For years, the late Princess Diana and her daughters-in-law, the former Catherine Middleton and Meghan Markle, have been compared to each other. Why? Because their fashion choices are “similar”. Umm. There is no comparison between the three as they come from different periods. It would be like comparing Lady Gaga with Audrey Hepburn.
Diana was a fashion icon of the 80s and 90s. Her style was unlike anything that had been seen before. She found ways to use pieces of jewellery differently without dismantling them. One iconic example is how she used an emerald choker as a headband.
Diana Became More Comfortable In Her Role As Future Queen Consort, But Knew She Wouldn’t Sit As Queen
Diana became more comfortable as she became the future Queen Consort, which she never became. Furthermore, she developed a style that women adored. Fast-forward to late April 2011, when Catherine Middleton married Prince William. After stepping out of the car outside Westminister Abbey, the soon-to-be Duchess of Cambridge wowed the adoring crowds with her Alexander McQueen wedding dress, complete with the Cartier Halo Tiara loaned from Her Majesty The Queen.
Meghan Markle, on the other hand, claims she loves fashion, but her clothing choices aren’t great. One example is the recent trip to New York with those untailored pants suits, which cost more than most people make in a year. Moreover, the Duchess of Sussex doesn’t understand the term ‘fashion’ the way her sister-in-law and their late mother-in-law do. She thinks she’s the ‘IT Factor’ of style when almost everything she wears hangs off her frame rather than sitting on her body. Moreover, this is not us body-shaming her. It’s an observation many people have had.
Diana: Fashion The Queen Would’ve Avoided
As she grew into her role as the wife of the future King of England, Diana’s fashion choices shifted into two categories; on duty as a royal and as a regular person going about everyday society. You wouldn’t see her in a ballgown while dropping her sons off at school, would you?
Kinsey Schofield, the founder of ToDiForDaily.com, told us that Diana’s fashion choices weren’t always something Her Majesty The Queen would’ve worn. For example, when she wasn’t at galas for humanitarian causes, she would be seen wearing pieces of clothing associated with American Culture. Examples would be jumpers with the names of Northwestern University – the school Meghan would attend a few years after Diana’s passing – and Ivy League university, Havard.
Diana’s choices would not have suited Her Majesty The Queen. For example, the Princess of Wales wasn’t afraid to go out in her gym shorts. You would never have caught her Majesty doing this when she was the same age.
Kinsey tells us that in the later years of Diana’s life, the former Princess of Wales would spend much of her time at lavish galas and banquets for her chosen charities. Ultimately, this met spending large amounts of time in glamourous gowns.
Meghan: New Kid On The Fashion Block
When Meghan joined the royal fold as Harry’s girlfriend, she wore a boyfriend shirt and skinny jeans. This is different from how Diana entered the scene almost forty years earlier. Kinsey says that the former actress’ attire at the time was seen as “lovely and relatable”. However, in recent times, her looks in New York were supposed to come across as “chic” but instead came across as “bossy”.
As Kinsey has rightly pointed out, Meghan’s love of pantsuits and Jackie O-style sunglasses sends a vibe of her being a woman who wants to be in politics. However, she also gives off the desire to be a decision-maker.
However, Kinsey notes that Meghan’s time as a royal was uncomfortable for the former actress. She didn’t appear to suit the fascinator hats and caped dresses she wore. In other words, she looked like an actress playing the role of royalty rather than being one. Moreover, the Duchess of Sussex seemed more confident in the mentioned pantsuits and turtleneck jumpers.
Kinsey admits that Meghan’s California girl style with the need to “chase red carpets and develop relationships with fashion designers” could be considered “trendy”.
Catherine: The Duchess Of Class
We left our beloved Catherine to last because she is simply a class act. Like her late mother-in-law, the Duchess of Cambridge grew up around the royal family. Kinsey notes that the future Queen Consort doesn’t dress down as Diana did. Instead, she prefers a more casual look in case the tabloid press spins her outfit choice as something going behind the scenes. If she were to go out all-black, the media would make out that there’s trouble in paradise.
Catherine is also very conscious of her situation as the wife and mother of future kings. She knows that her wardrobe choices reflect the reception it gives to the royal family. Furthermore, she and William are the monarchy’s future, and she is aware of this. So she doesn’t need to send a message to her bitter sister-in-law via a stunning gold dress at the premiere of the latest Bond movie.
That is not Catherine’s style. What’s more, she understands what her role is. Again, this is not about throwing shade at Meghan. It is about determining someone’s place in a hierarchy by clothing. Again, this isn’t about shaming anyone. When it comes to the royal family, there is a pecking order, and one duchess knows their place while the other does not.
Expensive Wardrobes vs. Cheap Wardrobes
To finish this post, we wanted to explore the wardrobes of the three royal ladies. However, we’re not discussing what’s inside their closets. Instead, we will be talking about the prices of their clothing items.
So, let’s begin with Catherine.
The Duchess of Cambridge is well known for shopping at Zara and Topshop, according to Talia Lakritz of Insider. However, she will buy designer outfits when the occasion calls for them. Alexander McQueen is one of her go-to designers, and so is Jenny Packham. Despite being a royal, Catherine is a savvy shopper who doesn’t need to wear expensive clothing to make a statement. Likewise, she doesn’t need to spend a quarter-million pounds on an outfit.
Moving over to Diana and L’Officiel states that the late Princess of Wales, too, was a savvy shopper. She was a fan of luxury brands Dior and Versace but wore everyday brands like Levi’s.
Finally, we reach Meghan. From the moment she walked out of Saint George’s Chapel in Windsor as the Duchess of Sussex, her spending habits became outlandish to the point, and some of her clothing prices were eye-watering. For example, one of the maternity dresses she wore during the later stages of her pregnancy with Archie cost over one hundred thousand pounds. What’s more, Francesca Wallace reported for Marie Claire Australia before Archie’s birth that the former actress spent $898,000 (in Australian dollars) on her wardrobe.
Not to mention, Meghan has worn the occasional cheap item of clothing, but her lack of it shows she has expensive tastes.
