Happy Birthday Prince William

Wishing a happy birthday to Prince William, Duke of Cambridge...

born June 21, 1982... above photo from a few years ago with his beloved grandmother, Queen Elizabeth...

This is one of the many plates that commemorated William's birth to Prince Charles and Princess Diana...

Now married to Catherine and father of 3 children...

amazing how time flies!

I think this antique Happy Birthday postcard says it all! 

Birthday Greetings

With affectionate wishes

for your future

happiness 

Report on Trooping of the Colour For QEII 85th Birthday Celebration

Last Saturday was the official 85th birthday of Queen Elizabeth II. The Queen actually turned 85 on April 21st, but it is always publicly celebrated on one of the first Saturdays in June, and this year it was on June 11th. 

We were taking our son & daughter-in-law back to the airport so I didn't post. We rode the Bainbridge Island Ferry over to Seattle, and kissed them goodbye as they took a taxi to SeaTac airport. We boarded the same ferry on a turn around sailing in the sunshine and back we went. Sigh...miss them already!

But...back to the Queen's birthday celebration. The Queen inspects the troops at Horseguards Parade in London after riding from Buckingham Palace. Queen Elizabeth II used to ride sidesaddle on a horse until a few years ago but for the last few years has been riding in one of her wonderful carriages. 

 

She looks quite happy, doesn't she?  This year her grandson Prince William, the newly named Duke Of Cambridge joined his father Prince Charles, great uncle the Duke Of Kent and his aunt Princess Anne, the Princess Royal on horseback accompanying the queen. The queen then stands on a platform and reviews the troops as they serenade her with a horseback brass ensemble and manuevers are done...every man spit and polished to perfection in honour of her birthday.

I included the photo below because it's the Coldstream Guards...my husband's old regiment, participating in the show for the queen. He said it was great fun but a bit stressy as everything was expected to be perfect.
 

The carriages which carried the Duchesses of Cambridge (Catherine wife of Prince William), Cornwall (Camilla, wife of Prince Charles) and Wessex (Sophie, wife of Prince Edward) as well as other members of the royal family back to Buckingham Palace for a photo op on the balcony with a fly over. My husband was particularly nostalgic at the colored smoke jet pass.

source of all photos: Oli Scarff via Getty Images

I must say the Queen looked very happy with her family and the crowds gathered to wish her well on her official birthday.
God save the Queen!!! And happy 85th Ma'am!

Prince William and Catherine Canada Visit City list released

The upcoming post Royal Wedding Canadian tour for Prince and Princess Catherine, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge will include visits to Ottowa, Montreal, Quebec City, Charlottetown, Yellow Knife, Calgary and more from June 30 to July 8th when they will fly to Los Angeles, California.


To see more of the itinerary for the visit go to their website:

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's Tour of Canada

Royal Wedding Timing Released, Middletons at Goring Night Before, Royal Wedding mugs at Time Was Antiques

The Royal Wedding website has released the timing for some of the Royal Wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton which is less than 2 weeks away. 


The night before the wedding, the Middleton family will be staying at the Goring Hotel in Belgravia.

The details of some of the schedule for the wedding day are :

Ceremonial Timings

The following timings have been confirmed for the Wedding Day: 

• Between 8.15am and 9.45am:  The general congregation will arrive at the Great North Door of Westminster Abbey.

• From 9.50am:  Governors-General and Prime Ministers of Realm Countries,the Diplomatic Corps, and other distinguished guests arrive at the Abbey.

• 10.10am The Bridegroom and Prince Henry of Wales leave Clarence House for Westminster Abbey.  They arrive at the Abbey at 10.15am.

• 10.20am Members of Foreign Royal Families arrive at Westminster Abbey from Buckingham Palace.

• 10.20am Mrs. Michael (Carole) Middleton and Mr. James Middleton leave the Goring Hotel for Westminster Abbey.  They arrive at the Abbey at 10.27am.

• 10.25am Members of the Royal Family (except those listed below) leave Buckingham Palace for Westminster Abbey.  They arrive at the Abbey at 10.30am.

• 10.35am The following Members of the Royal Family leave Buckingham Palace for Westminster Abbey.  They arrive at the Abbey at 10.40am:

                 - The Princess Royal and Vice Admiral Timothy Laurence
                 - The Duke of York
                 - Princess Eugenie of York
                 - Princess Beatrice of York
                 - The Earl and Countess of Wessex

• 10.38am The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall leave Clarence House for Westminster Abbey.  They arrive at the Abbey at 10.42am.

• 10.40am The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh leave Buckingham Palace for Westminster Abbey.  They arrive at the Abbey at 10.45am.

•  10.48am The Bridesmaids and Pages leave the Goring Hotel for Westminster Abbey.  They arrive at the Abbey at 10.55am.

• 10.51am The Bride, accompanied by Mr. Michael Middleton, leaves the Goring Hotel for Westminster Abbey.

•  11.00am The Marriage Service begins.  The Marriage Service will be relayed by audio speakers along the Route.

• 12.15pm The Carriage Procession of the Bride and Bridegroom with a Captain’s Escort of the Household Cavalry, followed by The Queen’s Procession with a Sovereign’s Escort of the Household Cavalry, leaves Westminster Abbey for Buckingham Palace.

• 12.30pm The Bride’s Carriage Procession arrives at Buckingham Palace.

• 12.40pm Members of the Royal Family and Members of Foreign Royal Families arrive at Buckingham Palace.

• From 12.40pm: Other guests for the Reception arrive at Buckingham Palace.

• 1.25pm  The Queen and the Bride and Bridegroom, together with their Families, appear on the Balcony.

• 1.30pm  Fly Past by the Royal Air Force and Battle of Britain Memorial Flight. 

Notes

Miss Catherine Middleton, accompanied by her immediate family, will spend the night before the Wedding at the Goring Hotel.  This was the Middleton family’s personal choice.

All arrivals at Westminster Abbey are at the Great West Door unless otherwise indicated. 

All routes to and from Westminster Abbey are as already announced: The Mall, Horse Guards Road, Horse Guards Parade, through Horse Guards Arch, Whitehall, Parliament Square (south side), Broad Sanctuary.  The additional route from the Goring Hotel to The Mall is yet to be confirmed. 

The Wedding Service will be relayed by audio speakers along the Route.  This is in addition to the screens already announced at Hyde Park and Trafalgar Square.  More information for members of the public wishing to watch the Wedding Service in central London is available atwww.direct.gov.uk/royalwedding

For more information on our Royal Wedding collection mugs at Time Was Antiques, click on the photos.

Royal Wedding Packages in UK and USA from Travel and Leisure, Royal Wedding Mug Available

I am posting an article for Royal Wedding Wednesday with Decor To Adore from an article in Travel and Leisure magazine online of various Royal Wedding hotel packages in the UK and the USA you can take advantage of....I guess.

ROYAL WEDDING PACKAGES IN THE UK AND USA

By Ann Shields for Travel & Leisure

While big, lavish nuptials hold limited charm for me (I eloped, and recommend it for its romance and intimacy), plenty of people are mad for all things wedding, and especially all things William and Kate. Even Dunkin Donuts, friend of the common man, is offering a heart-shaped tribute to the royal couple.

If you’re looking to celebrate the Royal Wedding with something more decadent than a doughnut, we’ve gathered some hotel package options.

In London:
-    The Athenaeum has a $699 Royal Treatment homage to the royal couple.  The package includes overnight accommodations, two spa treatments for the price of one, two tickets to a special Enchanted Palace tour at Kensington Palace, and two afternoon teas for the price of one.  A very sweet detail, literally and figuratively, is that the tea’s menu will feature items made with honey produced by bees in Royal Gardens in Regents Park.  For more information or to book, please visit the Athenaeum.

-    Down by the Thames, the Hilton London Tower Bridge is offering a Royal Wedding package, which features three nights’ accommodations, a bottle of Champagne and selection of scones, then a post-wedding 3-course dinner at the hotel’s Larder Restaurant.  The package runs £999.00 ($1,622 at today’s exchange rate, or $541 a night) and can be booked by visiting Hilton Tower Bridge. 

-    The Milestone Hotel, opposite Kensington Palace, has more than just location in its favor.  Its Royal Occasion package will treat you to four nights’ accommodations with daily breakfast, a ‘Royal Champagne Afternoon Tea,’ a 7-course banquet dinner, two tickets to Kensington Palace, private roundtrip airport transfers, and a wedding souvenir in the bone china.  Rates start at £2,418  ($3,926 at today’s exchange, or $981.50 a night).  For more information or to book, visit the Milestone.

-    The Royal Wedding package at the popular Royal Horseguards Hotel costs £375 ($609 a night, based on a two-night booking).  What you get: overnight accommodations, daily breakfast, afternoon tea on the day of the wedding, and a commemorative item.   Visit the Royal Horseguards to book.

-    The Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park (pictured below) is blowing out all the stops with a Tuesday-Sunday extravaganza for the well-heeled Anglophile, their Royal Wedding Tour.  The lavish itinerary includes visits to the ancestral homes of Princess Diana and Winston Churchill, a trip to Westminster Abbey, dinner at Kensington Palace, lunch and a chat with the director of the British Museum, dinner with an unnamed member of the royal family in their townhome (black sheep, no doubt, letting commoners in to sniff around), plus an opportunity to witness Friday’s wedding events from a lofty perch on the ICA’s roof terrace.  For more over-the-top details, please visit the Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park.  To book, please plunder your coffers (to the tune of $18,120 for one person and $30,146 for two; or $3,020 a night) and call +44 (0) 207 201 3618, or email nhalter@mohg.com.

Your options on the homefront:

-    The Trump International Hotel & Tower, at the corner of NYC’s Central Park, has a Trump Royal Wedding Experience (of course, the Donald would slap his brand on someone else’s wedding) in which you get one night’s accommodations in a suite, and then 5 a.m. breakfast downstairs at Jean Georges.  Monitors will be placed around the dining room so that guests can toast the royal couple with sparkling mimosas.  All this can be yours for prices that start at $1,075.  For more information or to book, please call (212) 299-1000 or visit the Trump International Hotel & Tower.

-    In Denver, the JW Marriott Denver Cherry Creek’s Royal Wedding package includes a room (which our editor calls “some of the cushiest rooms in town”), a 3:45 a.m. wake-up call, and $25 credit towards room service or a breakfast at the hotel’s Second Home Kitchen + Bar.  You’ll also get a ‘Royal Tote bag,’ and Champagne and strawberries. The rates start at $329.  To book, please call (866) 706-7814 and refer to rate code UY7, or visit the JW Marriott Denver. 

-    San Francisco’s Kensington Park Hotel is running a royal wedding package entitled “Shag Like Royalty” the cutesy-poo, randy details of which I’ll spare you.  If you actually are interested in hearing the sophomoric details of the $189 overnight package, please visit theKensington Park Hotel, or call (800) 553-1900.

-    In Miami, you’re more assured of good weather than the royals will be, and in Miami-style, you can celebrate their wedding day by paying attention to yourself.  The Acqualina Resort & Spa will indulge you to a “Royal Treatment” spa package with a two-hour $429 menu of head to toe treatments.  They’ll also put you up for the night for an additional $429.  To book the spa treatment, please call (855) 750-2740.  For more info on the property, please visit Acqualina.

-    At New York’s Waldorf-Astoria (pictured below), booking the one-of-a-kind Royal Wedding package means an overnight in the Royal Suite (there’s only one, and it’s the former residence of the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, playing host/hostess at a cocktail party for 40 with passed hors d’oeuvres and white liquids (no stains!).  Book this package for $20,000 by calling (212) 355-3000.  For more about the hotel itself, please visit the Waldorf-Astoria.

--    The Four Seasons Chicago has another only-one-can-book-it Royal Suite Retreat package, featuring an overnight stay in their Royal Suite, roundtrip Rolls-Royce hotel transfer from the airport or a Chicago location, afternoon tea in the Seasons Lounge, a five-course dinner for two in the Seasons Restaurant, a 24-carat gold facial in the hotel spa, English breakfast in bed on the morning of the wedding, and a Champagne toast to the royal couple.  The package is available for $5,500 a night, and you can book it by calling (312) 280-8800.

-   The Fairmont Empress in Victoria, B.C. is so giddy about the Royal Wedding that throughout the entire month of April, you can participate in all sorts of festivities, including royalty-themed spa treatments, teas, dinners, pastry classes, and picnics.  To see the schedule of offers and events, please visit the Fairmont Empress.

So far, the Royal Wedding donut seems the most sensible item of the bunch.

If you’re thinking of a last-minute trip to London, a search on Kayak.comcurrently turns up fares from New York as low as $662, roundtrip, during the last week of April.

And don't forget we have an English bone china Royal Wedding mug available at Time Was Antiques. To purchase, just click on the photos.

Prince Charles & Princess Diana Royal Wedding Gifts Part 3, Sugar Tongs

I am continuing with part 3 of the wedding gifts received by Prince Charles and Princess Diana at their Royal Wedding in 1981 from the gift catalog of the gift exhibition held at St. James Palace after the wedding.

205.  Wedgwood glass decanter and 24 tumblers       Staffordshire CntyCouncil
206.  Herend porcelain salmon dish                                  Gen'l Trading Co, London
207.  large handbell used at Gordonstoun school        Scotland
208.  Georgia silver salver arms of George IV                 Florence, Italy
209.  Herend porcelain ducks                                                 Scotland

213. a book "Collecting Miniatures" by Daphne Foskett       Cheshire
214. a milk jug and covered butter dish                                        London
215. a Herend porcelain rooster                                                       London

     220. walking stick w/ badger's head, 8 Newmarket leg
               bandages for horses                                                                       Leicestershire

221. Royal Worcester game casserole                                            Kent
223. Herend porcelain owl                                                                  Berkshire

                                                  
226. handworked Irish linen traycloths                                       Norfolk
228. Staffordshire china cheese knife                                            Cheshire
230.  set of 8 gold and enamel coffee spoons                                Surrey
232. set of table mats                                                                             Berkshire
234. 2 pairs of wood salt & pepper grinders                                London
246. a decorated egg                                                                               Northumberland
247. box of decorated soaps                                                                Blackpool
248. a wooden egg timer                                                                       Hereford

250. a lace garter made by the donor                                            USA

251. green velvet lavender pin cushion                                           Australia
252. a decorated egg                                                                                Kent
254. 2 "Wedding Day" cups and saucers                                       London

256. a Welsh carved wooden love spoon                                             Wales
257. book "Happiness and How To Find It                                         Wales
258. a silver bunny ring minder                                                              W Sussex

259. a box of Highland Toffee                                                             Scotland
265. a small lucky mascot                                                                    London
268. a grain of rice in a silver container with a Good Luck
    message on it & mini spy glass to read it                                   Sussex
269. book "Language Of The Flowers"                                            USA
270. a Bible and small silver sugar tongs                                      Wiltshire

                                   
As the last gift I covered today was a pair of sugar tongs, I have added the above photo of n English hallmarked pair of spoon ended sugar tongs at Time Was Antiques as an example. I don't know if theirs were spoon ends or claw ends, but there is a claw end pair from our stock at Time Was Antiques:

To see more info on either one, just click on the photo.


It's raining again here, but we had 2 lovely, sunny days. We could clearly see the coast of Vancouver Island, and the areas surrounding Victoria, B.C. Canada across the Strait of Juan De Fuca. Gorgeous! We have had 3 Orca playing in the harbor of Port Angeles, inside the breakwater for the last 2 days as well. How fun! They were easily seen from the docks and Coho Ferry. This is a fairly unusual thing, so a great excitement to us locals.


Have a great day, and have a cup of tea with a friend.