Of all the designers the Duchess of Cambridge wears regularly, which designer or label do you think is consistently the best for her? I would argue that it’s probably Sarah Burton for Alexander McQueen, although Kate has worn a few terrible McQueen looks over the years. But can we say with 100% accuracy that Kate and Erdem is a collaboration that needs to end? I see why she wears Erdem, a label full of whimsy, florals, frills, lace, Victorian cosplay and sketchy hemlines. But those are the reasons why she should no longer wear Erdem!
On the first night of the Cambridges’ Sweden tour, Kate wore an Erdem gown which – I argued – was her worst look ever. She chose a different Erdem dress for an event on the second day in Stockholm. Will and Kate attended an event at Fotografiska Gallery, and I’m assuming the dress code was “cocktail.” This is Kate’s idea of cocktail-dress – a matronly, high-necked velvet frock with another f–king dust ruffle attached. Something nice: this one isn’t as bad as the rusty chartreuse gown from the previous night. But it’s still super-unflattering and just… bad. I don’t understand why this is SO hard for her! She obviously has unlimited funds and unlimited time to choose the best, the most flattering, the cutest and most event-appropriate looks. Kate was also photographed wearing a fur-trimmed coat by Swedish designer Ida Sjostedt. Blah.
Photos courtesy of WENN, Getty.
Are Edrem trolling her?
Is SHE trolling us?
These outfits are fing hideous, not flattering and worth over a month’s salary for a teacher or nurse.
She looks upholstered.
lol
Ha ha… my thoughts exactly.
LOL!
Yuck, spare me. The ugly coat has some tacky lacy stuff on the bottom. Looks like something Ma Midds would have worn in the late 80’s early 90’s. The shoes are vile. Looks like they are from Marks & Spencer or Next. I like the earrings though. At least they are contempraneous.
Clearly, she is trolling us. Proof: ankle straps AND dust ruffle.
You may have a point. Ankle straps are tricky and can make someone’s legs look stumpy if worn with a skirt length that stops in the wrong place.
@ Clare: I think you’re on to something–Erdem is an anagram for Merde, which is French for shit.
hahahahahahahahahhahahaha! Si vrai!!!!
Ha! Bravo!
haha
I think shes gained a little weight in her arms and legs(not in a bad way just comparitively) this pregnancy and doesn’t seem to know how to dress for it. I expect lots of frumpy covered up dresses from here on out!
The papers are certainly trolling the web sites they have picked up tweets comparing it to a curtain, I like the material but the sleeves with the frill are a bit too much nice coat though
I think they’re both trolling us. This must be the worst I’ve ever seen our Crown Princess look. Normally Victoria looks amazing after she hired a stylist some years back but why, WHY would she put this horrible outfit on and wear it in public? Maybe she asked Kate what she was going to wear and decided to be a good hostess and dress as horribly as possible to soften the blow of that horrible Erdem Gone With the Wind-drapes situation?
I thought one the points of this trip was to make you want to “Buy British” fly the flag and all that but these are the outfits she chooses for this task? This makes me not want to go anywhere near Erdem. If they can make a lovely looking woman like Kate look this bad what about the rest of us!
I like the dress actually!
The shoes are just lazy though… and why black? A nice metallic (maybe pewter or dark silver) would have looked far better.
I do, too. Lovely color. It’s MUCH better than that other Erdem she wore.
Sad she chooses to wear real fur
I think the fur on the black coat is detachable and the same ones she wore on the green coat the day before. They are also faux fur.
Erdem really needs to be made bankrupt, they had some nice pieces a few years ago but their clothing for the last couple of years has been absolutely terrible. Meghan and Kate both look terrible in their recent designs.
I don’t think it’s real fur. Real looking faux fur isn’t rare
Ida Sjöstedt doesn’t use real fur, it’s fake
That coat is the only good looking thing. How could she have looked at those Erdem dresses in the mirror and thought I’ll take this?
Again, I’ll be in the minority, but I like this look. Hair and accessories are much better than they were with the other Erdem dress.
However, if she’s going to pose with her hands in front and together, she should do a full grasp like William, or not at all. That little half hold makes her look like a shy child.
I like the dress and accessories. But all four of them are looking in different directions.
I have not seen her wearing those ubiquitous suede shoes so far this trip, which I hate so very much that I am willing to overlook all other questionable fashion choices. But I agree, I like this look. It still has the dust ruffle, but the length is better than the chartreuse. I liked the chartreuse dress, just not for Kate.
I love her earrings. That’s all I’ve got.
I love them.
I love the dress. In fact, i like the whole look. Pregnancy suits her.
Pregnancy suits her. Erdem doesn’t.
I know that this is irrelevant to that dusty rug of horror that Kate rolled into before she left for this event, but that picture of Hank Scorpio in the Featured Links section accompanying the “Why is Elon Musk selling flamethrowers?” article is frigging hilarious.
Heehee
My eyes always go to other people she’s with. Victoria looks like a confident, self-assured woman. Kate looks like a little girl playing dress up.
Victoria’s outfit is HIDEOUS.
That’s what I was thinking! Everyone make a big whoop about this Victoria person, and then I saw her outfit and I was like “wha…?”
Maybe modern day fashion is just ugly.
Ditto! She shouldn’t have been let out of the castle in that mess.
I am not a fan of Victoria’s style but I always give her a pass because she works a ton and is using her position for positive change. She wears what makes her feel good and I can’t hate.
If Katie Keen was a workhorse like Victoria and just wore what made her comfortable I would be a loud defender, but it’s hard to excuse her fashion missteps when she doesn’t have much else going on.
This!!!!
Royal Central gives the days worked in 2017 for the Scandinavian royals – Victoria 90, Mette-Marit 89, Mary 96 – all about a third more than Kate’s 63-66 (with her 6 weeks out at the start of her pregnancy).
Not that big a difference for the direct heir, the married- to- the -direct heirs, and the married -to-the -heir to the direct heir.
Didn’t Victoria have a baby too though?
@ABC Victoria’s youngest (Oscar) is almost 2 years old-born March 2016.
I was just looking at Victoria’s wiki—I was aware she has spoken out about having anorexia as a young woman but I didn’t know she has also been diagnosed with prosopagnosia, or “Face blindness” that makes it hard to recognize faces. She has also said she was diagnosed with dyslexia.
👍🏼
Kate’s face looks so good. The full was makes her look beautiful. When she is much thinner her face looks so harsh.
And OMG these dresses on this tour. Wow. Makes me glad I can’t afford designer labels…..almost 😉
+1000
Exactly the same for me. Hard to believe waitie Do little is the same or a few months younger than Princess Henry I/w. Most her COSTLY attire looks aged and frumpy – while someone else in the same, would be so regal chic.
Maybe she just likes how they feel. . .
If I was pregnant, even in the early stages, you’d be lucky to get me out of a mumu – cameras be damned.
I don’t like the dress either but she still looks beautiful.
I don’t understand this argument – I see it a lot and I just don’t get it. Sure, Kate is under a spotlight most of us aren’t under, but most women have to “do things” when pregnant. They have to go to events late at night, go to work for long hours, travel for work, and so on. And they do it without wearing mumus.
I would not want to be pregnant with a thousand cameras following my every move, so I do have sympathy for her, but its not like every other pregnant woman can just hide out in their house in maternity leggings for the duration of the pregnancy.
Right? A huge majority of women in professional jobs manage to turn up to work during their pregnancy looking professional. Surely someone in KAte’s position, who has everything done for her and an unlimited budget, can manage the same? I mean, I understand pregnancy is uncomfortable and fing hard on the body…but come on…somehow the rest of us manage not to look like we are wearing grannies sofa to work.
Yes! I can’t stand the, “well she’s pregnant so she must be allowed her comfort!” There are many ways to be comfortable and well-dressed that don’t include wearing a 60s sofa.
I don’t get it either. There are a lot of chic maternity lines nowadays, and she can have things made for her and tailored plus she has access to everything. Pregnancy isn’t an excuse for this Victorian upholstery disaster.
What bugs me is that she so rarely wears maternity clothes. Instead, she has already expensive clothing expensively tailored to fit her pregnant body, and it so often doesn’t work well. She generally looks pretty good when she does wear maternity clothing, and it would be great for that industry for her to highlight that and maybe to even look good in maternity clothes post-birth, but before she’s completely back to her pre-baby body.
Most pregnant women would kill to look as good as she does pregnant. She really has nothing to complain about but she is obsessed with being thin and has no idea how to dress for her changing body. This dress hangs so poorly on her because it was a runway dress and not made for a growing belly. And it looks like a curtain.
I don’t think she needs to hide. But I do cut slack on how pregnant women dress, even professional ones. I’m more reluctant to harshly evaluate the dressing style of someone, famous or not famous, who doesn’t have a flat stomach as an accessory. Honestly…. most don’t look as conventionally attractive (when I say this, I mean, she looks the same as a regular-sized person who ISN’T pregnant) as she does when pregnant so I do think she looks quite fine even if she’s wearing a couch sofa pattern as a dress.
She looks radiant, comfortable, confident and polished.
Whether or not you like the pattern.. that’s subjective.
Again, I don’t like it but I think she looks beautiful.
Has she said out of her mouth she’s obessed with being skinny? She probably (like so many other women) maintains the weight she’s comfortable with.Am I obessed with being skinny because I like to keep myself under an certain weight? Kate has always been skinny, that could just be how she is.
We have no way of knowing what she’s obessed with or thinks, unless she says so. I’m sick of all these comments that pop up about her having some type of eating issues or body issues. There is no proof of this and it is not our buiness .
Even if there was proof, so what? Why is this constantly showing up on an thread about her clothes?
Seriously, as an attorney who needs to find business casual clothes and suits while pregnant (and who does not have everyone in the world who would wish to dress me), she does not get a pass from me. Of course, she should be comfortable, but that doesn’t mean it is curtains or a mumu vs. staying home. This look is still miles better than yesterday’s monstrosity.
What I DO give her a pass for while pregnant are her short hemlines. I totally understand her wanting to show off her slim legs while she might feel bigger and frumpy (not that she is at all–she looks beautiful–but that is often how you feel pregnant).
The cut, style, and fabric of the dress make it so unflattering and frumpy. Too bad, because the color is absolutely lovely on her.
I feel like she wore that yellow monstrosity two nights ago just so we would be like, “well, at least this blue monstrosity isn’t as bad as THAT one.”
This dress is not flattering on her, the shoes don’t work, her hair doesn’t work…..the earrings are nice I guess. Someone on twitter said that it looks better in person, which, okay, but these events are photographed and that’s part of the point of them – the pictures. She needs help picking out clothes that work in photographs.
Her dress yesterday was so lovely and then this thing.
Victoria looks chic and edgy – I know her outfit may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but she looks great overall. Kate looks so dowdy in comparison.
!
Second Erdem dress and it’s horrible. Kate needs to improve her taste and/or fire her stylist. She and William are going to Norway today and tomorrow and Kate may fare better against Mette Marit. But Harry and Meghan have a black tie event tonight and if Meghan slays fashion and jewel wise the press will be merciless.
Agreed, and I can’t wait to see what Meghan wears!
On the plus side, Princess Victoria is sighing with relief, thinking, ‘Well. That wasn’t hard at all. All I had to do was put on a normal looking pair of trousers and I out-dressed the so-called Glamourous Brit. Thank God that’s over. Three days of stilted, awkward conversation. I wonder if I can get them to send Meghan next time?”
She didn’t out-dress Kate. Victoria’s fashion choices were questionable too. I think the fashion face-off ended on a tie imo.
Victoria’s style is clumsy at times.
I wouldn’t say Victoria’s such a fashion plate.
Neither one are fashionistas. Personally, I think all of Victoria’s outfits during this trip have been tragic.
True. The dress she had on a couple of nights ago was horrible.
Whatever, I like her umbrella…I’m excited to see Harry and Meghan glammed up tonight. Haha
Haha same!
I really hope that is fake fur because that would really be the icing on the hypocritical cake for this family
Did Kate courtesy to Victoria? They’re future queen but Victoria will be queen regnant.
I don’t know what the rules are when they’re from different countries. Help! Monarchs shouldn’t curtsy to each other. That would seem bad, like your country is subservient. What about lesser royals? The same? A nice handshake should be appropriate.
YAHOO answers: Heads of State do not bow or curtsey to each other. If Queen Elizabeth made an official visit to Spain, she would greet King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia based on the closeness of their relationships – with a handshake or a hug. During Queen Elizabeth’s most recent official visit to the Netherlands, she and Queen Beatrix greeted each other with a warm hug.
Everyone but Heads of State is expected to show respect to the King or Queen of the given country by bowing or curtsying. There is no strict rule, however; essentially, it is upon your discretion.
Oh dear.
I don’t mind it – I think she looks ok. The color is pretty and it looks like she’s trying to be kinda “funky” in her look with the earrings and the shoes.
I also think CP Victoria looks fine. I’ve read a lot of hate on her outfit, but it’s edgey and sexy and fun.
This is why she needs a stylist. A stylist would have told her that fugly mustard colored Erdem did not flatter her skin tone. A stylist would tell her that you do not wear ankle strapped shoes with mid-calf hems. Or maybe a stylist would ban her from wearing god awful Erdem altogether.
I don’t know what is happening. This wouldn’t look great on anyone, it’s a fug dress. What is going on with her and Erdem? She’s worn some beautiful dresses by them but I think in general Erdem are best when they do daytime or summer. From the neck up she looks great.
I could handle this a lot better if the bottom was cut off. It would be my favorite but I would like it SO much more
I agree. I’d like it fine without the dust ruffle. A lot of Erdem pieces are like this—-they’d be fine, if not great, with one fewer ruffle/frill/etc.
I want her umbrella.
The Crown kind of schooled me on this. It’s not her job to be a fashion plate. Dressing differently even if that means old-fashioned and dowdy is a useful ‘distancer’ from the commoners to maintain mystique and respect for the monarchy, such as it is. Also reduces pap attention if every fashion rag isn’t clamouring for pics of her in the latest fashions.
She’s supposed to be getting attention for these occasions. They’re not in the room for their amazing diplomatic skills or brains.
She sometimes has crap taste and it’s okay. Lots of people do.
Diana dressed dowdy at times, and became “sexier” after the divorce so I do think the theory that the royals are supposed to be distanced does have merit. Diana’s hair even became better after the divorce. It was just a regular bob before she died. Why she didn’t go with that hairstyle earlier has always been a puzzle to me.
She had such better hair after her divorce.
@Perplexed. But it’s not about looking sexy. Kate has some fantastic gowns and evening looks that aren’t about trying to look sexy.
She obtains most of her outfits from high end designers now, like McQueen, Erdem, etc so she is being a fashion plate, especially when she wears clothing straight from the runway. If she was going to distance herself, she would wear bespoke clothing not tied to a fashion house more often. But she can’t have it both ways, just because she is wearing designer clothing badly doesn’t mean she is distancing herself from the masses, it just means she has bad taste and can’t figure out what works with her duties as a representative of the BRF.
I’ve been with her for awhile now, but not a fan of this one. I do, however, like her blue umbrella and coat.
Love the expressions on the faces of Wills and the other husband. Neither looks happy with what their partner is wearing.
It makes me weep to think of the budget she has and the fashion choices available to her. And Erdem designs a frumpy blue velvet thing with a dust ruffle and Kate wears it. It’s so non-contemporary and awful pregnant sister-wife style.
Yuck.
Someone’s in her dress robes for Hogwarts!
Lol.
But which house would have her? She doesn’t have any of the qualities of the various houses. Perhaps a new house for ornamental, blank slates that need to be looked after?!
Even though she’s wearing our colors, I’ll speak on behalf of my house and say definitely not Ravenclaw lol!
MellyMel: she definitely doesn’t qualify for any house at Hogwarts.
I want to say Hufflepuff but … it’s Slytherin. (Narcissa Malfoy?) But most of the Windsors are also Slytherins.
IDK. Now, she does have unlimited time and money. But who styles her? Does she really have a stylist? I sort of refuse to think that a pro would advise such ridiculous outfits for such a high level client. She must have someone communicate/coordinate with fashion labels or shops to choose stuff and receive the delivery. I’m really trying to imagine the whole process of seeing stuff, advising if someone does it, and choosing. But I can’t. I am lost in confusion.
Is she still using her assistant, that Natasha woman? I think she’s the one that married Chris Jackson, the photographer that took George’s pics on his first day of school…?
There were pics of Tash running out of the plane so yeah, her ‘stylist’ is there…
Why does she insist on those ribbon waistlines when it always looks terrible. This is just bad. It is old-fashioned, and marmish along with the hair and the earrings don’t belong with this. The shoes don’t flatter her legs at all.
I am not a fan of Victoria’s outfit either, but it is better than fainting sofa blue with a dust ruffle.
She dresses like a very elegant, very wealthy octogenarian.
Erdem should quit making dresses and start making curtains because that is what their clothes seem to resemble. The whole look was unflattering. The shoes together with the length of the dress managed to make Kate look dumpy.
Sophie Hunter (wife of Cumberbatch) routinely wears Erdem, and always looks elegant. Ditto other celebrity women, including the much mocked Yorkies.
Kate (and Pippa) always pick the worst of the collections which does a huge disservice to the label.
Agreed. While I’m no fan of Miranda Kerr, she has worn a ton of Erdem and always looked very fresh and pretty.
I don’t understand why Erdem is a “thing” either – their dresses don’t seem either pretty or flattering. Seem gimmicky – shiny, garish florals and odd cuts. If I had to choose which bad designer to wear, I’d choose Stella McCartney over Erdem.
Gimme a break. She’s very pregnant, looks comfortable and it’s a much more appropriate choice than a gaudy satin red shirt and black satin skirt with a serious slit.
I like the earrings. The dress looks like something a little girl would wear. Not my favorite.
I think she looks beautiful, the color is very refreshing on her.
William looks the best dressed!!!
Hey, no danger of exposed knickers.
Exactly @Amy Tennant! Dust-ruffle chic means no flashing in a silver linings /cup half-full kinda thing.
I’m kind of inclined to give her a pass. Mostly out of sympathy. I’m at about the same stage of pregnancy and feel lucky that I work for a tech company where I can wear jeans and a stretchy cotton tee-shirt every day. And even that is a little dressy compared to what some of the guys wear. That said… The fabric of her dress is gorgeous and I’d love it as upholstery.
That material would make lovely drapes in my living room.
It feels cozy like my living room. I have one set of pillows in the same fabric as the dress and the pillow next to those have the same dust ruffle as the bottom of the dress.
Definitely Pippa chose these dresses.
I don’t think it’s a pretty dress, but she does seem to be taking some fashion risks lately.
Fashion risk???
I don’t usually see people wearing this kind of dress. I mean, what is it? No, seriously, what kind of dress is this? Ditto for that other flowery mustardy dress. So I assumed it was a fashion risk that some fashion house made for unsuspecting people at a certain level to buy.
It is the Carol Burnett as Scarlet OHara style.
@Nic, LOL! Only thing missing is the curtain rod.
This is not fashion risk. If you look at Erdem’s collections, Kate and Pippa always pick the ugliest dresses of the collections. Every single time.
All labels have a few things that are clearly trolling their customers, and fashionistas and or people with commonsense know not to go there. Yet Kate and Pippa keep choosing the trolling pieces. Occasionally they stray into the good section of the collections, but more often they do not, and style the ugly clothing in their usual dressy way.
They (and their stylists) don’t have the fashion knowledge to style the clothing so that a bad choice turns into an avant garde one nor do they posses the personality that trascends bad clothing like Cate Blanchett or Helena Bonham Carter.
CP Mary of Denmark, Miranda Kerr, Kiera Knightley, Sophie Hunter (wife of Cumberbatch), the Yorkies wear Erdem regularly and always look stylish.
Again, Kate needs to hire a professional stylist. The last two days was embarrassing and all she had to do was show up and look good!
Kate’s dress could have been great for her pregnant body. The color is beautiful. I think it’s the ruffle that throws it. I almost like it but can’t because of something, maybe the big, shiny ruffle.
Victoria’s outfit is absolutely horrible! Just horrible.
I am super disappointed in her jewelry choices in general. These earrings are the best of the trip, but I don’t think they are the right ones for the dress. She wore Asprey button earrings, and has a matching necklace she has worn for other events, very small and blah. I love jewelry and want her to dazzle, much like many here would like to see with her fashion. I get she is pregnant and it is very cold, so maybe she isn’t doing the most fashion wise, but there is no reason not to have great jewelry.
what the hell is the other woman wearing – she looks like she hit 40 got a divorce and is all about clubbing with the young things – yet she gets a pass?? LOL
That’s CrownPrincess Victoria. Sweden’s Future Queen. Her style is horrible but she is a born Princess so she can’t do wrong while Kate is a monster for wearing the wrong colour or a skirt that ends above the knee…
Victoria’s outfit is ill-fitting, somewhat bizarre (that top…no words), and a bit trashy. So, no, she doesn’t get a pass from me.
You describe that disastrous outfit on Victoria to a T. Horrible top. Ill-fitting blouse. The whole outfit is ill-fitting. The split is far too high.
It looks like something that came from a cheap label and then found further discounted at a Ross Dress for Less store.
It is so funny that in at least three comments, the nicest thing people could say was that they liked her umbrella. 🙂
I like the pattern on the dress. It would make a great long Stevie Nicks-type skirt. It just appears too much, or too heavy for a maternity dress.
I love the look of the coat over the dress and the umbrella matching the dress. At least she looked great coming and going.
A coat without buttons. How could it be blah?
People should be ecstatic. Usually the sight of buttons on a coat seems to make their vessels explode (one fashion complaint I had never figured out).
I actually really like the dress, but I feel like it should have been floorlength and without the dust ruffle, for sure. But I love the color and the fabric and pattern.
I think this dress is worse than the yellowish floral pattern one. It’s just got NOTHING going for it.
I agree…the yellowish one was awful, but this…this is the worst dress I’ve seen in ages.
I like the color on Kate. Not a big fan of the earrings, coat, or ankle strap shoes. I love velvet and devore velvet, but what Erdem did here is an assault on some nice fabrics. It would look much better without the bottom ruffle and that band going across under the bust.
This ensemble is better than the gold gown or the red checked coat, though.
Good Lord were they styled by Kanye? These are awful outfits
Well, she’s redeemed herself with a beautiful blush gown for her next appearance. It’s very striking on her.
She looks stunning in that dress, just stunning. She is literally glowing from top to bottom. I’ve never seen her look so good. It would appear she saved the best for last.
She’s definitely redeemed herself with the gown this evening. The only thing missing was a tiara.
I agree. That gown is just gorgeous. She looks beautiful . And I love blush.
I’m enjoying her clothing choices so far. I’m especially enjoying the comments from everyone outraged over a couple of dresses that are not to their personal taste. At least she hasn’t chosen anything basic and boring.
Her clothing choices are basic and boring.
The blue velvet dress looks like something pulled out of a trunk in someone’s attic, old timey. Maybe back in the mists of time, on a hanger in a thrift shop in the early 60s w/ Babs Streisand mulling over purchasing it.
William’s RPOs used to call her “The Mattress” so she took it literally and started wearing bedspreads!
Ew, this dress is fugly. No. Just no. She’s a pretty woman, why doesn’t she wear anything that accentuate her beauty?
Her makeup is always so, so, so bad. WHY is it so bad? Why can’t someone learn how to do makeup that doesn’t make her look 25 years older and weathered to hell?