Inside the lavish 18th birthday gala of a young Scandinavian princess

Celebrating your 18th birthday is a special occasion for anybody, but if you happen to be the future Queen of Norway, your party might attract a particularly special crowd. This was exactly the case for Princess Ingrid Alexandra of Hanover, second in line after her father, Crown Prince Haakon, and set to become the country’s first female monarch in six centuries upon ascension to the throne.
The princess’s 18th birthday gala and so-called ‘Official Day’, held in Oslo’s Deichman Bjørvika library, had a guest list overflowing with European royals and aristocracy. There was, of course, Ingrid Alexandra’s direct family; in attendance was her mother, Crown Princess Mette-Marit, and her grandparents, the reigning Queen Sonja and King Harald. But also joining the princess were her three fellow future queens of Europe: Princess Catharina-Amalia of the Netherlands, also recently 18, 20-year-old Princess Elisabeth of Belgium, and ten-year-old Princess Estelle of Sweden. Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark, Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden, King Felipe V of Spain and King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands were also present for the evening festivities, which included a dinner, speeches, musical performances as well as a polonaise.
As for the fashion sported to fete the princess? Ingrid Alexandra herself cut a regal figure in two dresses. The first was a strapless, polka-dotted tulle gown by Monique Lhullier, with a pleated, lacy shawl draped over the shoulders. Particularly of note, however, was the Boucheron Circlet Pearl Tiara the princess wore with her second purple gown; the headpiece, once belonging to her great-great-grandmother Princess Ingeborg, was a birthday gift she could now wear as she stepped into adulthood. The guests, meanwhile, certainly did not shy from colour: Princess Martha Louise of Norway made an appearance in an encrusted hot pink dress, while Crown Princess Mette-Marit brought the sun in a high-necked yellow gown.
Below, take a glimpse inside Princess Ingrid Alexandra’s lavish birthday gala.Read more at:purple formal dresses australia | navy formal dress