The King and Queen of Spain are on an official State Visit to the United Kingdom. The three-day visit will serve to highlight and strengthen the friendly relations between the two countries.
King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia arrived in London yesterday evening, with the visit proper commencing this morning when Their Majesties were formally greeted by The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall at their hotel.
Charles and Camilla then accompanied them to the Horse Guards Parade for the official welcome by Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh.
All the traditional elements of a State Visit played out including an inspection of the Guard of Honour by King Felipe and Prince Phillip, and a carriage procession along the Mall to Buckingham Palace.
Queen Letizia was a ray of sunshine as she kicked off the tour in a yellow ensemble by her designer of choice, Felipe Varela.
The bespoke set consisted of a lemon hued dress with guipure lace hem and a lighter shade summer tweed coat with the same trim.
As British protocol dedicates for such stately occasions, Queen Letizia wore a hat and gloves in a matching tone. This is the first occasion Her Majesty has worn a chapeau since becoming Queen consort in June 2014. The bespoke headpiece is by María Nieto.
On her feet she wore her beige Prada beige glossed Saffiano leather pointy-toe pumps and carried a new yellow leather flap clutch bag by Magrit.
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The pearl drop earrings are the property of her mother-in-law, Queen Sofia. This is the first occasion Letizia has worn them.
Queen Elizabeth hosted a private lunch for her Spanish guests which was followed by a tour of a display of Spanish items in the Royal Collection.
Image source: @RoyalFamily
Queen Letizia then made a quick wardrobe change for tea with Charles and Camilla at Clarence House before visiting the Palace of Westminster, where King Felipe addressed both Houses of Parliament.
In true diplomatic style, Her Majesty debuted a garnet red dress by British luxury fashion house, Burberry.
The Burberry Buckle Detail Satin-back Crepe Trench Dress is punctuated with buckle-trimmed epaulettes and a belted waist. It had an original price tag of £950 but is now discounted by 50% to £475.
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On her feet she wore the nude Prada pumps from earlier and carried a red leather bag by Spanish footwear and accessories company, Menbur. It is the 'Malva' clutch (€174.95).
I initially thought it was new but it came to my attention that Letizia first sported the bag during the recent visit to the Canary Islands. It was unidentified at the time because we never got to see the logo motif on the front.
She completed the look with the ruby and diamond dove 'Saudi' earrings on loan from Queen Sofia, which Letizia first wore during the Japanese State visit.
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The day was capped off with the much anticipated State Banquet hosted by Queen Elizabeth and the Duke of Edinburgh at Buckingham Palace.
Queen Letizia didn't disappointment in a regal red off-the-shoulder gown by Felipe Varela.
Her Majesty wore the Fleur de Lys tiara - the most prominent diadem that the Spanish royal family possesses. It is affectionately named the "La Buena," or "The Good One" by the royal family. This was Letizia's second time wearing the piece.
The tiara is one of the joyas de pasar, a collection of jewels designated by Queen Ena in her will for the select use of Spanish queens. The large diamond earrings and the weighty diamond bracelet that Letizia also wore tonight are part of that group as well.
She was decorated with the Order of Carlos III, whilst King Felipe proudly wore his new Order of the Garter, bestowed upon by Queen Elizabeth today.
Rounding off the outfit was her Magrit 'Mary' red satin clutch bag which we first saw a few weeks ago.
As many of you know, I also run the blog Kate's Closet, so this evening was a real treat for me, bringing together the two royal ladies I passionately follow! The Duchess of Cambridge looked lovely in a dusty pink lace Marchesa gown with the Queen Mary’s Lover’s Knot Tiara, Diana's Collingwood Pearl and Diamond earrings, and the Ruby and Diamond Floral Bandeau Necklace on loan from Queen Elizabeth. You'll find a detailed account of her outfit on the Kate's Closet blog.
Well that's a wrap for today. I haven't slept in over 30 hours so I'm off to get some rest before we do it all again tomorrow. Cheers!
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