01of 1070 Years of the Queen’s Style"The Queen shows us how she feels through her clothing," says Bethan Holt, author of the new book,The Queen: 70 Years of Majestic Style. “Once you delve beneath the surface a little bit, you can see what an incredible amount of research and thought has gone into creating her iconic looks.”
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70 Years of the Queen’s Style
“The Queen shows us how she feels through her clothing,” says Bethan Holt, author of the new book,The Queen: 70 Years of Majestic Style. “Once you delve beneath the surface a little bit, you can see what an incredible amount of research and thought has gone into creating her iconic looks.”
02of 10A Princess Becomes a Queen: 1953Keystone/Getty ImagesAfter years of loyal service, the Queen honoured designer Norman Hartnell with a unique commission – creating her coronation gown. “My mind was teeming with heraldic and floral ideas… everything heavenly that might be embroidered upon such a dress,” Hartnell wrote. It was decided that instead of only incorporating emblems of the different nations of the United Kingdom, the gown’s embroidery should represent all of the territories over which the Queen would now reign, an idea that would result in an intricate, scalloped pattern and shimmering palette of greens, pink and yellows achieved using silk threads, pearls, diamonds, amethysts, crystals and sequins. It took nine weeks, six embroiderers and 3,000 hours to complete. To create the full-skirted shape, the dress was lined in taffeta and padded with three layers of horsehair crinoline, which made it incredibly warm and heavy – the Queen later said that it was akin to wearing a radiator.
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A Princess Becomes a Queen: 1953
Keystone/Getty Images
After years of loyal service, the Queen honoured designer Norman Hartnell with a unique commission – creating her coronation gown. “My mind was teeming with heraldic and floral ideas… everything heavenly that might be embroidered upon such a dress,” Hartnell wrote. It was decided that instead of only incorporating emblems of the different nations of the United Kingdom, the gown’s embroidery should represent all of the territories over which the Queen would now reign, an idea that would result in an intricate, scalloped pattern and shimmering palette of greens, pink and yellows achieved using silk threads, pearls, diamonds, amethysts, crystals and sequins. It took nine weeks, six embroiderers and 3,000 hours to complete. To create the full-skirted shape, the dress was lined in taffeta and padded with three layers of horsehair crinoline, which made it incredibly warm and heavy – the Queen later said that it was akin to wearing a radiator.
03of 10On Tour: 1953Hulton Archive/Getty ImagesLooking back at pictures of the Queen from the 1950s with the rose-tinted glasses of nostalgia though, she looks just as impeccably elegant as Norman Hartnell described, beginning to shape a look that was at once striking and sophisticated but still appropriate to her role. When Christian Dior showed a collection with skirts 40 cm/16 inches from the ground and tops without corsetry ahead of Elizabeth II’s long-planned Commonwealth tour in 1953, the Daily Sketch newspaper declared that there would be “no Dior hemline rubbish for the Queen when she goes on her Commonwealth tour.” Hartnell and [Hardy] Amies created between 100 and 150 outfits between them for the tour, which would see the Queen visit Bermuda, Jamaica, Fiji, Tonga, New Zealand, Australia, the Cocos Islands, Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), Aden (now part of Yemen), Uganda, Malta and Gibraltar. The reality of this tour was gruelling. Elizabeth and Philip left their small children at home for six months, and on the Australian leg of the journey, the party travelled an average of 370 km/230 miles each day. But the images that survive from the voyage look romantically glamorous; the beautifully dressed young queen and her handsome husband against all manner of exciting backdrops.
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On Tour: 1953
Hulton Archive/Getty Images
Looking back at pictures of the Queen from the 1950s with the rose-tinted glasses of nostalgia though, she looks just as impeccably elegant as Norman Hartnell described, beginning to shape a look that was at once striking and sophisticated but still appropriate to her role. When Christian Dior showed a collection with skirts 40 cm/16 inches from the ground and tops without corsetry ahead of Elizabeth II’s long-planned Commonwealth tour in 1953, the Daily Sketch newspaper declared that there would be “no Dior hemline rubbish for the Queen when she goes on her Commonwealth tour.” Hartnell and [Hardy] Amies created between 100 and 150 outfits between them for the tour, which would see the Queen visit Bermuda, Jamaica, Fiji, Tonga, New Zealand, Australia, the Cocos Islands, Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), Aden (now part of Yemen), Uganda, Malta and Gibraltar. The reality of this tour was gruelling. Elizabeth and Philip left their small children at home for six months, and on the Australian leg of the journey, the party travelled an average of 370 km/230 miles each day. But the images that survive from the voyage look romantically glamorous; the beautifully dressed young queen and her handsome husband against all manner of exciting backdrops.
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Royal Diplomacy: 1979
Anwar Hussein/Getty
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Key Moment in History: 1969
Hulton Archive/Getty
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A Royal Wedding: 2011
Chris Jackson/Getty Images
07of 10Style Influencer: 1952BettmannThe first decade of Her Majesty’s reign was a time filled with experimental and trendsetting evening wear. Just months after ascending the throne, in October 1952, the Queen caused a sensation when she arrived at the Empire Theatre in Leicester Square for a royal viewing of the musical comedyBecause You’re Mine. Pictures of a glamorous Elizabeth II wearing Norman Hartnell’s black and white blazer-style gown appeared in almost every magazine and newspaper the following day, with manufacturers rushing to make copies of the dress as quickly as possible. Even those on a budget could emulate Her Majesty after a paper pattern was produced. The dress, dubbed the “Magpie,” was never worn again.
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Style Influencer: 1952
Bettmann
The first decade of Her Majesty’s reign was a time filled with experimental and trendsetting evening wear. Just months after ascending the throne, in October 1952, the Queen caused a sensation when she arrived at the Empire Theatre in Leicester Square for a royal viewing of the musical comedyBecause You’re Mine. Pictures of a glamorous Elizabeth II wearing Norman Hartnell’s black and white blazer-style gown appeared in almost every magazine and newspaper the following day, with manufacturers rushing to make copies of the dress as quickly as possible. Even those on a budget could emulate Her Majesty after a paper pattern was produced. The dress, dubbed the “Magpie,” was never worn again.
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High Glamour: 1999
Indigo/Getty Images
09of 10The Fashion Muse: 1988Anwar Hussein/Getty Images[In February 2021] Ian Griffiths at Max Mara paid tribute to the Queen with his autumn/winter 2021–2022 show, basing his designs on Elizabeth II’s off-duty ensembles. “I think the Queen is the ne plus ultra of authentic British style, and what I love about that style is that, despite any notions we might have about class divisions, it’s a completely democratic look,” he explains. “In lockdown, I wore my walking boots, waxed jacket, quilted gilet, Tattersall check shirt and tweed cap every day, and it struck me on our daily dog walks that I wasn’t alone: just about everyone else was wearing variations on the same look. It looks good on anyone, but no one does it better than the Queen.” Why do these outfits resonate? “She looks completely at ease in what she’s wearing, unselfconscious and nonchalant,” he observes, “and I’ve always thought that’s the key to looking good.”
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The Fashion Muse: 1988
Anwar Hussein/Getty Images
[In February 2021] Ian Griffiths at Max Mara paid tribute to the Queen with his autumn/winter 2021–2022 show, basing his designs on Elizabeth II’s off-duty ensembles. “I think the Queen is the ne plus ultra of authentic British style, and what I love about that style is that, despite any notions we might have about class divisions, it’s a completely democratic look,” he explains. “In lockdown, I wore my walking boots, waxed jacket, quilted gilet, Tattersall check shirt and tweed cap every day, and it struck me on our daily dog walks that I wasn’t alone: just about everyone else was wearing variations on the same look. It looks good on anyone, but no one does it better than the Queen.” Why do these outfits resonate? “She looks completely at ease in what she’s wearing, unselfconscious and nonchalant,” he observes, “and I’ve always thought that’s the key to looking good.”
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Safari Chic: 1979
Serge Lemoine/Getty Images
source: people.com
