Church at Sandringham

The Queen and members of The Royal Family attended church at Sandringham, Norfolk.

Embed from Getty Images

We've got our first brooch-in-the-wild sighting of 2018, and it's pink! May this bring us a colorful brooch year from here on out.

Small Pink and Diamond Brooch

Queen Mary's Button Earrings

Three Strand Pearl Necklace

Upcoming Documentary: The Coronation (Plus, a Serious Brooch Appearance!)

The BBC is set to air The Coronation this month, a special documentary telling the story of the coronation and the Crown Jewels. The documentary will feature something rare: thoughts from The Queen herself, in conversation with expert Alastair Bruce.

The Queen with Alastair Bruce
BBC

"I've seen one coronation, and been the recipient in the other, which is pretty remarkable," The Queen says as she shares memories of her own 1953 coronation in addition to memories from her father's 1937 coronation.

This documentary doesn't just give us a rare opportunity to hear The Queen's personal thoughts as the 65th anniversary of her coronation approaches; it gives us a rare opportunity to see "Granny's Chips" in action.

The Queen with St. Edward's Crown
BBC

Cullinans I and II are contained within the Crown Jewels she'll be discussing, so The Queen chose to round out the collection by wearing the Cullinan III & IV Brooch for this documentary appearance. The last time the brooch was worn was in 2012, for the Diamond Jubilee Thanksgiving Service. This blue dress is the perfect background for this spectacular carat display, and I think we're pretty lucky to see this brooch in use twice in six years!

On a related note, here's an old video of The Queen speaking about the Imperial State Crown:

The Coronation airs on the BBC on January 14th at 8 pm. It is part of the Royal Collection Season, a partnership between the BBC and Royal Collection Trust, which will also include a four-part television series, Art, Passion & Power: The Story Of The Royal Collection. The Smithsonian Channel will also air The Coronation on January 14th at 8 pm Eastern. It will air along with several other royal documentaries that day (h/t to scott).

2017: The Year in The Queen's Jewels

It's time! We're here to wrap up the year in The Queen's jewels, for the sixth year in a row. (Previously: 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012.) Big brooch tally stuff, new stuff, rare stuff, tiara stuff, other stuff:

The Most Popular Brooches 

The Queen wore no fewer than 65 different brooches and badges this year, which - believe it or not  - has proved to be about average in the years I've been counting. Just one appearance is all it takes to separate the spots at the top of her most worn list. These are 2017’s most worn brooches (as always, this count is pulled from those public appearances cataloged here which included a brooch with a generally agreed upon identification):

1. The Singapore Peranakan Diamond Jubilee Brooch 

2. The Jardine Star Brooch 

3. The Cullinan V Brooch tied with The Pearl Trefoil Brooch 

4. The Aquamarine Clip Brooches tied with The Pearl Triangle Brooch tied with The Small Pink and Diamond Brooch tied with The Queen Mother’s Palm Leaf Brooch tied with Queen Victoria’s Bow Brooch 

Singapore’s gold and diamond gift to The Queen has been inching its way up the favorites list since its 2012 debut. It finally smashed its way to the top in 2017 - managing to run her old gold favorite, the Frosted Sunflower Brooch, off the road along the way.

The New Brooches

We know of two brand new brooches added to The Queen’s collection in 2017, a Czech garnet brooch gifted by the Czech President and the Sapphire Jubilee Snowflake Brooch from Canada. Both are still awaiting their public debuts.

The Rare Brooches

Embed from Getty Images

While this year didn’t really see any "new" mystery brooches appear, we did get new looks at several rare brooches:

--We finally got a great view of Queen Mary’s Thistle Brooch, worn in Scotland. 

--I didn’t think we’d ever see the Diamond Swan Brooch again, but it’ll reappear for a documentary to be aired in 2018.

--The Queen Mother’s Lily Brooch also reappeared in a new portrait this year. 

--We got a reminder that there are even more floral brooches in Her Maj’s stash when the Diamond Rose of York Brooch reappeared. 

The Most Significant Brooches of the Year

In the year of Canada’s 150th anniversary of Confederation, the Maple Leaf Brooch was bound to have a few appearances, and it sure did: three, or four if you want to count the January 1st message for the anniversary which was filmed alongside 2016’s Christmas message (and if you count that one, you can add the Maple Leaf into the tie for 4th place in this year’s brooch race). The Australian Wattle Brooch racked up an unusual three appearances of its own this year. (We even got an appearance of the New Zealand Fern Brooch in 2017, for the Commonwealth realm hat trick.) In the year of The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh’s platinum wedding anniversary, the Grima Ruby Brooch – a gift from Philip – seemed to be the designated symbol, appearing in their anniversary portraits as well as another occasion.

The Tiara Appearances

We ran a little low on tiaras in Britain in 2017. There were only two tiara appearances for The Queen, and since one was the Diplomatic Reception with no chance to see what she wore, we’re really down to just one: the Spanish state banquet in July. (But oh, what an appearance it was!) Two other appearances that would usually have included some sparkly headgear opted out in 2017: the State Opening of Parliament was in “dressed down” mode and Her Maj chose day dress for May’s Order of the British Empire Service.

The Loans of the Year

The past few years have seen the vaults open more and more for loans to other ladies in the Royal Family (as you'll see if you browse through our past yearly reviews). The Duchess of Cambridge seriously cleaned up in the loan department in 2017, debuting multiple new-to-her pieces:

Ruby and Diamond Floral Bandeau Necklace

Diamond Collet Necklace

Four Row Japanese Pearl Choker

Diamond Quatrefoil Bracelet

Pearl and Diamond Leaf Brooch 

The Queen's work load may be slowing down a bit, but the jewel action is powering full speed ahead. With a royal wedding and a new royal in-law added to the fold in 2018, I'm excited for another year of tracking the vault happenings. A sincere thanks and Happy New Year to all of you who join in the fun here!

What was your favorite sparkly moment in The Queen's year?

Church at Sandringham

The Queen and members of The Royal Family attended church at Sandringham, Norfolk.

Embed from Getty Images

I was all set to publish my year in review post with the 2017 tally of Her Maj's brooches this week, and then I realized that we were going to get one last appearance before the end of the year! So here it is, and...no brooch. Couldn't resist one last opportunity to troll us in 2017, could she?

Queen Mary's Button Earrings

Anyhoo, that review post will be up tomorrow!

Christmas Service and Christmas Broadcast, 2017

Merry Christmas! We'll be chatting about the other fashions on Christmas display during the annual Windsor church walk at the other blog tomorrow. But first, The Queen:

The Queen, accompanied by members of the Royal Family, attended Christmas service at St. Mary Magdalene Church, Sandringham.

Embed from Getty Images

I confess, I had my fingers crossed that Christmas this year would bring us a first outing of the Sapphire Jubilee Snowflake Brooch received from Canada earlier this year. Her Maj had in mind another Commonwealth treat, however: the Australian Wattle Brooch, looking large and proud on this orange outfit. The Wattle is making its third appearance of 2017, which is the most we've seen it in one year since I started keeping track here.

Australian Wattle Brooch

Queen Mary's Button Earrings

Three Strand Pearl Necklace
 

Embed from Getty Images

While we're at it, The Queen's companion in the car to church today was The Duchess of Cornwall, who sported another jewel we've covered here: The Queen Mother's Rock Crystal Brooch.

 

The Queen's annual message was broadcast on Christmas Day.

Embed from Getty Images

The Queen's Christmas message this year speaks of home and pays tribute to London and Manchester as well as honoring The Duke of Edinburgh in the year he retired. Pictures from her wedding and this year's platinum anniversary join snaps of Prince George and Princess Charlotte at her side; off to the side (which you can't see in this shot) were also pictures of The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall, plus a picture from Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's engagement. She's wearing a dress made for her Diamond Jubilee, and accompanying that with one of her favorite brooches this year (and most years), the Jardine Star.

Jardine Star Brooch

Coming up before we hit the new year: our annual round up of the year in The Queen's jewels, with the big brooch tally! Stay tuned...

Church at Sandringham

The Queen and members of The Royal Family attended church at Sandringham, Norfolk. 

Embed from Getty Images

It's a little bonus pre-Christmas brooch appearance for you, courtesy of the fact that Christmas Eve happens to fall on a regular church-going Sunday this year! This is a good one, too: The Queen Mother's Curved Aquamarine Clip Brooches appeared on The Queen for the first time in 2016, and I love them as an occasional alternative to the favorite Aqua Clips.

Queen Mother's Curved Aquamarine Clip Brooches

Queen Mary's Button Earrings

Three Strand Pearl Necklace

Train to Sandringham

The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh traveled to Sandringham for the Christmas holiday.

Embed from Getty Images

Off she goes! Right on schedule - and the day after hosting her annual pre-Christmas lunch for the extended family at Buckingham Palace - Her Maj took the train out to Sandringham to start her holiday break. She skipped the brooch this time, which is not unusual for this very button-y coat.

Three Strand Pearl Necklace