LIZ JONES: That was the moment we’ve been waiting for – Queen Camilla in Dior was genuinely regal
- The choice of a French couturier was both respectful of her hosts and inspired
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What a difference a day makes. When Queen Camilla stepped off the plane at Orly airport, she looked a little like Barbie’s grandmother.
Personally, I don’t think anyone over the age of 12 should wear something so sugary it makes your teeth hurt.
But, hold onto your hats (note to Queen: next time, use hat pins)! By nightfall, the Queen was in navy Dior, and she finally looked regal.
The choice of a French couturier was both respectful of her hosts (though I doubt Madame Macron would choose McQueen were she to grace these shores) and inspired.
Queen Camilla and Brigitte Macron pose as they leave the Elysee Palace during the State Visit
Camilla looked chic – and regal – in a navy gown from Dior, Camilla
In a gesture towards her French hosts, Camilla dressed in Dior – as did Madame Macron
Designer Maria Grazia Chiuri knows how to construct garments for women with bigger busts, and who might want to conceal their arms.
Her tailoring and fabric (nothing she makes ever creases) is second to none.
Camilla was genuinely The Queen – appearing as though she deserved to be the star of the evening.
Some niggles: the ensemble looked better once she removed the cape; she is only a size 12, so seemed drowned.
You also couldn’t see her feet, which made me wonder if she’s on casters. The late Queen Elizabeth’s favourite designer, Norman Hartnell, always ensured the hem at the front of a gown was a few millimetres off the floor, gathering dust only at the back.
Princess Margaret was an early fan of Christian Dior, wearing it often: criticism that she eschewed British designers after the war was misplaced, as Christian Dior had opened an atelier in London.
Camilla was genuinely The Queen – the star of the evening
Camilla wore diamond and sapphire necklace which had been given to the late Queen Elizabeth as a wedding present from her father, George VI
Queen Camilla smiles ahead of making a speech to launch a new UK – France Literary Prize during a reception at the National Library in Paris
Alas, on Thursday, Camilla was in another Fiona Clare coatdress, this time in medical whitel. The bag and shoes were Chanel, so perhaps she found time to pop to Rue Cambon.
Gabrielle Chanel, too, was an anglophile: the new V&A exhibition has entire rooms devoted to her love of British fabric and artisans.
The new retrospective of Gabrille Chanel’s work at the V&A in London would surely inspire the Queen. Chanel was all about ease of wear, with enough sparkle to make you stand out in a crowd, even in monochrome. Let’s see more hour-glass silhouettes!
The new Queen has seemed a little shy of making an entrance in the past.
But that navy Dior ensemble, and how it went down so well in the normally sniffy French press, must surely have given her confidence to take centre stage in the future.
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