The intriguing reason why Princess Diana wore two watches

It's actually pretty sweet

(Image credit: Getty Images)

It's actually pretty sweet

Princess Diana might have been famously averse to fashion before her wedding to Prince Charles, but she was already making a statement, whether she knew it or not.

Case in point, this picture of a young Diana Spencer in July 1981, during her engagement. She was watching Prince Charles play polo at the Guards Polo Club in Windsor, and wore a pretty patterned blouse. So far so normal.

But the killer detail you may never have noticed, was the fact she wore two watches on her wrist, and the reason behind this is actually really sweet.

Getty Images

One of the watches, the thin gold metallic one, was hers, but the larger one with the leather strap was Prince Charles'. She wore it as a tribute to him, and to wish him luck in the match.

You could say this harks back to the middle ages, where a knight would tie a lady's handkerchief to the back of his helmet as a good luck talisman. We love the idea and you'll probably find us digging through The Edit to invest and jump in on the tradition.

This wasn't to be the last time Diana wore an item as a tribute to loved ones, as on her wedding day, she borrowed her sisters' tiara as a nod to the Spencer family.

We know the marriage sadly didn't last, but this gesture was proof the future Princess was truly besotted with her fiancé, and that's rather romantic.

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.