With the royal wedding only about a month away, Meghan Markle and Prince Harry souvenir season is in FULL SWING. Naturally, Kensington Palace has approved some rather lovely gear to commemorate our favorite couple — like this official royal wedding china set — but there's also a slew of slightly, uh, less classy stuff out there to score, should you care to stock your home exclusively with life-sized cardboard cutouts of royal family members. So what are some "official" royal wedding novelty items you may not have heard about?
First and foremost, it's important to know that commemorative royal wedding souvenirs are a huge deal in Great Britain, perhaps even more so than Stars Wars-branded toys and merchandise are here in the States (and that's saying a lot). In December, the New York Times ran an entire piece on the history of royal wedding memorabilia, noting that the U.K. expects to reap about £500 million in tourist cash from the royal wedding, with about a tenth of that stemming from merchandise. The Times also interviewed folks who've been collecting royal memorabilia for decades, with pieces including a copy of the dress Kate Middleton wore in her engagement announcement, dishes emblazoned with photos of Princess Diana, and tapestries featuring portraits of various royal couples.
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's impending nuptials are no exception to the mad dash for memorabilia, and the wedding fever's yielded everything from themed beer to, uh, condoms. Here are some internet favorites:
1Wedding Beer
British beer makers Windsor & Eton Brewery recently released a new pale ale in honor of the upcoming royal wedding, dubbing the brew, "Harry & Meghan's Windsor Knot." The beer's barley is reportedly sourced from Queen Elizabeth's Windsor farm, hence the brewery's name, which makes it all the more perfect for a family affair. It's also noteworthy that the beer label's design features an American flag tied with a British one, since American Markle's marrying a Brit. SO CUTE.
2Affordable Wedding China
Though Buckingham Palace has commissioned a set of official royal wedding china, bone china makers William Edwards Home released their own collection earlier this year, and I am a FAN. Highlights include a white-and-seafoam green cup and saucer; a pillbox, and the above coaster. Note that this collection is priced a tad cheaper than the official china, making it a bit more accessible for us normals.
3Royal Wedding Tea
British people LOVE tea, or so I hear, so I imagine this tasty-looking royal wedding-themed stuff will be quite a treat. Master tea blenders Harney & Sons have crafted a Chinese Mutan white tea with pink rosebuds in honor of Harry and Meghan's special day. As Bustle has pointed out previously, the tea flavors hew close to the lemon elderflower cake the couple's chosen for their reception, and that I have chosen for my birthday, what a crazy coincidence!
4Perfume
According to Cosmopolitan, perfumer Floris London has crafted a signature scent for the royal wedding. The fragrance is reportedly comprised of wood and spice notes. We'll have to take their word for it, since Cosmo says the scent won't be available for peasant consumption, though you can buy this perfume that supposedly resembles it in its stead.
5Royal Wedding Tea Towel
Apparently, tea towels are a pretty classic British way to commemorate special events, and there are a slew of these on the royal wedding market right now. My favorite is this seafoam green-and-gold version sold by the BBC shop for $15.98, though there's a snazzy Flags and Flowers iteration available for the same price, if you prefer it.
6Paper Dolls
Would you like to play dress up with animated versions of Meghan and Harry? Of course you would, and with this paper doll set, you can. The $10 collection, available on Amazon, features 14 costumes, including Harry's shirt from the Invictus games and Markle's engagement announcement outfit. It's technically for "children," but do remember that age is but a number.
7Life Size Cutout
If you prefer your royal couple copies full-grown, Amazon's also selling a life sized cutout of Harry and Meghan for only, um, $99. Nothing creepy about this, no sirree!
8Condoms
I'm not exactly sure why people want royal wedding-themed condoms, not that I'm here to kink-shame or anything, but for those who do, they ... exist. Crown Jewels Condoms claims these babies are "the only condoms in the world to play an exclusive arrangement of God Save the Queen & the Star Spangled Banner," which I hope is not true, because condoms should never play any music. Anyway, a £10 box comes with four condoms "fit for a prince," which isn't particularly illustrative of size, but do what you will.
9An Edible Royal Couple
Biscuiteers engineered this pair ginger cookies baked in Harry's and Meghan's likenesses, and are selling a tin for £12. Might I say this appeals more to my taste than, um, themed condoms? It does.
10Team Meghan/Team Harry Sweatshirts
I am not sure why we need to choose teams, as I assume this couple will be together for eternity, but if you do feel inspired to declare the bride or groom's side, well, there's a sweatshirt for that. Zavvi's got a "Sparkle Like Markle" sweatshirt for £24.99, while IWantOneOfThose.com has a "Team Harry" sweatshirt available for the same price. I would like both, thanks.
11Royal Chocolates
Chocolate? Good. The royal couple? Also good. The royal couple's faces painted on chocolate? Erm, that could be good too? At least British chocolate makers Choc-on-choc think so, since they're making these white Belgian chocolate babies for folks who'd like to eat Harry and Meghan's faces. Yum?
