FabSugar

Fab Read: The Diana Chronicles

FabSugar — Mon, 27 Aug 2007 16:45:33 PDT

I can't believe it's been almost ten years since Princess Diana was tragically killed - the time just flew by! The Diana Chronicles, $17, by former New Yorker and Vanity Fair editor Tina Brown, follows the people's princess, all the way from Shy Di to Dynasty Di to Shunned Di.

While Diana was definitely much more than what she wore, fashion was a definitive part of her life. Who could forget that magical meringue wedding dress by Elizabeth and David Emanuel, her hand in popularizing big-shouldered skirt suits, or her appearance at Gianni Versace's funeral just months before her own?

Needless to say, Diana was an icon, whether it be fashion, humanitarian, or just as a woman to look up to, and this book pays quite the tribute.

Princess Diana's Letters as a Young Newlywed Up For Auction

Annie Scudder — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 10:45:25 PDT

As a 20-year-old new wife and princess, Diana Spencer maintained a connection to her former ordinary life by keeping up a pen pal relationship with a former colleague. Margaret Hodge, a teacher twice Diana's age who worked with the would-be queen when she was a simple kindergarten teaching assistant, acted as Diana's confidant after her wedding of the century. Now, Mrs. Hodge is putting her collection of Christmas cards, royal wedding invitations, and personal letters up for auction, as other friends of Diana's have done before. They're expected to fetch close to $40,000.

Describing Highgrove, one of her royal residences, Diana's desire to play the everyday in-love couple shines through: "It honestly won't look smart," she writes. "Just a cosy nest for Mr & Mrs Wales to roost with bright colours of course!" Yet in another letter, Diana describes Prince Charles's disinterest in her, writing, "I've vanished down many a hole - the husband having not realised - typical."

While Diana's former friend will make a pretty penny off the endearing correspondences, timely again now that her son William is a newlywed himself, it doesn't seem like enough to hand over such personal mementos. Something tells me Mrs. Hodge has kept some for herself.

Our Facebook Fans Interview Royal Expert Jerramy Fine!

Annie Scudder — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 13:52:37 PDT

Today we hosted a live chat with royal expert Jerramy Fine, author of Someday My Prince Will Come and founder of Princess Prep in London. She's rubbed shoulders with Princess Anne, Earl Spencer, and the Duchess of York, and shared her valuable knowledge with us. Read our reader questions about the royal wedding and Jerramy's insightful answers below!

Gi Jane: How do you think Kate will handle her new life? I am sure with the few years she's been with William she would do quite well.
Jerramy Fine: Royal life isn't for everyone, but I think it IS for Kate. She has been pitch perfect so far and I'll be very surprised if she makes any mistakes any time soon.

Libby: How many of Kate's commonor friends are invited to the wedding? I imagine the list had to be approved?
JF: All of Kate and William's friends are a very close knit group and have been in their inner circle for nearly eight years. The cool thing is that Kate invited a lot of the locals from her home town - the mailman, etc!

Lauren: I was wondering how much influence does the queen have over the day? Does she OK the dress? OK the food? I am sure she will OK the guest list!
JF: Although the queen (and hopefully Kate and William probably have some input) I'm fairly certain that every last detail is being seen to by the Lord Chamberlain and Master of the Household in accordance with royal tradition. However, I heard they are actually having buffet during the evening party rather than a sit down dinner and that the queen is not best pleased about lining up for her food!

Mary: I was just reading that all of Kate's bridesmaids besides her sister are really young - age 8 and under, I think. Is that common/part of tradition for a royal wedding?
JF: Yes! The Brits think it's really weird that Americans have grown-up bridesmaids! The tradition is one maid of honor and as many children as you can handle! It's starting to change though - Autumn Phillips had three grown-up bridesmaids - maybe Zara will, too.

Judy: Any rumors about the dress? Get the answer when you keep reading.

OnSugar Review: Why the William & Kate Movie Was So Bad It Was Great

OnSugar Blog — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 12:12:26 PDT

The following post was written by disneycouture, who posted it on the OnSugar blog Life, Love & Lace.

OK. Seriously, my DVR was all lined up, Blackberry put aside for me to curl up on my leather couch with a bowl of popcorn to watch Lifetime's William & Kate movie premiere. Ten minutes into the movie, I realized that the tissues I thought I'd need were going to be tears of laughter than of romance.

The actors in the movie were pretty similar in appearances to the real-life people they were portraying, though Prince Harry came across as angry, evil and just plain weird. We got to see the famous sheer-dress, though the movie's version was boring compared to the original, and Kate's wardrobe was the result of a bad wardrobe budget. Never attempt to re-create couture and real labels on a budget. Some of the movie was so cheesy and so unrealistic. I sincerely doubt that Prince William would ever sing to Kate to woo her, and I highly doubt that the conversation between William and his father, Prince Charles, was accurate. Their conversation of how Princess Diana chose the public life seemed a little sad, and I highly doubt there is any concrete evidence of dialogue that the writers chose to use.

The entire movie was was so slow and dragged out that by the time that the finale/engagement was shown, I was more dumbfounded by the bad computer-imaging of a safari background than by William proposing to Kate. Did anybody else laugh at how bad the acting was between Kate and her mother? Or that the "St. Andrews" college looked more community than Ivy League (folding chairs and tables? Paper decorations?). This movie was cast, directed, and launched way too fast. I'd rather see this in two years to see a wedding scene. Ugh. I was so angry that I wasted my time watching such a horrible movie, but at the same time, I was fascinated and easily amused at how bad it was. The only upside of the entire two hours was the actor playing William, Nico Evers-Swindell. He was nice to watch, and seriously much better looking than the real Prince of Wales.

Do you want to have your entertainment posts featured on BuzzSugar? Just join the community or start an OnSugar blog and you may see your submissions here!

Photo courtesy of Lifetime

Kate and Prince William Make Their First Official Visit in Wales!

Allie Merriam — Thu, 24 Feb 2011 09:05:54 PST

Kate Middleton and Prince William stepped out for an official visit to the RNLI Lifeboat Station in Anglesey, Wales, this morning. They were on hand to christen a new vessel called the "Hereford Endeavour" docked at Trearddur Bay, not far from where the couple have been making their home while Will's doing a stint with the British Royal Air Force. It was the very first state appearance for the couple, and Kate apparently took to the task with ease. The princess-to-be was seen mingling with locals and endeared herself to her townspeople by singing along with the Welsh national anthem! Kate was given the duty of cracking a bottle of champagne over the new ship, while Will addressed the crowd. He said, "I do the talking, she does the fun bit." The duo are gearing up for their big wedding celebration in London on April 29 but for the time being are staying out of the city. New details about the ceremony continue to come out - in addition to their wanting donations, not presents, Kate has decided that she'd like to arrive at Westminster Abbey in a car as opposed to a carriage like Princess Diana chose back in 1982. Invitations have already gone out, with David and Victoria Beckham apparently being among the lucky ones.

Kate Middleton Writes Sweet Letter to Young Cancer Patient

Annie Scudder — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 12:10:25 PDT

Nine-year-old Fabian Bate had his day brightened last week when he received a personal letter from Kate Middleton. The little guy pictured above has been battling leukemia since 2006, and he met the duchess last month when she visited the Royal Marsden hospital with Prince William. In the letter, Kate wrote:

"This must be a troubling time for you, your parents and your sisters, but I know I left the Royal Marsden assured by how incredibly talented, kind and clever the team at the hospital are. Combined with your belief and positive energy, you couldn’t be in better hand."

What is believed to be Kate's first personal act of charity, mirrors Princess of Diana's work, as the late Princess of Wales's first solo engagement was a tour of the hospital in 1982. Following her death, Prince William took on her role as president of the hospital. Fabian's family was moved by the personal nature of the letter, telling a British paper that "we were very touched as she must do a lot of this stuff and to remember Fabian is very moving."

See a copy of the letter below.