Some people believed that the Duchess of Cambridge’s event today was the reason why she declined to appear at the annual St. Patrick’s Day event with the Irish Guards yesterday. As in, there was a theory that Kate refuses to “work” two days in a row, and since she had already scheduled today’s charity-shop opening, she declined to do the Irish Guards event. For what it’s worth, I don’t think that was Kate’s reasoning exactly. The Kensington Palace spokesperson made it sound like Kate wants everyone to know that just because certain appearances are expected of her, that doesn’t mean she’ll show up. Of course, it’s also possible that Work-Shy Will just threw his wife under the bus in spectacular fashion.
In any case, Kate was in Holt, Norfolk today to open up a charity shop that benefits EACH hospices, one of Kate’s few charitable patronages. The shop is located about 20 miles from Anmer Hall, and there isn’t any information as to whether Kate needed to take the helicopter to get to the shop, or whether she was driven. Kate helped “fold” some clothes while inside the shop (except it just looked like she was supervising the folding), and she apparently purchased a few items for charity – a Fireman Sam book (for George, I’m assuming) and a figurine.
For the event, Kate repeated a coat, this M Missoni blue tweed, that sort of looks like denim in some photos. I remember this coat well – she wore it for a notable appearance back in 2012 with Queen Elizabeth. She re-wore it for a 2014 wedding as well. It seems to be one of her favorites. Also: doesn’t it look like she got highlights?
The Duchess was also the charity shop's first customer! #EACHholt pic.twitter.com/zNRfcyykys
— Kensington Palace (@KensingtonRoyal) March 18, 2016
Photos courtesy of WENN.
Yup I spotted the highlights right away. Girl was getting her hair did yesterday.
I still think it was Williams idea though.
Yeah, it was William. Let’s not kid ourselves in thinking that Kate makes her own decisions.
He has really thrown her under the bus with this one! You should see the comments she has gotten on the Kensington page! Lots of negatively comments!
Yup absolutely, she does exactly what he tells her to (that’s why he married her) even if it means she’ll get burned.
And you know this how?
@spidey: the world of celebrities and gossip is the world of deductions and speculations, not ‘knowing’. For ‘knowing’ you need to visit the NASA website.
Also, if you want to exclude the speculation and the PR games, what will people like Jennifer Garner and Ben Affleck do with themselves?
Here’s a speculation: perhaps she cancelled her appearance with the guards after fighting with William, as a way to retaliate and wield what little power she has. If nothing else, she does after all have the power to cancel appearances, and thereby embarrass him, fuel speculation, cause public disappointment in the monarchy, etc..
@spidey Someone who wiats for 9 years to snatch a prince will do anything he asks.
If she was there yesterday, it would have been great if someone had caught her coming out of the hairdresser in London. Tanna and twitter, where are you when we need you?
The hairdresser comes to her now. Why else would she be sooo happy?
That would have been spectecular and juicy if she had been that numb and dumb to visit her hairdresser yesterday.
Also wiglet? I think these photos show a ‘wiglet effect’ in the back area of her hair.
@yvlette, can you link to that? Do you mean Twitter?
Can’t say she doesn’t keep her appointments – as long as they are related to her hair, botox, shopping and mummy.
Twitter says she was there and gone in 35 min.
Of course. She probably went shopping after, at a “proper” store….
wouldn’t it have been a PR score if along with showing up, she actually donated some stuff too? Like maybe some of George’s outgrown clothes, her wedges of doom and her LK Bennett Sledges (well maybe those shoes are too worn to be acceptable to be resold).. Surely, she has a coat and dress or 3 that she no longer recycles she could have donated. VBecks did and look at the positive PR she got from it.
Not surprising.
Not surprising. She and her uncle Bill Windsor did a similar thing by staying for +/- 15 mins at a hospice during their Oz/NZ tour.
Who is Uncle Bill Windsor? Andrew…no, Edward…no. Who are you meaning?
Complete with travel time it would be an hour of work. I do hope she hasn’t strained herself.
Predictable and pathetic.
After this day of work and her tour to India next month, she will need a rest in Mustique.
We probably won’t see her for the rest of the year. Travelling is so taxing, dontcha know?
I really like Fireman Sam. My son still watches it. Ok, we both still watch it 😂
Is it a coat or a coatdress? She seems naked underneath. She should try the Euroroyal coat style of open coats.
In some of the pictures you can see a lavender flowy dress under the coat.
It always bugs me that we never see the dresses under the coats. Why bother wearing them then? Just wear a tshirt underneath and call it a day.
Coat dresses don’t require anything underneath but undies, it’s basically a dress that looks like a coat. On the other hand if it is a coat then it’s meant to be taken off when indoors, just a tshirt underneath would be a bit embarrassing.
How can she be expected to work two days when it looks like carrying two items is completely throwing her off? Two is too many…
Sad, she looks rough
If doughy is a word, that’s how she looks to me. Can’t tell if it’s fillers or just that awful makeup.
Love the coat!
I’m still gobsmacked that this even happened.
Me too, I’m flummoxed.
Her hair is a mess
Does anyone else imagine her upon awakening each morning saying to herself, “well, this isn’t going as I planned”? I realize she is perceived as tone deaf to public opinion but I’m really starting to believe William is the one driving more than the helicopter. She looks exhausted to me.
“Be careful what you wish for ” comes to mind.
There are reports of her being firmly in control in some areas. Talk from the Canada tour, her behavior around other women, leaks from his friends about her controlling nature about him and his friends. The Prickly Princess. Her telling people down under that William was mostly gone for the first 6 months of their son’s life. She got both a week in Mustique and 10 days alone with him in the Maldives soon after.
As long as she gets what she wants out of this relationship, meaning status, title, Prince, and the WAG lifestyle, she’s in. As Whitaker said, for the prize of being Princess of Wales and Queen, Kate Middleton will put up with whatever is thrown at her.
What she doesn’t want is to work, but then neither does he.
I think that since she’s had the spare she is feeling invincible and feels free to dictate her terms.
She only looks like that when she attends events at which she interacts with non-royals. Otherwise, she looks enthusiastic to be part of a larger royal crowd at ceremonial events, or as a spectator at sporting events, around men she has a thing for, on vacations, etc.
It’s when she has to do small chat with the plebs and shake their hands does she look like she’s being tortured. But never mind, because it gives her an opportunity to hold up her left hand and show off her ring.
They’ve really stopped with the photoshopping haven’t they! And 35 mins is pathetic. Especially as this was for a cause that was to close to heart.
Yes they have!! And it is not just for her. Every time I see a photo of William I’m flabbergasted at the difference. It is kind of brilliant on the part of the press, because I had no idea how onside they were until they weren’t anymore. You could tell they tried to stay on the BRF’s good side, but damn… and this hurts more than just their pride. Being young and attractive was definitely buying the Cambridges PR capital that they sorely need at the moment.
I would wager a bet it takes longer than 35 mins to get her hair done; 35 mins to apply that eyeliner and make up too. Lots of effort in appearance to be seen and bolt so fast.
Her hair looks a hot mess. Still can’t believe she blew off a 115 year old tradition and then doesn’t even spend an hour visiting/perusing the shop and charity. Ridiculous.
What are the Swedish royals up to? I like them much more! Probably too busy working to do anything newsworthy.
Still waiting for Sofia to pop while Mary in Denmark recently sported a new cheap-looking tiara(though last year she wore it as a necklace).
I’d like to know the origin of the new tiara. Anniversary gift or loaner like The Midnight?
I also have no clue about the origin. It seems like a typical low-tier “property of a noble house”Christies/Sotheby’s tiara. If it was new, it wouldn’t have looked so…rusty. She couldn’t have spent more than $5k on that thing.
@notasugarhere Apparently it’s something they bought to sub in for her wedding tiara at more ‘low key’ tiara events where she doesn’t want to bring out the big guns. orderofsplendor.blogspot.com/2016/03/tiara-thursday-tiaras-of-crown-princess.html
Scal there hasn’t been anything official about it being purchased has there? It appeared last year but the origins are a mystery.
^Order didn’t mention the where’s and why’s of this tiara. No blogger so far has come up with a good explaination(and provenance) for the tiara. Unless someone, somewhere finds the provenance, I’m guessing it’s an auction piece.
It could be a 10-year anniversary gift.
It is most likely an auction piece and not an overly expensive one – at least as tiaras go. The DRF hasn’t got a much in terms of private wealth.
I’m not really going to pronounce a verdict on it yet since there aren’t any good close-ups. It is, however, a fairly typical example on a convertible spike/fringe tiara of the belle epoque. I do like that it has a more pronounced central section. The metal looks a bit like rose-gold but it is difficult to judge because of the lighting and the lack of a good close-up. The placement wasn’t ideal, the angle was too sloping. I think a tinkering with the armature is in order.
She has worn it last year as a necklace. It works well as such. Whether it works better as a necklace than as a tiara is, I think, to early to tell. i need to see her in it a few more times. However, it is a nice all-purpose tiara that is a bit more substantial than the delicately spiky wedding tiara.
I was thinking an anniversary gift too, but there was nothing mentioned. I hoped he would buy her something substantial and historic with opals for the 10th, to highlight her Australian origins. I suppose a new tiara works too!
The DRF are very careful about these things, especially since they have been in hot water over Henrik still getting a large apanage even though he has retired as well as the CP couple’s recent trip to Saudi Arabia on the behalf of the Foreign Ministry. Furthermore, the government is currently instigating austerity measures that hit the weakest hard. It is not the time for the DRF to draw attention to their spending, even if it is an anniversary gift paid for with private means (I assume this is the case here). It is all about perception.
I did notice that QMII has finally acknowledged her age and health and was receiving her guests sitting down. In the past she has usually been adamant about not using handrails on stairs and standing up for the public part of engagements. A friend of mine hosted her at a visit to an art museum. She said that Daisy was on her feet while the cameras where there, even though she was white with pain.
AH, that’s why I thought a brooch with opals would be a better option. Small and less expensive, but she could wear it to pin orders in place.
Sadly all those years of ballet are catching up to QM. Spinal arthritis?
^I’d go for a brooch,as the family has a small brooch collection. She could go the Spanish route, like Leti and her Ansorena and wear the central part of this tiara as a brooch.
@ArtHistorian: Could you please explain the “Margarethe” and “Daisy” names to me? I mean, I know who she is, but why does she have both those names? I know I could likely google it, but there’s probably an interesting story that I wouldn’t get from a wiki page.
I’ve only become interested in the DRF for a couple years and really know very little.
Thanks in advance!
Queen Margrethe is called Daisy because Margrethe is the Danish form of the French Marguerite, which also means Daisy. Margrethe II is named after her maternal grandmother Crown Princess Margaret of Sweden whose nickname was also Daisy.
CP Margaret died young under very tragic circumstances and her death had a huge impact on Margrethe’s mother Queen Ingrid, who was only 10 at the time. As an adult Ingrid instituted a number of traditions honouring her late mother. The most important one is the wedding tradition whereby the female descendants of Ingrid wears a lace veil and the Khedive Tiara, both of which once belonged to CP Margaret. Mary is only non-royal that has worn the lace veil.
QMII suffers badly from arthrisis, she has had surgery in both knees. I have also read that she suffers from spinal stenosis but I don’t think that is officially confirmed.
I agree that the DRF could use more brooches. Their most substantial ones are part of the grand parures – like the rubies and the pearls. I have seen a lovely belle epoque brooch on Marie and Mary has the beautiful sapphire brooch that once belonged to Ingrid. Daisy has the beautiful Marguerit/Daisy brooch – it was given to Ingrid by her father as a memory of her late mother when she married. Margrethe wore the Daisy Brooch on her wedding as something borrowed.
@Canadian Becks,
Daisy is a nickname of Queen Margrethe that goes back to her childhood. Daisy is also the meaning of Margrethe and/or one of more of its variations like Margaret, Margaretha, Marguerite.
Thanks, guys.
All this talk about Tiaras puts me in mind of the DRF’s tradition that dates back to QM II’s grandmother, whereby Ingrid received a gold bracelet from her own mother and when her mother died at a young age, Ingrid vowed to continue the tradition for her female descendants to get a gold bracelet on their 5th birthdays.
So Isabella got hers in 2012, and Josephine just received hers this January.
As I get older, I more and more value family traditions such as this.
Daisy & Isabella’s bracelet:
http://ca.hellomagazine.com/royalty/201208229057/princess-isabella-special-birthday-present/
A commentor on a different thread said it looks like Pippa and Kate got their eyeliner tattoed on. And I now totally believe it. I was reading about Otillo and saw a picture of
pippa after she did the race and she clearly has eyeliner on. No way an eyeliner can survive 65 miles of swimming and running.
Yes, her eyeliner is tattooed on.
Kate’s ridiculous but I wouldn’t put it past work shy Will to throw her under the bus, especially after he got dragged for the poaching comments and wandering into the EU debate.
Love the coat, love the shoes, she looks awful though. I don’t know what happened to her looks this year, suddenly she looks 38.
Oooo, Burn! Looking 38 (whatever that is) is tbe WORST!
At 39 I must be positively ancient then.
Help me I’m 46!
38- not 40, not 50 but 38! thats an interestingly EXACT assumption (ironical?) about someone based on static images ..very amusing 🙂
It’s been suggested elsewhere that she has had botox on that forehead of hers. Maybe the reason why she wore that hat the other day that covered that area? I really don’t know.
Looks as if she had a trim and color yesterday and a fresh blowout this morning. All for a 35 minute pap stroll.
The coat. I think it would look better with trousers. Hate that blue Zara dress she wears with it. The dress looks like cheap polyester. I think that the way she styles this coat is just so drab. Sheer stockings and the proverbial court shoes. I guess she really doesn’t have much of an imagination about changing things up.
I agree with you that the coat would have looked great with trousers. It’s so short that even with bending down a little she risks flashing someone again. The trouble is that Kate can’t NOT show off her legs and beside that have we even seen her in pants that weren’t painted on jeggings? She probably doesn’t own any proper dress pants which is incredible for a 34-year-old.
Her style is a giant snoozefest especially when you think about Diana’s clothing.
The more I look at that coat, the more bad tailoring I see. There is something wrong with the seaming/darts at the bust, and in some of the photos, the coat looks too small. (I’m a seamstress so I look at stuff like that.) If I was Kate’s stylist, I’d recommend that she either get rid of this coat, or just wear it open. When it’s all buttoned up and she’s moving around, it just looks ill-fitting. She has so many coats at this point, it’s time to cull the ones that don’t fit properly. Same goes for some of her dresses, as well. And in the future she should bring someone in to help her; someone with an eye for the details like this.
I had a couple of dresses made just for fun. The lady there called me twice to get them fitted and made small arrangements for me according to my body shape and my requests. They fit me like gloves. No high fashion types, just everyday dresses with cheap fabric and didn’t cost me that much. I can’t understand why most of her clothes look so bad on her with all the money she has.
Maybe what we can’t understand from the photos is how really thin she is. Not body shaming here as for years i have been 45 kg ( 7 st i think) for 166 cm (5.4 ft) and clothes didn’t really agree with my body and bone structure (i have some hips and my legs are not beautiful). Just saying. Or she is too lazy to follow the fittings as they take time and interaction with real people. I don’t know. All i know is that with all the money, time and options she has she should look better.
Also (because i am inspired today) i have a friend that goes out of her way to dress herself, she does combine colors like nobody else. Yesterday i saw her in blue, green, yellow and some orange-is more red in fact. She was a head turner and looked elegant and classy. And she has blowouts every 3 days and her hair is shinny and glossy and always in place. I think these dutches has no desire to ask for help and is stuck in time and space with her ideas. I know i am about my hair, only my hair are just simply WONDERFULL 😛
For the huge amount of money she spends on her wardrobe, she is one of the most sartorially boring people in the public eye. She seems to have no sense of style and how to put an outfit together. This coat would be great worn open with trousers, a blouse and more interesting shoes. But as it is, so very boring.
Poor dear, yesterday’s day off doesn’t seem to have been enough to recover from all the recent hard “work”. Read the DM feature on Will handing out the shamrocks to the Irish Guards and noted that several commenters referred to Kate as “unsuitable” for her role. If she and Will are trying to destroy the monarchy, they are doing a bang-up job. It would be ironic if after all of Carole’s momaging and Kate’s waitying she never becomes Queen.
So know we know why she skipped out on the Irish Guards yesterday – do get highlights for the mop. Her hair is most def a different colour than it was on Wednesday. So much for being desperate to be with her children. Wonder if people will still think Willy told her to stay at home – it clearly interfered with her hairdressing app at the London salon that shes said to use. So its safe to assume she was in London yesterday.
And she’s continuing to keep to her word and lower our expectations of her – she’s gone from 45mins down to 35mins attendance at an event.
Yeah, I don’t buy the excuse that William held her back yesterday so he could look good. 1) It didn’t work. He still looked his keenly constipated self, 2) the talk about him being a lightweight and ill-informed was highlighted by Harry’s GMA interview and 3) Kate’s hair is different. Obviously freshly blown out and highlighted. She was not with her children. She was getting her hair done. Something we share in common as I did the same yesterday. But then I own my own practice and I spent 6 hours working afterwards. Kate does what Kate wants to do with hubby’s approval because she’s as lazy, petulant and disrespectful as he is.
Big whoop the woman got her hair done, I doubt her hair appointment is the reason she cancelled the St Paddy’s day event. She a royal, I’m sure she could’ve arranged an after hours appt or had them come to her.
If that was the case, then why cancel the Irish Guard event? She does have access to all things to make her life easier, yet she can’t take 2 hours out of 24 to honor a group of men and women serving in her country’s military. So, yeah…big whoop that she chose vanity over service.
With regards to Kaisers’s post, I have a question: Why is Kate allowed to wear clothing, I assume is paid for by Charles (the taxpayer actually), to go to a private wedding? Shouldn’t she be using her own money to buy her own clothing for personal use?
The Buckets lifestyle is funded by Charles/The Queen re: her clothes for public engagements, Charles can claim these costs back from the taxpayer as business expenses – all their travel costs are picked up the the taxpayer for public engagements.
What I meant Betti, is that a private wedding is not a public engagement. So the question stands, why are the taxpayers paying for clothing wore at private events? Charles should not get a tax write-off for those clothes. This isn’t the first time she’s done this. The Buckets should have to pay for their own clothes in those circumstances.
@Lisa – if its private she should be paying for her own clothes from William’s money or even her own if has some but she buys clothes for public engagements and then wears them privately meaning we (the British taxpayer) are picking up the tab. Its wrong and she needs to be called out on this.
True, especially since it’s been said that he counts Kate’s clothing budget as a business expense on his taxes.
You are correct that Charles does do that.
But how is it constitutionally fair that he is allowed that write-off when other people aren’t?!? The vast majority of employed people must buy a wardrobe of clothes that makes them presentable in their jobs, but do not get to off-set their taxable income by deducting the costs of said wardrobe.
I dislike tax laws that give benefits to higher tax brackets that are not available to lower ones. It’s akin to the celebrities getting bags and bags of free swag – the people who can most afford to buy stuff, getting free stuff.
I hope she has the nice long weekend to rest up and prepare for her vacation in India. She looks exhausted, poor snowflake.
I don’t get the loose hair-high collar combo. It looks so mess and unpolished. If she wants to wear a buttoned up high collar SHE NEEDS TO TIE HER HAIR BACK!!!!!!
Sorry I will calm down now.
Especially as she knows her hair gets frizzy in the humidity and on this day, it was cold and raining. But I guess she thinks it makes her look better to wear it down no matter what.
WHAT IS WITH THE CLUTCH?! Couldn’t she leave it in the car? She looks ridiculous trying to hold the clutch and the scissors and the flowers, all while simultaneously trying to cover her crotch. What does she carry in there that’s so important that she can’t put it down, ever?
Call me a prude, but the dress underneath the coat is too short. There are pics on the DailyMail where she’s leaning over and I don’t need to see her upper thighs.
The clutch gives her something to do with her hands – when she doesn’t have one she has a tendency to grab herself (puts her hands very close over her crotch). I cannot fathom the crotch grabbing – its not as if its going to fall out.
You can call me a prude as well because I have the same opinion about the skirt. And you can also call me a petty human being because her legs are drawing all my attention. Especially when she is standing near ladies with a totally different style.
Same! I’m 31 and I don’t wear skirts above my knee for professional engagements.
Why is she so against pants? She would look lovely for this in a colorful blouse, open coat and fitted trousers.
@ Fallon. I believe she’s against pants because she’s very competitive and wants to be the skinniest woman with the best legs at every event. That’s why when she does wear leg coverings, they are very tight and show every curve. Her hair and her pants are her security. This is why she shows off her two perceived assets 90% of the time.
Kate seems to favor skirts because her legs are rather short compared to her height. She is tall with a very long torso and disproportionally short legs, so she avoids pants that highlight them. The dresses and skirts Kate wears either have no waistline or the waistlines are higher than natural to make her look more proportional. Its more obvious in pictures of her wearing leggings. Though why in the world she chooses skin tight leggings on the few occasions she does wear pants is beyond me because they are simply terrible.
http://f.tqn.com/y/fashion/1/S/_/j/3/duchessofcambridgebrightpants.jpg
http://img2.timeinc.net/instyle/images/2012/LOTD/072912-Kate-Middleton-350.jpg
Like her hair, the clutch seems to be her security blanket. The pics where she’s trying to hand on the clutch while managing the flowers or scissors shows are ridiculous. Hand the clutch to an assistant. I think that’s part of her lack of professional polish — she’s so inexperienced she doesn’t know how to do it.
And the clutch is part of her never-changing, dull look. We’ve seen her with shoulder bags in pap shots but never anything but a clutch for official events.
@Thisfacebelievesyou – that’s true, about her proportions. I also don’t understand – or find professional – the skintight pants. It’s like if she can’t wear a dress with tights to show her legs, she makes sure the pants are glued to them. With high-waisted trousers that had a slight flow to them, she could easily create the illusion of longer legs. But then, she wouldn’t be showing her legs off!
My thoughts on What’s in the Clutch?
Ciggies
Chuck’s credit card (almost maxed out, to be sure)
Compact to check the eyeliner/eyeliner pencil for needed, repeated, reapplication purposes
Phone to call for the helicopter once her 30 minutes of actual “work” is done
But in all seriousness- yes, it’s a bit weird that she has to have the crotch clutch.
And maybe a photo of her mother since she is not actually there to hold her hand? 😉
@Allie May
LOL!
I don’t get why she tried to hold all three things at the same time. Hand the clutch to the PA before she accepts the flowers. Hand those over before she takes the scissor and cuts the ribbon. Hand back the scissor and take the flowers as she gets a tour of the shop, and so on and so forth….
One should think that after 5 years years, she would have this down pat. Trying to hold everything at once is a newbie mistake.
Yes! Just made a similar comment a little upthread. Why not hand the clutch to her assistant, it’s mind boggling that she doesn’t get how to do basic things.
Yep you’re a prude. Geez, the dress is a few centimetres above her knees, should she be in frumpy mid calf length? Some people don’t look good in dress trousers, her proportions look better in dresses/skirts. Im no fan but the criticsm of this woman is so over the top.
Polly, KM’s job has a dress code. Hems to the knee or lower. You may not like it, but that is the dress code the boss put in place.
The dress underneath is a mini with a chiffon overlay, the one she wore when they left on honeymoon. The dress hits mid-thigh, chiffon a couple inches lower but still far above her knees. There are photos on the DM that show how far the coat and dress ride up the back of her legs when she bends over. She’s supposed to think about these things and dress appropriately.
I really don’t understand her lack of style. I have to put my thumbs over her image to see her coats themselves and not her boring styling. I see possibilities and like this coat though I would wear it totally different from her.
i can believe Willnot threw The Parvenu under the bus and that she wasn’t complaining. I think he does whatever he wants and doesn’t care if she gets bad press.
How do you suppose she paid for her purchases? The Royals notoriously don’t carry cash on their persons.
The bill is sent to their office I suppose.
Look at the pouching of her jowls on either side of her face. Getting too much filler perhaps?
I am not sure what is wrong with her face but it looks off to me.
After missing the event yesterday, she should have spent more money in the charity shop today than on just one book and a single figurine. She should have bought up bag loads of stuff, like she’s seen doing on her days off at expensive stores. If she’s going to bring her clutch, then she should have filled it with money.
She’s the Thrifty Princess, doncha know?
Or she could have spent some time behind the register selling stuff. People would have flocked in for that!
That would mean putting down her clutch and actually helping the cause. Not just “observing” like she normally does with her engagements.
@hmmm – yes, exactly. That would have been the intelligent, engaged way to demonstrate interest and commitment and it would also undoubtedly have generated a nice income boost for EACH. Additionally, she could have made a proper day of it by following up the shop opening with a visit to one of the hospices for lunch.
She really seems so grimly and hopelessly clueless.
Yes! That would have been a great idea! Quick, send an email to #poorjason!
@Guesto, those are great suggestions.
The UK’s Telegraph reported that as the first customer of the charity shop, she spent only £10 in total on an £8 Tom Kitten Beatrix Potter figurine and a £2 copy of Fireman Sam’s Favourite Tales.
This is while wearing a $995 coat (£ 687), missing out on the shamrock ceremony, and having just come home from a vacation in a certain French Alps village that reportedly is so expensive that it’s common to see Russian oligarchs there. Never mind all her other riches.
Also, Kate had a girl, who is a patient of the hospital, show her a £10 silver purse the girl wanted, so Kate said that they’d have to put a reserved sticker on it so nobody else would buy it. Then it seems that without buying the purse for the girl as a kind gesture, Kate went on to model a hat (for the cameras).
The girl’s mother said she’ll have to buy the purse now or else there might be trouble.
Did not the future queen want to spend even £20 as the first customer of the charity shop? Just £10 and a ‘get me outta here in 35 minutes’ attitude?
I wonder if this was the little girl in pink who reached out to Kate for comfort and Kate wouldn’t hug her. Either way, Kate could have easily paid for the purse and it would have been great PR to show that Kate is empathetic and concerned about the charity and those it helps. Instead, TONE DEAF!
I think we’re talking about the same girl in pink, Rebekah, who was having a hard time handing a bouquet over to Kate. There’s a video on the Telegraph of her interactions with Kate both outside and inside the shop.
I agree that it would have been a really good PR move. Someone needs to put a bluetooth in her ear in order to give her undercover instructions during her meet-the-public events like these.
£10 to buy some goodwill and good PR…..wow, she really missed an opportunity there. I’m sorry for that little girl, but I’m actually glad that Kate is so….stupid.
She does not deserve to be well thought of.
Wow that’s bad. I don’t understand someone so stubborn and unable to get how the tide is turning fairly strongly.
Would it kill her to wear some more interesting shoes? Just for once? Put the black pumps (or black wedges/black boots) back in the closet and wear something fun?
I used to be quite the Kate fan and shamefully confess to being a middle aged woman that subscribed to the pro-Kate blogs. It’s interesting because even the ride-or-die Kate fans (like on whatkatewore.com) are leaving comments about how she has changed and has “lost her old fire.” I look back at old pics and I do think there is something missing now…and yes I know she has aged (as unfortunately, we all do) but to me there is something else going on. Absolute unhappiness? Depression?
Responsibilities and expectations. Now she has to show up for work, even if it is only for 35 minutes. She misses the decade of not working, vacationing once a month on the beach or ski slopes, and not being held accountable for anything except answering the phone whenever William called.
Yep. She doesn’t look this miserable when pap’d shopping.
She got what she wanted so the ‘old fire’ that drove her hustle to catch the Prince and lifestyle is gone.
She never had a work ethic, so how do we expect her to have one now? Let’s just hope Harry marries someone we can respect more.
Kate never really had fire.
I think the issue was that she was built up so heavily in the beginning. She was gorgeous. She was thin, naturally thin! She had fabulous legs. She had beautiful, beautiful hair that never ever looked bad. She and Will were so in love – more in love than any royal couple before. And she was college educated and ready to roll as a royal – she would be more engaged than any royal wife previously. And she was “classy” – always classy. Her clothes! So “classy”.
If you think I am exaggerating, just pull up early coverage on Kate on this blog and read the comments. They are insanely over the top (although Kaiser, bless her, has been a skeptic for years.)
The truth was that she is a very pretty, but not beautiful, woman who is highly manufactured. She has rigorously dieted a good two to three sizes off her frame and is much thinner than her natural weight. Her full, curly to frizzy hair is tamed into place. She is never ever photographed without a full face of makeup. If you search out photos of her as a young woman you will see a pretty, fresh faced woman but one who looks very different from the woman you see today.
She has a decent education, but other than that she has led a sheltered life. She is not comfortable with crowds and woefully under prepared for a fairly demanding public role.
The fairytale and the truth are so highly dissonant that people are crashing to earth and acting very disappointed. But what they wanted was never there to begin with.
She has crashed because she and her relationship with William were built up to a ridiculous degree.
suze……………….honestly. You deserve some sort of award for summing this up as you have. TWO THUMBS UP. Really you did just detail the situation so accurately. 🙂
That’s it in a nutshell; a very perceptive summary.
I’ll be honest – I’ve held a negative opinion of Kate since the St. Andrews years.
(IMO, she seemed to enjoy the press attention a bit too much and it frustrated me that she didn’t appear to have many priorities in her life outside of her relationship with William.)
The hype has always felt very manufactured to me. I think people like a “fairytale” storyline. There is a certain appeal to that, but I don’t think either W or K have a great deal of appeal based on who they are as people.
Increasingly, my sense is, who they are is being revealed more and more, day by day.
Something nice – I think her hair color looks nice.
35 minutes? Sigh… she seems a lost cause. As someone else posted she could have brought in a bag of old clothes for them to sell, or gotten behind the register for a couple of hours. You know, actually roll up her sleeves and work? But no. She swans in, takes flowers from local little girl, touches a few items, asks inane questions, then swans out back to Anmer Hall in time for tea.
These coatdresses are beginning to annoy me because she doesn’t take off her coat once she’s inside. On a purely optics level, it gives the impression that she’s not staying long, just popping in from outside to have a look, rather than being an involved patron of the charity. Again, totally tone-deaf.
I agree completely with what you said. It’s so funny, she hasn’t a clue. She should want to get behind the register and sell things – but then again, if she were that type of person, she would be incredibly popular and relatable and things would be so different. You can’t teach people something that comes from within.
Completely tone deaf. But cutting ribbons is right up her alley.
My suggestion to her is to take her ill-fitting garments down there and donate them. Think of the pile of money that would be raised if they knew they were Keen Kate’s Kastoffs???
Yes agree totally. Couldn’t she wear some great trousers and a jacket? This coat thing is just too boring.
Is Kate feeling rebellious today? Because I see the hemline went back up. So she had her hair done instead of honouring tradition with the Irish Guards? Pathetic.
Three months into year 2016 and this is “hitting the ground running” and “eager to resume royal duties.”
35 minutes isn’t even a proper lunch break.
She’s getting raked over the coals over in the DM comments. I always sort by “Best rated” and man, they are tearing her a new one. The Irish Guards debacle – wow. Not that she doesn’t deserve it, mind. It’s just mindblowing how Katie and Bill Bucket have p*ssed away all the goodwill they had going from the wedding and the kids.
Gotta laugh at this one, the only charity event they can get Kate to show up to is one where she can also shop. Poor Jason.
She is locked into a fashion rut. It is tiresome.
It really is. Please someone help her!
Could she be pregnant already ? She seemed to show in the face early on with the other two. Someone earlier referred to her looking “doughy” The top photo closeups show a puffy face and bags.
She looks puffy or tired or haggard or something at the past few events. At first I thought maybe she PG again. I find this look boring. She needs to lose the clutch bags and lighten up her look. A nice pair of tailored pants would look great with that coat. She could have pants made that would make her legs look longer if that’s an issue. She and William need better PR and she needs a better stylist.
All I want is for her to get a professional makeup artist.
Thought firstly Waity should hve shown respect to the regiment by showing up to do her BRF duty
how hard was it for her to show the soldiers respect…by doing the shamrocks…
she so wanted the life of privilege rich luxurious lifestyle so this comes as a duty ..not making excuses about being with herchildren.. she has all of Easter with her family..
The problem is at the Palace noone is man enough to call her in and tell her straight.. They seem frightened to sort these two arrogant brats out…
Yesterday Princess Anne, and she came across as a strong motherly figure gave out the cup to the jockey and owner, the winners of the Cheltenham Gold Cup race meeting. It is something the whole crowd and individuals taking part look forward to as to see Anne looking lovely and resolute walking through the crowd to get to the stand and cup area. It got me thinking Anne would never cry off a ceremony that the people expect her to be at. Although I don’t think she does it every year I would have to look that up, but I wonder if Kate prefers outings and ceremonies where lots of the public are in attendance.
tennis anyone? she will not miss a match at Wimbledon.
I LOVE the Princess Royal – i so wish she had been born first.
@Betti, Anne couldn’t have been named heir to the throne even if she were older than Charles. Charles, Andrew and Edward would have all been ahead of her in the line of succession, due to being male. The laws only changed in 2013 so that the older child inherits the throne no matter the sex. (And they were not retrospective, IIRC.)
The DM and screen shots and quotes from the Queen at 90 documentary and there is one of Will in his ‘hero copter’ pilot uniform, pushing the ‘normal working man’ narrative in the face of being called lazy. She talks about how the Queen has been a ‘quiet’ supporter of her saying that she still has a ‘little bit more to learn’ WTF!!!!
The screen grabs are hilarious – the one of her she is looking at the camera in shades of Diana (in that infamous divorce interview) where she is looking all wide eyed and innocent into the lens, tilting the head. Kate is soooo a bad clone of her MIL, she just looks like a stepford royal. I’m going to watch the documentary but will mute it when the Buckets are on, particularly as the way she speaks irritates me – its not natural.
Because a woman wears a piece of clothing three times over four years, that’s notable?
So so boring. Bland coat, boring court shoes. It’s time she embraced some smart trousers, more interesting shoes and for the love of God, ditch the clutch! The European royals dress with so much more appropriateness and personality – look at the Swedish princesses, Mary from Denmark and Queen Letizia from Spain.
EXACTLY. She is so basic. Needs to take a page out of the Michelle Obama style book and learn how to inject a little personal flair into her looks.
It’s not as if Kate had no idea what was expected of her. She went after the prize, knowing exactly what the life of a working Royal is meant to be – why didn’t she just married a titled, über-wealthy aristocrat? Then, she could shop and vacation to her heart’s content, and no one would give two shits about her work habits. No, she HAD to go for a high profile relationship and marriage that would highlight her lack of personality and ALL of her flaws.
When she graduated from Marlborough, her original university of choice was Edinburgh University; according to reports, she had firmly been set on going there. Then, it was announced that Willy Wanker was attending St. Andrews, and so she took a gap year and followed him to Chile, where he was spending his gap year. She then reapplied for St. Andrews for the 2001 term – ensuring she’d be there at the same time as Willy.
At St. Andrews, she made sure to be living in the same shared apartment as him, hovering in the background until that infamous fashion show – she needed him to see her body and be attracted to it. Sex was the only way she could even get his attention ( FYI: not saying there is anything wrong with that, but I HATE that they spin their “love story” like some gddamned fairy tale) and keep it. Their relationship was entirely based on her being at his beck and call whenever his dalliances and flirtations with other women petered out; her nickname by Willy’s Royal Protection Officers was “The Mattress”. Her own mother, instead of telling her to grown a damn spine and find someone better, encouraged her to pursue him and to always be ready for him. Even during that 2007 breakup, when it seemed she was going to move on and lick her wounds, Mommy Carole devised the “Kate Middleton Fabulous Single Girl Tour”, where she would act as if she was better off without him: all to win him back. Bolyen Family much?
No self-respect whatsoever for her own reputation, no dignity – because she wanted to be a Princess and have the lifestyle. Never mind that it comes with certain expectations and responsibilities; never mind that her husband and son are second and third in line for the throne and, as such, she should be doing all she can to help strengthen the monarchy and its legacy; never mind that her husband has been pining away for the same woman (Jecca Craig) for his entire adult life. Never mind that she was his backup plan, not the love of his life – he couldn’t be arsed to buy her a new engagement ring that suited her style and personality, but instead gave a hand-me-down that is forever tinged with heartbreak and tragedy; never mind that she could carve out an amazing role for herself within The Firm that would not only positively raise her profile, but help keep Willy from being hated by the people.
She has, with the blessing of her husband, done the bare minimum as future Queen of England. Look at all of the events they did for the first year after their wedding: fluff events where she got to wear designer gowns, her best wiglets and extensions, look pretty and smile big. Hilary Mantel was dead-on when she said that Kate had “appeared to have been designed by a committee and built by craftsmen, with a perfect plastic smile and the spindles of her limbs hand-turned and gloss-varnished”. There’s nothing of substance there, and there never will be. If her husband actually cared about her, actually genuinely loved her, he would not allow her to dig her own grave like this.
For all we can say about Charles and the way he treated Diana, he always respected and appreciated how hard she worked for the Royal Family, even AFTER they divorced; that woman dove right into work a hot minute after she got married, and never stopped until the day she was killed. Kate and Willy Wanker have done nothing but damage the institution that his great-grandfather, great-grandmother, and grandparents fought to keep going after the abdication crisis of 1936.
And yet, no one seems to want to tell Willy Wanker to put up or get the fuck out – they’re all terrified of his temper tantrums. I suspect that, if his health wasn’t so fragile, that Prince Phillip would happily tear Willy Wanker a new one (and rightfully so), but he probably doesn’t want to bother raising his blood pressure at 95 years of age.
This will get worse and not better; these two want the life and perks, and none of the responsibilities. Only a drastic act by the Queen would change the situation.
more and more, I believe William is the one who is making decisions about the amount of work they do.
I am as critical of her as you are, but I expect she is doing what he wants.
It looks just like all of her other coats. Girl has ONE outfit. I clicked on this hoping to see one of the colourful Missoni chevron print coats, and was disappointed. Not sure why I expected this…I’m just a HUGE fan of Missoni knitwear, and while this is a lovely coat, is just scratching the surface of some of the depth of lovely color and pattern that the brand is known for. I am officially over her and her Mumsy style.