I was looking through these new photos of Duchess Kate today with Prince Charles and Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall in London, and I was pleasantly surprised to see that Kate was avoiding touching her hair compulsively. And then I got to the photos where she starts fondling her curls, of course. Her hair is her happy place. So far, she’s only been able to do one event without touching her hair. That was the event with the Queen, when Kate couldn’t even be bothered to look at Her Majesty when the Queen spoke to her. Anyway, these are photos from Kate and Camilla’s trip to the the Dulwich Picture Gallery. Because Kate is a patroness of the arts! She and Camilla also met with kids involved with The Prince’s Foundation for Children and the Arts (one of Prince Charles’s things).
Her dress is by Orla Kiely, and at first, I thought it was the same coatdress that she wore to the National Gallery a few weeks ago. But it’s not. It’s just similar in its cut and color. I don’t like the black appliqué stuff on the top – it’s too fussy for someone so young, but I think Kate loves the really “fussy” stuff. Kate also wore Orla Kiely in February – that brown and cream “dove” dress that kind of sucked. This dress was actually her second costume of the day – earlier today, she wore pink jeans at an event for… something. Field hockey. You can see some photos here – Kate looks cute in those pics, but I wish she would wear a different cut of jeans other than “skinny”. Does this count as two events in one day? That’s what she’s averaging since William‘s been gone – one day a week of public work.
In every new photo set of Kate, I often feel like she’s pushing out her left hand in photo after photo, really showing off her ring. She did that a lot when she first got engaged, and it made sense at the time (“I got the ring! LOOK!”), but coming up on her first anniversary, it seems weird that she’s still making a point to push her hand out to show the ring.
Shall we discuss the fullness of her hair? It looks really healthy, I’ll give her that. That’s all I’ve got. As for the makeup issue… she’s not going to change it, y’all. We can complain all we want, but she’s going to keep slathering it on. It’s her thing. In some natural light, her makeup application looks really drag-queeny, though.
Update: This post has inspired some people to once again claim that I’m “hating on” poor Kate. Maybe you’re right – I’m far from her biggest fan. I don’t think Kate is a horrible person or anything, I just don’t think she’s deserving of the crazy amount of sycophantic press she gets. If anything, I “hate” the press machine around Kate, not Kate herself. She’s a pretty average girl who likes makeup and likes to play with her hair. I dislike the way she’s being treated like the Second Coming.
Photos courtesy of WENN.
I love that dress – even the stuff at the top and the drape of the skirt is very nice.
If I am around a person who constantly plays with their hair, I want to scream and tell them to stop it and just sit still! So if she does this, it would be a negative in my mind.
Kate’s makeup is fine – Camilla looks drag-queeney always! But Kate does not.
It’s really windy. She’s trying to keep her hair under control in a windy situation.
I love the dress too! So refreshing to see a woman covered up in a professional and feminine manner – I’m sick of the RiRis and Brandis letting it all hang out. Women we are better than the sum of our parts!
Uh, the hair, however, beautiful & healthy, it’s just a shame that she has an obvious fall on; you can really see it from the profile photos. Saint Di didn’t have to wear wigs, even when she was battling her own eating disorder demons. Kate, overall, kudos to you, but please consider leaving your wiglet home.
She looks perfectly lovely. I don’t see what’s not to like about this young woman.
She looks lovely. The shorter length of the dress keeps it from looking matronly. In defense of Kate, perhaps she touches her hair when it blows in her face? Wind?
She touches her hair all the time, wind or no wind. There’s been tons of photos of her playing with her hair while attending events. She uses it a security blanket. She fidgets with it to hide her nervousness and she could do something with her hands.
It must be her nerve thing, her father in law , Prince Charles is a cuff fiddler and so is her husband. This may be the reason she rarely wears her hair up…………
It’s windy and she is holding her hair out of her face. As for her makeup….how else is it supposed to look. It’s makeup and it looks no different from how any women wears it. She looks like a princess and that is how she should look.
Kate looks beautiful in these pics. I want that dress.
+1
I love Orla Kiely’s lines. Wish I lived near a Debenhams!
She’s “flashing her engagement ring”? You mean… wearing it? It’s a rather large ring, so it’s going to draw attention no matter what she does, but it’s not like she was waving her hand around pointing to it.
Do you think it’s actually the real ring? I bet when they “meet and greet” like this she will be wearing a copy ring (which would still probably cost thousands). It would be all too easy for someone to pull it off her finger and disappear into the crowd….
The dress totally suits her figure. She looks great – I like the very modern “vintage” look she does.
I seriously want to know what brand/shade of nylons she wears.
Probably Wolford.
The pink jeans and pumps are a NO. She looks better here than usual but still masculine and shellacked.
There were a million pictures of she and the Queen looking at each other, smiling and speaking-they were all over the news, and the Daily Mail. You just chose to post the ones that support your view that she’s useless.
Very pretty dress, she looks lovely but she really should start tying her hair back when she’s doing public events. It overwhelms her and it’s not practical when she’s out in wind and endlessly fussing with it. Plus it looks more mature and professional.
Kate? Queen (oops, Princess!) of big, happy hair? Tie it back? They might curse you over there for such a thought!
ARG. Why can’t someone DO her hair into a DO that means she doesn’t have to freaking mess with it all the damn time?
It doesn’t have to be cut short or put into a severe bun. What’s wrong with a loose updo? Or a little pretty clip at the back of her head just holding back one piece from each side of her head and leaving the rest down? At least then, part of it wouldn’t be wind blown and messy. There’s SO many ways her long hair could be styled other than down and messy and all over the place. And the dressier YOU are, the more something needs to be done with your hair.
I think I am an old fuddy duddy but I like the dress and the other dresses by the same designer. Plus, I think they suit the duchess.
I agree that she’s holding back her hair because of the wind. She would probably be better served by pulling her hair back with a clip for some of these outdoor events, but she doesn’t seem inclined to do so for whatever reason.
Personally, I like the duchess. I also like this site’s more snarky view of her because the rest of the press is absolutely fawning and it’s a nice change. If you don’t like CB’s posts on her, you can either skip them or go elsewhere to get your duchess fix.
Her posture is attrocious!
Also… is she forbidden to wear her hair up? That dress would have looked better with a simple, elegant low ponytail. All that hair around the applique makes it look fussy, not the applique itself!!!
And the pink jeans, whilst a super cute outfit for that particular event (oin the sneakers vs pumps), really emphasis her strange torso (super long) to leg (short for someone her height) ratio.
I was going to say that! Her posture is horrible, it looks like her head and neck are separated from the body.
She is absolutely gorgeous and gives off a friendly, approachable, happy and kind vibe. PLEASE! Let’s learn from Princess Di’s tragic life (and death) and NOT torture the beautiful new member of the royal family to illness and death!!!!
Woah. I’m a Kate fan too, but let’s chill down the drama a tad bit.
I agree Alexa! Well said. So true, lets learn a lesson from the tragic end to Diana’s life and the miserable conditions beforehand.
Lovely as always and that style suits her figure perfectly.
She looks great, I don’t see how she’s “flashing” her ring, and she’s only touching her hair in one picture. Is she not allowed to touch her head at all? Seriously, enough with this hatred of the princess. I think she’s a little lazy and spoiled too and I personally like that you don’t fawn over her like everyone else but you’re diluting its potency by snarking on her for no reason!
If I look at pictures of myself, my engagement ring is pretty obvious in a lot of them and I have a pretty small stone. Kate’s stone is massive. There are lots of pictures of Diana during her marriage where the ring is very obvious as well.
Awww…
I’m not usually a Waity-defender, but I feel bad for her when it comes to the hair thing. I’m a relentless fidgeter myself, so I feel her pain.
Me too!
Do you think she’s had permanent eyeliner done? I know someone who’s had it and since it is ever present on Kate it popped into my mind! Haven’t seen it suggested, but maybe it’s considered too “out there” for a princess to have perma-liner. I would do perma-mascara if I could…I know there’s Latisse, but the faux-commercial on SNL made me laugh too hard to try it.
I honestly think she must have had eyeliner makeup tattooed. It just looks the same every time, like the one on her left eye is always a bit “crooked” than the right. Unless she always has an unsteady hand whenever she applies eyeliner on the exact same spot, it’s so weird to see her with the same eyeliner application all the time.
I think she just adds some more makeup to thicken the eyeliner and create a smoky/smudged effect but I don’t think we’ll ever see her without it on because it’s permanent.
I will say I have seen a post or two on this site in the past year that has brought up that topic… It’s debatable.
I think she looks happy and healthy in these photos!! I love her style…
Such terrible posture. Is her head too heavy now that she has to crane it forward? She’s still so, so skinny.
The grey dress would have been better without the black floral appliques. It cheapens the dress.
This is her 3rd grey dress now. She has one grey dress worn when she was in Canada, the 2nd to the Royal Art Gallery, and now this.
Time to recycle your clothes, Kate!!! No need to buy new clothes every time you go to “work” for one hour!
If she buys new clothes for every event: in one month alone (1 per week), 4 events only, she’s already spent around $1000 on clothes that are not even high fashion. Imagine once she gets the taste for Chanel, Prada, and Valentino.
Kaiser, I agree with you that she still flashes the ring every time she’s out and about. It’s not even subtle. There have been many photos of her holding out her hand to photographers as if waiting for them to take her photos flashing the ring. She holds her clutches in the way the ring would show the most. Most women would have their fingers under the clutch for a better grip, not hold them like Kate is doing here. It actually strains the fingers when you hold a clutch that way. But anything to show the ring, I guess.
Still, I must commend her for actually doing her duties without William.
I’ve said it before, she’s doing better and better without him. She’s more comfortable and confident on her own, not following William around waiting for his cues. She was engaged in the Field Hockey visit, and she was a lot more personable and warmer. If she keeps up on this, she’ll get the hang of it and hopefully she will develop a good work ethic and dedication to her role. I hope she doesn’t take on the “I wanna be a housewife” gimmick again once William comes back. She can do things on her own and she can flourish on her own.
I’m too lazy to post something new, so I’ll just agree with all your points in this post.
I love the dress, and the ring, many women usually wear their engagement ring, so I don’t see it as a big deal, the only different it’s that her is HUGE. And probably people would start complaining: “where is Diana’s ring?”
Oh and someone should start a petition: “a sandwich for Kate”.
It is a vanity thing. When one is always touching the hair. And I view her as beyond vapid. She comes across as lacking substance. She seems to only care about how she looks
She looks like she was really having a good time at the hockey thing.
You can tell her touching her hair is a nervous habit. I used to do it all the time myself. I would play with the ends of my hair without realizing it. I even did it while talking to people. It took me a looong time to get out of that habit. In fact I didnt or couldnt stop until my hair was shorter and not as easy to reach. I think she’s also trying to keep it from flying in her face/mouth from the wind.
She cant win on here tho, no matter what she does she’ll be criticized. As far as the ring thing, maybe she was just using her hand. What is she supposed to do, cut off her ring finger so she isnt accused of still flashing her ring?
If she weren’t so damn skinny…and yeah, wouldn’t kill her to sport an updo.
I like the gray dress. I pretty much like everything she wears.
OMG, just looked at the pics of Kate in the pink jeans on daily mail and holy crap does she seem different! She’s completely in her element, laughing and prancing around with other hockey people. Kate should do more sports-related charities and less events with heels and dresses and nodding and blinking and buttons andfollowing higher-up royals blindly.
That’s probably why people think she’s uptight or twitchy, the events aren’t being tailored to her personality and strengths. Look at Prince Harry’s tour, every event was tailored to his personality! If Kate were given similar treatment she would really shine! More hockey sticks! Give the girl a badminton racket and a birdie and let her play with school children with issues! Ahh, I just can’t get over it, she looks so happy, I don’t think I’ve ever seen her smile that much (genuinely anyway.)
And, on a final note, I like her better at events without Prince William. I’m thinking his presence makes her more nervous. Contrary to what the tabs are saying about her being weak without him, she seems much more relaxed without him.
I totally agreee, she’s looked much more relaxed in the events she’s done solo. Maybe she’s also just getting used to it, but still…kind of interesting. You really have to wonder what goes on in private between those two. I really get the impression that when she’s with William, her main focus is “pleasing” him, so at charity events that they’ve done she’s always looking to him for a cue, probably nervously wondering if she’s doing the “right” thing by his standards, etc. Which makes you what happens behind the scenes when she doesn’t “please” him. When he’s not there she’s probably not thinking about that so much and just focusing on the event.
She does look like she’s having a great time with the hockey team–would be good to see more of those sorts of events. She FINALLY looks really youthful and not dreadfully pre-aged as she often does at the more formal events.
Do you remember during the carriage ride after their wedding, when lip readers said Kate asked William, “Are you happy?” like she was making sure everything was going well according to his desires. And then Kate’s comment, “William is in charge” when she was asked about her plans and goals.
I feel like a broken record for repeating myself here on CB, but William really does like to observe protocol all the time. When he’s not present, everyone else is more relaxed and less stiff.
Even here, with Prince Charles, Kate is so much more relaxed and comfortable. Charles himself doesn’t look stuffy. He actually looks suave and dapper.
Kate is just as relaxed with Camilla. She is the same with Harry. I imagine all 3 people seek to encourage her and make her comfortable.
It’s odd that it’s only with her husband that she mostly appears like a child waiting to be told what to do. She is very stiff with William, IMO she almost seems “unsure” of herself, and always looks at him for her next move. She would wait for William to introduce her before she steps forward to shake hands with other people.
There’s a weird dynamic between these two that doesn’t sit well with me. Usually it should be with your husband that you are most comfortable with, but this is not the case with William and Kate. It’s almost like William is the one holding her BACK, not UP.
I want Kate to do more and develop her own agenda and profile, but you gotta wonder how William will feel about being potentially overshadowed by his wife when it comes to royal duties. While William keeps on putting off royal duties, Kate might come into her own.
I’ve also said it before: if William doesn’t want to work, neither will Kate. I don’t think William will allow her to work mostly without his presence.
Sachi: I thought I was the only one who noticed that! Kate is ALWAYS looking to William for her next move/approval, etc. It’s ridiculous! I’m sure she wants to please him, which is normal, but he obviously intimidates the h*ll out of her.
I would love to know what he says to her after events. I could see him, once they’re alone, giving her a rundown of every part of the event/outting that she did well and what she could improve on. Then nodding, but not smiling, and telling her she did a good job overall. Aaaand then he takes off his shoes and snaps his fingers for her to service him 🙂 This totally happens, I’m telling you…
I just looked at those photos, too, and I agree. She is entirely in her element, on her own, at a sports outing. It’s like ten years have fallen off of her.
I know people say that she looks friendly and happy and approachable at events with William or other members of the royal family, but I don’t agree at all. I think she looks nervous and that her smile is tight and forced.
And I know people love her “working” clothes and her look, and I do too, to a degree. But I do think she looks much more comfortable in casual gear.It’s almost a pity she has decided to focus on the arts as a general area for her charitable efforts – I think if she had focused on sports she would have more opportunity to shine.
Seriously, those hockey photos were a revelation. It was like seeing the real Kate for the first time. I hope she eventually has a bunch of sporty children who she can run around with and play with out of the public eye.
Word!
THIS. Her pictures at the field hockey event (which were for the London olympics) were awesome. She was glowing with happiness and seemed quite easy and relaxed.
Not surprising when the girl played field hockey for years.
Agree. She’s proven to be a legit sporty/outdoorsy girl and it shows that she comes to life when she gets to participate in such activities.
To me she looks like someone completely at the centre of attention (among a lot of men as well) and loving it without the hang ups of royal protocol.
She is absolutely lovely! The dress is perfect for the event.
IMO it is refreshing to see a woman like Kate who is college educated, smart, sporty, and down to earth step onto the world stage and carry herself so beautifuly in her princess role. She is a perfect role model for young girls. And her fashion sense (most of her clothes sell out within hours) only add to her popularity. She has that Grace Kelly/Jackie O effect.
She has the “it” factor to sells. I’m sure that may piss off alot of people- but I’d rather see our young people look up to her- than some of these ridiculas uneducated reality stars who do nothing but make idiots out of themselves to famous.
Keep up the great work Kate- you are just getting started.
She does, indeed, have the ‘It” factor. Like a mannequin. Hollow image. No there there.
a role model for young girls??? you can’t be serious.
she is extremely underweight and never held an job in her life because she was waiting for a guy to marry her.
ya, just who i want my daughter to look up to.
She is as much of a role model as Barbie is, and even Barbie has held down more jobs than Catherine has.
Relax Catherine (or should I say Carole?) Kate just married Prince Willy. Don’t make her out like she has solved world hunger or even as the reincarnation of Mother Teresa.
The volume of hair she has seems completely unnatural. Her dress is way too short and makes the proportions unpleasing given the height of her heels. All she ever does is show off her legs and hair. She’s like a broken record unable to move into a slightly different groove. But then, when there’s nothing in your head, all you have is legs and fake hair. Gad, she’s annoying, absolutely into attention and nothing but attention. How can anyone stand being around her?
Um..her dress is too short? Are you serious? You must be of the long denim look.
Yes, attacking the commenter instead of the comment scores you huge debate points. I gave a cogent argument. And what did you do?
Hmmm – the volume of hair IS unnatural. Check out this picture which shows the track of her weave sewn right into her part: http://royaldish.com/index.php?topic=9578.60.
I agree that the dress makes her proportions look wonky. I think it’s that the waist is too high on her long torso…so you can tell something is off but not quite what.
Agree about the dress, and how it makes her proportions look ‘off’. I don’t think that the dress is necessarily too short… just the combo of that (which shows a lot of leg) and how high the waist is cut… makes her look like her legs go all the way up to her chest! Yes, having a ‘leggy’ look is desirable, but not when it looks like you are missing your entire mid-section!
On another note, why does she NEVER put her hair up??? What’s the point of having long hair (hair, extensions, whatever) if you don’t ever DO anything with it?
Love her style, make up and hair. How is she supposed to be dressed or made up? She’s doing what she’s comfortable with. Give her a break…
People are just excited that they have a new princess (duchess). Why not enjoy her instead of putting her down. I am not her biggest fan either, but she is doing a good job. Some other girls would have done plenty of awkward mistakes, but she’s doing great.
I really like that dress, actually, but I don’t think it suits her, she is tall and thin, and pretty, but looks more womanly than girl, even though she is not yet 30. She clearly likes girlish things, but I think girlish clothes would look better on someone shorter. Someone with her physical stature would look amazing in more fashion forward clothes; longer skirts, dress pants, bolder colours and accessories. Her taste doesn’t reflect her physicality, but she might be too young still, or insecure taste wise to accept that.
She turned 30 in January. She is a grown woman, not a little girl anymore.
She definitely has no sense of style, elegance and fashion.
The waist is always too high, the lenghth akward, the shoes too high, the heels too narrow, the colors (all kinds of dark blue, grey, black, bordeaux… ) are colors for blondes not for brunettes…
What a pity…
And her collection of belts is the worse I’ve seen
But… Is it important ?
It seems to me the only time she touches her hair compulsively is when it’s windy. Having long hair myself, I do it all the time without noticing. What the hell does everyone else here who has a problem with it do when the wind blows their hair in their face? And for those arguing she touches it whether it’s windy or not-were you there? How do you know it’s not windy? People will find any reason to hate this girl. It’s tired and old, not to mention boring.
Well, when it’s windy, I pull my hair back or put it in a braid. I don’t like my hair getting knotted & tangled from blowing all over. Personally, I wish she would change her hairstyle every once in a while. Long hair can be so versatile!
You are as pressed as a panini.
Do you know Kate personally? You sound so offended for her sake.
And for the “not so windy” photos, look at the photos of her inside a building touching and flipping her hair. It’s not the wind causing her to touch her hair constantly, it’s fidgeting.
When you have more than 20 people commenting that she keeps on touching her hair, do you think we’re all lying? Do you think we just pull that comment out of our asses?
Kate touching her hair has been an issue since she started doing royal duties. It’s not something that came out of nowhere, and when there are dozens of people saying that she fidgets with her hair most of the time, then I’m inclined to believe that she does.
I just choked on my drink. Pressed as a panini. LOL. I have got to remember that.
Jenn says:
March 15, 2012 at 4:03 pm
mymy: you’re an idiot.
For goodness sake’s I guess we will have to disagree on this one. I have seen plenty of woman do this who are vain. Doesn’t make me an idiot. Don’t like her and still thinks she is vapid. Chill the heck out
In the 3rd photo, her neck looks like it belongs to a 75 year old woman. She’s controlled by William and she is scared of him.
I love Orla Kiely’s retro styles, and Kate has been rocking that brand lately. What a great plug for a UK “home” brand.
Kate, please do something with your hair.
Once you reach 35, the schoolgirl long hair just won’t work anymore.
You got a few years to experiment, unfortunately, in the public eye. Hurry!
She’s very vain and conceited. She is always looking for the camera and it does not become a woman of her position.
I’m not a Kate hater but neither am I spoon-fed by St James’ Palace PR machine. I have a brain.
I got some Orla Kieley perfume last year when I went to UK, it’s lovely but it COULD fall inter more mature lady scent category.
I do not have anything against Kate but I have nothing for her either. I think she was a well-off girl that got everything handed to her and that when she took the role of being the Princess/Dutchess of What have you she assumed things would be the same. She has no real life experience and is, I believe, fumbling her way through getting to substance. It will take some time or she will fail but the pressure on her is horrendous. I feel like everyone expects her to be Lady Di; boys and girls there will never be another. Give her some time, see what she can do and then after throw the tomatoes–if need be- at her.
I do not work for her, or know her; this is my opinion.
Sorry, I simply refuse to respect this do little woman. She always looks nice but that is the extent of her appeal. I’m still looking forward to the day we all comment on her contributions to her country rather than her wardrobe and how playful she is with her hair. She is completely vacuous and no amount of spinning from her fan club can change that. Only she can.
Those of us who like her realize she has only be a member of the royal family for less than a year. Being a girlfriend does not count. I don’t know much about her but I’m willing to give her a chance to grow and learn. Also her lack of achievement does not phase me some people are slow starters and realize their real talents later in life not everyone is a Hillary Clinton.
Well here she is, doing her job, and the article and all comments are about her hair and clothes. Why don’t people comment about this event she was at and her contribution? Because they don’t care. Shoes and make-up is what they are interested in.
She looks beautiful and natural, not overdone. Both of those Orla Kiely dresses were fantastic and totally occasion appropriate.
Not fussy, classy.
She is stunningly beautiful…goofy or no.
I usually LOVE her dresses, but this is just not a pretty one and lacks any style or elegance.
Why are being so mean girl on her hair touching?
That’s not fair. Criticizing her chasing Wills and and decade of waiting without doing anything or extreme diet- is one thing.
Looking for pictures in which a girl touches her hair is another…
Since it has been said about the ring I was wondering if you could explain something. I noticed in the photos of Kensington Gardens, with the dog, that the ring was not visible, but as soon as she saw the photographer, she has spun it around his finger because it was visible. I do not think there is nothing strange to wear the engagement ring, but because it must always be on show, what would be wrong if one day she forgot?
Please stop commenting on her if you dislike the media press around her. You clearly don’t care for her, so why use your site to comment on her every move? Stick to your endless love for Angie and leave Kate alone.
Alot of pressure on a young girl to be in her situtaion esp. with her husband gone and having to spend all her time doing public duties with her in laws. Yes I know she signed up for this but lets be real — who loves spending all their free time with their in laws. I feel for her in that regard. I think she is dressed appropriately as always except she does need to lose the sausage curls which is a little girl style.
I love her and I love her style. She is always appropriate. She carries herself beautifully.
Spooked think she dresses boring but I think it’s perfect considering she may be the Queen one day.
I agree most of the time with CB when it comes to the lazy woman. I don’t get the craze that surrounds her? She has been around for the last 8 years. She is nothing new. And during those 8 years, she did nothing besides wait around for Wills. Oh, she did get a college degree, which she did nothing with. Then she gets married, and has spent the last year doing nothing but shopping and going on vacations. The Royals were giving her time to get used to being in the firm. I don’t get that either. She knows what its like; she needs to get going. She needs to eat, stand up straight and do something. Lazy.
When people say that she was given time last year to “get used to it” and “get ready” kills me. William said himself that he waited to propose until he knew that she was ready. There is no excuse for her laziness. I wish people would just see how vain and vapid she is.
I think she’s lovely, but my personal preference would be for the dress without the black daisies on the front. I’d like it better plain, but that’s my own taste, I don’t like that sort of embellishment and think it looks awkward. Still, she looks nice even with it.
And it definitely looks like she’s trying not to have her hair blown around by the wind.
I think the dress is very CUtE! THis girl has the tiniest waist! And her face looks radiant!