
Fashion Insiders Are Loving Vivienne Westwood's Retro Sun Collection
There's something to be said about a good pair of designer sunglasses. When it comes to eyewear, there's no denying that quality is key, especially when it comes to protecting your eyes from strong UV rays while adding a touch of style to any outfit. That's where Vivienne Westwood comes in. Its 2025 Sun collection perfectly blends quality, style, and eye protection with an elegant and timeless charm that the fashion house is known for, and which it nails every single time.
This latest collection is a nod to vintage styles, with Baroque-inspired frames and intricate embellishments; the 2025 Sun collection is a true testament to the fashion house's dedication to artistry. There are statement sunglasses in striking acid pink and yellow, or more classic colours such as black, white and silver, and mottled brown tortoiseshell; the collection manages to be both a traditional and contemporary take on summer eyewear. It's just the thing to finish any outfit, whether you're on your morning coffee run in your favourite denim or enjoying more Mediterranean climes on holiday.
Of course, as with previous collections, the iconic Westwood orb features throughout—typically on the hinge or embossed into the metalwork. A standout piece? The Soo sunglasses. Inspired by the Gold Label Autumn-Winter 2004 Exhibition 'Horns' headwear, the exaggerated frame is adorned with Swarovski crystals and finished with the signature orb, making it a true statement in the collection.
But the Soo isn't the only unique style in the collection. The Sunday makes a statement with its oversized shape and lenses, featuring distinctive Baroque artwork by François Boucher (1703–1770); The Reed updates a timeless tortoiseshell silhouette with refined, custom metal accents, and the Balmoral channels old-school elegance, its frame finished with signature orb-embellished detailing.
So, whether you're planning a trip away where a pair of great quality sunglasses are a suitcase essential, or just want to add a touch of vintage-style glamour to your accessory collection, it's worth bookmarking the Sun collection. These are sunglasses, but not as you know them – they're essentially works of art in their own right. 1.
Soo Sunglasses
For a Swavorksi-embellished staple that'll become your go to accessory on holiday, consider the Soo sunglasses, featuring horn detailing from the coveted Gold Label Autumn-Winter 2004 Exhibition collection. 2.
Balmoral Sunglasses
These oversized sunglasses are a chic addition to any accessory collection, especially for the summer. Wear with a classic drop waist dress for a chic take on Riviera style. 3.
Sunday Sunglasses
Featuring Baroque artwork by François Boucher (1703–1770), the Sunday sunglasses are a true testament to Vivienne Westwood's vintage charm, and pay homage to the bold style of the '50s and '60s. 4.
Reed Sunglasses
The Reed sunglasses make for a great off-duty staple, and come in two colours: green and blue. They're the kind of pair you can throw on with anything - whether it's a linen shirt or an oversized blazer. 5.
Piccadilly Sunglasses
These pearl-embellished sunglasses are an embodiment of the Vivienne Westwood house style. The cat-eye-inspired silhouette comes with gradient lenses, while the temples feature three-dimensional metal orb details. 6.
Jackie Sunglasses
For '80s inspiration, look to the Jackie sunglasses, reminiscent of underground musicians and cultural icons – available in a dark red colour. The bold shape and tinted lenses give them an effortlessly cool retro feel. 7.
Grace Sunglasses
For a pop of colour, choose the Grace sunglasses, which come in a bold neon pink colour. With their playful hue and oversized frame, they're an excellent statement piece to elevate even the simplest outfit.
Emma Richardson is a fashion commerce writer for Grazia. She was previously a fashion and beauty commerce writer for Heat and Closer, and has contributed digital content for a variety of lifestyle brands. Emma finds much of her inspiration in celebrity style, with Sienna Miller often being a major influence, and loves a pair of ballet pumps and a trusted trench coat.

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Daily Mail
15 hours ago
- Daily Mail
The Royal's special bond with luxury hideaway Birkhall beloved by King Charles and the late Queen Elizabeth
His mother, Queen Elizabeth II, traditionally spent Yuletide at Sandringham, remaining on the Norfolk estate until February to mark the death of her father, King George VI, who died on February 6, 1952. But King Charles III and Queen Camilla, who celebrated their 20th wedding anniversary this year, chose to spend Hogmanay at Birkhall, their favourite Royal residence. It was at the Scottish lodge, set on the Balmoral Estate, that the couple was infamously snapped in 1990 after the then Prince of Wales injured his back during a polo match – Princess Diana was down in London with William and Harry. It was where Prince Charles proposed to Camilla Parker Bowles: The couple announced their engagement on February 10, 2005, after Charles got down on one knee. 'I'm just coming down to Earth,' Camilla said. It was there that the couple spent their honeymoon, after getting married in Windsor on April 9, 2005, and it was there that the couple celebrated their 20th wedding anniversary this year after their four-day state visit to Italy. But King Charles III is not the only Royal to have a special bond with Birkhall: His parents, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, the Duke of Kent, and the Duke and Duchess of Edinburgh also honeymooned there. And the Scottish Lodge isn't just a luxurious love nest: It has been at the centre of some of the most explosive moments in Royal history. Now the Channel 5 documentary Birkhall: A Private Royal Residence, which airs tomorrow (Saturday), reveals the story of the King and Queen's favourite Royal residence. Royal biographer Ingrid Seward, Editor in Chief of Majesty magazine, told the programme: 'Charles loves it there, Birkhall is definitely his favourite home.' Former BBC Royal correspondent Jennie Bond added: 'I think it's one of his favourite places to be with Camilla, curled up on a settee - well probably she curls up, he probably doesn't curl up - with a glass of whisky by a log fire.' Birkhall sits deep within the Balmoral estate, just six miles from the Firm's beloved Balmoral Castle. It's an 18th-century stone farmhouse set in the shadow of the mountain Lochnagar. With just three floors, it is small for a royal palace – more 'beloved family home' than 'regal royal residence'. But it's been a place for the Royals to escape to for decades. Built in 1715 by Captain Charles Gordon of Abergeldie and his wife Rachel, the secluded house in the Highlands was discovered by Queen Victoria's husband, Prince Albert, in 1848 when he took the lease on the Balmoral estate. He thought Birkhall would make the perfect country retreat for his eldest son, Bertie, the future King Edward VII but he stayed there only once finding it too small and pokey. Historian and broadcaster Wesley Kerr said: 'It's a sweet idea that it was for the Prince of Wales, but it was never going to be good enough for him.' On the other hand, Victoria and Albert loved the house and turned it into the equivalent of a Victorian Airbnb for their friends and family. However, it was not until the 1930s that the Scottish Highlands became the Royal's favoured holiday destination – George VI and the Queen Mother, then Duke and Duchess of York, chose Birkhall for their annual summer vacation. Both Princess Elizabeth and Princess Margaret loved the house, which the future Queen described as 'the nicest place in the world' and would cycle into the local village of Ballater to buy sweets. The two sisters, then aged 13 and nine, spent the first four months of World War II at Birkhall, after being evacuated under Operation Pied Piper. When George VI died in 1952, the Queen Mother retreated to Birkhall until Sir Winston Churchill drove over to Birkhall for a private visit and persuaded her to resume public life. 'That meeting is very significant,' adds Kerr, 'and actually we got another 50 years of public service out of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother.' The Queen Mum immediately drew up plans to renovate the house, installing a new wing with four new bedrooms and bathrooms, and French windows opening up onto the gardens. She even cheekily put eight carriage and grandfather clocks in the dining room, to wind up guests as they all chimed at different times. 'This apparently used to send her guests crazy because you just get into a conversation,' said Bond. 'Then ding, ding, ding, ding, all over the place. But I think she thoroughly enjoyed her guests' discomfort.' Her sense of humour was also displayed when the architects, led by Arthur Penn, forgot to put a lavatory on the downstairs floor: She held an official opening of the water closet, which was fitted subsequently under the stairs. 'The room was filled with flowers and the Queen Mother pulled the chain,' said Kerr. 'And she said: 'I declare this room Arthur's seat.' 'Arthur's Seat, of course, is a mountain in Scotland, but Arthur Penn had come up with the design.' By the mid-1950s, Birkhall was one of the main stops on the Queen Mother's annual Scottish tour. She embraced country living with gusto and was a keen fly fisher into her eighties. She loved the card game Racing Demon – as long as she won. When the Duke of Atholl demanded a recount, he was never invited again. 'He decided I'm really going to go for this,' explained Seward. 'When it seemed that the Queen mother had won and he knew that he'd won, he demanded a recount. 'Then she lost, and she never invited him back again.' 'Then she lost, and she never invited him back again.' One of the Queen Mother's favourite guests was her grandson, Prince Charles, who was the only person allowed to sleep in George VI's bedroom. 'She taught him about the finer things of life,' said Seward, 'opera, music, painting, drawing. Once he even dreamt that he ran away from Gordonstoun to join Granny. 'At Birkhall, King George's bedroom was on the ground floor, and it was kept as he left it. 'The only person who was ever allowed to sleep in there was Prince Charles. And that was a special honour given to him by his grandmother.' When Charles married Princess Diana, Birkhall became a favourite holiday haunt for Princes William and Harry. But it soon became a place she associated with Camilla. In 1990, nine years into his marriage, he recuperated at Birkhall after he was forced to cancel his engagements after injuring his back in a polo accident. But, instead of inviting his wife and sons to be with him, he chose Camilla. 'He was photographed leaving Birkhall with Camilla,' said Princess Diana's Royal Protection Officer Ken Wharf. 'That was the scandal.' After the Queen Mother died at Royal Lodge, Windsor, on March 30, 2002, Charles inherited Birkhall. It soon became a special place for him and Camilla. 'I think when they land at Birkhall, it's a case of really? Phew! Here we are' added Bond. 'We're going to enjoy one another's company. 'We're going to walk, and we're going to sit, and we're going to read like and have a little drink, and we're going to just be together. And I think it is one of their very favourite places to be.'


Daily Mail
19 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Princess Diana and Kate Middleton both faced the same devastating pregnancy battle
It was news that was met with excited anticipation from not just the British public, but from around the world. Princess Diana was pregnant with the future heir to the throne. But at just 20 years old, she was already struggling with the pressures of royal life and, like her future daughter-in-law Kate Middleton, had terrible morning sickness throughout her pregnancy. Andrew Morton wrote about this in his authorised biography, Diana: Her True Story, after the Princess of Wales took the extraordinary step of recording her innermost thoughts - on the condition that her involvement was kept secret. Sensationally, it exposed the devastating truth about her imploding marriage to the future King Charles and misery within the Royal Family. In October 1981, ten years before recording her tapes for Morton - Diana and Charles took a three-day visit to Wales when she had just found out she was pregnant. In a transcript of one of the princess's tapes, Morton wrote: '[I remember] feeling terribly sick, carrying this child, hadn't told the world I was pregnant but looking grey and gaunt and still being sick. 'Couldn't sleep, didn't eat, whole world was collapsing around me. Very very difficult pregnancy indeed. 'And this family's never had anybody who's had morning sickness before, so every time at Balmoral, Sandringham or Windsor in my evening dress I had to go out I either fainted or was sick. 'It was so embarrassing because I didn't know anything because I hadn't read my books, but I knew it was morning sickness because you just do.' On November 5, 1981, Buckingham Palace announced that the Prince and Princess of Wales were expecting their first child and were 'delighted by the news.' The Palace said: 'The Princess is in excellent health. 'The Princess hopes to continue to undertake some public engagements but regrets any disappointment which may be caused by any curtailment in her planned program.' But behind the scenes, Diana was struggling. She said in the tape: 'Almost every time I stood up I was sick. Suddenly, in the middle of a black dress and black-tie do, I would go out to be sick and come back again and they'd say: "Why didn't she go off to bed?" 'I felt like it was my duty to sit at the table, duty was all over the shop. I didn't know which way to turn at all.' In January 1982 - 12 weeks into the pregnancy - Diana fell down a staircase at Sandringham, suffering some bruising. Diana later confessed that she had intentionally thrown herself down the stairs because she was feeling 'so inadequate'. She said in the tape: 'When I was four months pregnant with William I threw myself downstairs, trying to get my husband's attention, for him to listen to me. 'I had told Charles I felt so desperate and I was crying my eyes out. 'He said I was crying wolf. "I'm not going to listen," he said. '"You're always doing this to me. I'm going riding now." 'So I threw myself down the stairs. The Queen comes out, absolutely horrified, shaking - she was so frightened. 'I knew I wasn't going to lose the baby; quite bruised around the stomach. The princess said in a tape: 'I didn't know which way to turn at all' 'When he came back, you know, it was just dismissal, total dismissal. He just carried on out of the door.' Charles's response was influenced by advice from his friends who felt Diana needed to 'pull herself together', Robert Lacey wrote in his book, Battle of Brothers. However, as Prince William's due date approached, Charles did spend more time with Diana and stayed by her side when their first son was born on June 21, 1982. In doing so, he became the first male royal to be present at a birth. In a letter to his godmother, Patricia Knatchbull, Charles said how he was 'so thankful I was beside Diana's bedside the whole time'. However, his wife's struggles with her mental health would continue. When William was just shy of his fourth birtdhay, Diana fainted during a trip to Canada. She received some help from doctors but still struggled, and her marriage to Charles continued on a downward spiral. They eventually separated in 1992, before divorcing in 1996. Kate Middleton also suffered with morning sickness throughout all three of her pregnancies. In September 2023 she spoke about having hyperemesis gravidarum (severe vomiting during pregnancy) with a another parent during a visit she made to a sensory development class in Kent. Her first pregnancy was announced early, before she reached the typical 12-week point, after she was hospitalised with the condition. Earlier, in 2021, the Princess of Wales launched a major awareness raising campaign to increase public understanding of the crucial importance of the first five years of a child's life. It is set to run for at least five years, and has been described by a Kensington Palace spokesman as her 'life's work'. Kate spoke passionately about the campaign in an open letter published in the Mail on Sunday, in which she set out her plan for 'Shaping Us'. Reports produced by the Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood revealed that the first five years of a child's life shape their future wellbeing more than any other stage of development, with our brains growing faster at this time than any other. The centre also hopes to 'break the cycle' for parents who experienced difficult childhoods themselves. Palace aides said the idea for the project began even before Kate became a mother. Kate had the condition during all three of her pregnancies In the years between Diana and Kate's struggles with morning sickness, attitudes have drastically changed. While Diana's experiences were largely dismissed or downplayed, Kate's condition was taken more seriously, with increased medical support and public awareness. Kate's pregnancies brought more scrutiny to the issue of morning sickness, particularly hyperemesis gravidarum. The media played a significant role in raising awareness, leading to more open discussions and a better understanding of the condition.


Graziadaily
3 days ago
- Graziadaily
Fashion Insiders Are Loving Vivienne Westwood's Retro Sun Collection
There's something to be said about a good pair of designer sunglasses. When it comes to eyewear, there's no denying that quality is key, especially when it comes to protecting your eyes from strong UV rays while adding a touch of style to any outfit. That's where Vivienne Westwood comes in. Its 2025 Sun collection perfectly blends quality, style, and eye protection with an elegant and timeless charm that the fashion house is known for, and which it nails every single time. This latest collection is a nod to vintage styles, with Baroque-inspired frames and intricate embellishments; the 2025 Sun collection is a true testament to the fashion house's dedication to artistry. There are statement sunglasses in striking acid pink and yellow, or more classic colours such as black, white and silver, and mottled brown tortoiseshell; the collection manages to be both a traditional and contemporary take on summer eyewear. It's just the thing to finish any outfit, whether you're on your morning coffee run in your favourite denim or enjoying more Mediterranean climes on holiday. Of course, as with previous collections, the iconic Westwood orb features throughout—typically on the hinge or embossed into the metalwork. A standout piece? The Soo sunglasses. Inspired by the Gold Label Autumn-Winter 2004 Exhibition 'Horns' headwear, the exaggerated frame is adorned with Swarovski crystals and finished with the signature orb, making it a true statement in the collection. But the Soo isn't the only unique style in the collection. The Sunday makes a statement with its oversized shape and lenses, featuring distinctive Baroque artwork by François Boucher (1703–1770); The Reed updates a timeless tortoiseshell silhouette with refined, custom metal accents, and the Balmoral channels old-school elegance, its frame finished with signature orb-embellished detailing. So, whether you're planning a trip away where a pair of great quality sunglasses are a suitcase essential, or just want to add a touch of vintage-style glamour to your accessory collection, it's worth bookmarking the Sun collection. These are sunglasses, but not as you know them – they're essentially works of art in their own right. 1. Soo Sunglasses For a Swavorksi-embellished staple that'll become your go to accessory on holiday, consider the Soo sunglasses, featuring horn detailing from the coveted Gold Label Autumn-Winter 2004 Exhibition collection. 2. Balmoral Sunglasses These oversized sunglasses are a chic addition to any accessory collection, especially for the summer. Wear with a classic drop waist dress for a chic take on Riviera style. 3. Sunday Sunglasses Featuring Baroque artwork by François Boucher (1703–1770), the Sunday sunglasses are a true testament to Vivienne Westwood's vintage charm, and pay homage to the bold style of the '50s and '60s. 4. Reed Sunglasses The Reed sunglasses make for a great off-duty staple, and come in two colours: green and blue. They're the kind of pair you can throw on with anything - whether it's a linen shirt or an oversized blazer. 5. Piccadilly Sunglasses These pearl-embellished sunglasses are an embodiment of the Vivienne Westwood house style. The cat-eye-inspired silhouette comes with gradient lenses, while the temples feature three-dimensional metal orb details. 6. Jackie Sunglasses For '80s inspiration, look to the Jackie sunglasses, reminiscent of underground musicians and cultural icons – available in a dark red colour. The bold shape and tinted lenses give them an effortlessly cool retro feel. 7. Grace Sunglasses For a pop of colour, choose the Grace sunglasses, which come in a bold neon pink colour. With their playful hue and oversized frame, they're an excellent statement piece to elevate even the simplest outfit. Emma Richardson is a fashion commerce writer for Grazia. She was previously a fashion and beauty commerce writer for Heat and Closer, and has contributed digital content for a variety of lifestyle brands. Emma finds much of her inspiration in celebrity style, with Sienna Miller often being a major influence, and loves a pair of ballet pumps and a trusted trench coat.