Princess Eugenie's Royal Wedding

Princess Eugenie Victoria Helena, HRH Princess Eugenie of York and Jack Brooksbank, a British wine merchant and socialite will be married October 12, 2018 at St. George's Chapel at Windsor Castle.  Of course, this was the chapel where Prince Harry married Meghan Markle earlier this year.

Princess Eugenie is ninth in the line of succession to the throne, so this will be a "Royal Wedding Light."  All the same, it will be a royal wedding.  Yay!!!  The Princess will be "dressed in a couture gown and waving from a horse-drawn carriage as trumpets sound and red-coated calvary march to and fro."  After her wedding, Princess Eugenie will be known as HRH Princess Eugenie, Mrs. Jack Brooksbank.

                 Princess Eugenie and her fiancé Jack Brooksbank

Princess Eugenie is the daughter of Sarah Ferguson and Prince Andrew, the Duke of York.  I remember watching their wedding in 1986.  Even though they divorced in 1996, they are still together today.  The couple reportedly live together at the Royal Lodge at Windsor and have a ski lodge in the posh Swiss resort of Verbier.  There is definitely a riff between Sarah and Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh.  He has never forgiven her for the scandal she caused back in the 90's.             .



Sarah and Prince Andrew are often seen at public gatherings, but she has never been fully welcomed back into the royal fold.



Princess Eugenie chose her sister Princess Beatrice Elizabeth Mary to be her maid of honor.



Which royal will not be attending the wedding?  Camilla.  She has a previous engagement. Okay.



But...we will get to see Prince George and Princess Charlotte, as they will be a part of the wedding party--bridesmaid and pageboy!  Yay!!!



800 people are expected to attend the wedding.  The Dean of Windsor, David Conner will officiate.  Andrea Bocelli will sing two pieces, and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra will perform.

The wedding can be viewed in America, Friday morning October 12th, on TLC starting at 4:25 a.m. ET and repeating at 7:25 a.m. ET.

ROYAL WEDDING

'Twas the night before the fairy-tale Royal Wedding...Husband was sent off to sleep in the cottage out back, The Royal Wedding Official Programme was laid out so that I might be able to follow along with the service, the Book of Common Prayer was also at my side, and the Cartier alarm clock set for 3:00 a.m.!
At 3:00 a.m. I heard the sound of the posh clock ringing for me to get up...as I waited a few minutes to muster the energy to crawl out of bed, the Bell Towers appropriately rang very British-y on my iPhone! Feet to floor! Much to do before BBC America began their coverage of the event.

I pulled myself together and donned my Lilly PJ's in the 'Pick of the Bunch' pattern. Yes, I wore my comfy PJ's to watch the Royal Wedding:)

My pink Royal Slippers are monogrammed in green...

Mlle. Coco Chanel does NOT like waking up at 3:00 a.m.--but, all the same, she looks pretty cute in her PJ's!

Of course the pajamas have a tiara-motif pattern...just for my little Princess!

Her cute little topknot barrette...perfect for Miss Coco!

I decided that it would be just myself and Miss Coco watching the wedding together. I wanted to soak up every single detail of the entire event...with no interuptions:)

Since we were both gonna lounge around on the bed, I prepared a Royal Tea. Savories, scones, sweets, and a special dessert are served at a Royal Tea. Champagne/Sherry are also served. The Queen of England quite possibly serves a Royal Tea to her guests at Buckingham Palace.

I set up a small tea table in the corner of the bedroom, with all the accoutrements needed for a Royal Tea...

Pink roses and babies breath in a Waterford vase...

The tiered tea tray, with the savories on the bottom plate, the scones on the middle plate, and the sweets on the top plate--all placed on top of pretty dainty doilies. Tea foods should be eaten in that order--from the bottom to the top of tray.

Tiara sparkling on the tea tray...

The first course--savories...closed-faced, tiara-shaped cucumber sandwiches. Closed-faced sandwiches should be eated with the fingers and remember to use the 3-finger rule {use the thumb, index & middle finger} Take dainty bites--don't put the whole tea sandwich in your mouth at one time--that would be tacky.

The second course--British scones. There are several methods of eating scones; this is the one that I prefer.

With the serving tongs provided, place a scone onto your tea plate. Spoon small dallops {just enough for a single scone} of jam and clotted cream onto your plate. Never spoon directly onto the scone. Break off a piece of the scone as you would do with a roll and put only that piece into your mouth. Use your knife to dab the edge of the scone with jam, then clotted cream. Sip a little tea and repeat! Between bites, remember to rest the knife on the upper right side of your tea plate, with the cutting edge of the blade facing the center of the plate.

I made fresh Strawberry Preserves earlier this week and this jam was wonderful on the scones!

Remember, the clotted cream is added after the jam onto the scone.

The sweets are the third course. Y'all it was just me, so I tried to go soft on the sweets. Ha!

The teapot holds the steaming hot water. Since I chose tea sachets today, the tea was steeped in the teacup, not in the teapot.

'Royal Wedding Tea' from Harney Tea was a must-have for my Royal Tea. This tea was commissioned by the Historic Royal Palaces organization. It's a Chinese mutan white tea with almond, coconut, and vanilla to taste and a floral abundance of pink rosebuds & petals. Perfect for this special morning!

You may purchase either loose tea, tea sachets, or teabags. I love tea sachets, as they are a better quality of tea than the teabag, while a bit quicker and easier to steep than loose tea. If you are served hot water and a tea sachet, place the tea sachet into your teacup and allow it steep in the water for approximately five minutes. Do not dunk the tea sachet of wrap it around your teaspooon to drain it. Place the used tea sachet on a separate saucer--never onto your tea saucer.

Remember that the tea goes into the teacup first...then you would add sugar {loose or cubed}, if you prefer. Today I used a sugar scuttle to hold the sugar cubes...a pretty touch to the tea table! If you take lemon with your tea, you would add a lemon slice {not a lemon wedge, ugh!} after the sugar is added.

Remember that milk is added to tea {not cream} and it goes in last. You would not use milk and lemon together because the acid from the lemon will curdle the milk.

A waste bowl {also called a slop bowl} is used for the spent leaves after steeping or the dregs of the tea not sipped! I had a lot of dregs this morning 'cuz I was Tweeting so much about the Royal Wedding and not paying attention to my tea temperature!

I used a white battenburg Tea Cozy to keep my hot water HOT!

The cozy bed tray set for my Royal Tea...in bed!

Dainty pink tea plates and teacups and saucers placed on a white battenburg placemat. I used a dessert fork, luncheon knife, and dessert spoon, in addition to the teapot-motif teaspoon. {A dainty doily was also placed under the teacup}

When handling the teacup, place the index finger through the handle, with the thumb placed on the top of the handle to support the grip, and the second finger below the handle for added security. The next two fingers naturally follow the curve of the other fingers. It is considered an affection to raise the pinkie finger while sipping tea. Also, you should look into the teacup while sipping your tea.

Remember to softly fold the liquid when adding sugar or milk and then place the teaspooon on the saucer behind the handle.

Serviettes are used at teatime. I added a silver tiara-motif napkin ring for my Royal Tea. The serviette is a tea napkin, 12" square. It is picked up and unfolded on the lap. A tea serviette is opened completely. Proper etiquette dictates that you blot your lipstick with a tissue before taking tea or using any cloth napkin at the table. When using a serviette, blot the corner of your mouth and don't use the serviette as a handkerchief.

Of course, Miss Royal Janice had a tiara-motif placecard holder and pink gingham place card...making it just a little bit more prissy!

Just like millions of others in the world today, I am so happy that I was able to watch this royal event. As I'm writing this post, I have almost finished watching it for the SECOND time and for sure it will not be the LAST time:)

I must say that British ladies certainly know how to dress appropriately inside of a church sanctuary! The beautiful hats {Fascinators} will surely be all the rage in the United States after this wedding.

William and Kate, The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge...So young, so in love, so beautiful, so happy...Their wedding just leaves me excited for both them and what their futures hold.

As they stood on the balcony at Buckingham Palace, I could not help but think of Princess Diana. How very sad that she was not there with them.

It was time for my fourth and final course of The Royal Tea...a special dessert of strawberry sorbet, whipped topping, and a fresh strawberry glaze. After their first public kiss, I lifted my 'Alaina' Waterford goblet of champagne and toasted them out loud {in my best British accent, of course} "May you have good health, happiness, and peace together"!

The royal dessert and champage...

Miss Coco and I had a fabulous morning and she is now down for her afternoon nap...wearing her little Princess tee-shirt!

Thank you for joining me today. I've now got to take my royal self to Petsmart to buy some dog food! Ta Ta!

IN FULL ROYAL WEDDING MODE

I've been busy y'all...reading every magazine and tabloid I could get my hands on--studying up on the Royal Wedding plans. My focus has been all about Kate Middleton! I'm so excited to see William and Kate's wedding on Friday...can hardly wait!



Aren't they a beautiful couple? Of course, the engagement dress is gorgeous and I'm sure a lot of young girls are looking for the knock off of this one! Kate and William look very much in love in this photo, don't they? Young, smart, beautiful, ROYAL, and in the prime of their lives!

Lucky Kate...she's wearing Princess Diana's ring! How very honored she must feel.

Don't y'all think Kate has the most beautiful hair? Love the color and the style.

Kate has the whole package...beautiful hair, classic face, great figure, and she's a fashion plate--that will keep us all clamoring to copy everything she does and wears!

On top of all that...Miss Kate Middleton is a very smart young lady!

Y'all, I HAVE TO HAVE THIS RED SUIT! LOVE:)

LOVE the Fascinators Kate wears!

The feathered Fascinators will surely become a new trend in the States! A definite must-have, now that Kate has made them so fashionable for the young crowd.

Drooling over this outfit!

Another thing I like about Kate...PRINCE HARRY LOVES HER TOO!

From the gown to the crown, I'm all over this Royal Wedding story. In addition to my tabloid reading, I've been watching the William & Kate movie on Lifetime over & over, Googling Kate Middleton like an online stalker, and of course keeping up-to-date with the television news networks' coverage of the event.

Many of you have emailed me to find out if I'm having a 'Royal Wedding' party. Well, due to the fact that even my British friends are NOT interested in the whole thing, my viewing party will consist of Mlle Coco Chanel and myself. That's just fine with me. We have a 'little something' planned and of course, I will be Tweeting from 4:00 a.m. on Friday...until the entire event is over! I told my husband he needs to sleep out back in the Cottage, 'cuz me and Miss Coco need to have the television turned up loud and we cannot be disturbed. He's up for that...bless his heart!

Maybe you are suffering from "Royal Wedding Fatigue" or you are just not interested, but I cannot stop myself from being thrilled to death to be able to revel in the pomp and ceremony of the wedding of the most likely future King of England.

If you are planning on watching the coverage, here's a timeline that I found online:

~9:00 a.m. London time (4:00 a.m. EST)
1,900 wedding guests are scheduled to arrive between 9:00 a.m.-10:00 a.m. (London time) at Westminister Abbey.

~10:50 a.m. London time (5:50 a.m. EST)
Kate and her Father, Mike Middleton, will depart Buckingham Palace via car--a somewhat controversial decision as it is the first time since 1963 that a royal bride has not arrived at the Church by horse-drawn carriage. Their car will travel along The Mall, passing by Clarence House, Whitehall, and Parliament Square.

~11:00 a.m. London time (6:00 a.m. EST)
The service begins at 11:00 a.m. sharp (London time). The Dean of Westminister will conduct the church service, however William and Kate will be married by Rowan Douglas Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury. *FYI from Miss Janice: There will be no kiss at the altar..."that's just not done at Westminister Abbey"!

~12:00 p.m. London time (7:00 a.m. EST)
Following the ceremony, Prince William and Princess Catherine, now husband and wife, will return to Buckingham Palace in a procession of horse-drawn coaches, passing by thousands of well-wishers who will be lining the streets.

~12:30 p.m. London time (7:30 a.m. EST)
Once back at the Palace, the newlyweds will be met by the Queen and enjoy a swanky champagne reception. The couple will also take a moment to appear on the Buckingham Palace balcony, where they will wave and perhaps even kiss for the crowds and cameras.

~7:00 p.m. London time (2:00 p.m. EST)
Following that epic soiree, the Prince of Wales (William's father Charles) will host a private dinner and dance, also at Buckingham Palace. This event will be for just the bride and groom's closest friends and family.

Consider this my Royal Invitation to you to join me on Twitter Friday morning at 4:00 a.m. See you then! {I will also be back on the blog on Friday to post about my viewing party with little Miss Coco.}