The Westminster Blue Enamel Kokoshnik Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): tiara detail; Constance Cornwallis-West; tiara detail


We've already talked on this blog about the connections between the family of the current Duke of Westminster and the Romanovs -- the current duchess is a descendant of Nicholas I of Russia and of the famous Russian poet Alexander Pushkin. But while you might be forgiven for thinking that the family

The Marie Feodorovna Diamond Kokoshnik Tiara

All images: Tsarina Marie Feodorovna of Russia



Most tiara lovers know the tale of the British royal family's glittering kokoshnik tiara: Queen Alexandra requested that the diamond fringe tiara be made in the style of a Russian kokoshnik after admiring such a tiara in the collection of her sister, Tsarina Marie Feodorovna of Russia. Today, let's have a look at the tiara that inspired its

Weekend Bonus: The Oriental Circlet Tiara

Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother (1900-2002), photographed in 1948 by Cecil Beaton, wears the Oriental Circlet Tiara (click here for provenance info). She also wears the Coronation Necklace with the Lahore pendant, her own coronation necklace, Queen Victoria's Fringe Brooch, and Queen Victoria's diamond bracelet

Weekend Bonus: The Connaught Fringe Tiara

Lady Patricia Ramsay, born Princess Patricia of Connaught (1886-1974), wears the Connaught Fringe Tiara (click here for provenance info) at the coronation of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth in 1937. As an extra bonus, Lady Patricia's niece, the future Queen Ingrid of Denmark (1910-2000), wears the the Pearl Poiré Tiara (click here for provenance info) with the pearl jewels that were given

The Marie Antoinette Floral Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Queen Marie Antoinette of France; tiara detail; Queen Marie Antoinette of France; tiara detail


Hold on to your hats, tiara lovers: today's sparkler is one for the ages. It's a diamond tiara that supposedly once belonged to the one and only Marie Antoinette -- one that allegedly today belongs to the family of the late Diana, Princess of Wales.



The tiara,

The Rosebery Primrose Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Alison Primrose, Countess of Rosebery; tiara detail; tiara detail


When your surname is Primrose, and your peerage is Rosebery, it's only right that you have a floral tiara in your collection, don't you think? Continuing on with our week of nature-inspired sparklers, today let's have a peep at the Rosebery Primrose Tiara.



The tiara actually takes its name

The Kinsky Honeysuckle Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Princess Tatjana of Liechtenstein; tiara detail; Princess Angela of Liechtenstein; Hereditary Princess Sophie of Liechtenstein


The principality of Liechtenstein may be one of the tiniest countries in the world, but its princely family still has a couple of pretty impressive tiaras in the vaults. We've already talked about the family's fringe tiara; today,

The Fabergé Cyclamen Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): The Hon. Eleanor Birch Wilson Fox; necklace detail; tiara detail


While the House of Fabergé is well-known for its jeweled creation, they weren't really known for making tiaras. But the ones they did make -- several of which we've already seen on the blog this year -- were intricate and often unusual, and today's sparkler, the Fabergé Cyclamen Tiara, is no

The Luxembourg Vine Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Princess Claire of Luxembourg; Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg; Hereditary Grand Duchess Stéphanie of Luxembourg; Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg; Princess Claire of Luxembourg


This weekend in the south of France, the tiny grand duchy of Luxembourg gained a new princess. When Claire Lademacher married Prince Félix on Saturday, she got her

Weekend Bonus: The Victorian Sapphire Coronet Tiara

Princess Mary, Princess Royal and Countess of Harewood (1897-1965) wears the Victorian Sapphire Coronet Tiara (click here for provenance info). As an extra bonus, her sister-in-law, Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent (1906-1968), wears the original Cambridge Sapphire Tiara (click here for provenance info)

Weekend Bonus: The Chaumet Emerald Tiara

Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg (1956-present), shown here with her husband, Grand Duke Henri, wears the Chaumet Emerald Tiara (click here for provenance info). Today, the second son of Henri and Maria Teresa, Prince Félix of Luxembourg, will marry his fiancée, Claire Lademacher, in a religious ceremony in the south of France. The pair married civilly earlier this week in Germany

The Spencer Tiara

All photos: Diana, Princess of Wales


Our final bridal tiara of the week is, in many ways, the royal bridal tiara -- the Spencer Tiara -- which is rather ironic when you consider that it's not really a royal tiara at all. But the role that it played in the biggest royal wedding of the last century is impossible to underestimate and hard to forget.



When Lady Diana Spencer arrived at St.

The Luxembourg Turquoise Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg; Princess Tessy of Luxembourg; Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg; tiara detail


One of the newest additions to the grand ducal tiara collection in Luxembourg is today's tiara: the double-row turquoise and diamond tiara that belongs to the current grand duchess, Maria Teresa.



As with many of the Luxembourg

The Dutch Ears of Wheat Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Princess Margriet of the Netherlands; Princess Annette of Orange-Nassau; Princess Anita of Orange-Nassau; Princess Marilène of Orange-Nassau; Princess Aimée of Orange-Nassau


When you think about motifs for wedding tiaras, probably hearts and flowers and such come to mind long before you arrive at ears of wheat. But when you consider the traditional symbolism

The Citrine and Pearl Bandeau Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Hereditary Grand Duchess Stéphanie of Luxembourg; tiara detail; Princess Alexandra of Luxembourg; Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg; Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg


One of the more unusual tiaras in the Luxembourg vaults is today's piece: a bandeau tiara of pearls and stones that are either citrines or yellow topazes. (We'll go with citrine

The York Tiara

All photos: Sarah, Duchess of York


When many people think about royal weddings, two of them immediately spring to mind: the big royal nuptial bashes held in Britain in the 1980s. Today, let's look at the bridal tiara worn to the second of those weddings -- the sparkler worn by Sarah, Duchess of York.



Most will remember that Sarah Ferguson walked up the aisle of Westminster Abbey in 1986

The Grand Duchess Marie-Adélaïde Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Grand Duchess Charlotte of Luxembourg; Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte of Luxembourg; Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg; Hereditary Grand Duchess Stéphanie of Luxembourg; tiara detail


While many of the tiaras in the vast Luxembourg family collection were created within the past century, today's sparkler, the Grand Duchess Marie-Adélaïde Tiara, is one

The Princess Claire Wedding Tiara

All photos: Princess Claire of Belgium


When Claire Lademacher becomes a princess of Luxembourg this week, she'll be the second Princess Claire in the extended Belgian-Luxembourgish royal family. The first, who was born Claire Coombs, wore this delicate diamond tiara at her wedding to Prince Laurent of Belgium.



The specific provenance of this all-diamond tiara doesn't seem to have been made

The Luxembourg Aquamarine Bandeau Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Archduchess Marie-Astrid of Austria; Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg; Princess Margaretha of Liechtenstein; Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg; Princess Margaretha of Liechtenstein


Another day, another colorful bandeau tiara from the grand ducal vaults of Luxembourg! Today's tiara is the family's aquamarine bandeau, which was reportedly made

The Prussian Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Queen Sofia of Spain; Queen Sofia of Spain; the Princess of Asturias; Princess Victoria Louise of Prussia, Duchess of Brunswick


While we wait to see which tiara the soon-to-be Princess Claire of Luxembourg chooses for her religious wedding, our afternoons this week will be devoted to other tiaras worn by royal brides. To kick off the bonus week, let's have a

The Amethyst and Pearl Bandeau Tiara

Photos (from left): Archduchess Marie-Astrid of Austria; Hereditary Grand Duchess Stephanie of Luxembourg; Archduchess Marie-Astrid of Austria


Tiara lovers, you're in for a week of fun! This week, we've got a royal wedding on the calendar: Prince Félix, the second son of the Grand Duke and Grand Duchess of Luxembourg, will marry his German fiancée, Claire Lademacher. For coverage of the

Weekend Bonus: The Lannoy Tiara

Hereditary Grand Duchess Stéphanie of Luxembourg (1984-present) wears the Lannoy Tiara (click here for provenance info) at her 2012 wedding to Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume

Weekend Bonus: The Small Nassau Floral Tiara

Archduchess Marie Christine of Austria, Countess of Limburg-Stirum (1983-present) wears the Small Nassau Floral Tiara (click here for provenance info) at her wedding in 2008. Marie Christine is the niece of Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg

The Westminster Halo Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Rose Movius Palmer; Loelia Grosvenor, Duchess of Westminster (later Lady Lindsay); tiara detail; Loelia Grosvenor, Duchess of Westminster (later Lady Lindsay); Nancy Grosvenor, Duchess of Westminster


Let's cap off our week of British aristocratic sparklers with one of the most incredible of the bunch. The Duke and Duchess of Westminster, heads of one of the

The Essex Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Crown Princess Margarita of Romania; Clementine, Lady Churchill; Crown Princess Margarita of Romania; tiara detail


It's funny how a tiara can link together remarkable figures who would never otherwise be discussed in the same conversation, isn't it? Today's tiara, the Cartier sparkler originally made for a Countess of Essex, is just such a piece, worn by a

The Raine Spencer Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Raine Spencer, Countess Spencer (as necklace); tiara detail; Raine Spencer, Countess Spencer; tiara detail


Thanks to their connections to the current generation of the Windsors, the Spencer family is one of the highest-profile aristocratic clans in the country these days. Today, let's have a look at a tiara owned by one of their more controversial countesses:

The Tavistock Amethyst Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Lydia Russell, Duchess of Bedford; tiara detail; tiara detail; tiara detail


Like yesterday's tiara, today's piece features a proliferation of leaves set with diamonds. But unlike yesterday's piece, today's tiara features some of the largest amethysts you'll ever see in a diadem. This is the amethyst tiara that belongs to the family of the Duke of Bedford.

The Norfolk Oak Leaf Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): tiara detail; Gwendolen Fitzalan-Howard, Duchess of Norfolk; tiara detail


It's not so unusual to encounter tiaras that incorporate elements from nature into their designs -- think of the proliferation of floral and wreath tiaras in various royal and noble collections. But today's tiara, which comes from the Norfolk family, looks to a different part of the

Weekend Bonus: The Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg Fringe Tiara

Princess Benedikte of Denmark, Princess of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg (1944-present) wears the Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg Fringe Tiara (click here for provenance info). The diamond necklace she wears is half of a larger necklace that belonged to her grandmother, Queen Alexandrine; Queen Ingrid divided the necklace and gave half to Benedikte and half to Benedikte's younger sister, Queen

Weekend Bonus: The Teck Crescent Tiara

Princess Mary Adelaide, Duchess of Teck (1833-1897) wears the Teck Crescent Tiara (click here for provenance info). She has supplemented the base of the tiara with two diamond rivieres; she also wears another Teck family piece, the diamond hoop necklace, which can be worn as a tiara

The Victorian Sapphire Coronet Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom; Princess Mary, Princess Royal and Countess of Harewood; Andrea Lascelles; tiara detail


Our final sapphire tiara of the week is small, but it packs a major historical punch. This is the sapphire coronet that once belonged to Queen Victoria and now resides in the collection of the Lascelles family.



The sapphire coronet

The Ocean Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): tiara detail; Princess Charlene of Monaco (as necklace); tiara detail; necklace detail


When Charlene Wittstock became the Princess of Monaco in 2011, she received two new tiaras to mark the occasion. The more substantial of the two was this sapphire and diamond sparkler, the Ocean Tiara.



The tiara was created for Charlene by Van Cleef & Arpels, the jeweler

The Barberini Sapphire Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): tiara detail; tiara detail; tiara worn by model


Today's tiara for you sapphire-loving September babies is a sparkler that features lovely pale blue gemstones. Once in the possession of an Italian noble family, today the piece belongs to a lucky unknown buyer.



Although we don't know who made this unusual sapphire floral tiara, we do know approximately when

The Princess Thyra Sapphire Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Princess Elisabeth of Denmark; Princess Thyra of Denmark; Princess Elisabeth of Denmark; Princess Elisabeth of Denmark; tiara detail


With so much attention paid to the daughters-in-law of Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, it's easy to forget sometimes that there's another tiara-wearing Danish princess in the family. Today, let's have a look at Princess

The Sapphire Art Deco Tiara

Photos (clockwise from top left): Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte of Luxembourg; Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg (as a necklace); Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte of Luxembourg; Grand Duchess Joséphine-Charlotte of Luxembourg


Welcome to month #9 of our year of tiaras, everyone! Today's tiara -- the Sapphire Art Deco Tiara from the Luxembourg collection -- is a piece that can be