Kate's new tiara

Well, we weren't expecting that. Before the diplomatic reception at Buckingham Palace last night the debate was all about whether Kate would go and not a second thought had gone into which tiara she might wear should she attend. And then, there she was, whizzing through the gates of the Palace with a big, sparkly surprise for everyone. Kate of Cambridge chose the Cambridge Lover's Knot Tiara for her big night out.

The Cambridge Lover's Knot Tiara

The tiara is one of the best known in the royal jewellery box but hasn't been seen in public for quite a while. But it was very familiar through the 1980s and 1990s as it was worn regularly by Diana, Princess of Wales - she was given the diadem on her marriage by the Queen. And then suddenly, there was Kate in the tiara.

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There was a lot of debate almost immediately as to whether Kate should have worn the tiara. Some argue it's still too associated with Diana as Princess of Wales and should have stayed in the jewellery box until Kate herself held that title. It certainly is a piece that goes hand in hand with our image of Diana.

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But it's also a fabulous tiara with personal links to the woman who is her children's grandmother. And as Duchess of Cambridge it seems appropriate that Kate is wearing this piece that bears the city's name and which was inspired by the tiara created for Augusta of Hesse-Kassel when she married Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge in 1818 and began the dynasty that would lead that line to the throne of England.

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Augusta's granddaughter became Queen Mary and when she decided she needed a new tiara, as you do, in 1913 she looked for ideas in her family scrap book and commissioned a version of the Lover's Knot tiara worn by Augusta from Garrards. It became known as the Cambridge Lover's Knot and when Queen Mary died she left it to her own granddaughter, the Queen, who has been its custodian ever since.

Queen Mary in the Cambridge Lover's Knot Tiara

Personally, I think it's a great choice by Kate and certainly the best of the tiaras we have seen her in so far. It has more height and more grandeur than the Lotus Flower diadem which she has worn twice now and which she famously added to her red dress for her first State Banquet back in October. And I hope it signals a start of more tiara wearing for this future queen. We all like our royals to be a bit like us but we also love a bit of sparkle. And with her surprise choice of tiara, Kate has dazzled us all.