royal wedding

As we look forward to welcoming 2012 with open arms, we must also look back on a year that has had quite its fill of fashion highs and lows. Needless to say, there's never a dull moment in the industry and we've loved every second of its sartorial suspense, trendy takeaways, dresses to-die-for, red carpet sizzles, model moments, and of-the-minute style inspiration. It's safe to say 2011 was one for the books and to bid it adieu properly, we're highlighting the year's biggest and most fashion news headlines. Want to know what made our jaws drop? Click through to find out the five biggest fashion headlines of the year.

Prince William and Kate Middleton, who are now the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, are celebrating their six-month wedding anniversary. On April 29, the world watched as the royal couple said "I do" and sealed it with a Buckingham Palace balcony kiss. And while their first kiss was sweet, their second kiss was even better!

And while the newlywed couple had the liplock scheduled (and had even practiced it beforehand!), the first royal wedding balcony kiss was much more spontaneous. When William's parents Princess Diana and Prince Charles made their balcony appearance after their wedding ceremony, the crowd chanted for the couple to kiss. Diana said, "Well how about it?" And they became the first royal wedding couple to have their inaugural public smooch on the palace's balcony. In 1986, Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York also kissed on the balcony after their wedding.

See Will and Kate and the other royal wedding balcony smooches now!

While this royal wedding includes a "Prince Charming" and a beautiful bride, take one look at the brightly colored celebration and you know it's not Will and Kate we're talking about. Bhutan's popular King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck, 31, married Queen Ashi Jetsun Pema today in an exuberant ceremony at the same venue where his coronation took place in 2008. This is a joyful day for the adorable couple, but the king's female fans may be distraught. Back when he was the young Crown Prince of Bhutan, Jigme made such an impression with the women on a 2006 visit to Thailand the Thai press nicknamed him Prince Charming.

The new queen is 10 years younger than her husband, but in the Bhutan king's May announcement of the engagement he said, "While she is young, she is warm and kind in heart and character." Maybe it's their mutual love of basketball that brought them together? The king represents Bhutan in international basketball events, and his wife was the captain of her high school basketball team. And both have studied in the UK, as King Jigme graduated from Oxford and Queen Jetsun is currently attending Regents College in London, majoring in international relations with minors in psychology and art history.

See photos of the Bhutanese royal newlyweds in their sweet wedding moments now!

Prince William and Kate Middleton may have won the Internet when their royal wedding garnered the most live streams for a single event, but William's grandma has them beat on the pop culture front. Queen Elizabeth II has been portrayed on screen and on stage more than any other living monarch. The Guinness Book of World Records does a good job of keeping track of two things that go well together: royals and weddings. Keep reading to find out who is the reigning record holder in categories like longest serving queen, fastest wedding chapel, and tallest married couple.

Today, Prince Harry turns 27! Prince Henry of Wales — better known as Prince Harry — is Britain's new number one most eligible royal bachelor now that Wills is officially off the market, and Harry's officially on it. Harry recently ended things with his latest fling, model Florence Brudenell-Bruce, in order to focus on his military career.

There's a term for women who prowl Britain hoping to star in the next Windsor royal wedding: Harry Hunters. And while Harry invited on-and-off Zimbabwean girlfriend Chelsy Davy to his brother's big day, Harry's 100 percent single. Let's enjoy it while we can with a look at the birthday boy's red-hot moments!