Which Tiara Should Kate Wear?

From the left: The Duchess of Teck, the Strathmore or the Delhi Durbar.

Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, also known as the Queen Mum so as not to confuse her with the current Queen, Queen Elizabeth II, is shown wearing the floral tiara given to her by her parents when she married Prince Albert.

Ancient Tiara etiquette is that you wear one for the first time on the occasion of your marriage. This is because they symbolise the loss of innocence and the crowning of love.

The Cambridge Lover's Knot Tiara

This is the tiara that everyone is speculating Kate will choose. It belonged to The Queen, but she gave it as a wedding gift to her daughter-in-law, Princess Diana. This gem was commissioned from Garrard in 1913/1914 by everyone's favorite magpie, Queen Mary. She modeled it off of a tiara owned by her grandmother, Princess Augusta of Hesse.

Swinging pearls hang from 19 diamond arches capped with lover's knots. The piece was composed of existing jewels Queen Mary had in her collection. Originally, the design included upright pearls on top of the arches, but Mary had them removed eventually.

After Mary died in 1953, the tiara passed to Queen Elizabeth II. She wore it with some regularity in the early 1950s, but it eventually went back to storage as she narrowed down her favorite tiaras to the ones we see with regularity today.

Here both The Queen and Princess Diana are shown wearing the Cambridge Love Knot tiara.

Diana wore the Spencer Family Tiara (pictured below) with her wedding gown during the ceremony.

Spencer Family Tiara

I love to see the way this tiara sparkled and shined in the videos of the wedding. Gorgeous, stunning tiara. The Royal Family does not want Kate compared to Diana, so Kate will probably not wear this tiara. She is, after all, wearing Diana's Sapphire Diamond Ring. This is my favorite tiara.

Tradition also demands that the bride wears one from her own family's collection on her wedding day, but thereafter wears only those from her husband's family.

Being that Kate Middleton is a commoner, I doubt she has any tiaras in her family to choose from. I imagine the cost of making her one would be astronomical!

Diana's brother said that Diana had a terrible headache from wearing the tiara all day. She wasn't used to it. Maybe Kate should practice wearing her tiara around the house to prepare for the big day.

Delhi Durbar Tiara

As this tiara was recently worn by the Duchess of Cornwall, Camilla, we don't think it is in the running for Kate. She will want to stand out, but not be compared to others. Who knows, maybe her family will have one made especially for her!

I think Camilla pulls of this stunning tiara. It is so big, but yet it is perfect with her hair and earrings.

A tiara should never be worn at a hotel, but can be worn to dinner party when entertaining friends.

They are very difficult to place and good posture is absolutely essential to keep the tiara in place.

Queen Mary wore a tiara every night she dined n private with her husband George V.

Tiara rules of etiquette found in "The Telegraph"