We take a closer look at the life of the beautiful Princess Sofia Duchess of Varmland.
As a child, many of us fantasized about living life as a royal, and for good reason. Being a royal is indeed an honour and a privilege, but it is also quite the commitment as there is a lot of work involved – far more than a lot of people realize.
In Sweden, Princess Sofia of Sweden is one of the country’s most respected and revered royals. The wife of Prince Carl Philip Duke of Varmland, as a result of her charity work and the effort she goes to when meeting her public, Princess Sofia is a role model for children and adults alike.
Often referred to as the Swedish Kate Middleton, Princess Sofia is a role model, a fashion icon, and a celebrity in every sense of the word. But how did Princess Sofia Duchess of Varmland, grow to become one of Sweden’s most respected royals?
Here’s a detailed look at Princess Sofia of Sweden.
Who Is Princess Sofia?
The wife of Prince Carl Philip Duke of Varmland, Princess Sofia is one of the Swedish royal family’s most respected and revered members.
A former glamour model and reality TV contestant, Sofia is now a doting wife and mother to three sons, as well as a keen charity worker.
Her sons, whom she has with her husband Prince Carl Philip, are named: Prince Alexander, Prince Gabriel, and Prince Julian. They are fifth, sixth, and seventh in the line of succession to the Swedish royal throne respectively.
Often snapped by gossip magazines because of her former lifestyle, her good looks, and her keen dress and fashion sense, Princess Sofia is certainly not kept out of the public’s eye. But how did this former “commoner” find herself a princess?
Early Life
Born Sofia Hellqvist, back on the 6th of December, 1984, she was born to a marketing manager mother in the plastics industry and an employment counsellor father who was of Danish-Swedish heritage.
She has two sisters and as a child, it was keen that she had an eye for fashion and a keen sense for creativity. She also was not a shy and quiet child and would often find herself the centre of attention.
She did well at school and would go on to study at the Vansbro Education Centre, where she would study the arts programme.
Life Before Royalty
Because of her good looks and slender and toned figure, Hellqvist was photographed and published in a men’s magazine called Slitz, wearing nothing but bikini bottoms, and a live boa constrictor snake around her top half. The image caused quite the stir and in 2004, she was voted as ‘Miss Slitz’ by the readers.
This really put Sofia on the map and TV offers began pouring in. She would go on to appear in the reality TV show ‘Paradise Hotel’ on TV4.
The basic premise of the show is that a group of singles are forced to live together in a luxurious hotel resort, taking part in various tasks to see who can progress to the next round without being eliminated.
Contestants pair up into couples and must share a room together in the hotel. Each week, contestants must pair up with different partners, or face elimination.
Sofia made it to the final of the series but ultimately failed to win.
She would go on to live in New York and work as a yoga instructor while studying business development and accounting.
Becoming A Princess
In 2009, while partying at a club, she met Prince Carl Philip, and the two instantly clicked. They began dating shortly afterwards.
In 2010, the Swedish Royal Court confirmed the two were in a relationship and just one year later, the pair of them would go on to move in together in Stockholm at Djurgarden, which again, the Swedish Palace confirmed.
In 2014 the couple became engaged and were married a year later on the 13th of June, 2015.
Very much in love, the royal couple would soon go on to welcome their firstborn into the world, when Princess Sofia of Sweden gave birth to Prince Alexander. In 2017 the couple had a second child, Prince Gabriel, and just last year the couple welcomed their third son into the world, Prince Julian.
Charity Work
Both Sofia and Prince Carl Philip are keen charity workers and do a lot of not-for-profit charity work.
In 2010, Princess Sofia co-founded the not-for-profit charity organization ‘Project Playground’ which is a charity designed to help offer assistance to underprivileged children in South Africa who haven’t been given the best start in life.
Princess Sofia Duchess of Varmland is actually the honorary chair of that organization.
In honour of their wedding in 2015, Princess Sofia and Prince Carl Philip founded Prince Carl Philip and Princess Sofia’s Foundation, which was designed primarily to tackle bullying.
The couple requested that, instead of purchasing gifts for their wedding, that people would instead make a donation, no matter how large or small, to their charity, which was a very kind gesture and shows the mentality that the couple has.
Because of the Coronavirus pandemic in 2020, when hospitals were at risk of being overrun, the princess would go on to take a three-day emergency online training course designed to help hospitals during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Princess Sofia would go on to work as a volunteer at a hospital in Stockholm. Her primary duties were to assist doctors and nurses with basic tasks and to clean and disinfect rooms, objects, and instruments.
Sofia put her health at risk to help others. Later in 2020, the couple would go on to test positive for Coronavirus. Thankfully, their symptoms were relatively mild, and they would go on to make a full recovery. Both the princess and her husband are some of the most respected royals in Sweden.