Feel like royalty, without the royal price tag

At the coronation of King Charles last weekend there was a treasure trove of dazzling royal jewellery on display. Diamond necklaces, pearl earrings, jewel encrusted crowns and tiaras. Everywhere you looked there was another big sparkler.

We may not all have the Crown Jewels at our disposal, but you don’t have to be a real life princess to feel like one. Here’s how to emulate the royal look, without paying a King’s ransom.

Rings fit for royalty

As part of the coronation ceremony, Queen Camilla was presented with a special coronation ring. The ring, placed on her fourth finger, was originally made for Queen Adelaide in 1831. And was also worn by Queen Consort Mary of Moderna for her coronation in 1685. It features a large oval cut ruby, set with round cut diamonds.

Now, a huge ruby ring may be out of your budget (and ours!) but giant gemstone cocktail rings happen to be all the rage at the moment. Which means, there are plenty of modern and affordable ring designs out there. Giving you the chance to grab yourself a touch of that royal ring feeling. We love Thomas Sabo and Shyla's rings for this very reason. Bringing old school royal glamour bang up to date with their colourful crystal and glass creations.

Royal gemstone glory

There were many precious stones flashing around on coronation day. Not least those decorating the two crowns worn by King Charles. One of which, the State Crown holds a whopping 2,868 diamonds, 269 pearls, 17 sapphires, 11 emeralds, and four rubies. This includes the Black Prince’s Ruby, the Stuart Sapphire, and the Cullinan II diamond. A traditional piece of coronation regalia from the Crown Jewel collection, it was spectacular to behold.

Obviously we don’t all have one of those gathering dust in the cupboard. But the gorgeous array of colourful gemstones is something we can recreate. (If in a slightly more budget friendly fashion…)

Instead of rubies, emeralds and diamonds, why not celebrate all the colours of royal jewellery without the hefty price tag? A rainbow necklace, like one of these examples, from Annie Haak and Swarovski for example, will give you that royal treasure look, without breaking the bank.

Alternatively, get the royal look by adorning yourself in pearls. As luck would have it, pearls happen to be a hot trend at the moment. Once only worn by royalty, thanks to modern production methods they are now a gem everyone can afford. They come in a wide variety of traditional settings or modern designs, like these examples from Daisy London and Jersey Pearl. And you can choose from polished pearls, or natural unfinished stones.

Get Kate’s royal jewellery look

Catherine, Princess of Wales, was wearing her own collection of beautiful pieces at the coronation. Pearls made another appearance in the form of a pair of earrings that Kate wore. These originally belonged to her late mother-in-law, Princess Diana. Each one boasting a horseshoe of diamonds and giant teardrop pearl. 

We may not be able to match the royal history of Kate's earrings, but we do have our own take. Sif Jakobs Galantina pearl drop earrings, or Jersey Pearl’s Circle Pearl studs for instance. Both feature pearls, a touch of sparkle and that special, princess quality.

Alongside those amazing pearl earrings, Kate also wore a three strand diamond necklace, known as the George VI Festoon Necklace. This was commissioned by King George VI for Queen Elizabeth on her 25th birthday and was one of the late queen’s favourite pieces. Sadly, few of us have spare diamonds lying around to fashion ourselves a necklace out of.  But we can get our hands on the next best thing - the tennis necklace. Tennis necklaces looks like a million dollars, without the price tag. And as luck would have it tennis necklaces are yet another classic to come back into fashion this year. So you can be on-trend and looking royal-fabulous.

Princess Catherine also wore a stunning floral headpiece created by Jess Collett x Alexander McQueen to complement her bespoke Alexander McQueen gown. It's true that there aren’t many occasions the rest of us can get away with donning a headpiece like this one. But there is one day we can all legitimately wear a tiara - and that's our wedding day. 

If you happen to be planning your wedding and love Kate’s headgear, take a look at Ivory & Co’s gorgeous designs. From sparkling hair combs to crystal encrusted tiaras, you will look and feel like a princess with one of these on your big day.