Thursday, April 4, 2013

William and Catherine Take Part In A Day of Scottish Engagements




The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are set to be in Scotland for two days of official engagements, the first of which they completed today, in Glasgow.


As usual, crowds assembled long before the couple arrived. Here you can just barely see the royal couple.




They began their day with a tour of Emirates Arena, one of the venues for the 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games. The couple enjoyed watching a practice session with cyclists in the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome (Cyclist Chris is Scotland's most successful Olympic athlete) and watched athletics, badminton and netball demonstrations. William and Catherine were London 2012 ambassadors during the Olympics last summer and attended numerous sporting events in their roles; they are both athletic and have loved sports since a young age. With this in mind, they are obviously eager to give their support to the upcoming Glasgow Commonwealth Games. The Commonwealth Arena and Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome, known for sponsorship reasons as the Emirates Arena is an indoor arena and velodrome built specially for the Commonwealth Games. The arena has a capacity of 5,000 and during the games it will host twelve badminton courts in three indoor sports halls. It is an impressive venue and I expect it is entirely possible the Cambridges will attend events during the games.



The couple met with athletes during their tour of the arena. Here they take a few moments to chat. Onlooker Louise Robertson noted they "laugh together a lot".


They also unveiled a plaque inside the venue.


The duo play a game of table tennis.

William said about the game.
Catherine – who, you may have noticed, is limited a little in the sports she can play right now – has had to hold herself back from grabbing a tennis racquet and challenging me to a full game. I am far too much of a gentleman to say who would win (but you all saw for yourselves!).


Outside, eight-month-old Heidi must have felt quite hungry, so she she began to munch on Catherine's flowers. An amused Duchess enjoyed speaking with the baby, commenting, "They're probably not so tasty" You can watch a video of the exchange here.

While Catherine was experiencing baby cuteness, William was having his own miniature baby misadventures.

The little girl was holding a burgundy carnation. William asked "Is that for me?" The girl shook her head and said no, William smiled and said "It's for Kate. Quite right".
You can watch the video here. I don't know which one is cuter, Catherine's video or William's!


Next, Their Royal Highnesses had lunch at the Civic Hall Civic Chambers before visiting the Quarriers Stopover Project, a homeless project for youths aged 16-25 based in the south side of the city. Quarriers Stopover is a short-term residential unit for 14 people who find themselves homeless. Many of the people who arrive at Quarriers have drug or alcohol addiction problems and mental health issues. Staff at the project are trained to support them and work intensively addressing head-on the challenges they face.

William had a Skype conversation with two homeless Scottish people working in Holland. Dylan Howie and Lyn Burchan are taking part in an innovative exchange programme in the Dutch town of Papendrecht and both described the call as "Brilliant and exciting".
Catherine took part in a media workshop.

'The Duchess meanwhile turned producer as she called "cut" during a filming session, one of several workshops available for youngsters at the Quarrier's Stopover Project. Kate reassured the camera-shy actors and applauded when they finished their pieces. She admitted that knitting was so far not one of her strong points when a resident presented her with a woollen hat for her child along with a teddy bear and a babygro. She said: "I've been trying to knit and I'm really bad. I should be asking for tips". She told 17 year-old Caitlin Coffield: "It's very sweet of you, I'll keep it safe for the big day".


My favorite picture from the entire day. Catherine meets the official Mascot for the Games, Clyde.

Of course, the day couldn't go by without onlookers asking baby questions.


Below is a tweet on a walkabout Catherine took during the day.



The Duchess of Cambridge wore a grey tartan coat from Moloh, a British label. The Workers Coat is 100% wool, well suited to a brisk Scottish day. It is done in a large navy and grey tartan, with oversized flap pocket detailing and large silver buttons on the front and at the cuff. The coat also features a flared skirt and double vents on the back. This piece is still shown as available on the Moloh website, it is £425, approximately $650 at today’s exchange rates. Moloh is a brand Catherine is said to have favored over the years, more from British Vogue:

The label’s collections are all created in Britain and are sold at its Pimlico store in London. What started as traditional country attire has been reinterpreted to offer demure, high-quality relaxed daywear. 



I love the style of the label - below are three dresses for spring and summer that they carry, and hopefully you'll understand why I like these styles so much!


More about the brand:
“We hope to attract a younger customer, who blends the classic more expensive pieces with the high street,” added Smiley. “We want our new customer to really appreciate our quality and buy something that will last her forever that she can pass down, leaving her feeling nothing but totally chic.”


The Duchess elected to wear her sapphire and diamond earrings, opaque tights and her black suede clutch. She also wore her favorite Aquatalia 'Rhumba' Boots. The boots are also available in brown at Nordstrom.

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