Is Kate Middleton’s royal jewelry worth more than Meghan Markle’s? Both duchesses made changes to Diana's gems
While Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle might have their differences, both the duchesses like to have their jewelry customized their way, even if they once belonged to the iconic Princess Diana.
Royal fans know that before the People's Princess' tragic death in 1997, she became a global style icon and her impressive jewelry collection was a large part of her fashion. Before her passing, she wrote in her will that she wanted her jewels to be passed on to her two sons in the hope that they would pass it on to their future wives one day. In her "letter of wishes" Diana wrote: "I would like to allocate all my jewelry to the share to be held by my sons, so that their wives may, in due course, have it or use it. I leave the exact division of the jewelry to your discretion."
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Diana's sapphire ring was 'too big' for Kate
Prince William proposed to Kate in 2010 with his late mother's 12-carat sapphire engagement ring which is surrounded by 14 solitaire diamonds. It was set in 18-carat white gold and estimated to be worth $416,000. Diana's former butler Paul Burrell explained how Harry offered his older sibling their mother's ring shortly before he proposed to his present wife, since the Duke of Sussex had inherited the ring.
"Harry said to him (William), 'Wouldn't it be fitting if she had mummy's ring?' Then one day that ring will be sat on the throne of England," Burrell told producers of the Amazon Prime documentary 'The Diana Story'. "Harry gave up his precious treasure. The one thing he kept from his mother, he gave to his brother. That's selfless, kind, and exactly who Diana was," he added.
It was later reported that Kate had the sapphire ring adjusted as it was a little too big. Jeweller G Collins and Sons resized the ring by adding small platinum beads inside the band to reduce its diameter. Despite altering the ring a little bit, the Duchess of Cambridge refrained from changing the original design of Diana's engagement ring. However, she did change the clasp detail of her late mother-in-law's stunning sapphire earrings, which were a favorite of Diana's as they perfectly matched her engagement ring. The original dangly earrings had a stud fastening, featuring its own circular sapphire diamond detail. Kate chose to change the design by removing the stud fastening and diamonds and transforming them into delicate teardrop earrings.
Meghan was criticized when she altered her engagement ring
Harry's selfless gesture during William's proposal meant he would not be able to present the ring to Meghan Markle when he proposed to her in 2017. Instead, the 36-year-old royal is said to have designed the engagement ring himself using two diamonds that had belonged to Diana alongside a central stone from Botswana, where the Sussexes had been on holiday.
At the time, Meghan had applauded her princely husband for his "thoughtfulness" and said it ensured that Princess Diana would always be a part of their story. "Everything about Harry's thoughtfulness and the inclusion of Princess Diana's stones and obviously not being able to meet his mum," the former actress said. "It's so important to me to know that she's a part of this with us." However, it was revealed that Meghan has had her engagement ring dramatically altered and a blingy diamond-studded micro-pave design sits where a thick gold band used to be.
Speaking to Fabulous Digital, editor-in-chief of Majesty magazine Ingrid Seward questioned Meghan's "odd" move to "alter a ring that her husband has specially designed for her." She said: "A royal engagement ring is a piece of history not a bit of jewelry to be updated when it looks old-fashioned."
Whose bling costs more?
Although one would think that Kate Middleton inherited more royal jewelry, being the future queen and all, this is not the case. According to Daily Mail, Meghan's jewelry is valued at a staggering $832,000, including seven necklaces, 23 bracelets, 26 rings, and 35 pairs of earrings. One of the most expensive is a $104,000 aquamarine ring, which she wore for her wedding evening reception.
The Duchess of Cambridge doesn’t have such an impressive collection: she owns about 60 pieces of jewelry, including her engagement ring and ‘Saudi Suite’ – a wedding gift from Crown Prince Fahd which contained a sapphire watch, earrings, bracelet, ring and necklace.