The Other Side of the Coin: The Queen, the Dresser and the Wardrobe

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If you know me, you know my love and obsession for the Royals and for fashion and this book covered it all! This book was on my Christmas list and although it is the second book of Angela Kelly and I have not had the chance to read the first one, this book gave an insight of what it is like to work for Her Majesty, The Queen. And oh how I wish I did! Her Majesty is said to have told a lady-in-waiting that she was determined to keep busy as it helped her cope with Prince Philip's death. Kelly herself is a tough Liverpool-Irish girl with great energy and an optimistic outlook. She loves fabric and clothes and feels privileged to have been the means of encouraging the Queen to transition to brighter colors and more modern designs. It's always fun to read about someone who loves his/her job.

For the nearly seven decades of her reign, Her Majesty The Queen has used clothing to create a powerful visual identity that transcends fashion and has made her perhaps the most readily identifiable person on the planet. Angela Kelly, building on the work of the great designers and milliners who have worked with Her Majesty through the years – including couturiers Sir Norman Hartnell, Sir Hardy Amies, and Ian Thomas, and milliners such as Simone Mirman and Freddy Fox – brings her own imagination to bear on an iconic ‘uniform’ that suggests continuity and tradition, and ensures that the wearer is always the most visible person in a room or a crowd.’ –Anna Wintour, VogueAuthor Angela Kelly is front and center in charge of the royal wardrobe. No detail is too small. It took her and her amazing team two years to design, choose fabrics, and make the wardrobe a reality for both the Jubilee and the Olympics, where the eyes of the world would be on Queen Elizabeth. They did an outstanding job. Angela describes the Queen in a personal light without revealing anything too personal and nothing scandalous. Queen Elizabeth is interested in the details of every aspect of her job and what is reflected to the world. I loved the stories of local tribes, people and markets from her visits supply her wardrobe. That QEII enjoys a good bargain and is known to use fabric she may have given 30 plus years ago today. QEII is also a practical joker who takes it as well as she gives it. Prince Phillip is a person you can rely on when you need an honest opinion (when asked about a questionable fabric choice he responded with "are we reupholstering the couch?" Angela clearly loves QEII and by extension her job.

I absolutely loved the stunning photos in the hardcopy! Many have never been seen before! The colors were especially dazzling! There are a lot of fillers inserted as chapters, by other staff, by photographers, by designers on how wonderful Angela Kelly is, what a joy to work for, such a privilege to be invited to work for the Queen. Major toadying. I wouldn't say it was boasting as I think these were probably inserted by an editor to pad out this insubstantial book. You know how when you had to write a paper in school and there was a minimum length requirement so you just kept repeating and rewording the same thoughts over and over? That is this book.

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Not that she doesn't value discretion. She met the author during a royal visit to the British Embassy in Germany, where Kelly was the housekeeper. Asked about who would be the next guest there, Kelly refused to say, citing the pledge she had given not to divulge details of her duties. The Queen and Prince Philip were amused at Kelly's firmness, but they didn't forget it, either. Soon afterwards, she returned to England and was approached about a job in the Palace. The Royals like staff who can keep their mouths shut! A few of the photos are only of scenic locations (e.g. the Taj Mahal, the Sydney Opera House, etc.) with no one in the shots. Was Queen Elizabeth a strict person who never agreed to break protocol? The answer to this question can be easily found on social media in the London Olympics inauguration video. It was not a video that fortuitously happened. We can see how she agreed to break the protocol and made us all see her humorous side to make us all happy. There are few occasions on which Her Majesty will agree to break protocol, but in 2011, when film director Danny Boyle approached the Royal Household, he had a request to make that we simply could not refuse. This book is a highly enjoyable read. To my knowledge, this is the first book sanctioned by the Queen written by a staff member; a current staff member at that.

Her Majesty needed to look glamorous on every occasion: there must not be a 'stand-out' outfit that overshadowed the rest, especially since she would be visiting two countries. There were also cultural sensitivities to take into account: would any particular colour be considered offensive or inappropriate?" Also extreme name dropping, especially with QE2. I couldn't believe one of the earliest experiences she related when she kept bothering QE2 about elocution lessons even when QE2 had given her opinion once. Are some of the detailed descriptions of Queen's private room discussed in the news and social media true? Update: I was interested (but not surprised) to learn that when the Queen retreated to Windsor Castle (after being widowed and in the face of the pandemic) the author was invited to live with her full time. Clearly, Ms Kelly was a cherished companion, as well as the keeper of the wardrobe. So what are the new Angela Kelly books releasing in 2022 or beyond? The bookworms here at booksrelease.com have been hard at work compiling and sorting the official list of Angela Kelly newest books 2022, Angela Kelly new releases 2022/2023 and beyond.Along with the claims about the staff's feelings towards the dresser, Brandreth's book also reveals the Queen's incredible stoicism during her final months. But I ask myself is it the position or is the money? I recently had a short relationship, 3-4 months, with a billionaire racing car driver. He did odd time-related things too. When we got to Daytona for the PCA OktoberFast, the practices were next day (these determine pole position on the grid) and he decided he wanted a spare engine 'just in case'. So he got an engine air-freighted in overnight. Just like that. Who does that? author Angela Kelly gives an in-depth, but dignified look behind-the-scenes as Queen Elizabeth II's Personal Assistant, Advisor and Curator (Jewellery, Insignias, and Wardrobe) since 1994; In a snippet serialised in the Mail+ it explained how Angela helped the Queen dress in colourful clothes following the death of her husband.

Mary Angela Kelly, LVO (born 4 November 1957, Liverpool), is a British fashion designer, dressmaker, and milliner, who served as Personal Assistant and Senior Dresser to Queen Elizabeth II from 2002 to the Queen's death in 2022. Her official title is Personal Assistant, Adviser and Curator to Her Majesty The Queen (Jewellery, Insignias and Wardrobe). She says little about her children and how she managed as a working single mother. A shame, since I would have been interested. She must have had family support as her job required long hours and much time out of London. She does write about her four grandchildren, especially the granddaughter who shares her love of clothes and clothing design. One crucial factor was the dress The Queen would wear for the momentous skydive. I had to be careful not to choose a colour that was strongly associated with any of the participating nations, too, so after much consideration, I chose peach. However, the colour wasn't the only factor, the dress also had to be designed perfectly to allow movement in the skirt as The Queen seemingly flew through the air." Kelly founded a fashion label, Kelly & Pordum, with Alison Pordum, who was also employed as the Queen's in-house dressmaker until 2008. Kelly is also the author of Dressing the Queen: The Jubilee Wardrobe and The Other Side of the Coin: The Queen, the Dresser and the Wardrobe. I absolutely loved this book! It may seem easy to imagine what goes into dressing the Queen, especially for the Diamond Jubilee Celebration which happened in 2012. I guarantee that you really cannot imagine the scope of what it took - what it still takes every day - to dress HRH the Queen.

First impression matter. Angela met QEII while working at the Berlin embassy. She refused to tell the Queen who was coming next since she had signed a confidentially agreement. This was extremely cringeworthy. It was a case of everyone else is wrong and the author is right, especially if the everyone else was someone who was in a more senior position (except for her mentors). The author and any budding author should take note: no one likes a chronic complainer or a tattle tale, it just sounds bad and is a bad look. From Her Majesty’s trusted confidant and Dresser Angela Kelly LVO comes a lavishly designed book of never-before-seen photos of The Queen, Her wardrobe and Her jewels and features intimate anecdotes from Angela’s 25-year career working closely with Her Majesty. A truly unique keepsake and collectors’ item to be treasured. With the help of Angela Kelly, she opted for yellow and pink and powder blue, in summery dresses with pretty floral designs." Angela is obviously a very important person in the Queens life and is involved in the fabric selection, the dress making, the alterations, hat design you name it. Even ironing on the Royal train.