As with any major royal tour, there's a major royal tour wardrobe
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are touring India and Bhutan and, as with any major royal tour, there's a major royal tour wardrobe to behold, as Duchess Kate has brought a case full of designer outfit options to show us.
So what has she packed? Here we analyse all the looks from the tour so far…
Alexander McQueen Kicking things off, it’s a trusted brand in Kate’s style arson who she’s briefed to create something special and suitable – Alexander McQueen. Adapted from designer Sarah Burton’s pre-fall collection, Kate wore this richly decorated peplum dress when she attended a wreath laying ceremony at The Taj Hotel in Mumbai. Kate’s mastered the art of dressing diplomatically over the years and, showing total consideration for her host country, the print nods to the textile traditions of both Britain and India. Fashion fact; the paisley originates from India’s Kashmir region in the 11th century but first came to the UK in the 1700s.
See more pictures of each look in the gallery above.
Anita Dongre After the official ceremonies were over, Kate switched into something a little less formal for a cricket match and a tour of some of Mumbai’s slum areas. She chose a printed ‘Gulrukh’ dress by Mumbai-born designer, Anita Dongre (so again, she’s throwing a spotlight on a lesser-known label) teamed with a pair of Mint Velvet wedges. And, yup, you guessed it, she totally ran around in those heels in 35 degree heat and 66% humidity. Who knew espadrilles were anyone’s sporting shoe of choice?
Jenny Packham Later in the evening, Kate went for a decidedly Bollywood glam look, asking British designer Jenny Packham to whip up a sparkly cobalt number with a sari-like cut. She glammed it up even further with a pair of bold blue earrings by Jaipur-based jewellers Amrapali and took the shawl element off later for the royal gala.
Emilia Wickstead And for her next trick, Kate chose a cream wool day dress by London Fashion Week favourite Emilia Wickstead to meet with entrepreneurs in Mumbai. Priced at £1760, we assume Kate's had a lighter version made for the scorching temperatures out there, but the biggest thing to note? She turned down a samosa because she didn't want to spill it down that lovely fresh ivory. Well you would, wouldn't you?
Temperley London Next on the agenda, William and Kate's host nation threw a garden party to celebrate the Queen's 90th birthday. Kate chose a dress by another of her favourite fashion brands, Temperley London, this time sporting monochrome placement embroidery.
Glamorous Kate's first nod to the Great British High Street was for Manchester-based fast fashion e-tailer Glamorous. The Duchess wore their £50 boho midi dress to meet with children on the streets of New Delhi. Find out more about Kate's Glamorous dress, here.
Temperley London It's another hit for Alice Temperley as the Duchess strikes in one of the designer's turquoise lace numbers. Meeting the Prime Minister of India, Kate's hair stylist whips her tresses into a neat up-do - a wise move in that 66% humidity.
Anna Sui Attending the Bihu Festival, Kate chose this silk chiffon floral mix dress by Anna Sui to round off her third day of fashion hits. At this point, she's clocked up eight outfit changes in total over the three days, showcasing British and Indian designers, plus high street labels - and we're excited to see what she's got left in her case for the next three days of the tour.
Zara Kate's decidedly more dressed-down on the fourth morning of her India tour, wearing khaki skinny jeans by Zara for a safari tour around the Kaziranga National Park.
Topshop Kate scores another high street hit with this embroidered smock dress from our favourite high street giant, Topshop. Visiting the Indian village of Pan Bari, Kate teamed it with Dune's Karley cork wedges as she fed baby elephants and rhinos. Too much. The best bit? You can still grab the dress for yourself online, priced at just £75, and the wedges come in at £60, too.
Emilia Wickstead Landing in Bhutan for the second leg of the royal tour, Kate chose to re-cycle one of her old wardrobe favourites - a yellow Emilia Wickstead dress coat that she had previously worn to the Order Of The Thistle ceremony in Edinburgh. Kate teamed it with her trusty LK Bennett nude courts and the brand's 'Natalie' straw box clutch - all very airport chic, if you ask us.
Paul & Joe Kate teamed this embroidered Paul & Joe cape with a 'Kira' style skirt made from traditional Bhutanese fabric. The skirt's fabric was handwoven by local silk worker Kelzang Wangmo and made especially for Kate by tailors in London. Later, Kate had a total Katniss Everdeen moment, doing archery in Thimpu.
Tory Burch For dinner with the King and Queen of Bhutan, Kate changed into this Tory Burch maxi dress - picking out the colours from its vivid print with this orange shawl.
Really Wild For a pretty intense hike to a monastery in the mountains, Kate's ready for action in this £495 leather waistcoat by Really Wild. She's teaming it with tassel knee-high boots by Penelope Chilvers.
Beulah
Later that day, Duchess Kate switched out of her hiking attire and turned to one of her reliably favourite British brands for an evening reception in Bhutan. The flowing £745 maxi dress aptly featured Bhutan's national flower, the poppy, all rounded off with black open-toe sandals and understated earrings.
Naeem Khan
For their last stop on the memorable trip, Kate pulled out all the stops in a stunning blue and white shift dress by Indian-American designer Naeem Khan. With its beautiful embroidery, the dress was a fitting tribute to Princess Diana's iconic Taj Mahal pose. And ever the thrifty dresser, the Duchess completed the look with a pair of £6.60 earrings she'd bought from a Bhutan craft market.
Alexander McQueen
For their rainy departure from Bhutan, the Duchess recycled an oh-so-pretty cream Alexander McQueen dress, accompanied by a gold necklace with diamonds given as a gift by the Queen of Bhutan.
