Royal style: the Duel of the Duchesses

[QueenOfTheAndals]

Previous thread

What will tomorrow bring for Kate? Does her love for green know no end?

And Thursday night sees the return of Meghan! I know she can be polarising so let's stick to just discussing her clothes rather than the intricacies of Megxit. There's plenty of other threads to do that!

Whattheother2catsprefer

I agree.

I think Kate, as the wife of a future King, does not put mere clothing top of the agenda. In the scheme of things, what you are wearing is just not that important - unless you have nothing.

I love Meghan's dress (the zip makes it instantly recognisable as VB) but it didn't fit her properly, there was bunching at the waist. With a dress as simple as that the fit needs to be 100% or your eye gets drawn to the creases.

Erm this is on the style and beauty boards @catspyjamas123. The threads were set up because there was an interest in what royal women (not just Kate and Meghan) wore. Just like how there's threads about Oscar or BAFTA style where posters chat about the gowns worn. I'm sure that most of the posters on here are capable of discussing the gender pay gap or FGM but it's also possible to maintain an interest in other things. And I don't think anyone is saying Kate is only the sum of her clothes - no woman is - but these threads were basically set up to discuss clothes and jewellery.

@itswinetime I’ll play! This is great Kate look, imo. The colour, the cut, the hat, the hair - all lovely. She should wear this dress everywhere, including the supermarket

And does discussing clothes and jewellery make total character assassination OK? I think both Meghan and Kate look great. I do have issues about people using taxpayers’ money but that’s another matter. Not personal.

@Spudlet her India wardrobe is probably my favourite of all her tour looks. Gorgeous clothes and a boho vibe that really suited her.

And this is a great Meghan look. It’s clean and simple and lets her shine. I loved the big gold bangle/cuff - just right.

@QueenOfTheAndals I agree. So many great looks on that tour!

Of her casual looks, this tweed jacket is my favourite, with the rust coloured jumper. I also very much like her boots. I’ll admit that this is basically an upmarket version of my daily winter look so I am biased... but I seriously want that jacket and when I have some money again I’ll be seeking it out!

@catspyjamas123 I think you've mistaken these threads for some others which do offer "total character assassination", these threads critique the clothes and style, which considering we pay for it is fair enough.

I know I’ve said it many times but the One thing Kate gets is the importance of fit, majority of her clothes fit her very well, I bet she tries everything a few days before an event incase things need to be adjusted, Even her high street clothes look immaculate , Meghan doesn’t do that I think and so a lot of her clothes look bad fitting.

I just can’t believe Kate still has a coat from 2008! It looks pristine, just how?

If Ireland was the first time she's worn it since 2008 then there's the answer @queenofarles!!

I think Kate, as the wife of a future King, does not put mere clothing top of the agenda

Kate spends enough on ‘mere clothing’ if that is the case. IMO this is why she should look well. William is the future king. Kate is only ever going to be his sidekick, look well, smile, be engaged and so on. She took the hard road marrying into that family, her choice but she was young when they met and thankfully has a supportive family around her. I’ve always thought William comes across as an arse tbh. But I am aware I have an issue with such an uneven distribution of wealth and privilege. Of course Kate will be the mother of the future king but by the time George is king, the majority of us will be long dead and we will never see her in this role.

I feel for Kate. Her nerves are palpable, she comes across as always trying to do her best in the face if terrible criticism. She is the best thing about the royal family imo. It wouldn’t surprise me at all if she whispered in Meghan’s ear to escape out of it before she got too sucked in.

And does discussing clothes and jewellery make total character assassination OK?

Of course not. Which is why we don't do it on these threads. I think you may have us confused with other threads.

Irony of someone coming onto a thread, accusing us of character assassination, and calling us all bitches

most of the supposedly negative comments on here about Kate are posters desperately wanting her to wear things that flatter her more because I think with a few exceptions, the regular posters want both Kate and Meghan to succeed. And like it or not, the clothes they wear are "a thing" and have an impact eg driving sales for lesser known brands on the upside or driving huge criticism for the woman wearing them on the other hand.

Eg my comments re the first Green dress in Ireland. I didn't mind the dress. Just felt that Kate missed the key guideline of making sure that the dress flatters at least one feature. And as a result she looked drowned in it. I think she's great, so it doesn't impact how I think about her.

Although I'll admit, I've said it before, but the endless succession of almost identical coats IS starting to get me down!

I think Kate is in a difficult sartorial position. She has to dress in a way that no one of her generation in this country really needs to - not too businesslike or formal but also not too casual; and she has to be aware of being photographed from every conceivable angle; and she has to watch the messages she may be inadvertently giving as well. Her only really models are all women of a generation or more older than her. And all this in an era when people are generally becoming more casual - fewer suits in offices and so on. I’ve always had office jobs of varying degrees of formality but I no longer own a suit and when I go job-hunting I won’t be buying one either. But she could never rock up at an event in a dress with trainers and a denim jacket, even if that would look far cooler than heels - because she has to be formal.

It’s a really tricky position to be in! And while that doesn’t explain the occasional baaaaad dresses (green cabbage dress, I’m looking at you) I do think she normally gets it about as right as anyone could, given the circumstances she has to work under. And quite often (for my money) she gets it very right. Her more formal looks and black-/white-tie looks are often fantastic. I like most of her Casual Kate looks. It’s the in-between looks that can be tricky. Imo.

Do you really think she's in a unique position in her generation though? The euro royals seem to manage to look current and modern whilst also being appropriate. Although I imagine our RF is probably much more stuffy than others. Once the Queen pops off maybe it can relax a bit; at the moment it's quite carried away by it's own pomposity.

Excellent points Spudlet. I also wonder at the notion that Kate is dressing for posterity. Posterity is likely to be even more casual.

@AudacityOfHope She is unique in this country though. The Euro royals do often manage (CPM is one of my personal best-dresses Royals) but I wonder if their Royal families are in different positions as well? For instance, I don’t think any other European royal family just got hauled into a constitutional crisis courtesy of their Prime Minister..! And (I don’t know by the way, I’m just speculating and conversing, not arguing) perhaps their tabloids are less vicious too. Kate is currently having a generally ok ride but she hasn’t always, and I can’t blame her for being a bit overly conservative as a result.

"Although I imagine our RF is probably much more stuffy than others."

I think there may be an element of truth to this - our monarch is well into her 90s after all and has been queen for a very very long time but....

... I'd also argue it's our media. In light of the clothes the queen wore when she was young, it seems pretty unlikely that she has any negative thoughts on Meghan wearing off the shoulder or dark nail polish, for example. Except, the tabloids were all about it breaking royal protocol.

Every thing Meghan and Harry do is framed as "upsetting" the queen. And while Kate gets less of this now on the negative side, she's had her share in the past. And of course, even when being "positive" it's so often framed as if the only thing she's considered is the queen.

I was rolling my eyes last week at how "upset" the queen et al supposedly would be that Archie didn't come. hahaha - clearly the writers of such things have no very elderly relatives. Mine love my DC, are brilliant with gifts, care massively about how they're doing etc. But actual interaction is limited to politely looking at the odd photo or, in person, leaning down to say hello before heading off to do something non-child related!!!

Dress it up how you like but this thread really isn't the sweet and light hearted thread about Royal style as it is falsely portrayed to be, especially when it comes to Kate and I'm glad a few posters have come out to point out the hypocrisy and nastiness in this thread.
Tearing her [Kate] to shreds
Hardly, none of the regular posters here do this, especially in regards to Kate. Many of us have a favoured Kate hairstyle or Kate clothes style though (I like sporty Kate with ponytails). I wouldn't be on these threads if I didn't like her.

I think the Cabbage dress would’ve looked amazing on someone like Sabine Getty partly because she can style retro styles modern.

I thought the ODL was cute, and I liked the TVWs dress.
I really want to see Kate in straight leg jeans and trainers or loafers , I so wish she ditches the sprayed on skinnies and ankle boots look.

I don't think anyone here actually dislikes Kate, they wouldn't waste their time on this thread if that were true!

Yes, I do understand why she probably feels hemmed in and that she has to play safe. I'd love to see her be able to shrug that off a little though, and just be in the moment, rather than prepare for the eventuality of someone looking at a picture of her when she's long gone.

The coat dresses are an absolute case in point: there is no need for this garment to exist in my mind, much less be worn by someone the same age as me! It blows my mind. There are hundreds of ways to look smart and modern: the coat dress is not one of them.

I was rolling my eyes last week at how "upset" the queen et al supposedly would be that Archie didn't come

Indeed. A puppy or a foal would be one thing, but a baby.... nah, I think the Queen can take them or leave them.

On a more serious note, given the length of the journey, the jet lag and the potential for illness to be transmitted, I would imagine any loving (great)grandparent would be supportive of the decision to leave Archie safely at home.