We can't count the number of times royals have borrowed their family's wedding tiaras, from Princess Beatrice rocking Sarah Ferguson's bridal headpiece at the Jordan royal wedding to Princess Anne famously choosing her mother Queen Elizabeth II's wedding tiara.
But with so many show-stopping jewels on offer, seeing the same royal lady step out in her own wedding tiara is rare. We've tracked down photos of the Duchess of Edinburgh, Queen Mary of Denmark and more recycling their bridal jewellery…
© GettyPrincess Sofia of Sweden
Princess Sofia of Sweden's in-laws King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia gifted her the Palmette Tiara for her wedding to Prince Carl Philip in Stockholm on 13 June 2015.
Exuding elegance, Sofia wore a beautiful lace gown by Swedish designer Ida Sjöstedt and styled her hair in an updo topped with the tiara. It featured diamond palmettes and matching spikes with dazzling emeralds – which were reportedly previously part of a necklace belonging to Silvia.
Sofia has not let the coloured jewel impact its versatility, as she regularly tweaks her wedding tiara to match her outfits – she sported the original emerald design for the Nobel Prize ceremony in December 2015 but switched the jewels for pearls in 2017 and 2018. Back in 2019, she teamed her blue dress with turquoise stones.
Queen Mary of Denmark
When Queen Mary of Denmark married King Frederik – who recently ascended the throne – at Copenhagen Cathedral in May 2004, she teamed her ivory Uffe Frank gown with a sparkling tiara given to her by her parents-in-law, Queen Margrethe II and Prince Henrik of Denmark.
Made up of diamond heart and fleur-de-lis motifs, the tiara has been seen on many occasions since the royal wedding, with Mary even tweaking it to include pearls. For example, she stepped out at Gustav Prinz zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg and Carina Axelsson's nuptials in 2022 in the stunning headpiece alongside one of her favourite Erdem gowns.
© GettyPrincess Margaret
While it is tradition for royal brides to have their first tiara moment at their royal wedding, rebellious Princess Margaret threw out the rulebook and was pictured in the Poltimore Tiara for the state visit of the Shah of Iran in May 1959 – one year before announcing her engagement to Antony Armstrong-Jones.
She then recycled it as a necklace at the Royal Opera House, before turning it back into a show-stopping tiara for her wedding in 1960, where she paired it with her Norman Hartnell gown.
© GettySarah Ferguson
Sarah, Duchess of York is a sustainability queen when it comes to re-wearing her clothes – and that includes her wedding tiara. She debuted the York tiara, which is thought to have been a present from her in-laws the late Queen Elizabeth II and Duke of Edinburgh, at her royal wedding at Westminster Abbey in 1986 alongside her embroidered ivory silk gown by Lindka Cierach.
The floral-shaped diamond scroll headpiece designed by Garrard had several more outings – even five years after she divorced Andrew!
She memorably wore the tiara with a candy pink ball gown designed by Zandra Rhodes in 1987, a white strapless dress in Canada in 1989, and finally, with a black dress to Elton John's White Tie and Tiara ball in 2001.
© GettyDuchess of Edinburgh
One outing was not enough for the Duchess of Edinburgh's elegant diamond wedding tiara. After topping her blonde pixie cut with the headpiece for her 1999 nuptials, alongside her silk organza Samantha Shaw bridal goen, Sophie once again turned to her jewellery collection for two more royal weddings in 2001 and 2002.
To celebrate Crown Prince Haakon of Norway and Mette-Marit's wedding, Duchess Sophie donned the headpiece with a striking royal blue satin gown, while she opted for a strapless monochrome gown for Princess Martha Louise of Norway and Ari Behn's nuptials.
READ: Why only some royal brides keep their wedding tiaras revealed
