Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume of Luxembourg is engaged to Countess Stephanie de Lannoy, from Belgium.
I watched this video of their official photos and press conference, and I have to say that the pair are absolutely adorable. Guillaume is very sweet and obviously very in love, as is Stephanie, who cuts a very elegant and regal figure. She looks like a wonderful addition to the royal Luxembourg clan!
From solitaires to triple-stone settings, diamond rings have long been the tradition when declaring undying love. Figures like Queen Elizabeth II, Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, and Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden all sport the iconic sparkling diamond in their engagement rings.
Some royals chose to buck that tradition, however, and instead go for a colorful gem – or two or three – to present to their intended brides. Look no further than this fascinating array of gems worn by several royal lovebirds for inspiration:
Stunning Sapphire –
The most famous precious gem in recent times belonged to the late Diana, Princess of Wales. The eye-popping 18-carat oval sapphire surrounded by diamonds was chosen by Diana herself for her engagement to Prince Charles in 1981. The engagement ring is now worn by her daughter-in-law Catherine, the Duchess of Cambridge.
Charles and Diana’s son, Prince William, used this ring to propose to the former Kate Middleton while on holiday in Kenya together. With Diana in his thoughts, “this was my way of keeping her close to it all,” said William.
However, Diana was not the first to wear a sapphire and diamond engagement ring. Several styles of royal rings over the years have incorporated the diamond and sapphire theme.
In 1973, Captain Mark Phillips presented the Queen’s only daughter, Princess Anne, with a triple-stone set ring – a sapphire flanked by two diamonds. In 1994, Prince Pavlos of Greece gave heiress Marie-Chantal Miller a cabochon cut blue sapphire alongside a heart-shaped diamond. Pavlo’s brother, Nikolaos, took similar inspiration and proposed to his girlfriend, Tatiana Blatnik, with a deep blue sapphire ring surrounded by a halo of smaller, channel-set diamonds.
Cultural Ties –
Many royal engagement rings have a cultural significance. A young Maxima Zorreguieta was betrothed in 2001 with an orange diamond presented to her by the Dutch Crown Prince, Willem-Alexander. The Dutch Royal house is also known as the House of Orange, a color which symbolizes the Protestant faith.
Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark was swept away by Australian-born Mary Donaldson, whom he presented with an emerald-cut diamond flanked by two emerald-cut rubies, the red and white colors of the Danish flag. His brother, Prince Joachim, set that precedent when he gave former wife Alexandra a ring with diamond and ruby stones set in gold when he proposed in 1995.
Fast-forward to 2007. Prince Joachim, now divorced from Alexandra, became engaged to his French girlfriend, Marie Cavallier. The Danish prince gets the award for most unique engagement ring of all with this proposal – he presented Marie with a gold “giraffe” style ring surmounted by three oval-cut stones: a sapphire, a diamond, and a ruby. The colors represent the blue, white and red colors of the French flag. The ring was designed by jewelry artist Mette Rosgaard.
Personal Perfection –
Her Royal Highness Princess Margaret, the Queen’s younger sister, was engaged to photographer friend Antony Armstrong-Jones in 1960. He had the ruby and diamond ring designed to resemble a rose in honor of the princess, whose full name was Margaret Rose.
Prince Andrew, the Duke of York, proposed to his flame-haired girlfriend Sarah Ferguson with a ruby surrounded by smaller diamonds mounted in gold. The prince chose a stone to match his fiancée’s lovely hair.
The platinum-haired Mette-Marit Tjessem Høiby was made a princess with a family heirloom ring from Crown Prince Haakon of Norway. The ruby and diamond ring was the engagement ring of Haakon’s mother, Queen Sonja, and his grandmother, Princess Märtha of Sweden.
(Many thanks to the people at the PriceScope.com message boards for a photo of Mette-Marit’s ring. It is hard to describe as just ruby and diamond. It takes a photo to really see it’s unique beauty!)
For all of your dreamy royal rings, check out Gemvara! You can personalize ANY ring and make it as unique as you are!
Okay, so “Charmilla” doesn’t sound as cool as “Brangelina”.
Regardless, Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt are officially engaged and Brad gave her a personally designed engagement ring. Apparently he strenuously pored over this design for a year with their private jeweler. It turned out to be a ring similar to the one worn by Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall!
ANGELINA
[via Mamapop.com]
CAMILLA, DUCHESS OF CORNWALL
[via Antique Jewelry Investor]
Camilla’s ring once belonged to Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother – Prince Charles’ beloved granny.
Even Hollywood can’t help but copy the royals. :)
It’s engagement season, and what better way to pop the big question than with a Gemvara vintage-inspired engagement ring?
For the Mandy’s British Royalty network, Gemvara is a reliable company for royalty-inspired jewels. Find a vintage-style engagement ring or surprise your soul mate with an identical royal engagement ring that could only be presented to a princess!
Try the style of Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands.
Maybe you’d like to try some color in the stones – the former Princess Alexandra of Denmark received a diamond and ruby engagement ring from Prince Joachim.
Her second marriage was sealed with a diamond engagement ring with two bands of diamonds holding a large center stone.
Perhaps a traditional solitaire diamond, as presented to Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden.
A Royal Romance: William & Kate
Inception Media Group, LLC
This unauthorized tribute is a very charming documentary about the royal couple’s relationship. Prince William is hailed as the British Royal Family’s “golden boy” marrying the lovely young English rose, Kate Middleton.
The documentary looks back on William’s young life, but most of the focus is placed on his university era when he met Kate, up to the present time.
Fun, brotherly jabs are exchanged between William and Harry; Ingrid Seward, the editor of Majesty, discusses the background of William and Kate’s public relationship; and naturally there is old footage of William’s mother, a baby-faced Diana Spencer, walking briskly down the street with photographers swarming around her. Seeing Kate in much the same position today makes you realize that the paparazzi will never truly give any of the royals privacy, despite Diana’s death.
The sincere hope is expressed that William and Kate’s engagement and wedding will bring new life into the British monarchy. As the documentary comes to a close, the major weddings of our time are seen with the serious intonation by the narrator: “The success of William and Kate’s marriage is crucial to the future stability of the modern monarchy”. It’s a concern not without reason – the marriages of William’s parents, great-aunt Margaret, uncle Andrew, and aunt Anne ended badly. Thankfully uncle Edward’s marriage to Sophie Rhys-Jones has flourished, and Anne and Charles seem to have found success in their second marriages. Andrew still seems somewhat undecided over ex-wife, Sarah Ferguson, whose scandals have landed him in many an awkward position (amusingly, Sarah’s name is misspelled “Furguson”).
It is concluded that the monarchy will mostly likely be in very safe hands with the wedding of Prince William and Catherine Middleton – now Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. It is a happy ending to an upbeat and fun DVD. Please enjoy this documentary, which you can purchase at Amazon.com: A Royal Romance: William & Kate
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There will be hundreds of souvenirs produced to mark the Royal Wedding. But these are different. Exclusive. Handmade. Limited. Created by world leading designers. These products have been independently rated as one of the must-have royal wedding collectables of 2011 in the Sunday Express.
This is a limited edition design by award winning designer Cath Buckingham, featuring Royal Mail’s fantastic Royal Wedding stamps, the official royal crest and a specially designed Westminster Abbey postmark, which is where the wedding will take place.
A limited number of these covers are also available signed by Baron Fellowes of Stafford, famous actor, novelist, film director and screenwriter who has portrayed King George IV as Prince Regent twice, and is perhaps better known as the creator of ITV’s critically acclaimed Downton Abbey.
The covers cost just £12.95 unsigned, or £24.95 signed by Baron Fellowes. Early ordering is advised as Buckingham Covers often sell out pre-release. Visit www.buckinghamcovers.com to find out more and order online, or give them a call on +44(0)1303 278 137.
