In Defense of the Tiara – The Lannoy Tiara

For the last in our series of tiaras from the bride’s family, we are taking a look at the Lannoy Tiara.

The History

This tiara dates back to 1878, when it was made by Altenloh, a Belgian jeweler that created pieces which were purchased by Belgian royals and nobles. It is made up of platinum and 270 (!) diamonds, set in a scrolling, semi-natural setting. The star of the piece is the pear-shaped diamond set as the centerpiece, and platinum gilded pearls set as the outline.

This piece is most famous as the wedding tiara of Countess Stéphanie of Lannoy’s wedding tiara when she married Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume of Luxembourg on October 20, 2012 (happy early anniversary, you two crazy kids). This tiara was also worn by Stéphanie’s sisters, and sisters-in-law for their weddings.

The only issue seems to be that this tiara is a bit light…which can lead to some interesting tiara situations.

The Case for the Tiara

The Handbag: I love this in all its twinkling dainty glory. It did seem a bit insubstantial when StephLux wore it for her wedding, but it was competing with a huge crusty Saab. I think in another setting it would make everyone swoon.

LG: It’ll never blow anyone away, but it’s quite lovely. Sometimes that’s all I need.

OC: It’s adorable, but I’d like to see it in a “regular” tiara appearance to properly judge it.

The Case against the Tiara

LiL: I feel bad about putting it in the “against” category because it’s actually very pretty. But is very tiny. And LiL doesn’t really do tiny tiaras.