5 Times Princess Kate Took a Risk With Her Royal Wardrobe

Princess Kate is usually called the fashionista of the Royal Family, and that title surely comes with a few risks. While she is known for her elegant looks, Kate has also taken a few fashion gambles over the years. Sometimes they worked perfectly, and other times they left people divided. Here are five times the Princess of Wales took a risk with her royal wardrobe.

It was quite surprising when Kate stepped out in a bold black-and-white Dalmatian-print Hobbs coat for the Royal Princess naming ceremony in 2013. The playful print was already a bit of a departure for Kate, but the short, A-line hemline made the look an even bigger gamble, as the cut did not exactly do much for her silhouette. Still, the coat was loved by many, and according to Marie Claire UK, it sold out almost immediately after the Princess wore it. That's the ‘Kate effect’ for you.

Kate certainly made an entrance at the 2022 Earthshot Prize in Boston, wearing the Sabina Maxi Dress by Solace London. The bright green, fitted off-the-shoulder gown was already a lot of color, but the emerald choker and matching earrings took the color coordination a little too far. Moreover, the sparkly silver heels did not exactly save the already busy look. The internet had fun as it quickly turned the neon shade into a running joke. Kate’s dress went viral on X (formerly Twitter) as a “green screen,” with people photoshopping everything from pizza and baked beans to fruit and vegetables onto the gown.

Kate surely took a bit of a fashion risk at the 2011 Sun Military Awards when she stepped out in a strapless black Alexander McQueen gown that showed considerably more neckline than her usual royal eveningwear. The look also drew comparisons to Princess Diana’s famous 1981 black Emanuel dress, which featured a similarly strapless, ruffled neckline. But while Diana’s daring neckline caused quite a stir in 1981, Kate’s version felt like a more modern take and this particular fashion gamble definitely worked for her.

At the 2015 100 Women in Hedge Funds Gala, Kate arrived in an Erdem Alouette tiered silk gown covered in a bold crimson, ivory, and blue floral print. Between the oversized pattern and the full, tiered skirt, there was a lot happening at once. Fashion writer Bethan Holt later wrote in The Duchess of Cambridge: A Decade of Modern Royal Style (via The Irish News), “With its over-blown floral print and full skirt, this gown proved to be a divisive look.” Holt continued, “Some people loved how different it was to anything Kate had worn before; others found it too fussy.”

Kate gave an old Alexander McQueen gown a completely different feel at the 2023 BAFTAs, recycling the white one-shoulder dress she had first worn to the ceremony in 2019. This time, she added dramatic black opera gloves from Cornelia James. She also added oversized gold floral earrings from Zara. The gloves were definitely a gamble, but they ended up making the whole look feel far more dramatic and fashion-forward. Cornelia James creative director Genevieve James told PEOPLE, “Opera gloves are transformative; they have enormous leverage. They turn any event into an occasion and a dress into a statement.” Kate made quite the impression, as just a year later, Taylor Swift stepped out at the 2024 Grammys in a white gown with black opera gloves.