SET IN PLATINUM

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 94, 7 May 1937, Page 26 (Supplement)

SET IN PLATINUM

Priceless Jewcls of Queen's . Crown . . ROBE OF IVORY SATIN For .the, first time in history the Queen - will- have 'her -Crown je'wels set•in platinum. * Only • diamonds .will be „used.in 'Queen ^Elizabeth 's crown, among -them the Koh-i-noor. This jewel was "set 'fdr. Quepn Mary in 1911; now- it passes to Queen Elizabeth. ., :The -new crown will have four_ lcrosses patee which spring from the •regal circlet.; The .circlet was first made " for' Queen Victoria and was worn on "many occasions also by Queen Alexandra and Queen Mary. It has now , been ehtirely re-set, ..the new design forming clusters with large diamoud ' centres. | The . Queen 's coat-of;arms has been approved and registered by the College •of Heralds. 6n one side of the shield • is .the crowned -lion of England, which all Royal arms include, and on the other • the - nncrowned lion of the house of Bowes-Lyon. The upper half of this lion is gold and the lower half red. ~Afound~the "shield ~is" the' Garter," to" which order' Her .Ma jesty was recently *appointe'd;,*vr""v • • 7'''With*'"th'e~niany'"social events'*to"be' crowded into'the Coronation period the Queen has spent much time in planning her .dresses. The dressmakers take the latest model^-.to the palace, where they .are shbwn ^by mannequins. Fitters and. -helpeware-in' attendance; and the loveJiiesfc inateriais • are spread' for Her '"Hajestyfs'attention. • _ .

The Queen 's -choice for her -.Corona,;>sOiiv>rpbe; was ..ivory-tinted satln.: This ;i .^ia.Scut\« on'' princess "lines- (which, •' -Mdehtally, give the illUsion of height * i the wearer),' with a full -train. fhe honour of making Her Majesty 's "?y ro nation robe went to,' Madame ^i;i ndley-Seymoiif,, who has long been lier.- .dressmakerl Madame .HandleySeyipour made the Queeh-'s coming-out robe ' of palest- pink chiffon when she first grew' np, , and later she made the •beautiful. ..Court : gown of white and silver, with' its silver train, when she 'was presehted''at the Court whqro now' she^l receives the homage of other debutanies'and ladies. Still later, from the same workroom, came the weddinggown . of" the ; then Lady Elizabeth-Bowes-Lyon - when eho- was maTried to •the Duke '^of YoTk. This was white matt .surfaced material with a glint that suggPsted. moire, and the. train and the •'dre'ss/weie . embroidered in silver and .-.pearls.; j The 'Coronatiqn ' dress took 12 girls six weeks to complete the beautiful embroidery. .The ivory satin is embroidered in gold, and there are eight scrolls combining the floral emblems of the British Isles and the Dominions: , ' Ros.e„.for England. Thistle for Scotland Leek for Wales. Shamrock for Ireland. \ Maple-leaf for Canada. Wattle for Australia. Protea-leaf for South Africa. Fern for New Zealand. Realistie effects havo been obtained by the nse of differeht gold threads. lames and cords. Tho robe has a square decolletage and small sleeves slashed on top, with a flounce of fine gold lace. All the materials nsed in the dres^ were English, and even the eoeoons from which the silk was spun were bred in England. At the- front, along tho fdot. of ' the dress, largc gold lotus fiowers float in a lake of silver. These emblems. of the Indian' Empire are' given a pTominent " place, ae the- dress will be worn again - at the .Delhi Durbar. English oak leavesand acorns arc also used in tho design.