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First Look at Roland Mouret’s Banana Republic Collection, ‘Seas of Red’ Poppies at Tower of London & Those Royal Photobombs

We are back with updates to Kate’s Calendar, beginning with word about participation in events surrounding the Centenary of World War I.

August 5th is the anniversary of Britain’s first full day fighting in the War; William, Harry and Kate will visit a special exhibit at the Tower of London commemorating the Great War. Nearly 900,000 handmade ceramic poppies, one for each British and Colonial war fatality, will be placed in the Tower’s moat. More from Historic Royal Palaces:

… the installation is being created in the Tower’s famous dry moat. It will continue to grow throughout the summer until the moat is filled with 888,246 ceramic poppies, each poppy representing a British or Colonial military fatality during the war.

The 888,246 poppies have been handmade at the studios of artist Paul Cummins.

The final poppy will be ‘planted’ on November 11th to coincide with the Armistice ending that War, it took effect at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918. After the installation ends individual poppies will be available for purchase, each will cost £25. More on how proceeds from the poppy sales might be used from the Derby Telegraph:

If all of them are bought, the sale will amount to £15 million which will, in turn, be distributed between six various charities for the armed forces, including the Royal British Legion and Help For Heroes.

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Also related to the calendar, a little more information on the events Kate, William and Harry will attend at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow next Monday and Tuesday. They will watch competition in athletics (known as track & field events in some countries), boxing, hockey (field hockey in the US), gymnastics and swimming. Both mornings the Palace will release specific times and events the three young royals will be attending.

The spectacular opening ceremony for the Games was Wednesday, with more than 4500 athletes from 71 nations and territories taking part. The Queen was part of Wednesday’s dramatic ceremony, officially declaring the Games open. For those who enjoy following Her Majesty’s style, she wore a silver lamé and white tweed ensemble by Angela Kelly.Stephen Lock/i-Images/Polaris

Also on hand for the ceremony Wednesday evening: Prince Charles and Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall; Prince Edward (he is Vice Patron of the Games) and Sophie, Countess of Wessex. Below, Team Scotland entering Celtic Park.

Stephen Lock/i-Images/Polaris

One group stealing the show Wednesday evening: 40 Scottish Terriers, used to lead teams into the ceremony.

Stephen Lock/i-Images/Polaris Images

Stephen Lock/i-Images/Polaris Images

The Queen and Duke of Edinburgh were back at the Games today, where they watched a Women’s Hockey match between England and Wales. The couple also spent time meeting athletes and coaches, inadvertently (I think) giving some of Team Australia’s hockey players very special mementos from the Games. Below you see Ashleigh Nelson taking a ‘selfie’ (a picture of oneself taken by oneself), with The Queen photobombing (purposely or accidentally appearing in someone else’s photo) through the fence!

Ashleigh Nelson Twitter Feed (@nelson_ashleigh)

Ashleigh Nelson Twitter Feed (@nelson_ashleigh)

Ms. Nelson about it on her blog in a post she called “A Queenie Photobomb Kinda Day”:

Although we take our matches very seriously, sometimes life presents abundant opportunities. Today it was who could get the best selfie with non-other than our very lovely Queen Elizabeth more affectionately known as Queenie.

But that wasn’t the only appearance by the Queen in selfies, HM can be seen in the background of Jayde Taylor’s selfie with teammate Brooke Peris, both also play for Team Australia.

Jayde Taylor Twitter

Jayde Taylor Twitter

Back to Ms. Nelson’s blog post:

“…if you haven’t seen it yet… it seemed the Queen was ready and raring to photobomb. Apparently she has been taking lessons from her Grandchildren…”

Readers may recall William and Kate’s visit to Scotland earlier this year (original posts here and here) when they toured Emirates Arena. That was when Kate met Clyde (a Scottish Thistle), the mascot for the Games. If interested in perusing the schedule for the Games to try and guess which events Kate will attend, click here.

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Also today, an early look at the upcoming capsule collection designer Roland Mouret has created for Banana Republic.

Banana Republic Courtesy Photos

Banana Republic Courtesy Photos

It is less than two weeks from the collection’s launch, it goes on sale Thursday, August 7th.  Most of the pieces showcase the feminine, figure-hugging silhouette Mr. Mouret’s designs are known for. One of the fundamental underpinnings of the collection is BR’s Sloan fabric, a bi-stretch, figure-hugging material used across a range of apparel items. Below we show the Sloan Sailor Skirt, the Sloan Sheath and the Sloan Slim Ankle Pant.

Banana Republic

Banana Republic

Black is used throughout the collection, there are several LBDs (Little Black Dresses).

Banana Republic Courtesy Photos

Banana Republic Courtesy Photos

Our final group of styles from the upcoming collection.

Banana Republic Courtesy Photos

Banana Republic Courtesy Photos

Prices start at $49.50 with the most expensive item retailing for $165. BR is offering charge customers and those on its mailing list the chance to shop early on August 6th.

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Also today, a quick note from our friends at Beulah London: the label is having a flash sale that is now underway.

Beulah London

Beulah London

A good selection of merchandise is available, as the brand starts making room for fall merchandise.  I really like the tailored lines in the Idona cocktail dress, that frock is discounted from £375 to £275 (roughly $645 to $460) in both powder pink and powder blue.

Beulah London

Beulah London

The Jade Evening Gown in navy silk is on sale for £195, about $325; it was originally priced at £495, just under $850. The Jade in Linear Floral is a bargain as well, pricing for the print version of the gown is the same as for the solid navy color.

Beulah London

Beulah London

Some of Beulah’s elegant scarves are offered in the sale. Below left we show the Asha, a silk satin floral print now 50% off (£95, about $160); on the right we show the Cara in Beulah’s Modal Cashmere blend, it is priced at £85 (about $145), marked down from its original price of £125 (roughly $215).

Beulah London

Beulah London

If spotting something you like in the sale, time is of the essence – the sale ends Sunday night.

LINKAGE:

  • click here to visit the Commonwealth Games website, the Facebook page is here,
  • visit the Centenary News site here, offering “news and information about the upcoming 2014-2018 First World War Centenary,” as well as “videos, details of events, educational resources, and links to articles and blogs” related to the anniversary of the Great War
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Brittany

Monday 28th of July 2014

Longtime reader, but I rarely comment. I love the blog and am always so happy to see a new post. You do a fabulous job!

I wanted to note how disappointed I am to hear that the guest collection will be done in the Sloan fabric. I wear BR very frequently at work (I love their shoes--great fit, hold up well, stable, etc.), and I often wear blouses (mainly polyester, not my favorite but it's so difficult to find blouses that meet my extremely conservative office's dress code that if the fit and cut is right, I'll compromise on fabric), and skirts that are anything BUT the Sloan fabric, which in my opinion, it is the worst. I don't know if I can go so far as to say all, but most everything I have tried on in Sloan is unlined. It is thick and very spandex-y, so without a lining it is very clingy and bunches and rides up while walking. A lining would make the dresses and skirts much more wearable. I have also found these pieces to run small--I usually wear a 0 or a 2 dress, and even the 2 is extremely form fitting (better for a night out than a day at the office). Perhaps if these are at a slightly higher price point, a lining will be included. Just a warning if you aren't able to get to a BR store in-person and would like to try a piece from the new line.

ElizaMo

Sunday 27th of July 2014

Those are some really snappy sheath dresses from the Mouret/Banana Republic collection, I really like the use of colour blocking. They're are smart and sassy and I can even see cautious Kate risking one or two of those. I'm noticing the longer hemlines in one or two, which looks a shade on the heavy side in the all-black version.

At that price the Beulah cocktail dress begins to look affordable, but forgive me for being a spoilsport, but I just detest dresses that require complicated specialist underpinnings -- either that or let's-go-all-floppy-bra-less, which for this old stick-in-the-mud is a non-starter!

Many thanks for an excellent post.

The Way We Were

Sunday 27th of July 2014

Agreeing with everyone else, the queen looks really cool in those selfies. Honestly when I first saw this in yahoo news, I thought it was a hoax.

As for RM for Banana Republic, I find them kind of dull and very Banana Republican. It's not BR's own style is bad it's just so far I haven't found any piece from any of these collaborations more interesting. Not sure if it's because the designer team's hands are tied with BR'd requirement or simply they didn't put into the same amount of effort as to their own design. But that's just IMHO.

Karen

Sunday 27th of July 2014

No, the Commonwealth games outfit is new. The Jubilee service outfit was a very pale green. The barge outfit was white, but with gold accents. The Queen looks so happy at Commonwealth events. Just compare with her demeanour at the Olympics. She is more in her elements in Glasgow.

K

Kerry

Sunday 27th of July 2014

Love the blog - amazing. Love the Queen. Love the photobombing. Love the Scottish Uniforms. Love from Australia.

admin

Sunday 27th of July 2014

And love back at you from Planet Kate! :)

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