May 2021 – sagasandstoriesat821lane

The Queen wore a pair of aquamarine brooches given to her by her parents for the State Opening of Parliament yesterday.

The Queen, 95, looked elegant in a pale grey-blue ensemble as she carried out her first public duty since the death of her husband the Duke Edinburgh last month.

She accessorized her spring coat with a pair of diamond and aquamarine brooches gifted to her by her parents, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, later the Queen Mother, on her 18th birthday in April 1944.

**Dazzling duo: The art deco-style Boucheron clips have become a favourite of the Queen**

**By his mother’s side: The Queen was accompanied by her son Prince Charles, pictured**

The art deco-style Boucheron clips have become a favorite of the Queen. She most recently wore the jewels to deliver her televised message on the 75th anniversary of VE Day in May 2020.

The brooches are made of aquamarine and diamonds, and in a typical 1940s design combine baguette, oval and round stones.

The distinctive style of the brooches – one often used by Cartier – led many jewellery experts to believe the clips were actually the work of the brand, which is why they are often incorrectly identified as the Cartier aquamarine clips.

The clips can be worn in a number of different ways: as matching clips, on either shoulder or as a single brooch.

The Queen usually wears them – as she did yesterday – as separate clips, one above the other, on her left shoulder.

Favorite accessory: The Queen wore the brooches to deliver her VE Day anniversary message last year (above). Right below, attending a reception to mark the Centenary of the Women’s Royal Navy Service at the Army and Navy Club in 2017

Due to the translucent nature of the jewels, the Queen typically wears them with blue or pale purple fabrics that enhance the natural colour.

Yesterday, the Queen opted for a blue-grey coat with yellow floral embroidery around the neckline, which she wore over a silver dress with matching gold floral detailing.

She finished the look with a purple and gold hat with floral and feather applique. The Queen wore the same ensemble to Royal Ascot in 2019.

The Queen sat alone yesterday, with the consort’s throne removed from the State Opening of Parliament

ceremony for the first time in 120 years.

The Prince of Wales has previously sat on the consort’s throne when accompanying the Queen. But during the ceremony, Charles sat with the Duchess of Cornwall on chairs of state – placed to the side.

Charles’s presence at her side this year, so soon after the death of Philip aged 99 on April 9,

will be seen as a sign of things to come at future royal engagements.

MY NOTES:

I love this pair of brooches. I’m sure you noticed her pearls, which the Queen

wears often.

Looks as if Charles is moving forward to take THE CROWN.

BARBARA KISKIS

MAY 11, 2021

What sets the Kentucky Derby and Kentucky Oaks apart from other sports and entertainment events?

It’s the hats!

Part Southern tradition, part spectacle, the Kentucky Derby hat parade is much of what makes

“The Greatest Two Minutes in Sports” one of the greatest people-watching events in the world!

The long-established fashion was started with Col. Meriwether Lewis Clark Jr.’s vision for the Derby as an event that the high-class would attend, similar to European-style racing events, which mandated full morning dress for men and women. For the first running of the Kentucky Derby, he used high-class women to recruit his target clientele to attend the race. The event quickly became just as much about the fashion as the racing. Going to a horse racing event became an opportunity to show off the latest in spring fashion and women were known to coordinate their hats, dresses, bags, shoes, and even parasols.

The extravagant hats that have become associated with the Kentucky Derby did not really come around until the 1960s, when social fashion norms loosened up and the presence of television gave women a reason to stand out. The hats became larger, brighter, and more extravagant.