Blogger Nadine Jolie: Up Close and Personal with Pippa Middleton

Here is a blog entry from Nadine Jolie, on bumping into Pippa Middleton:

"Today I had been planning to go to Stockholm to see some friends and soak up the atmosphere before Crown Princess Victoria’s wedding, but I decided to be responsible instead, save money and hang around London.  (I spent the day doing extremely tedious but necessary work, lest you think my entire existence consists of traveling and spas.  Only on alternate days.  We kid!)

I ended up having a (semi) royal experience of an entirely different kind: a friend dragged me to Harrods for a Brummel magazine party celebrating dashing explorer Tom Avery and his recent book To The End of the Earth, which chronicles his journey as the youngest Briton (and part of the fastest team ever) to reach the South Pole.  (Incidentally, Tom is also one of only 41 people to ever conquer both the South Pole and the North Pole.  Underachiever, that one.)

Lo and behold, who shows up 10 seconds after me but Kate Middleton’s younger sister Pippa Middleton!  (So we saw the Queen on Sunday and Pippa on Tuesday.  Might we garner a Wills ’n Kate run-in by Saturday?  Fingers crossed.)  Pippa was with a gorgeous, impeccably groomed blond guy, who I spotted even before she arrived.  (He was neither Charlie Gilkes, who she was rumored to be dating–though I’m not sure if it’s still on–nor Ali Spencer-Churchill, George Percy, Ed Horner, JJ Jardine Paterson, Sam Branson, nein, nein, nein…)  She wore an outfit that can only be described as classic prepster: fitted navy blazer, white knee-length cotton skirt, brown belt, navy loafers, gold aviator glasses perched on top of her head, and a single gold ring on her middle finger.  (Yes.  Clearly I was staring.)
[For those who care about the other breathless details, she's surprisingly tall--I was standing about 6 inches behind her, and pegged her as at least 2 inches above my 5' 6"--and extremely, resolutely, very slender.  With the exception of too-heavily-rimmed eyes and a deep nut-brown tan that ages her, she's quite pretty and is exceedingly better-looking and cuter than in photos.]

Her friend waved her over, fetched her a glass of champagne, and together they listened quietly with the rest of the attendees as Tom recounted his survival stories, showed photos from his expeditions, and cracked jokes about getting lost in Antarctica and having to ask for directions.  (Did you know there’s a gift shop at the South Pole?  No, really.)  Pippa and her friend stayed for an entire hour on the edge of the small crowd, drinking champagne and nibbling canapes and waiting to leave until after the grand prize raffle was announced: a trip to the Verdura Golf Resort in Sicily, owned by hotelier Sir Rocco Forte, who I interviewed over cocktails last month.
Then, with copies of Tom’s book tucked under their arms, they grabbed gift bags and slipped out the back door of Harrods onto Hans Road, setting off for whatever adventures might await the sister of the future Queen and a well-dressed blond toff on a cozy June night"

Source: http://nadinejolie.com/blog/2010/06/pippa-middleton-at-harrodsbrummel-party-for-explorer-tom-avery/

Beulah London: Gowns Fit for a Duchess

If you want to wear the same brands and styles (or similar) to a Duchess, look no further! Here is a gown that looks very similar to the one that Kate was wearing recently at a charity gala she and William attended - it's just a short version of her long evening gown.

Kate's Beulah London dress, and others like it, can be found at: http://www.beulahlondon.com/

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge Dazzle

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge recently attended a charity gala as the guests of honour.

The Daily Mail reports that "the black tie do held at St James’s Palace in London by 100 Women in Hedge Funds. William, 29, is patron of the fundraising City organisation for three years and the event last night raised more than £675,000 for the Child Bereavement Charity, another charity he is personally involved with."
Both the Duke and the Duchess looked smashing, but Kate "Sizzled" in a red gown by Beulah London.

Read more at: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2049101/Duchess-Cambridge-Kate-Middleton-lady-red-charity-gala.html

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge vist the Royal Marsden Hospital

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge visited the Royal Marsden Hospital on September 29th.

Read the full article: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2043150/Kate-Middleton-Prince-William-open-cancer-ward-Royal-Marsden.html

The Toronto Star's Top European Royal Couples

Kate and William made another best-of list this week, this one for Coolest Couples of the summer of 2011.
Frankly, It would have been difficult for them not to crack that list considering their profile, but then again they only finished third in the Parade.com poll, behind Will Smith-Jada Pinkett and Jennifer Garner-Ben Affleck.

Go figure. Hardy seems fair to lump royals in with Hollywood types, so we've emerged with a new list, stacking up the sexiest European royal couples (well, as sexy as royals are allowed to get anyway). William and Kate are an automatic on this list too, so to keep the list interesting we'll make our Top 5 a Top 6. (Or Kate Plus 5, if you will).

 6. Denmark's Crown Prince Frederic and Princess Mary

Happy-go-lucky bachelor Frederic, heir apparent to the Danish throne, finally settled down to wed an Australian marketing consultant, Mary Donaldson, in 2004. The couple has four children. Mary habitually makes the lists of the world's best dressed women and has become a much admired woman in her adopted country for the efforts she made to made sure she learned the Danish language.

5. Jordan's King Abdullah bin Al-Hussein and Queen Rania

This pair has been married since 1993 and have four children. Fashionable and outgoing, they have also been the subject of corruption allegations and are living in an Arab world that is undergoing huge upheaval. In a region where royalty has become suspect, they still manage to maintain high public standing at home and abroad. The ever-photogenic Rania is the world’s youngest queen at 41 and one of its most energetic. She leads a variety of domestic and international causes largely focussed on education.

4. Spain's Prince Felipe and Princess Letizia

Felipe, Prince of Asturias, is next in line for the Spanish throne. He and Princess Letizia have been married since 2004 and have two girls. Two unusual aspects to this couple. One, Letizia had been married before, albeit briefly. Second, she was a journalist before marrying Felipe. Sort of a Spanish version of 'sleeping with the enemy.'

3. The Netherlands' Prince Willem-Alexander and Princess Alexander

This is a couple that got off to a rocky start. Maxima is the daughter of a politician who was a minister in the repressive regime of Jorge Videla. She met Willem-Alexander in 1999 and controversey about her father's past dogged them after they announced their marriage in 2001. Neither of her parents attended the wedding. Despite stumbling out the gate, the couple has emerged as one of Europe's most popular couples, displaying an uncommonly common touch in their everyday lives as raise their three daughters. Maxima was even named the most popular Dutch royal, even beating out Queen Beatrix.

2. Sweden's Prince Daniel and Crown Princess Victoria

Crown Princess Victoria is next in line for the Swedish throne and for her consort she chose Daniel Westing, a personal trainer. Like the case of Will and Kate, the marriage of these two in 2010 prompted a spike in interest in the Swedish royal family. That popularity heightened more last month when it was announced the couple is expecting their first child in March 2012.

1. Britain's Prince William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge

No need to get too much into this couple. Their slow journey into royals duties seems to only heighten the public's interest in their lives. The couple maintains a home in London's Kensington Palace, but they manage to spend most of their time in Wales, where they lead very non-royal lives. Kate's emergence as a fashion trend-setter -- whole websites are devoted to what she wears -- makes her a constant presence in the media even when as she tries to hide from the spotlight. They are clearly the couple by which the royals are being judged these days and, so far, they are earning high marks. Perhaps the only thing that will top their ratings is the announcement of their first child.

Article from: http://thestar.blogs.com/royals/

The Duchess of Cambridge Shops at Top Shop

The Duchess of Cambridge has almost direct access to The Crown Jewels. She wore the Queen's Cartier Halo tiara on her wedding day, and borrowed her grandmother-in-law's maple leaf brooch for her official trip to Canada.

But refreshingly down-to-earth Kate is not yet past hesitating over buying a pair of £8.50 earrings.

The young royal shopped at Topshop on High Street Kensington, West London on Monday evening. And although she splashed out more than £100 on three items, she left an extra pair of earrings with the cashier at the last minute.
That extra £8.50 obviously seemed just a little too decadent.

It is the first time Kate has been spotted in her local Topshop, which is just a couple of minute's walk away from her London residence, Kensington Palace.

And although the staff were discreet while the Duchess browsed the rails, as soon as she left the cashier made an announcement to inform the staff that they had just served their future queen.

Kate mega-fan, and gushing fashion blogger Ashlin, from getwhatkatewore.com, was behind the Duchess in the queue for the tills.

She said: 'I was so starstruck that I was shaking and I had to ask myself “am I alive?”.'
Kate, who had a wallet through of rewards cards, splashed her cash on a trendy teal spot pencil skirt (£38) that was seen on dozens of fashionistas at London Fashion Week.

She also bought a more classic cobalt-blue velvet trim boucle jacket (£65) and a pair of golden roundish earrings with a feather motif.

The pair of earrings the Duchess changed her mind about at the last minute were large oval golden studs

Kate's newest skirt and earrings are already sold out, and the Topshop jacket is now only available in size 14.

Reality TV star Kendra Wilkinson might be the first to recreate the look. The former Playboy bunny is so keen to dress like the young royal she has hired UK stylist Nikki Pennie, who is credited with having introduced Kate to Issa.

Ashlin, who had just popped into Topshop to return a dress, said: 'According to the cashier, Kate was actually in the store for a bit browsing and even went into the fitting rooms to try her clothes on.'

The salesman was also impressed by how down to earth Kate was:

'She was low-key and casual – she seemed so normal,' the Topshop staffer who served her told People magazine. 'She was really chilled out despite some customers in the queue behind her saying, "Oh my God it’s her" and pointing – she didn’t seem fazed by it all and she was really sweet.'

Kate will step out on a more official engagement tomorrow, when she opens a children's cancer center at the Royal Marsden Hospital with her husband, Prince William.
Perhaps it will be the first outing for that lovely teal skirt?


Here are the items that she purchased:

Above left, the earrings Kate purchased, the pair on the right are the ones she left behind

Article is from the Daily Mail: (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2042779/Kate-Middleton-shops-Topshop--hesitates-8-50-pair-earrings.html).

Princess Beatrice Graduates!

Princess Beatrice graduated from Goldsmiths College, London today, according to the Daily Mail.

Read the full article here:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-2035580/Princess-Beatrice-graduates-university-watched-Prince-Andrew-Sarah-Ferguson.html