From lovely pastel to bright colour!
Will she be there this weekend? Buckingham and Kensington Palace remain tight-lipped about this. Yet there are gradually more and more rumors that Princess Kate will perhaps show her face in public for the first time in more than six months during the Trooping the Color ceremony next weekend. Whether that’s true or not – we thought it was high time to dive into the archives!
2011: the new bride
On Friday, April 29, 2011, citizen Kate Middleton tied the knot with Prince William, thus becoming the Duchess of Cambridge and the wife of the future British king in one fell swoop. A month and a half later, she rode along The Mall in a carriage like a full-fledged princess with her mother-in-law, Camilla, for her first Trooping the Color moment.
At the time, Kate opted for a safe choice: matching her mother-in-law in ivory white. Here too we saw her love for Alexander McQueen, the label that also designed her wedding dress. And that love for McQueen has clearly remained present over the years!
2013: heavily pregnant in pink
Just a month and a half before she was due to give birth to Prince George, Kate made her appearance in sweet pastel pink at the 2013 ceremony.
This time too, Kate opted for McQueen – this sugary-sweet coat with its Peter Pan collar and pearl buttons was specially made by the fashion house for the expectant mother, according to Cosmopolitan. She had worn her hat before during one of the traditional garden parties, so Kate started recycling garments early in her royal career!
2017: pretty in pink
After years of lovely pastel nuances, muted colors and cream colours, the then Duchess of Cambridge opted for a lovely eye-catching pink ensemble.
Once again, Kate opted for a creation by Alexander McQueen, with a matching hat by Jane Taylor. We also see a second trend that Kate has been a big fan of over the years: matching with the family! She apparently had a good time on the balcony with daughter Charlotte in a matching pink dress.
2018: maximum matching
In 2018, Kate took these matchy-matchy outfits to an even higher level. Not only did she match perfectly with Camilla…
…But also with daughter Charlotte, and with none other than Queen Elizabeth herself, who also dressed in light blue. So we saw three generations of queens in light blue on the balcony of Buckingham Palace.
It won’t surprise you at this point that Kate’s dress was yet another Alexander McQueen creation. She completed her look with a colorful hat designed by Juliette Botterill.
2022: back with a vengeance
As with so many things, the corona pandemic threw a spanner in the works for several years. In 2020 and 2021, the ceremony therefore took place in a modified (read: significantly reduced) form. Fortunately, the party could take place again in 2022 – and how! After all, it was Queen Liz’s platinum anniversary, and so there was a lot going on.
Here, Kate once again opted for an Alexander McQueen outfit – this time in pristine white, with a hat from purveyor Philip Treacy. To be fair, it is of course Prince Louis who steals the show here.
2023: Kate reveals her colours
Last year was the first time that the Windsors celebrated Trooping the Color without Queen Elizabeth. With a new monarch on the throne, on June 17 we saw a head of state on horseback carrying out the traditional inspection of the troops for the first time in years. Kate also achieved a first: after years of subtle colors, the princess stood out in the photos in a beautiful emerald green outfit.
This was not a coincidental choice: Kate was appointed honorary colonel of the Irish Guard at the end of 2022. And what is the color that we associate with Ireland? Exactly: green! To make this even clear, the princess accessorized her outfit with a gold shamrock pin, one of the symbols of the Irish Guards.
Her outfit this time was a creation by Singaporean designer Andrew Gn, with a matching hat by Philip Treacy.
Yet we must confess: despite Kate’s bright color, it was once again Prince Louis who managed to steal the show here with his cheeky character.
And 2024?
Whether Catherine will appear on the balcony this weekend? We have yet to see that. In any case, earlier this month she canceled her appearance at the traditional Colonel’s Review. The British court has also so far remained tight-lipped about a possible appearance by the princess.
Although we of course hope that the Princess of Wales will show her nose, we above all give her all the rest, time and space she needs. There’s always a next time, right?
Source: Cosmopolitan, UFO No More, Harper’s Bazaar, Glamial archive | Image: NL Image
