Meghan Markle has never worn these royal-approved earrings

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Meghan Markle often conveys messages through her jewellery, which include some gorgeous pieces she inherited from Princess Diana, Prince Harry's late mother in law.

In the past, she's worn ethical jewellery brands, necklaces honouring her children, as well as butterfly earrings belonging to Diana, which she wore on her tour of Australia, her first official assignment as a married royal.

But one think you won't have seen her wear are pearl earrings, an accessory that is beloved by other royal women, including Kate Middleton, Camilla and The Queen.

In fact, she only wore them once, during her first solo engagement after joining the royal family.

Jewellery expert Sarah Buck told The Express, 'As far as I'm aware the only piece of pearl jewellery worn by Megan Markle is a pair of diamond and pearl earrings gifted to her by the Queen for her first solo appointment. This is not surprising as Meghan is a great supporter of young fashion-led American/Canadian designers with trends that are more towards large colourful gemstones.'

So it may be down to personal preference, as the Duchess of Sussex does favour more modern pieces.

Meanwhile, the Duchess of Cambridge often wears pearls, including the diamond and pearl drop earrings she wore for her 40th birthday portrait, which belonged to Princess Diana.

The Queen also loves the precious stone, and is often spotted wearing a three-strand pearl necklace with matching earrings.

Penny Goldstone

Penny Goldstone is the Digital Fashion Editor at Marie Claire, covering everything from catwalk trends to royal fashion and the latest high street and Instagram must-haves.

Penny grew up in France and studied languages and law at the Sorbonne Nouvelle University in Paris before moving to the UK for her MA in multimedia journalism at Bournemouth University. She moved to the UK permanently and has never looked back (though she does go back regularly to stock up on cheese and wine).

Although she's always loved fashion - she used to create scrapbooks of her favourite trends and looks, including Sienna Miller and Kate Moss' boho phase - her first job was at MoneySavingExpert.com, sourcing the best deals for everything from restaurants to designer sales.

However she quit after two years to follow her true passion, fashion journalism, and after many years of internships and freelance stints at magazines including Red, Cosmopolitan, Stylist and Good Housekeeping, landed her dream job as the Digital Fashion Editor at Marie Claire UK.

Her favourite part of the job is discovering new brands and meeting designers, and travelling the world to attend events and fashion shows. Seeing her first Chanel runway IRL at Paris Fashion Week was a true pinch-me moment.