King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima of the Netherlands are undertaking a state visit to the Republic of Suriname at the invitation of President Jennifer Geerlings-Simons. On the evening of December 1, 2025, King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima attended a State Banquet hosted by President Jennifer Geerlings-Simons and her husband, Glenn Geerlings, at the Presidential Palace in Paramaribo, Suriname.
For the State Banquet, Queen Máxima wore the Dutch Diamond Bandeau and Diamond Earrings, along with the Dutch East Indies Bracelet. The Dutch Diamond Bandeau was created in 1937 using twenty-seven of the thirty-four diamonds from a rivière necklace presented to Queen Emma by the people of the Netherlands as a wedding gift in 1879.
Sa robe est d’une belle couleur. Elle sied à la morphologie de la reine.
ReplyDeleteLes bijoux sont simples et ont leur charme.
Néanmoins, je trouve qu’une robe avec moins de volants aurait été tout aussi belle.
Outre cela, son chignon est une bonne idée, mais la finition n’est pas bien réalisée.
Dans l’ensemble, je trouve qu’ils forment un beau couple.
-Astrid.
Shall I wait for the first "how inappropriate look at the cleavage blabla" remark? :-) For me, this is really a perfect mixture of being unequivocally queenly elegant - but not in an overwhelming way. She has a tiara, but not one of the big guns and this one is really very well chosen. The bracelets and the earrings are probably priceless, but they don't overwhelm the onlooker like a big gun tiara would. She looks gorgeous in this dress, I don't really like this colour personally, but it oes not really count because it looks so good on her. Perfect fit, lovely shoes too. A pleasure to look at, for me at least.
ReplyDeleteQueen Maxima looks stunning in this dress, I like everything about it except the way too deep neckline. People can call it bla bla bla cleavage criticism, but in my opinion it ruins the harmony and proportions of this otherwise beautiful dress.
DeleteI love this dress on her. It is exquisite down to her accessories. I don’t love the color either but I understand why she wears it a lot. With KWilliam as the head of the House of Orange, QMax often wears the color orange as a point of pride in family and country. All conjecture, of course since she didn’t confide that to me personally. ;)
DeleteHere is queen Silvia at the age of 75 with a very plunging neckline. She doesn't look bad either.
DeleteScroll the article and you will find the pictures of her in her evening gown. I find it very sexist to judge women for their necklines in 2025! Queens or not. And Maxima's neckline is very becoming to her.
https://www.newmyroyals.com/2019/10/queen-silvia-attended-25th-anniversary.html
nobody saying blaba about cleavage, we like it.
DeleteI expect comments about cleavage, too. I think this is another instance of not having a wide understanding of fashion throughout history. In generations past, decolletage is shown in women's fashion. As long as there is not too much showing, I don't understand the problem. The royals are not nuns. It is like the Victorian's idea of modesty and propriety have become the standard for royals, modified for current times, forgetting that there are centuries of styles before that. Even the Victorians lowered their necklines for eveningwear.
DeleteLiterally my first thought was she looked nice and not overly flashy. What the photos don’t show is a thin gauze over the chest area.
Delete16:13 I don’t quite see the point made that it’s sexist to judge women’s necklines, as women have cleavage and men generally don’t, so it’s not a sexism thing. I personally am very uncomfortable if clothes reveal too much of any human’s private parts, because I want to take the human seriously and not have my eyes caught by the skin revelations! - and am definitely confronted by anyone with too much cleavage showing. It’s not sexist, it’s not generational, I just think it remains appropriate to remain appropriately covered by clothes in many contexts especially formal and public. Here Maxima’s neckline is not revealing too much cleavage although it’s deeper than her normal necklines; it’s very neat, her posture is beautiful, and the neckline complements the dress. However also looking at balance on this Natan dress, the back is the real highlight, and the front would look equally good with the next v sitting 5 cm higher.
DeleteQueen Maxima looks fantastic in her gown. As part of the so called "cleavage blabla", I am not a fan of the plunging neckline. My personal preferrence and it doesn't matter who wears it, I just don't like it.
DeleteT
Knocked it out of the park Maxima. Superb. I hope WA told her so!
ReplyDeleteA very beautiful flattering dress, am impressed by Maxima on this state visit, she checks all the boxes. The tiara was unnecessary, judging from the very casual crowd, however am glad its a minimal tiara compared to her usual grand jeweley.
ReplyDeleteI watched a video of some length showing their arrival (with fabulous native costume and dancing), the speeches, and everyone standing for toasts. The majority of the women were dressed in long gowns (some I couldn't see well), the men were in dark suits. I do not believe that Maxima was over-dressed at all. I think what gets forgotten is that the details of these visits are exchanged far in advance and they would have established the level of formality for the banquet. She is wearing low profile tiara, more evidence that the tone was set before their departure. Lastly, she is a queen. As a queen, it would be expected for her to dress and carry herself as a queen. From the footage I saw, the first lady is the most casually dressed.
DeleteWaouh, superbe décolleté plongeant sans oublier la partie haute dénudée du dos pour équilibrer ; je n'aime pas du tout le style de ses chaussures qui me paraissent trop lourdes !
ReplyDeleteMaxima is keeping it simple this trip, due to political sensitivities. Suriname is a fairly poor ex-colony of the Netherlands, and there are ongoing talks about paying reparations for the colonial past and slavery. In that context, turning up in glamorous expensive clothes with marvellous tiaras would be highly inappropriate. She is doing her best to tone down this trip, but I am not loving this dress on her.
ReplyDeleteFun fact: this dinner was held at a local party center, as the presidential palace is too small. Apparently, it was a very casual affair. You can see in many pictures of their facial expressions that the king and queen feel a little out of place.
Natascha
Je souscris à votre propos. Le roi et la reine sont coutumiers de cadres plus fastueux.
DeleteCelui-ci est sans conteste très modeste.
Lorsque l’on regarde leurs expressions faciales respectives (images numéros 8 et 11), elles traduisent une inaccoutumance (j’ignore si le mot est adéquat).
-Astrid.
@Natascha, thank you for putting it into proper context.
DeleteI was wondering why they were in a seemingly chilly, too brightly lit, conference type of room... Thanks for the background info @Natascha 11:18
DeleteYou can't possibly know how they were feeling by a snapshot. That is but a fraction of a second in time.
DeleteEvery inch the Queen, that's what this visit is all about. And a tiara that is and is not a tiara. Well done!
ReplyDeleteShe is not the Queen, she is Queen-consort. Willem-Alexander told in an interview the day before he became King, that it’s definitely not a duo-job !
DeleteMaxima’s title Queen is a “titre de courtoisie” in Dutch: beleefdheidsvorm aanspreektitel !!
18:30 What is the point in nitpicking Queen vs. Queen Consort? I haven't seen corrections about Letizia, Mathilde, Mary, Camilla, Silvia, Sonja, Rania, Jetsun, and other lesser knowns, and of course Charlene, Masako and Stephanie who are consorts but not "Queen" consorts.
DeleteA stunning gown with just the right accesories spoilt for me by he incredibly bad workmanship of the gown. Whoever made it has no idea of how to work with what I think is silk georgette or it may be silk chiffon. It is puckering all down the V neckline pulling and puckering across the bodice and too tight in the skirt just below the waist. With the right underlining and a thorough knowledge of working with these fabric types and built in support it would be totally divine
ReplyDeleteThe workmanship is Natan. Many of the regulars here have previously claimed that they’ll never really understand the design or quality decisions!
DeleteAbsolutely beautiful - a perfect mix of tropical ease, elegance, and subtle but not overwhelming royalty. I love the flow of the dress. The King looks so proud of her and that sums up for me that she got it absolutely right.
ReplyDelete100%
DeleteI agree she looks fabulous.
DeleteAbsolutely agree! Everything done perfectly and with obvious thought in mind. Cute photo of King smiling at his Queen. And no gaudy jewelry here.
DeleteBelle robe fluide et un peu aérienne avec les pans de mousseline sur les épaules. J'aime beaucoup ce style de tissu, j'apprécie aussi les décolletés en V (à l'avant et dans le dos). Mais la couleur est assez indéfinissable, j'hésite entre du orange délavé ou du beige ou du bronze ou du curry (c'est variable selon l'éclairage), ce n'est pas une teinte facile à porter. Cette robe serait particulièrement belle en blanc (comme une vestale romaine) ou dans un pastel très très pâle : rose, bleu, jaune ou mauve.
ReplyDeleteLa coiffure lui va bien ainsi que le diadème porté en serre-tête (et pourtant je n'aime pas les serre-tête !) mais ici c'est très joli, un peu comme une coiffure de style Empire. Paloma.
Photo 3 says it all. Look at the Royal couple, compared to host couple, starkly different.
ReplyDeleteRoyal PR advance team's job was to remind them of the political & financial aspects of the country they were visiting. Maxima's job was to listen, hear, make choices. Sadly, she chose to do what she wanted, looked like a fish out of water. Facial expressions in photos 8, 11, says it all. The plunging v-neckline (horrible choice) and tiara was unnecessary judging from the very casual gathering of people. My perspective, bully comments need not be placed. Voice your own perspective in your own comment section.
16:43 I don’t think some of your assumptions are accurate, and I think your conclusions are a little tough. Unlikely that the Dutch Royal household has a PR department; they are not a corporation. They will however have advisors including for protocol, organisers for every single detail of a trip abroad and for every event attended big or small. The event protocols, dress code, and timing to the minute will have been agreed. What she wears will have been chosen within this. It is also highly likely that it will have been communicated. They are professionals at this and have been doing it for hundreds of years. And in the end, she doesn’t look like a fish out of water to me. She looks like a beautiful lady with her proud husband in a room of others who are beautifully dressed. It is normal that the visiting queen will honour the guests with glamour and a little sparkle - and personally, I wouldn’t want any less if she showed up to my party.
Delete16:43 Your assumptions are incorrect. Please note Anon 21:03's comments. The nice thing is that you can learn more about the way these events are organized so you will not make the same mistakes again. We, in the public, are not privy to the lengthy discussions and planning that go into state visits. The planning is so detailed that each day's events are expected to go smoothly, with outfits well planned out. Always funny when folks think they know more than the royal or their trained and experienced staff.
DeleteBeautiful gown, tiara, earrings and hair and really, people think that cleavage is "inappropiate" for a queen? Really? It's 2025 and she is a female so cleavage is kinda part of the deal.... but I think she looks great. The "banquet hall" feeling of the occasion is looking to me like the King is out of his element and not very comfortable at all. The pic of them at the table looks suspiciously like plastic serveware from the party store on the table but I am SURE I am WRONG. Right? But they all look fabulous.
ReplyDeleteI think she looks fabulous, the colour a nod to the Netherland orange. The diamonds in her upswept hair is perfect not over done. The flowing dress, yes despite a few flaws. A queen in a poor country still has to shine.
ReplyDeleteWhat a gorgeous gown! Glorious colour and lovely flowing skirts which looked so good on Queen Maxima. This time everything else was also spot on—hair gorgeous, perfect minimalist tiara, earrings lovely and no other jewellery needed. Love that the king looks, rightly, so proud of her. Superb.
ReplyDeleteAnnieM
@AnnieM Agreed on all points. Maxima looks wonderful, and she was dressed in perfect sync and tone with her surroundings and her hosts - not splashy but quietly regal. Her dress is gorgeous, and I love the neckline.
Delete- Anon 9:13
To me, some comments are excessively critical for an event meant with some simplicity.
ReplyDeleteIndeed MaryT. The ones where commenters presume to know more than the visiting royals about dress requirements always seem particularly ignorant and arrogant to me.
DeleteIt's Maxima. Of course, she would take the opportunity and wear a tiara, albeit one of the small ones. But then, this is not even a black tie affair, let alone a white tie thing, so it might be a smidge too much. The dress, however, is lovely on her.
ReplyDeleteThe comment regarding the colour is probably unjustified because the royal family of the Netherlands is the House of Orange. If she as a queen had turned up without a tiara, as has been suggested, the public would have been disappointed, but obviously great attention has been given to these sensitive details regarding an ex colony, and what we see is just the right balance. However, I find the slit too long.
ReplyDelete🌞 Virginia
Just surprises M uses a shawl and not the slips of the dress to cover her bare cold shoulders with.
ReplyDeleteThe dress is not my taste, but the hair updo and jewels are,
I love this gown on her and she looks marvelous. Then when I looked at everyone else I thought that whoops, she is majorly overdressed. A tiara when the woman in the country's leadership couple is wearing pants. However, then I thought that perhaps it's a way of showing respect. This is a dinner with the king and queen from a foreign country. It might be that the country they are in isn't as formal but W&M did right to honor them as they would everyone else. Either way, this is a splendid look. I like the neckline.
ReplyDeleteThe gown looks stunning, suits her beautifully. Her jewels are incredible, well chosen and perfect for this occasion.
ReplyDeletePost a Comment