM in her seventies and eighties may well have worn something of that kind on tiara days. Her hair became notably thin when she was old.

[Princess Cassandra]

I think certainly the QM in her seventies and eighties may well have worn something of that kind on tiara days. Her hair became notably thin when she was old.

And, I can't imagine how uncomfortable some of those diadems are without plenty of hair to rest them on!

[Amabel2]

the queen was a lot younger when the Fagan incident happened.  I supose its possilbe that she wore some kind of false hair at times when wearing a crown or a tiara, but I honeslty dont think its likely.  Even today, her hair looks quite normal.. so is it that likely that she was wearing a hairpiece when she was a good deal younger

[Macrobug67]

The Queen's rainbow wardrobe | Tatler

She looks so lovely in bright jewel colours.  ( though not sure of the wisdom of matching your dress to McDonalds Golden Arches)

[TLLK]

An extensive gallery of QEII's fashion, jewelry and accessories over the decades.

Photos of Queen Elizabeth's Style - How the British Queen's Fashion Has Evolved

[TLLK]

Queen Elizabeth II in the stunning Belgian sapphire tiara which she purchased to compliment a set of jewels from her father King George VI.

The Belgian Sapphire Tiara

You?ll also sometimes see this tiara called the ?Victorian Sapphire Tiara,? and that?s because it was acquired to coordinate with a set of Victorian-era sapphire jewels that the Queen already owned. She received the suite of sapphires ? a necklace and earrings (later supplemented by a bracelet and ring) ? from her father, King George VI, as a wedding present in 1947. (Hence, it?s also sometimes called the ?George VI Sapphire Tiara. So many names!) The pieces were a century old, reportedly made around 1850. Noel Coward apparently called the gems ?the largest sapphires [he had] ever seen.?

Princess Philippe of Saxe Coburg and Gotha, ne? Princess Louise of Belgium, eldest daughter of King Leopold II. 1870s.Published byJean Dorman

In 1963, ten years after she was crowned, the Queen decided to supplement her father?s sapphires with a tiara. She purchased a piece of jewelry that already had royal provenance ? a nineteenth-century sapphire necklace that had once belonged to Princess Louise of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha (born Princess Louise of Belgium). Louise had a bit of a spending problem, to say the least.

To satisfy her debts, her father, King Leopold II, auctioned off all of the jewels that had been left to her by her late mother, Queen Henriette. Whether or not this particular necklace was in that group of auctioned jewels is unclear to me, but at some point, the sapphires were definitely sold.

Photo: GERRY PENNY/AFP/Getty Images

After it was purchased by Elizabeth II, the necklace was set on a frame, and since then, it has been worn by the queen exclusively as a tiara. When you look closely at the piece, its former life as a necklace is clear ? gems that now stand upright would have been articulated drops on Louise?s necklace. Apparently the piece wasn?t created to be easily converted back to a necklace, which is a shame ? you all know I have a soft spot for royal jewels that can pull double duty.

Photo: Toby Melville ? WPA Pool /Getty Images

The Queen wore this piece fairly frequently from the ?60s until the early ?90s, and then it retreated into the royal vaults for decades. Last autumn, however, the tiara made a surprise reappearance at a state banquet for the Chinese president. The Queen wears ?white? jewels for evening almost exclusively these days, so it was exciting to see her bring out a bit of color for a change.







   

[LouisFerdinand]

Norman Hartnell designed Princess Elizabeth's wedding dress.   
Details on Elizabeth's wedding dress   
15 Hidden Details On Queen Elizabeth?s Wedding Dress - YouTube

[TLLK]

Royal Central on some of QEII's most iconic hats over the decades. Which I certainly do remember. Favorite-The pink one from her Silver Jubilee. Least favorite in the group for me was the periwinkle puff.

The best of royal hats ? The Queen ? Royal Central

[Curryong]

Though Angela Kelly seems to have persuaded the Queen into a certain shape of chapeau over the last decade or so, leaving behind the off-the-face ones of earlier in her reign, I do love the first one in the link, for Royal Ascot, very pretty though it is a bit overly embellished. It softens the Queen?s face even more than usual I think.

My least favourite has always been the helmet hat she wore when installing Charles as POW. Very of its time, IMO. Perhaps it looked better in reality.

[Princess Cassandra]

Though Angela Kelly seems to have persuaded the Queen into a certain shape of chapeau over the last decade or so, leaving behind the off-the-face ones of earlier in her reign, I do love the first one in the link, for Royal Ascot, very pretty though it is a bit overly embellished. It softens the Queen?s face even more than usual I think.

My least favourite has always been the helmet hat she wore when installing Charles as POW. Very of its time, IMO. Perhaps it looked better in reality.

I'm not in favor of any turban-type hat, and she wore a lot of them for a long time. I like the ones she wears now. 

[TLLK]

QEII wearing her grandmother Queen Mary's magnificent Thistle Brooch today as she attends the opening of the Scottish Parliament. Queen Mary was definitely the magpie of the BRF and her descendants continue to wear her pieces today.

Queen Mary?s Diamond Thistle Brooch

The brooch is designed as a long, stylized thistle set with diamonds and flanked by a pair of thistle leaves. The long stem of the thistle features a geometric diamond pattern, and the entire thing has something of an Art Deco sensibility to it.

[sara8150]

The Queen wears meaningful brooch for the opening of Scottish Parliament | HELLO!
HM Queen Elizabeth II wores brooches that belongs to her grandmother the Queen Mary

[Curryong]

QEII wearing her grandmother Queen Mary's magnificent Thistle Brooch today as she attends the opening of the Scottish Parliament. Queen Mary was definitely the magpie of the BRF and her descendants continue to wear her pieces today.

Queen Mary?s Diamond Thistle Brooch

Yes, the collection would be a bit depleted without Queen Mary?s contributions (Lord, how that woman loved jewels) though Mrs Ronnie Greville helped a bit as well. The Thistle doesn?t scream Art Deco to me but it?s certainly a beautiful brooch. Queen Mary apparently wore it mostly on those distinctive toque hats of hers. What a hat pin!

[Nightowl]

I just love that shade of green on HM's coat and hat.....that is a very pretty color on her.  As for the diamond brooch, Queen Mary had a knack for getting her hands on diamonds and other jewels.  I don't think anything escaped her eye when it came to diamonds or any other jewel that were for sale out there.

[TLLK]

HM in a vibrant green dress today for her recorded address. She also wore her usual three strand pearl necklace and a bejeweled butterfly brooch.

[Macrobug67]

Throwback Fashion.  Bees!   I love it   :crazylove:    https://twitter.com/V_and_A/status/1459521483508752388/photo/1


Adorned with lavish gold and white beadwork, this evening dress was designed by Norman Hartnell for Queen Elizabeth II on a state visit to France. Can you spot the intricate bee motifs on the dress?

[TLLK]

Stunning craft work on that gown.

[Macrobug67]

Amazing.

[Curryong]

The embroidery on this dress is magnificent. Unfortunately the days of Fashion Houses employing teams of expert needle women on gowns like this as Hartnell did are long gone. The cost would be astronomical.