How Queen Elizabeth's Dresser Exactly Replicated the Royal Family's Christening Gown
Earlier this fall it was announced that Angela Kelly, the Queen's assistant and dresser, had been granted special permission to write a memoir about her experiences working in the Palace.
Now, ahead of the book's publication date, the first excerpts from The Other Side of the Coin: The Queen, the Dresser and the Wardrobe have come to light.
Per Hello, Kelly reveals exactly how she replicated the royal family's Honiton Christening gown in the forthcoming text.
For those unfamiliar, Queen Victoria commissioned the Honiton Christening gown for her first-born child, her daughter, Princess Victoria, who was baptized in 1841. It was then worn by 62 royal babies over the course of 163 years. But eventually, the dress was retired so it could be preserved, and the Queen asked Kelly to help make a replica.
"To make sure it looked authentic we dyed it in Yorkshire tea (the strongest, as we all know). We placed each piece of lace in a small bowl, from the Dressers’ kitchen, filled with cool water and a tea bag and left it for about five minutes, checking regularly until the colour was perfect," Kelly explains, according a sneak peek of the book, which was published this weekend in Hello.
Kelly also revealed that the Queen was very involved in the process.
"At each stage of the process I would show our progress to the Queen: first the bodies, then the sleeves attached to it, then the skirt with the under-layers on, and finally the completed robe. Her Majesty was very interested to see how it was developing."
The replica has since been worn by many of the Queen's great-grandchildren, including all of Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis, and, of course, baby Archie.
Per the book's publisher Harper Collins, this marks the first time a current member of the royal household has been given personal permission by the Queen to publish such a book.
"It gives a rare insight into the demands of the job of supporting the Monarch, and we gain privileged insight into a successful working relationship, characterized by humor, creativity, hard work, and a mutual commitment to service and duty," Samantha Cohen, former assistant private secretary to the Queen, says of Kelly's book.
"Angela is a talented and inspiring woman, who has captured the highlights of her long career with The Queen for us all to share."
The Other Side of the Coin: The Queen, the Dresser and the Wardrobe hits shelves later this week. Pre-order Now
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