Fashion of Catherine, Princess of Wales

Catherine's fashion garnered substantial media attention following the public revelation of her relationship with Prince William in 2002.[1][2] She had reportedly caught William's attention during a charity fashion show at their alma mater, the University of St. Andrews, while wearing a sheer, lingerie-style, strapless dress on the catwalk, which had originally been designed as a skirt by Charlotte Todd.[3][1][4] The dress sold for $125,000 at an auction in 2011.[4] Subject to paparazzi in her daily life, her style was frequently photographed and featured in the press.[5] Her fashion influence grew after she was photographed wearing a £40 TopShop dress outside a nightclub, which promptly sold out.[5] She worked at retailer Jigsaw as an accessories buyer from 2006 to 2007, and frequently wears their pieces.[5] Middleton was credited with founding a middle-class Sloane Ranger revival, with a substantial wardrobe from primarily high street retailers.[5] Her fashion sense was regarded as "safe", "sporty" and "sensible" by the press.[6]

Given her media attention and influence, Oliver Marre of The Guardian referred to Middleton as a "fashion icon."[5] In 2008, Elle noted Middleton a fashionable tastemaker, and praised her "to-the-knee pencil skirts and Philip Treacy hats."[7] During appearances at public events, Middleton often wore simple overcoats and tweed clothing.[8] However, during evening events, she often "skewed bold": for instance, she was photographed going out in a "baroque-printed silk dress", contrasting to her friends' more simplistic styles.[9] Substantial media coverage focused on a roller disco-themed fundraiser hosted by Middleton in September, to which she wore a green-sequined halterneck and neon yellow micro-shorts.[10]

During daytime engagements, she has been noted to favor coatdresses, tea dresses, waxed jackets, lavallière blouses, blazers, and skinny jeans.[11][12][13][14][15][16][17] While Catherine wears items from many new designers, she has also worn dresses by Catherine Walker, who designed many of Diana's favourite evening gowns and day suits.[18] She has worn outfits, hats and ensembles by many other fashion designers.[19][20] The brands she favours are noted in the media.[19][20] Catherine has worn Jenny Packham numerous times, most notably outside the Lindo Wing after giving birth to each of her children in 2013, 2015, and 2018 respectively.[21] Alexander McQueen has been referred to as Catherine's "go-to" brand since her wedding in 2011, and she has worn designs to several annual events including Trooping the Colour, Royal Ascot and the British Academy Film Awards, as well as state banquets and receptions.[22][23][24][25][26] She has worn several high-street brands during official engagements and projects, most frequently Topshop and Zara.[27][28] Believed to be influenced by the style and fashion choices of Diana, Princess of Wales,[29] Catherine has developed a "caring wardrobe" similar to that of her mother-in-law, with colourful fabrics, skirt suits, and bright hues suitable for visiting hospitals and schools.[30]

Catherine, who attended the 71st British Academy Film Awards, did not participate in Time's Up movement calling for women to wear black on the red carpet.[31] Royal protocol forbids members of the royal family from taking part in political movements but she wore a black sash and carried a black handbag as a variation to the informal black dress code.[32][33] In March 2018, together with the Countess of Wessex, she hosted the Commonwealth Fashion Exchange reception at Buckingham Palace during 2018 London Fashion Week.[34] In 2021, it was reported that Catherine boosted the British fashion industry up to £1 billion within a year.[35]

The "Kate Middleton effect"[36] is the trend that the Princess is reported to have had on others in sales of particular products and brands.[37][38] In 2018, a research by Brand Finance cited Catherine as "the most powerful royal fashion influencer", retaining that pieces in her wardrobe increase desirability among 38 percent of American shoppers.[37]

The Princess, prominent for her fashion style, has often been placed on numerous "best dressed" lists.[39][40] The Daily Telegraph selected her as the Most Promising Newcomer on its 2006 list of style winners and losers.[41] Tatler placed her at number eight on its annual list of the top ten style icons in 2007.[42] People featured Middleton on its 2007 and 2010 best-dressed lists.[43] She was named one of Richard Blackwell's ten Fabulous Fashion Independents of 2007.[44] In June 2008, Style.com selected her as its monthly beauty icon.[45] In July 2008, Vanity Fair included her on its international best-dressed list.[46] In February 2011 the Global Language Monitor named her the Top Fashion buzzword of the 2011 season.[47] In January 2012, the Headwear Association voted her Headwear Person of the Year.[48] She was number one on Vanity Fair's annual best dressed lists in 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013; she also appeared as the cover star in 2012.[49] The then Duchess was named to the International Best Dressed Hall of Fame List in 2014.[50]

In 2014, she was lauded as a British cultural icon, with young adults from abroad naming her among a group of people who they most associated with UK culture.[51][52] In June 2016, she took part in her first magazine shoot for Vogue's centenary issue, appearing on the magazine's cover.[53] The shoot took place on the Sandringham Estate; Catherine was involved in selecting her wardrobe of "off-duty jeans and shirts" reflecting her love of the countryside.[54] The spread was dubbed as the "most personal and natural royal portraits ever undertaken by Vogue". The photoshoot was done in collaboration with her patronage, the National Portrait Gallery, where two pictures from the shoot were displayed.[55] In 2018, Tatler named her on its list of Britain's best dressed people, praising her for "recycling her looks, rather than wearing them as one-offs", as well as her use of "both high street and high-end brands".[56]