The opening of parliament: I was disappointed by this outfit, I like that she wore somehting new, but after the colour of last year this black was very bland. I would even argue that it was a charcol shade of black, so I feel she sort of had an opening there to do somethign with that. I also agree with sgl that the clutch was an odd colour with the grey accessories. And to take that even further, I dislike it even more because she had a grey hat and grey shoes, black (ill-fitting...) gloves with it so the accessories were too much of a mishmach for my taste. i also felt like the hair was a bit disappointing following the great curls of last year, but I dont think I would feel as strongly about that had I liked the outfit.
for the Mary Foundation event, I am glad that this coat was put away as long as it was, because Mary overwore it early on. It does look very nice against the crisp black dress. So whilst it has been nice to see it back, I'd now be quite happy for her to put it away again now for the next few years.