From heirlooms to hand-me-downs, get to know the exquisite “something borrowed” of these royal brides.
Being part of a royal family entails many rules and guidelines to follow. Every detail in a royal wedding, a widely-televised and talked about occasion, must be thoroughly reviewed before the actual day. The bride may have a say in selecting the design of her dress and the choice of jewelry and tiara. However, just like the rest of the brides-to-be, they still follow the tradition of wearing five objects for good luck. For these royal brides’ “something borrowed,” they wore heirlooms from their family or from the kin of their husbands. Donning on these pieces is a symbol of extending happiness to the newlywed, wishing them everlasting joy in their married lives.
Scroll below to see the something borrowed of royal brides.
Princess Alessandra of Hanover
Lawyer and former model Alessandra de Osma tied the knot with Prince Christian of Hanover in Lima in 2018. The beautiful bride wore the Hanover Floral Tiara, which she dressed down with a Jorge Vázquez white lace gown. The bedazzling tiara was formerly worn by Princess Caroline of Hanover (and Monaco) in a 2004 gala and Ekaterina Malysheva in her wedding in 2017. The large diadem dates back to the 19th century, but its radiance continues to reflect the happiness of its wearer.
Princess Beatrice
Queen Elizabeth bestowed her dress to her granddaughter, Princess Beatrice at the latter’s wedding. Although it was not part of the initial plan, the princess was remarkably happy her request to borrow the dress was granted. It was designed by Queen Elizabeth’s wedding designer, Norman Hartnell. She also wore the tiara of the Queen in her majesty’s wedding with Prince Philip back in 1947. Both borrowed pieces showed a strong and touching relationship between the Queen and Princess Beatrice.
Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden
The Swedish monarchy or the House of Bernadotte is quite similar to the British royal family in handling their jewelry collection. Queen Elizabeth inherited the pieces from Queen Mary and Queen Mother, and loans these at her discretion. However, the Swedish monarchy has a more collective approach. The collection is owned by the family and is mostly reserved for Queen Silvia. Crown Princess Victoria donned on one of these, the Cameo Tiara. The 1809 Nitot crown features the gods of love: Venu and Cupid. The tiara was previously worn by Queen Silvia on her nuptials as well.
Princess Marie of Denmark
Marie Cavallier married Prince Joachim of Denmark in 2008 and wore Princess Dagmar’s floral tiara. It originally belonged to Princess Dagmar, daughter of King Frederik VIII and her nephew eventually gave it to her daughter, the now mother-in-law of Princess Marie, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark. As it was not previously well-known, it now became the primary tiara of Princess Marie.
Princess Anne
Princess Anne wore the Queen Mary’s Fringe tiara from Queen Elizabeth II for her wedding to Mark Phillips in 1973. The diamond tiara dates back to 1893 featuring a brooch made up of 10 diamonds given to Mary of Teck. Later in 1932, the bandeau tiara accommodated the beautiful brooch with diamonds and platinum. From Princess Anne, Princess Beatrice wore it to her nuptials this 2020.
Zara Tindall
Formerly Zara Phillips, the daughter of Princess Anne, tied the knot to rugby player Mike Tindall in 2011. Zara wore Princess Andrew’s Meander Tiara and paired it with equally dazzling diamond earrings. The tiara once belonged to Prince Philip’s mother, Princess Andrew of Greece and Denmark but came to be part of Princess Anne’s collection.
Queen Letizia of Spain
The Prussian tiara is the favorite of the Queen, formerly known as Letizia Ortiz. She wore it for the first five years since her marriage with King Felipe in 2004. The German imperial heirloom was formerly worn by her mother-in-law, then-Queen Sofia on her own wedding day in 1962. The empire-style tiara is made up of platinum kokoshnik and a small diamond. A pear-shaped double-diamond pendant sits in the center, suspended from a round stone, allowing it to move as the wearer does. The tiara may be petite in size but its unparalleled dazzle makes up for it.
