Duchess Kate recycled & revamped a McQueen gown for a London gala

The Portrait Gala 2019

Last night, the Duchess of Cambridge attended the black-tie gala at the National Portrait Gallery in London. She’s been the royal patron of the National Portrait Gallery since 2012, and she shows up sometimes for their galas and events. Not all the time, but most of the time. Kate really has been making an effort this year to been seen and to be keen, so here we go.

Kate repeated an Alexander McQueen gown which she first wore to the 2017 BAFTAs, which was her first time ever attending the awards show. Only in 2017, she asked the house of McQueen to mess around with the original spaghetti-strapped runway look. She made the dress “off the shoulder” with thin little straps that looked appeared to act as an itty-bitty straight jacket because Kate barely moved her arms at all. It also looked too tight in general. So clearly, Kate went back to the drawing board with McQueen. They re-reedited the dress so it has cap-sleeves. I also suspect that they loosened some of the “binding ribbons” across the hips and skirt, because the whole dress just looks like it moves better now. Still, I imagine this gown is very noisy – it feels like I can hear all of the rustling from here.

Earlier in the day on Tuesday, during her visit to the Henry Fawcett Children’s Centre, Kate apparently talked a lot about Prince Louis. Kate said that Lou “just wants to pull himself up all the time. He has got these little walkers and is bombing around in them.” Judging from the few photos we’ve gotten of Lou, I would say that he’s eager to walk so he can find MOAR FOOD. He’s always been a big hungry baby.

National Portrait Gallery Gala 2019

The Portrait Gala 2019

National Portrait Gallery Gala 2019

Photos courtesy of WENN.

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76 Responses to “Duchess Kate recycled & revamped a McQueen gown for a London gala”

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  1. Annie. says:

    I like this version better than the sleeveless one. I think it looks better on her.
    I also think that, even being as thin as she always is, that the old bodice wouldn’t have fitted her properly right now.

    • NotSoSocialButterfly says:

      I like them both, but I do think the original was more elegant. For a formal dress, the cap sleeves make it less formal. Still pretty, though.

      She should be dripping with emeralds!

  2. Clare says:

    And on Tuesday evening, hours after Kate flounced around in this hideous dress, parliament voted down May’s deal. We are now literally in the biggest mess in modern British history. I wonder how much longer the BRF will be able to function the way they currently do, if things actually do go to sh*t and we end up leaving without a deal (bye bye whatever is left of the economy).

    • FHMom says:

      I feel so bad for the British people. I wonder how this is all going to end.

      • Clare says:

        Man, Parliament is such a panto, it’s hard to take them seriously. One can hope that the ERG have overplayed their hand, but given the utterly toothless opposition I don’t know…my husband and I were chatting last night about how we would vote if/when there is another general election (apparently we should expect one in the next 6 weeks) – and for the first time in my life I said ‘I don’t think I’ll want to vote for anyone’. I have voted in EVERY American and British election since the day I turned 18.

        One of our friends works in the DExEU and he texted us this morning saying ‘no one has a f*cking clue what happens tomorrow’.

        Also politico have some interested analysis if anyone is interested.

      • Eleonor says:

        You know as an Italian I am used to our clown politicians, but I am astonished and shocked by the British Parliament right know.

    • Becks1 says:

      I saw that. I was seeing there might be another referendum? What happens next, or does no one know?

      • Clare says:

        @Becks1 I honestly don’t think anyone knows what’s happening – it seems like everyone is too busy either positioning themselves for a leadership bid, or pushing their own agenda/ideology, to actually give a toss about the real terms impacts of this mess.

        I don’t know that there will be another referendum (and I’m kind of scared of there being one, because if we now vote remain, I think it will rile up the ‘leave’ contingent AND the nationalists/white supremicists and we will have a huge shift to the right both culturally and politically).

      • Andrea says:

        I wish there was another one and we vote remain. Are we going to let the nationalists take over in the US and UK indefinitely? We need to take a stand against it.

    • Zapp Brannigan says:

      Clare I am sitting in my little spot in Ireland looking at what is happening in horror, I think we should all be prepared for the absolute worst as I don’t see how anyone can steer this back from the cliff edge.

      I have just been reading about how doctors are being advised to not bring in as many patients for diagnose and treatment for cancer as the UK will not have the treatment available for import from the EU, is it starting to sink into parliamentary heads yet how fu*ked they are?

      This will affect Ireland too as the isotopes are imported from Holland and usually the lorries pass through the UK, so a new route needs to be added and the cost passed along to the patient. What a $hit$how.

    • Digital Unicorn says:

      Our parliament DO NOT CARE about the people and this country – all they care about it giving May, the Tories and the EU and big EFF U!!!!

      The ERG should be lynched along with EVERYONE WHO IS ONLY BLOCKING BREXIT TO POSITION THEMSELVES TO BE THE NEXT PM. They are only forcing a no -deal to get May sacked so they can take over.

      • manda says:

        Our politicians only care for their careers, too, way more than what’s right for our country and most of its citizens. See: Mitch McConnell. So, we can empathize. Or at least most of us can.

        Question: So, is coming up with the Brexit plan entirely her responsibility? Or is it, like, given to a committee of that is comprised of different members of parliament? It seems like everyone will be super screwed if no plan is made, but there doesn’t seem to be much cooperation in coming up with one.

    • Darla says:

      It’s so awful Clare. I am so sorry. I feel such a connection with the people there because the same forces and same players that did this to you trumped us.

    • emerson says:

      somebody should’ve burned that dust ruffle in 2017. it’s 2019, people are struggling to keep food/clothing/ shelter for ther families and “the queen of keen” has now put sleeves on this dust ruffle. i hate her posture

    • Fluffy Princess says:

      Interesting. I have been worrying/wondering about what’s going to happen with Brexit. I can believe you’d be on edge with this clusterf**k of crap that Brexit is. I feel like the US and the UK are in some weird zone where we are both drifting towards the edge of a cliff and we only have a limited amount of time before some permanent, lasting damage is done.

    • Milla says:

      Meanwhile Chuky had another gala. Royals don’t live in the same reality.

      • Tina says:

        Believe you me, both Charles and the Queen are keeping a keen eye on our idiot Parliament. The Queen has to be prepared for when any combination of Boris/Hunt/Javid/Rudd/Corbyn/Gove/Rees-Mogg/literally everyone else comes to her door and asks her to ask them to form a government. I despise all of our politicians, literally all of them, and am about two whiskies away from advocating that we ask the Queen to take over absolute rule.

  3. Jennifer says:

    It’s a new dress from the hips up. New bodice, sleeves & midsection. (The flowers don’t match the original)

    • Becks1 says:

      Are you sure? I keep going back and forth between the BAFTA pics and these pics to compare and I can’t decide.

      • Jennifer says:

        Yeah there are pics on twitter. Everything from the hips up is different (better too).

      • Becks1 says:

        Altered but is it completely different material? That’s what I cant figure out. I’ll go take a look on twitter.

    • Annie. says:

      Yeah, the bodice is new, and the skirt remains the same.
      It reminds me of what Crown Princess Mary does sometimes, and I hope this is the beginning of a trend for Kate. There are a couple of other outfits I would like to see again but modified

      • Its Ok says:

        I think it will be a trend for her because it isn’t the first time she has done it since she started repeating more last fall. I’m not sure what her motivation is, but it’s a good idea given Brexit is not going to go well.

    • Digital Unicorn says:

      Yeah – she’s had the dress altered. Hated it when she wore it to the BAFTAs and hate it now.

      It would be passable if the skirt wasn’t tired to look like a christmas tree.

    • Flying fish says:

      I agree Jennifer, the flowers did not match.
      I like the cut of the top of the original dress, even though it seemed too tight.
      Last nights’s dress was just all round bad.

    • Becks1 says:

      Um. What Kate Wore is theorizing that it could be a completely new dress, because the pattern on the skirt is slightly different (or else the skirt was altered as well.)

      CBers. I have no words if that’s true.

      • Lexa says:

        I would be genuinely surprised if it was a brand new dress. I think the full bodice is new (or the the second panel was let out which might explain why the pattern placement is different) but I still think that’s the original skirt slightly reworked/adjusted?

      • Becks1 says:

        @Lexa – I would be super surprised as well. I know she has dupes made of other things, but a dupe of something like this? WKW did a good job of breaking down the differences in the bodice, so I se what others have been saying, but I was surprised that they suggested it may be a new dress.

    • Ahoyoy says:

      Agree. There was no way of adding sleeves to the old one (unless they were lace) without taking out the entire bodice. This looks better, but the fabric still looks cheap and the skirt is ugly and also more narrow than before. I wouldn’t be surprised if this was a duplicate of the original.

  4. Becks1 says:

    I didn’t love the dress when she first wore it – I remember really liking it from the waist up, which I think was an UO at the time? But now she took the things I did like about it (her hairstyle, dramatic earrings, off the shoulder look) and changed them, and kept the flounces, which I hated last time. So. I don’t know. LOL.

    I was cracking up at the comments on KP’s Instagram account last night though. Lots of “omg, when does she ever see her kids??? I hope she gets a day off soon!!!!!” Someone even referenced Malta.

    • ByTheSea says:

      Really? I hope to see this version of “work” for myself before I die, then. LOL.

      • OriginalLala says:

        The KP Insta account is crazy – under all Kate posts are people commenting things like “Our very own British mother Theresa”, “She is true perfection, our Queen” “She works so hard for us, she needs time off” and on and on like that for thousands of comments. It’s very strange.

      • Becks1 says:

        @originalLaLa YES! It’s hilarious to me. I made a comment to someone about how Kate has a lot of time off and she got snippy back, so I tried to be nice and said something about how none of the younger royals can match Charles or Anne.

        Her response – “who is Anne?”

      • Lorelei says:

        British Mother Teresa??

      • V says:

        The new Madre Teresa must be the new thing for both fandoms.. LOL One of the Meghan’s die-hard stans was just stating the other day that time a few years and Meghan will be in the same echelon as Jackie Kennedy as style icon and Madre Teresa as humanitarian! These people are serious,by the way.

    • Digital Unicorn says:

      The Kate sugars are out in force, however I did read that the online abuse Meghan was getting came from about people with multiple accounts (i think it was in the article about the SM rules KP released). Can’t remember the figure quoted – so its safe to say its the same for the Keen Keeners.

    • Tina says:

      All of these “people” are Russian bots.

  5. minx says:

    Stand up straight.

    • Becks1 says:

      I think sometimes her posture is worse when she wears her hair down. It’s like she is facing downward a bit to keep her hair over her shoulders? Or something.

  6. OriginalLala says:

    I usually like BRF posts for the frivolous fashion gossip but it’s getting hard to care about their dog and pony show with what is happening in Britain right now…..

  7. xdanix says:

    Oooh, I remember hating that dress sooo much the first time she wore it, but I like it a lot better like this. Mind you, I also hated the hairstyle with a passion last time, so maybe it’s just that I prefer the overall look and it’s having a positive impact on the dress!

  8. Chrissy says:

    LOL! Nothing screams “I’m a professional” like wearing a skirt completely made of ruffles.

    • Eyeroll says:

      Not a fan of the idea that a woman can’t look ‘professional’ in ruffles or frills or anything quintessentially ‘girly.’ I mean she’s at a gala, were you expecting a trouser suit and shoulder pads?

      That said I’m not really liking how they’ve reworked the dress – cap sleeves aren’t really my thing.

  9. Chef Grace says:

    The print.
    Can’t get past those odd green things that look like moldy ice cream cones with curds.

    • Astrid says:

      imagine how much that silly dress has cost with two sets of alterations and still looks moldy

      • Lorelei says:

        @Astrid and even though I’m sure it cost £££ to get this dress completely “reworked,” it will be considered a repeat and that cost won’t be counted when all of Kate’s spending on clothing is tallied up. Such BS.

  10. Enn says:

    I’m surprised by how much I like the print. I also like gowns with sleeves because I look like a linebacker in strapless.

  11. Gigi La Moore says:

    That is no McQueen.

  12. Laura says:

    I like the first version better with the straps and her hair in an up-do.

  13. Barrett says:

    Pretty ugly

  14. Ader says:

    LOL. Kate has no chill when it comes to her competitiveness. And it’s hysterical how we’re supposed to pretend that she’s not.

  15. Stephanie says:

    Ugly dress.

  16. whateVer says:

    I’m probably in the minority but I found the first version of this dress hideous. The second version is much better. Hopefully, she will also alter that hideous blue and pink Erdem gown with the dust ruffles into someone better.

  17. line says:

    The British deputies live in the illusion that Britain is still a great economic power and that they can leave the European Union without agreements and find the economic power they knew during the empire.

  18. Lisa says:

    Not her best dress. She has others I would have liked to seen recycled.

  19. Jfromfla says:

    The hair down, the big floral dress, huge earrings-its too much!

  20. vava says:

    Oh god, no. This dress can’t be redeemed. I didn’t like it the first time and I like it even less now. The print on that fabric…ugh. All the ruffles…….LOL. Her posture is horrible, as usual.

    • Ahoyoy says:

      This would have been a good time for another rewear of the ivory Roland Mouret. This is also hideous, admittedly less hideous than before, but that’s at the very least a whole new bodice, if not a whole new dress since it was far fuller before. That fabric also looks like cheap lining polyester.

      • Becks1 says:

        The ivory RM would have been perfect for this event. I really like that dress.

      • AhoyOy says:

        It would have been far more appropriate for the event and time of the year. She should junk this hideous schmatta immediately.

  21. Dee Lynch says:

    Ugh. Just put this design back on Grandma’s bed where it belongs.

  22. JadedBrit says:

    Dear Lord, that is absolutely hideous: like the decor of a funeral parlour in hell, the sartorial equivalent of an enema. The only way it could be improved is by the application of petrol and a lit match. I’d previously thought that Meghan’s tablecloth toile de jouy wedding ensemble took the biscuit, but this takes the entire bakery.
    Burn it. Burn it NOW.

  23. Monica says:

    Wonder if there would be as much interest in her clothes and styling if she was more committed and demonstrated more of a work ethic. All of her “appearances “ seem to generate talk about her & her wardrobe with precious little said about her actions…

  24. Guest says:

    It was an ugly dress then, it’s an ugly dress now. The only difference is she looked better with her up.

  25. SpilldatT says:

    I like this much better than the previous version. She looks great.

    I also can’t get over how thin she is after 3 kids. *sigh* I’ve never had any and I’ve obese. *double sigh*.

    And gee, Brexit didn’t get approved. It’s almost like it was a bad idea or something…*rolls eyes*

  26. Casey20 says:

    Kate and Meghan are so different. One has the world talking about her every words from IWD the other on should she wear her blouse backwards or did she buy a new dress/rework the dress……so different

    • Milla says:

      Who is talking about anything other than fashion? Those women are different, cos you know, DNA.
      But they are not going to be heard cos they are like ornaments, it is the reality of marrying into brf.
      I heard Meg speak for the UN and that is about it.

  27. Carolind says:

    Loathed the bodice first time round but much improved. I like the dress.

  28. knowitall says:

    I like this version better, but as with all Kate evening wear, I feel she has too much input. The contrived sleeves and “illusion” waists are not harmonious to the designs she wears, she should let the pros do their jobs.

  29. Anitas says:

    Not this horror again /o\

  30. Rae says:

    I still think this dress is horrible. This is one I would be happy for her NOT to repeat.