The younger generation of royals have been looking to the Queen, Princess Anne and Duchess Camilla for fashion trends...
Tartan Dress
Princess Diana’s fashion choices still loom large in the minds of the younger royals. Lose the ‘80s lace collar and this dress that Princess Diana wore in Scotland in 1989 is almost identical to Kate’s Alexander McQueen coat dress. Coincidence? We think not.
SEE PICS: Royals wearing tartan
The Leather Boots
Princess Anne has been the inspiration for some of the Duchess of Cambridge’s casual looks. Kate obviously took a fancy to the very-practical, knee-high leather boots Anne wore in 2017 because, come 2018, Kate had bought herself a very similar-looking pair.
The Tweed Coat
And it’s not just Princess Anne who has inspired Kate’s royal wardrobe. The Duchess of Cornwall is known for her love of a good tweed – here she is in Essex in 2014, keeping off the chill with a three-quarter-length, velvet-collared coat. Five years later, Kate opted for an almost identical fabric, albeit in a shorter, more-modern design, from the Irish brand, Dubarry Bracken.
Perfect In Plum
The Duchess of Sussex isn’t averse to taking style tips from the Queen either. In late 2018, she wore this plum Club Monaco coat and matching dress to volunteer with victims of the Grenfell Tower Disaster. But in March the same year, the Queen had stepped out in an identical shade for a service at Westminster Cathedral. Well they do say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.
The Cream Suit Dress
In fact, Princess Diana and Meghan have a lot in common when it comes to their style choices. Despite these photos being taken a massive 27 years apart, Meghan and Diana’s cream suit dresses are surprisingly similar. Both are double-breasted, have oversized lapels and statement buttons.
Nautical Vibes
Meghan might seem like a breath of fresh air for the royals – especially when it comes to her fashion choices. But she’s been looking through the royal style archives too. Her wardrobe might seem miles away from that of Princess Anne but Meghan’s 2018 nautical-trim coat was certainly reminiscent of this suit that Princess Anne wore in 2000.
Clashing Purple And Pink
When the Duchess of Sussex wore the unlikely combination of a purple dress by Babaton for ARITZIA and Sentaler’s red coat in January 2018, it didn’t take many people long to recognise who it was a tribute to… Meghan’s late mother-in-law Princess Diana wore this colourway during that famous Taj Mahal photocall in 1992.
Cape Sleeves
Meghan impressed style pundits when she wore this Givenchy dress in 2018 but don’t think she was the first royal to wear cape sleeves in public. The Countess of Wessex beat her to it, wearing them way back in 2009 with this woollen grey cover-up.
VIDEO: The Countess of Wessex's style file
Little White Dresses
Someone didn’t get the memo. It was difficult to tell the Duchesses of Cambridge, and Cornwall and the Countess of Wessex apart when they turned up to a service at Windsor in 2012 all wearing cream skirts, jackets and nude heels. Thank goodness they chose different hats to wear.
The Leather Skirt
Royal renegade, Sarah Ferguson, has even been a source of inspiration. The A-line leather skirt she wore in 2003 had a modern incarnation when Meghan stepped out in this Boss-Lambskin pencil version in 2018.
TREND ALERT! Royals wearing leather
The Halterneck
Meghan chose this high-neck white maxi dress from Stella McCartney for the evening part of her wedding reception. Little did she know (or maybe she did!) that Sarah Ferguson had graced the catwalk at New York Fashion Week in 2005 in a red satin creation with a neckline that wasn’t dissimilar.
PICS: Duchess Meghan used to be a regular on the FROW - see her best fashion week outfits
The Spotty Dress
The Duchess of Cambridge wore this Dolce & Gabbana spotty dress to Wimbledon in 2017. But she wasn’t the first royal to go dotty for spotty. Camilla had worn the print in 2011 for an engagement in London. Kate, who had just got married, must have been taking notes.
The Tartan Coat
The Duchess of Cambridge got a big fashion thumbs up when she wore this tartan, velvet trim coat from Miu Miu for the Christmas Day church service at Sandringham in 2017. But eagle-eyed royal observers would have noticed the similarity to the coat that Princess Anne wore to the Gloucestershire Races in 2008. It’s not the only time that Kate has looked to her aunt-in-law for style inspiration...