I’m not sure that I ever announced this on the blog but my grandmother passed away this past summer. It happened while I was in England, on the day that I was presenting at a conference in Exeter and, because I was only due to be in the UK for another month at that point and it would have been really, really expensive to fly to Canada for a few days, I was unable to attend her funeral. Anyways, my grandmother lived an incredibly full (after her three children were grown she moved to Vienna and lived there alone for several years – to me this has always been the most romantic and daring of her many achievements and adventures) and very long life. She was also a member of the Elk Lodge (kind of like the Free Masons for women) in Canada and my family recently sent me these gorgeous pieces of jewelry that were a part of her Elk regalia (I’ve always had a thing for my grandmother’s sparkly jewelry (surprised?) and over the years I’ve been gifted a number of beautiful vintage by her including my prized possession of a stunning green Austrian crystal bracelet that I wore at my wedding). Aren’t they lovely? I’m thrilled to have this small legacy from grandmother and wanted to share them.
Also, all of my royal wedding dreams have come true because the bride wore McQueen and, even though I know a lot of people were less that thrilled with several of the fascinators (I think it's been a while since the term "hot mess" has been so liberally thrown around the interweb) but I seriously and truly loved them all! As a historian of Britain I can tell you that watching the royal wedding was like getting in a time machine and seeing the spectacle and large scale public rejoicing associated with, for example, the public entry of Elizabeth I into London in 1558 or the marriage celebrations held for Jane Seymour and Henry VIII. It was amazing and I loved every minute!!!
Finally, the
Overtop the Top Swap happens today and tomorrow at Edmonton’s Telus Field! So if you are in that area, check it out.
44 comments:
ahh im so glad i got up to watch to royal wedding.
im also very sorry about your grandmother.
That cuff is gorgeous!! I loved watching history in the making - I got teary several times. The hats are all amazing!!
Have a great weekend,
Michelle
I was mostly concerned with what Victoria and David Beckham would be wearing. That is the couple I really care about in all of this Royal Wedding madness.
Kate Middleton's dress is really pretty, though. It looks like something I would wear. Maybe. If it was shorter. And showed more skin.
SLUT ALERT.
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OMG her jewelry is beautiful! I love the detail in each of those pieces.
Thanks for sharing [royal] wedding pictures ... I, of course was sleeping when it all happened, did not record so I am getting a little from here and there.
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These are Beautiful pieces!
Ooh those are sooo pretty!
and yes I LOVED Kate's dress...so gorgeous :D
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Sorry to hear about your Grandma. Her vintage jewelry is beautiful and I'm sure it means a lot to you that they were passed down to you.
P.S. I HATED Eugenie's hat!!
That jewelery is amazing!! Wow! that's such a neat thing to have :)
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C
cityofchic.blogspot.com
that is some gorgeous jewelry! and kate looks stunning! love all the cool hats too
The vintage jewelry your grandmother passed on to you is stunning. You're very lucky to have such beautiful mementos of her.
I agreed, the wedding was spectacular. My favorite part was watching the couple ride in the horse carriage afterwards, for the exact same reason you said. It felt like a step back in time. It was a real fairytale...
I also feel satisfied that the marriage will last. The two have been together for a long time, are a proper age to marry, and I can't imagine Will treating his wife the way his father treated his mother...
I love all the pieces you've inherited from your grandmother, especially the cuff.
And I totally slept in and didn't get up until 9 am, totally missing the royal wedding. When I saw Kate's dress, I was soooo super impressed. It is huge and lovely. But I didn't see the pictures of David and Victoria Beckham until now! And ooooh lala. I did not think he could look any hotter.
hearts, laura♥
the blog of worldly delights
How lovely to have such wonderful mementos to remember your grandmother by! And I'm still dying over Pippa's dress. Kate looked gorgeous of course...but that bridesmaid dress...LOVED!
love this! yay for royal wedding and special jewelry ;)
xoxo
sorry to hear about your grandmother - looks like she leftyou some very beautiful pieces.
haha yes... I often said last night oh she looks nice, if she wasn't wearing that hat lol
Very beautiful jewelry!!!!Kiss
This weeding is so romantic !
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I'm so sorry to hear about your grandmother.
Those pieces of jewelry are lovely.
Sarah
x
http://dollydotgirl.blogspot.com
Alexander Mcqueen dress :)
How sweet that you have these wonderful pieces from your grandma to remember her by!
Love your Royal Wedding round-up...I saw that pic of the two girls in those crazy hats on another blog and they were jokingly called the "ugly step sisters"...due to those hats...what is up with those hats?!?!? (I think they are William's cousins?).
Happy weekend, dear!
xx Cat brideblu
Your jewelry is so pretty. I love Kate Middleton's dress. I loved seeing all of the fancy hats.
sorry to hear about your grandmum. You have lovely items to remember her by, she sounds like an amazing woman!
I loved Kate's dress too, McQueen was the perfect choice :)
I loved the ceremony and see all of the attire. The beckhams looked amazing too!
In Fashion and Style
great post, a find it is a nice honor you made to your grandma by telling us about her life and her achievements. And well how not to bring the Royal wedding topic on, I must say that David Beckham was superb! e a am honestly not into man fashion but wowwww! It shows he is married to Posh because he looked amazing, I can't get enough of what he wore and how he had his hair....I feel like I am a 14 year old with a major crush but seriously, he really blew me away!
xoxo
I love that jewelry! I'm always into family jewels-I have many of my grandmother's pieces that are highly cherished.
On the royal wedding front I have to say I love pippa's dress, she looked amazing! Kate is always lovely and I think her dress is a timeless piece that will look good years to come. The fascinators however-I really don't even know what to say except for hot mess.
your grandmother sounds like she was a truly spectacular woman!
That cuff is gorgeous and your grandmother was an awesome woman through her entire life!!
I wish my grandmother would pass me some of her stuff, but I think she end up throwing most of it away when she moved in with my aunt, my family is not that big on passing family heirloom, but now my mom and I start doing it and I surely pass it to my daughter.
<3
http://reserveradefashion.blogspot.com
P.S: I'm all obsessed with faschinators too
love those pieces of jewelry. they're beautiful, and even more special because they belonged to your grandma. i love wearing my grandma's jewelry, even her costume jewelry. i remember as a kid she'd always buy so many bright pieces which at the time seemed gaudy, and now i LOVE 'em and can't get enough of 'em! it's just nice to have a piece of her.
spinning-threads.blogspot.com
I'm so sorry to hear about your gram, but so happy you got to have some of her treasures. Those are wonderful keepsakes!
And re: the Royal Wedding? I lost my beans. Still feel like I'm on some kind of high from it all...it was marvelous and touching and heartfelt and I think I'll stop now.
xo,
C
The royal wedding was so amazingggggggggggg
XX
Jessie
http://87life.blogspot.com
I recently got a saphire ring from my grandmother. I immediately put up a picture on which she's wearing it in my living room. I love vintage jewellery and if it's a family piece it feels like you're wearing a bit of history on you.
wow, your grandmother's jewelry was amazing! she sounds like she was a wonderful person. i have some of my grandmom's jewelry too, and it's such an amazing way to remember her.
I loved the royal wedding! I was dying the whole time. You grandmother's jewelry is insane! Each piece is beautiful!
Sincerely,
L
What beautiful jewellery your grandmother had! My favourite pieces are from my grandmother as well- when she passed away I inherited a lot of the pieces. I must admit that I didn't watch the royal wedding- I just googled pics of Kate's wedding dress :)
Great for an Anglophile to have these pieces. I confess to being excited by the Royal wedding!
Hey
I just came across your blog and love it. What a great article. Your grandmother has amazing jewelery. I am a sucker for good accessories!
I am also doing my first giveaway on my website! Check it out. I'm giving away a choice between a 50ml bottle of parfum of Love, Chloe and Lola by Marc Jacobs.
I hope you enter!
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I'm totally not into the whole RW craze, but her dress is pretty freakin' gorge. I also love the story about your grandmother and her jewelry.
The-Loudmouth.com
@theloudermouth
the pins are nice, I like the dangly ones, and I didn't get up at 5am to watch the royal wedding, I watched the 5 min recap that night haha, Kate looked beautiful with her dress though!
I have to admit that when it came time for the wedding, I was SO over it all, but I did think she looked absolutely flawless. Hot mess? People are crazy! That dress was fantastic! I was a bit upset that my chances at becoming a princess were slashed in half, but that's okay...there's still one left ;)
Have a great day!
-Ellie
Wow! Great stuff from your grandmother.
Loved every bit of the royal wedding. Hope you have a great week ahead.
Those jewelry pieces are so stunning, darling and Im so sorry about your grandma.
Btw: Kate looked amazing on Friday and it was such a special day! Happy Monday, sunshine
Kisses
I'm sorry to hear about your grandma! :(
♥ Leia
STUNNING jewelry! Wear it well. All so lovely and special.
And I agree - wedding was awesome watch! She looked gorgeous!
xo
http://artfashiontwentysomething.blogspot.com
so, your grandmother had amazing taste. her jewelry is so awesome. it's very nice that you are able to keep those treasured pieces. and it's so cool that she lived in vienna by herself for a while.
i'm also happy kate wore mcqueen! i think the dress looks great on her.
Beautiful post about your grandmother Courtney. x
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