State Visit to Ireland - State Banquet: HM The Queen

For the Irish state visit: the Girls of Great Britain and Ireland Tiara.

Best. Tiara. Ever.

(The dress, however, looks like it went through the wash with a box of Kleenex.)

PHOTO CREDITS: Oli Scarff/Getty Images, REUTERS/Keith Arkins/POOL

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This entry was posted by Ella on Wednesday, May 18th, 2011 at 9:23 PM and is filed under HM The Queen. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

15 Responses to “State Visit to Ireland - State Banquet: HM The Queen”

  1. Phoebe says on May 22nd, 2011 at 9:32 PM :

    Is the necklace an adaptable tiara? Has that spiky look.

    Great tiara and appropriate for the occasion. Dress was unattractive.

  2. Eliza says on May 22nd, 2011 at 10:46 PM :

    Is that dress the same as ALL THE OTHER ones she wears for state banquets?

    Well, the tiara makes up for it :)

  3. Ontarian says on May 23rd, 2011 at 12:37 AM :

    The top of the dress looks like it was pieced together from the sleeves of Desi Arnaz' old rhumba shirt. As for the tiara, I'm so disappointed we didn't get to see the Vladimir with the emeralds. Preferably with the emeralds sitting on TOP of the circles rather than dangling behind.

  4. sandra says on May 23rd, 2011 at 3:31 AM :

    @Eliza, no, from my experience of watching far too many openings of various parliaments, this is a different white dress. Usually, her banquet/offical gowns are just silk/satin type materials. At least this has some interest.

    @Ontarian ... can you guess why she chose this tiara? It's symbolic, just like so much else on this visit. ER (and her advisers) has had to tread very carefully.

  5. Ky Person says on May 23rd, 2011 at 5:46 AM :

    I haven't seen the Vladimir tiara with emeralds in years now, and I haven't seen HM wear anything but white to a state banquet in years either. She wears such bright colors during the day - why always white at a state banquet?

    I do agree that this is a lovely tiara. I've heard that it is quite lightweight and not so uncomfortable to wear. Maybe the Vladimir has gotten too heavy to wear with any degree of comfort.

  6. SalannB says on May 23rd, 2011 at 6:33 AM :

    The top of the dress was supposedly 2,000+ shamrocks worked into it.

    I really wish she'd worn the Vladimir with the emeralds, as well. That would have been fabulous!

  7. Kikky says on May 23rd, 2011 at 8:44 AM :

    Those are shamrocks? I can't tell from the picture. They look like feathers and HM is molting. I fully expected this tiara instead of anything emerald, so I wasn't disappointed. And the necklace is gorgeous. It would make a fabulous tiara too, wouldn't it?

  8. Sir Tom says on May 23rd, 2011 at 10:28 AM :

    I was hoiping for emeralds too. I know it would have been terribly obvious, but it would have gone down a storm with the Irish press (Emerald Queen on the Emerald Isle, etc.) The Vladimir would have been spectacular, and I've always preferred it with the emeralds too. I think she last wore it with them in Canada about ten years ago. Sigh. Here's a picture just for the sake of it, and to calm my emerald fetish. I don't think it can be too heavy, I mean, she did wear it with the pearls when the Emir of Qatar and Sheika Mozah popped over last year.
    I do love the Girls, but hell fire we see it that often I get slightly more underwhelmed every time it comes out. And the frock is not good. Granted, they may be shamrocks, but it's all a tad much. At HM's age, you do not need added bulk, plus we can't properly see what I assume to be a lovely brooch in the shape of an Irish harp (swarvoski crystals, apparently).

    As an aside, didn't President McAleese look good throughout this visit? A very well dressed woman, I thought.

  9. Phoebe says on May 23rd, 2011 at 11:06 AM :

    Agreed. Especially the blue gown she wore for the State dinner. Truly stunning.

  10. SalannB says on May 23rd, 2011 at 11:29 AM :

    Mary McAleese looked lovely during the entire visit. She wore some beautiful brooches, too.

  11. maggie says on May 23rd, 2011 at 12:14 PM :

    I LOVE this tiara so very much - I think every time I see it I love it more. So glad she brings it out so often. The dress looks better from a distance I think.

    Speak of tiaras, and emeralds, Sotheby's had an absolute corker come up last week, with royal provenance to boot. This little beauty went for a mere 11 million Swiss francs (about 12 and bit million dollars!!)

  12. Patricia says on May 23rd, 2011 at 12:49 PM :

    Unfortunately, HM looks like a moulting bird in that gown and the bulk does not look good on her at all. And granted, while it's probably a good idea to wear the GGBI tiara out of political expediency, it certainly would have been wonderful to see HM break out the emeralds for obvious reasons as Sir Tom said. Green against that stark white would have been truly outstanding and I'm sure Ireland would have enjoyed the emerald green nod to their country. The brooch does indeed look like an Irish harp, but against the fussy white material it's difficult to see.

  13. Suze says on May 23rd, 2011 at 1:58 PM :

    I totally agree with you that this tiara, in its present setting, is by far the most flattering on the Queen of all the tiaras that Lilibet has.

  14. Cynthia Victoria says on May 23rd, 2011 at 9:39 PM :

    Hi All,

    The necklace was a gift from the Saudis...either Faisal, Faud or Khalid. Unfortunately it doesn't convert to a tiara. Diana wore it occasionally.

  15. Cocogl4 says on May 25th, 2011 at 4:18 PM :

    Love the tiara! Hate the dress. And thought the harp pin was very fitting! Don't remember seeing it before. Maybe it is saved for visits to Wales and now Ireland. Both countries Celtic and have harp music in national histories.

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