Royal style & gossip: more gowns, less frowns

[QueenOfTheAndals]

Link to previous thread.

And once again, let's keep this good-spirited. Spiteful comments are about as welcome as Fergie at Prince Philip's birthday party!

yy goosey it's her bump to cradle as and when she wishes.

That's the first time I've heard Mary speak Danish. It always sounds like such a difficult language to learn. The vowels are so different! Apparently it took her ages to be confident in it and I'm not surprised.

She's such a pro. Of course she's used to wearing heels in the snow I imagine!

Absolutely stunning picture of DoC.

It doesn't bother me one little bit if Meghan holds her bump 24/7, some women do & some don't.
I used to use my bump as an arm rest as it just happened naturally when pregnant (especially when sat down.)
It's her body she can do what she wants with it.

That eyeliner has come a looooooong way, baby.

:applauds:

But Virago Diana was dead before social media was a thing and the Queen is almost 100!

I find it odd that we get so thrown off by people our own age acting like people our own age. They're just women who married men. There's nothing otherworldly about them.

I soooo enjoy these threads but my inner Republican gets out every now and again.

I wonder if the problem is that we haven't really had an interim generation of Royal women for a while - at least not with the same profile as Kate and Megan. Sophie and Anne both work hard but they keep their heads down, mostly. If Diana had lived and Fergie had remained married we might have had a bit more of a transition between HMQ and Kate and Megan, but instead it's as though the RF has suddenly been propelled forward at a rate of knots. Kate just doesn't strike me as a big social media user even if she could, her feed would be cute pics of the kids and dog and arty shots of cakes and wotnot, I reckon. So Megan can seem right out there - but I don't think she is, really.

I bet Diana would be have been all over the 'gram - she loved a celeb as much as anyone. But sadly we never got to see that, so now it can be a bit of a shock to the system.

I think you're spot on @Spudlet

I’m sure MM didn’t cradle the bump at the start of someone’s speech, just to get attention. What an idea.

Wasn’t Diana of the aristocracy, though? She would be automatically in tune with acceptable behaviour - although she did seem to go through unacceptable patches, periodically. I think she would have been a bit about Kate grabbing all the attention. But we shall never know.

Queen

Of course it is @ItsNiceItsDifferentItsUnusual and @TheDistantSky!

We'll know for sure if I suggest Kate wearing her hair in a pony tail... which, incidentally, I see she has been and I like it.

I also think the world has evolved rapidly and yet the RF have stubbornly refused to be part of it, and now any normal 21st century behaviour has become worthy of comment, if not actually a bit shocking.

All the curtsying rules, those awful nude tights, they're in the main an anachronism by choice, so they've painted themselves into a corner slightly.

Wasn't there a post somewhere that linked to the Insta feed of a European princess who looks perfectly normal and modern? This country could learn from that approach.

Heels in the snow? I would do the opposite of salute or applaud this. It is bordering on ridiculous and so anti feminist. Can anyone imagine a man doing this? The RF ate backward but this is imbecilic.

Imagine Princess Margaret on insta...That I would love to see in a parallel universe where iPhones existed in the 1940s. If MM wants to bring glamour back to the RF I’m all for it!

She doesn’t seem half as petulant as Princess Margaret though which obv part of the PM appeal, neither does she seem like an active bitch which is also what as also something to love about Margaret

If Diana had lived and Fergie had remained married we might have had a bit more of a transition between HMQ and Kate and Megan, but instead it's as though the RF has suddenly been propelled forward at a rate of knots

Interesting point, Spudlet

I think Kate looks great today. And clearly very happy doing engagements with Children.

Pingu have you read Ma'am Darling? I couldn't put it down!

Ma'am Darling was hilarious, I liked the authors imagining of what Margaret's life could've been. But she strikes me as a fundamentally unhappy woman without a sense of purpose in her life. As I've said before, she wasn't the type to relish playing second fiddle - she would've made a marvellous queen or grand duchess of another country but of course the wars put an end to those sorts of marriages.

I dislike the green polka dot dress and I think it’s frumpy.

Ma’am darling is on my Xmas list!
I think Margaret was absolutely stunning which helps me feel sympathy for her - I don’t envy her position at all. It is interesting that we have come to expect British Royal women to be so staid and conventional when Margaret and Diana were actually complex characters who didn’t fit those ideals at all.

I've been thinking about these so-called "rules" from the royal family. Apparently there were loads of people bleating that Meghan broke protocol by wearing dark nail polish....

... and my new theory is that the queen sits around bemused whenever someone is brave enough to tell her that the media/public are outraged because Meghan is wearing dark nailpolish/ a different neckline or whatever. They're not RULES. They're a set of social niceties that have largely been accepted but that can and are changed. In the same way that even in the 15 years I've worked in the City I've seen a HUGE shift in what is acceptable for both men and women to wear. When I started, no woman ever wore anything except a suit. Even a dress was usually part of a suit set. Very very occassionally, a very stylish woman might wear a very simple shift dress of some sort with a slightly different jacket, but it was rare. Similarly, the men all wore suits and ties. Every day (except casual friday). Now, in the city women in full-blown suits are much more rare, with co-ordinating separates more common and lots of men don't bother with suits, even for meetings.

I believe it's the same with the royal family. It's just that because the queen is still around, they're not moving as fast. My great aunt is pretty modern and forward thinking, but I find myself instinctively dressing a little smarter when having lunch with her, even if it's just in the local pub. Even though I don't think she'd have a single moment of concern if I was wearing jeans and a jumper (like everyone else).

I'm sure HM isn't fazed by dark nail polish or bare shoulders. She was fairly glamorous in her day and as I've said before, when it comes to fashion she's seen it all!

Exactly Queen. Hence all this bleating about supposed rules and protocols is ridiculous. As far as I can tell, the only ones that really do get adhered to is seniority at public events - who arrives/enters first, who stands next to important dignitaries etc. The rest is just old-fashioned tradition based on conservative English standards.

Is the thing about royalty not wearing black a myth?

But then Kate has played so very safe for so long, that this more “celeb” approach to the role stands out more by contrast. It’s not really surprising that an American actress comes over as quite American & actressey I suppose

Exactly! Kate is blandness personified. Seen but not heard. She’s also mingled with the upper classes and has been gearing up to be a future queen since her early 20s (hence being bland and seen but not heard). Suddenly we have Meghan rocketing into the RF with her speeches and her opinions and her confidence and people just can’t handle it. It’s ridiculous.