Royal Fashion Minute: Princess Letizia of Spain Dazzles in Felipe Varela at Miguel Cervantes Awards Ceremony + The HORN Purse!

Fashion Princess...and THAT Purse:

Princess Lace: Princess Letizia of Spain in a coat-dress from Spanish fashion designer Felipe Varela, at the 2012 Miguel Cervantes Awards Presentation, Alcala de Henares Spain

The Spanish Royals are not enjoying some positive press as of late. First, the grandson of the King of Spain, Felipe Juan Froilán, was hospitalized after he accidentally shot himself while hunting at a family estate in Spain. (PS: It is illegal under Spanish law for a 13-year-old to handle the type of gun the boy was carrying. And now we know why.). Then, the King of Spain, the much-beloved (until last week!) Juan Carlos, fell while on a "vacation" in Botswana. Vacations are fine, but it was revealed that he was there on a very expensive "Big Game Hunting" vacation ($30,000+)--shooting elephants. Killing elephants is NOT GOOD, and neither is going on a very expensive safari vacation while his own country is suffering major economic hardships. He had to be flown back to Spain and this is when it came to light. Last week, he issued an unprecedented apology and mea culpa for the complete and utter misstep.

Crowned Husband and Wife: Crown Prince Felipe of Spain and his wife, Princess Letizia of Spain, 2012 Miguel Cervantes Awards Ceremony, Alcala de Henares Spain

Oh, but that was last week, and now it's time for some Non-Shooting Elephant News from the Spanish Royals: Princess Letizia looked FAAAABULOUS at the 2012 Miguel Cervantes Awards Ceremonies which occurred today at Alcala de Henares University in Alcala de Henares, Spain. The Premios Miguel Cervantes is the Top Prize for Literature for the Spanish-speaking world. It is commemorated on the day of the great writer's death, April 23rd. Princess Letizia wore a black and white coat-dress designed by her go-to Designer, Felipe Varela. The dress featured lace-embroidered detail, long fitted sleeves, a Peter Pan collar, covered buttons down the center front and a black cummerbund accentuating her size 00 frame.

 

 

The Princess finished her look with nude shoes and the nude-colored purse seen above. Although, in light of the circumstances, should she have been carrying a handbag with a handle that looks like a large Elephant tusk?! Ah well, at least she does look FABULOUSLY chic!
UPDATE!!!! My FAB Friend Tilda Donner of DYSFASHIONAL has confirmed to me that yes indeed it was in rather bad taste: her purse is the Yves Saint Laurent's "Mala Mala Mombasa" purse!!! (photo below)

Oh Letizia!!! Maybe she was sending some sort of message to the world: she stands by her father-in-law's bad decision to hunt elephants in Africa on a $30,000+ hunting trip payed by Spanish taxpayers?? Who knows.

Royal Fashion Minute: Upcoming Wedding of Cayetana Fitz-James Stuart, 18th Duchess of Alba

Bow Down To The Diva...

In less than two weeks, there's going to be another Royal Wedding. Well, it won't be of the William-and-Kate Royal Wedding proportions, but it will be somewhat "royal". You see, the 18th Duchess of Alba, Cayetana Fitz-James Stuart is going to be betrothed...for the third time on October 5th at the Palacio de Dueñas in Sevilla. In case you are not up to speed with the Euro Royals--well, other than yes, William and Kate!--Cayetana is the most titled royal in the World. She is a Duchess about seven times, a Marchesa about 19, a Countess 23 times, as well as Viscountess and a Baroness.

It is rumored that when Queen Elizabeth greets her, the Queen has to bow to Cayetana! Well, just on that, she gets my "At-A-Girl" Nick Points! Oh, and did I mention she probably owns most of Spain and is supposedly one of the wealthiest women in the world. And yes, this famous and priceless Goya painting:

She's the 13th Duchess of Alba and a relative, and Cayetana owns it. And she's also a Fashion Doyenne, who has been wearing Haute Couture from Ungaro to Balenciaga for ages. She's famous now more for her very Boho Eclectic sense of style, mixing prints, textiles and bright colors.

Cayetana Duchess of Alba, 1956

Cayetana, Duchess of Alba, wearing a Mantilla...and VERY big pearls!

But let's get back to her upcoming wedding. It's very controversial. You see, she's 85 and she has decided to marry again--much to the dismay of her children--who basically live off of the "House of Alba" trust fund.

The lucky guy, a man by the name of Alfonso Díez Carabantes (above), a civil servant who runs his own pr firm and is (sit down) 24 years her junior (At-a-Girl Part DOS!). Even though the family and even King Juan Carlos were opposed to their marriage (of course, people said that Alfonso was only after her millions, if not BILLIONS). As of last year, the duchess decided to proceed with the marriage, overcoming her children's opposition by giving them their inheritance in advance, although Díez has formally renounced any claim to her wealth. The wedding is coming up and naturally, there are already Wedding Souvenirs being hawked on the streets of Sevilla, the site of her wedding:

The T-shirt

The pins

Their wedding will be a fabulous affair for Spain--and hopefully for the happy couple. I can't wait to see what she wears--and the reaction on her children's faces...
Will King Juan Carlos show up??? I wonder... hope Crown Princess Letizia shows up!! Stay tuned...

Who's That DIVA? Valentino Muse Naty Abascal

The Last Emperor's Spanish Princess...Naty Abascal, on the cover of 1965 Harper's Bazaar

Since I still have "Valentino Fever" from just having seen the fabulous documentary, "Valentino: The Last Emperor", I thought it would be nice to showcase one of it's "stars": Naty Abascal. Naty (short for Natividad, which means "Nativity" in English) is a Spanish socialite, a duchess (by marriage), and Valentino's long time friend. Anybody For Canasta? Naty Abascal, her sister Ana-Maria and Brazilian aristrocat, Helio Guerreiro in a Richard Avedon layout, shot in Ibiza

In her youth, she modeled and in fact made the cover of Harper's Bazaar and shot an editorial with the genius of Richard Avedon back in the 1960's, along with her sister and Brazilian aristocrat, Helio Guerreiro. She is a fixture in the Spanish social pages of magazines such as HOLA! and in fact is the Hola! Magazine Fashion Editor, sometimes modeling in her own fashion layouts. The Genes were Passed on: Naty Abascal and one of her handsome sons

Years ago, she married the Duke of Feria, and had two sons, who look like male models themselves. The marriage ended when their father was caught in a serious scandal involving underage girls. He was convicted and sentenced and soon found dead with an overdose. Yes, a suicide kiddies. Escandalo, as they say. I know, it's a TOTAL NOVELA---Spanish Aristocracy Style! The late father left the boys nothing except a title.
The Muse Wears The Emperor's Clothes: Naty Abascal modeling Valentino

She met Valentino as a 19-year-old model and the two have since been very close friends and in fact , she became one of his muses. In the movie, "Valentino: The Last Emperor", she is shown hanging out with him at his Atelier and in his homes, and musing about her too-tight gown and her protruding bosom. She almost fits into the sample size of his Haute Couture gowns (except for the bust part!) which I am sure by now he either lends to her, sells them to her at a great discount, or gives them as gifts outright. She is only in the film a couple times for a short snap, but they are some of the funniest moments. She's is one of those aristocratic party DIVAS you just KNOW you want to hang out with and a have a couple (or three) Martinis with....
Love her!