ROYAL COUTURE....Crown Princess Masako of Japan: A Fashion Recycler!

A couple of weeks back was the Inauguration/Crowing of Willem-Alexander and Máxima of the Netherlands. Queen Beatrix abdicated her throne to her oldest son and became Princess Beatrix and now Europe has a fabulous South American-born Queen! But lots of attention went to Crown Princess Masako of Japan. Why?







Well, for starters, this was her first official trip abroad in nearly 11 years! After marrying the Crown Prince in 1993, Masako has been quite of a mystery and much-discussed royal. HIH
Crown Princess Masako graduated from Harvard University and she came from a diplomatic family. After
the marriage, HIH Crown Princess Masako found a lot of difficulty
adjusting herself to her own position as a crown princess of Japan.  In December 2003, she came down with shingles and
spent weeks in hospital. In July 2004 the palace announced an official
diagnosis of “stress-induced adjustment disorder.”, saying that Masako suffered from a mental illness. She refrained from doing almost all
the official duties of crown princess. She has been undergoing treatment for a stress-induced
illness for many years which has restricted her travel and her workload
to almost nothing. Oh, and did I mention she has "failed to produce" a male heir. Mon Diue!








So, yes, it's been a difficult road for the once-vivacious Masako. I was intrigued by all this but of course, I wanted to look into her FASHION and then I realized that the off-white damask completely covered-up gown which she wore at the Dutch Royal Inaugural Ceremonies, well..she's worn it before...SEVERAL times. If I didn't feel bad for Crown princess Masako before, now I really do! I have a feeling she's not being a "Recessionista" or a COUTURE Recycler. Nope, Not so much. You would think as the Crown Princess of Japan that the Imperial Palace would, at the very least, provide her with some NEW Haute Couture. Seriously.  But nope...Check out Exhibits A, B and C:




























Here's a a look back at Crown Princess Masako's most recent fashion statements:

















OMG, she shows some SKIN: Crown Princess Masako and Crown Prince Naruhito see off Emperor Akihito
and Empress Michiko departing for Canada at Tokyo International Airport
on July 3, 2009 in Tokyo, Japan. The emperor and empress are on
fortnight trip to Canada and Hawaii--I think this was one of her best most recent ensembles--the vanilla/creme color was nice and more importantly, the notched collar neckline allowed for some skin  to show! The skirt length, however, is still soooo made for a 70-year old woman.