Can you believe it? South Africa now has our very own European Royal, Her Serene Highness Princess Charlene of Monaco. Good ole' Charlene Wittstock from Benoni married HSH Prince Albert in a civil ceremony on Friday, followed by an extravagant religious ceremony on Saturday, with the commensurate evening receptions on both days. Much has been made of this 'arranged' marriage, much has been speculated about additional children born to other mothers, Charlene's state of mind and her happiness. I say this, she is a grown woman who makes her own decisions. She is well brought up, disciplined and determined and I am quite sure she has weighed up all the options before the celebrations this weekend. To assume she is a puppet and being forced into something is patronising and insulting to an Olympic athlete and fine woman. So whatever the circumstances, we will have nothing to do with that. What we will have a whole lot to do with is the outfits. And there were a slew of them to discuss.
Let's start with the civil ceremony on Friday, where Charlene wore a powder blue Chanel jacket with tiny silver beaded buttons together with a palazzo pant pleated, strapless suit. She co-designed it with Kaiser Karl Lagerfeld and insisted on the trousers as part of her personal, athletic style. At the concert in the evening, the (rather mumsy) jacket came off and I loved the suit and the stunning neck piece she wore.

The Giorgio Armani couture wedding dress I was less enthralled by. I am not a fan of emphasising swimmers' shoulders and think that the playing up of Charlene's was a mistake and made for weird proportions. The Duchess satin is also a tiny bit stiff and shiny. But I adored the diamond hairpiece borrowed from Princess Caroline and think that she looked very beautiful.

The wedding party were dressed in a plethora of Chanel, with Princess Charlotte and one of Stephanie's daughters standing out in the blue. Yes, that is the same dress that Emma Roberts wore a couple of months ago. Charlene's mother however, we are led to believe, is wearing a suit designed by local designer and Charlene's fave, Terence Bray. If that is correct, a fine job was done and congratulations. Oh and ladies, those are Charlene's brothers. One is single. Just saying.

And finally, to bring the formal celebrations to a close ahead of their South African honeymoon, Princess Charlene wore a tiered white Armani Prive gown to her evening reception. Just look at that exquisite bead detailing on the gown. It is truly beautiful and all perfectly proportioned. Oh, and Princess Charlotte looked pretty sizzling too.

Congratulations to all involved with a wonderful selection of looks, events and celebrations. And especially to the new royal couple, for whom I wish many years of happiness together whatever the circumstances.