Hofdame Note: Please welcome Baguette Johanna, a longtime blog reader from France. She previously shared her photos of the Dior exhibition in Paris on the Order of Splendor blog back in 2017. She has graciously given us permission to print her photos and thoughts from the “H.R.H. Crown Princess Mary 1972 – 2022” exhibition at Frederiksborg Castle. We are so appreciative!
All photographs are her property, so please don’t reproduce them elsewhere.
The first part of the exhibition is dedicated to Danish princesses. There are outfits and personal items of Alexandra and Dagmar of Denmark (future Queen Alexandra of England and future Empress Dagmar of Russia, as you may know) as well as two dresses of Queen Ingrid. There is also the splendid coronation robe of Frederik V’s daughter, Sofia Magdalena when she became Queen of Sweden in 1772. I was amazed to see dresses from such famous princesses. All small ladies by our standards but the dresses are in really good condition.
Regarding Mary’s dresses, there is a first showcase with the outfits of the then Mary Donaldson, including the dress made with the fabric bought on the market in Hobart. The fabric is really beautiful!
There’s her wedding dress and her father’s Scottish outfit. Neither her veil nor her tiara was presented, so the dress is very simple in the end. It is really elegant.
I was delighted to discover the Jesper Hovring Bambi Awards dress in the other window. As beautiful in real life as in the photo! (Hofdame Note: Those of you who were worried that the alterations were “forever” can rest easy!)
I found it very funny to see the long-sleeved tweed dress by Mark Kenly Domino Tan, which she paired with Nike’s white sneakers in the next window. On the other hand, the belt is massive in real life with a snake effect that I didn’t like.
Lasse Spangenberg’s dress for her 50th birthday photos looked much lighter in the window than in the official photos. I didn’t recognize it right away. It is obviously beautiful as well as the shoes.
Frederik’s 50th birthday dress is pure beauty. Very delicate and with beautiful embroidery and beadwork.
Finally, the last small showcase shows the Greenland costumes of the whole family. Seeing the children’s clothes was adorable. These costumes are really beautiful. You can really see the work on the fabrics and the embroidery.
What was a shame was that all the explanations were in Danish. There was no translation, so I was glad that I knew all the outfits! There was a book about the exhibition in the castle shop, but only in Danish, so I didn’t buy it.
There were lots of other outfits from several events, too!
I also had the opportunity to visit Amalienborg, Rosenborg (where the royal jewels are), and Christiansborg, where the official ceremonies are held. I went to Holmens Church, the sailors’ church, where Daisy and Henrik’s wedding took place as well as the baptism of the twins. And also Christiansborg Palace Chapel, where Christian was baptized and where Queen Ingrid, then Prince Henrik, lay in state. Going to these places was very moving!
Have any other Baguettes seen this exhibit? If so, share your experience with us below. And if you haven’t been lucky enough to see it, make sure to thank Johanna for “carrying us around in her pocket” so we could see it too!