Her Special Brand of Magic

We visited the award winning exhibition, Diana: a celebration at The Mall of America this week.

I was privileged to attend the exhibit with great admirers of Princess Diana. Four of the girls had even taken a pilgrimage to the same exhibition when it was held in Missouri.

It was unanimous amongst our crew that this woman resembled Anna from Downton Abbey, "Mr. Bates."

Though it looked like I was taking a picture of the new Mrs. Bates, I was trying to capture the picture on the screens behind her. There was a no photography rule and I was trying to get the urge to take pictures out of my system...to no avail.

They had a nice back drop for the perfect photo-opt.

This photograph was taken by Caroline C. Kilgore and trust me, it doesn't ruin the surprise. The magic surrounding this tiara could never be captured on camera.

You may be surprised, but this was actually my favourite part of the exhibit. I just loved being able to see these jewels up close on these blood red cushions. And I couldn't get over the artistry of John Singer Sargent and his original sketch of Princess Diana's grandmother, Lady Cynthia Eleanor Hamilton. There was something that stood out about the way the date was drawn in the bottom right corner that made me search for the name of the artist. Otherwise, I may have completely overlooked that it was a Sargent. (Another Photo also by Caroline C. Kilgore)

I just love the bold strokes of the backgroud. Fearless.

As her brother Charles stated, Princess Di radiated a special brand of magic. She dazzled us with her generosity and love for mankind. It was evident throughout the enitre display.

I was especially touched by the stacks and stacks of condolences in her honor. They were leather bound and covered an entire wall. Her life affected so many others in the most unselfish way. It was very moving how people from all over the world took the time to acknowledge her with a note or drawing.

The gift shop was nothing short of grand. See for yourself!

At the end, they had a pseudo-replica of the wedding cake and a book that we could write in. Here's Jody transcribing her thoughts.

Here's an example of the gorgeous exhibition logo.
Don't miss out on this exhibition. It runs until June 4th, 2012 at the Mall of America and then it will be travelling back to her estate at Althorp. You don't want to miss it.