You might not know Lady Margarita Elizabeth Rose Alleyne Armstrong-Jones, but you've definitely heard of her grandmother. As the daughter of Princess Margaret's son, David Armstrong-Jones, Margarita is an extended member of the Royal Family, but she rarely attends public events. The 23-year-old, who served as a bridesmaid in Prince William and Kate Middleton's 2011 royal wedding, spoke with the Telegraph on Tuesday, November 4, sharing some insights about the grandmother she never met.
Lady Margarita was born just three months after Princess Margaret died, and although she didn't get to know her grandmother, the jewelry designer possesses many of the same qualities—and Margaret's engagement ring. Although she's not engaged herself, Margarita was given the late royal's ruby and diamond cluster ring as a gift from her father on her 21st birthday.
"It’s a Marguerite shape, a particular floral motif, and just so beautiful," Margarita told the Telegraph. "The fact that it shares our name made it feel very magical." The ruby ring was specially chosen by Margaret's ex-husband, Antony Armstrong-Jones, to look like a flower, representing her middle name, Rose.
She chose to wear the ring to her cousin King Charles's coronation. "It was the same church that Granny got married in," Lady Margarita noted of Westminster Abbey. "I wear it to things I think she would want to be there for."
As for "granny," Margarita, who is studying jewelry design at the lchimia Contemporary Jewelry School in Florence, said it's "hard to say" if Princess Margaret would have liked her "animalistic" and "raw" pieces.
However, the student adds, "I know she had a love of natural motifs and turquoise, which was her favourite color. She liked shells too, and would happily buy jewelry on the beach and wear it to fabulous state occasions."
Lady Margarita pointed out that Princess Margaret didn't stick to the expected when it came to her jewels, sharing, "She would always buy costume jewelry, which is interesting—that way she could be big and bold. She wasn’t precious. And she was definitely a big earring woman."
