Sandringham Royal Christmas 2023
Well, Merry Christmas to all! We celebrated Christmas with my in-laws in California, so I have been checked out the last few days as we visited with them. I saw a quick picture of Kate on Christmas morning but am only now able to really sit down and digest all the photos.
There is no doubt that Christmas at Sandringham is a highlight of the royal calendar, and it isn’t hard to see why. We get to see the royal family out on one of the most family centered days of the year. It is a unique morning mixing their private and public lives, and it often gives sweet and/or interesting insight into private family dynamics.
Several people noted that multiple members of the family were wearing matching scarves. According to WKW, the scarf is the Highgrove Heritage scarf in fine merino wool (retail £115). So it seems King Charles probably gave these as gifts. Repping his own brand (clap, clap).
This year, we saw a number of sweet moments between the Wales family and the Tindalls. It has been clear for a while that the two families are close, but I suspect that intimacy has only grown since Harry left the fold. This is another exmample of Harry cutting off his nose to spite his face. While he has isolated himself from family of any kind, William’s children still have aunts, uncles, and close cousins.
The Wales/Tindall alliance is not a new one, but it has been on a little more outward display this year. As you recall, William and Kate joined Princess Anne and Mike Tindall on Mike’s rugby podcast in September. Then, just in the last several weeks, on another podcast, Mike Tindall joked that he calls William “One Pint Willy,” because—according to Mike—the Prince of Wales is something of a light weight when it comes to alcohol (actually, wasn’t there a story years ago during the dating days that Kate could outdrink William? I remember thinking it did not seem very probable…but maybe it was accurate!). Their bond is clearly warm and strong.
Everyone was also most interested to see Sarah Ferguson (wearing Holland Cooper) return to the royal fold. The Daily Mail ran an article that had me chuckling: something like, Sarah Ferguson’s first Sandringham Christmas in 32 years as she is granted a Windsor funeral. Just an odd bundle—Christmas and death! You’d think they’d do separate headlines.
I don’t know what Charles’ relationship with the Duchess of York is; perhaps they were always special buddies. But I think this is probably an acknowledgment of his affection for his brother and his nieces. To me, this photo below sums it up: As Fergie heads to greet a few more people, you can see Princess Beatrice in the background watching and smiling. It must be nice for the York girls to have their mother with them and happy on Christmas morning.
Kate the Great did not disappoint in the fashion arena. She debuted a new hat and coat, but both pieces were repeated templates in a new color way. Kate has this bespoke McQueen coat in green, which she wore while in Boston last year.
She has this hat by Juliette Botterill in black, which she wore to the St. David’s Day parade. I had hoped for a broad brimmed hat, but I am actually just as happy with this one. Of all her smaller hats, this is one of my favorites, and it reminds me so much of the Whiteley structured beret, which might be my favorite Kate hat ever.
I was also very happy to see the sapphire earrings. They were not the Kiki McDonoughs I had wished for, but these are obviously substantial pieces, and that worked for me. A break from her cheaper pieces was really nice, especially for Christmas. I also loved that Kate had her with braids like Charlotte’s. Mommy/daughter hairstyling happened Christmas morning.
For me, Kate’s entire ensemble was a big success. Blue is a beautiful color on her, and all the pieces of this ensemble were gorgeous—from her hat to her cozy suede boots. I am crossing my fingers that we will see the Waleses and the Middletons at St. Mary Magdalene this Sunday to close out 2023 and get our new year off to a smashing start.
I wonder if the decision to include Sarah again after all this time has more to do with her breast cancer and the fact that she now has grandchildren who are growing up quickly; it seems only decent to let her spend Christmas with her children and grandchildren. Though I'll give it one more year before she's poking others in the bum with a brolly on the walk to church!
I think the long-standing intimacy between the Waleses and Tindalls has many decades-long layers. William and Zara, who are one year apart, have been close since childhood and it wouldn’t be unusual to think that William leaned even more heavily on Zara (and Peter) once Harry’s anger and sibling rivalry first started to manifest in Harry's pre-teen years. Z&M and W&C were each married in 2011 after almost 10 years of dating, so there may also be a strong bond between Mike and Kate given their commoner status; and we’ve also talked about how William was able to enjoy normal family life with the Middletons, so Mike is probably a similar comforting source of normality. And now each family has three kids fairly close in age who are forming their own friendships. Worth noting too, that Anne — unlike Harry in that very similar #2 position and his wife — declined titles for her children, so from the start, Z&M and W&C have, despite the role W has been born into, a different focus to their lives. It does seem that the Wales/Tindall alliance has been made more public since the Queen’s death, and just as Anne is elevated and much more public in her role as her brother the King’s main supporter and defender.
I imagined Meghan ordering a scarf post haste so she can pose for a photo and she can pretend King Charles sent it to her. Though he seems big-hearted enough to do it himself. Must say I was tempted to order one myself. I might get the £35 version as those colors go better with the grey jacket I usually wear