The Princess of Wales's Eveningwear Part 1: September 2022 -

[Moonmaiden23]

I think it's probably Kate just having some fun with her clothes, as another poster commented.

Her position as one of the most consistently stylish and well dressed women in the Royal world is secure. She can afford to rest on her laurels.

 

[Hans-Rickard]

The black gloves all the way up to the armpit takes down the whole look for me… Short ceremonial gloves would have worked much better

And don’t they really have appropriate black tie jewellery in the vault under Buckingham Palace - or at least among the gods inherited from Diana - instead of wearing jewellery that everyone can buy ?

 

[sophie25]

I think it's probably Kate just having some fun with her clothes, as another poster commented.

Her position as one of the most consistently stylish and well dressed women in the Royal world is secure. She can afford to rest on her laurels.

This is a thread about her clothes. You don't have to panic that we are going to think she's a bad dresser all of a sudden but most people here do not like this look. We are entitled to criticise as well as praise the outfits she wears and I doubt she was being filpant in her choice tonight or was 'having fun', whatever that means. This is a major annual event and Kate has always gone all out to look good, however on this occasion a lot of us think she got it badly wrong. It happens.

 

[W.Y.CII]

Kudos for her to wear gloves with gown but they look awful with the beautiful, flowy dress, and remind me of those sport sleeves because of the length. If they are like the gloves that JIF ladies always use, just a bit longer than the elbows I think it would look much better (can't believe the JIF fashion could be a positive example someday......?)

 

[Mirabel]

I think the dress looked better in its original state. But I give her credit for reworking something she's worn before, to give it a new appearance.
Also, the gloves were a nice touch.

I like the earrings, but not with that ensemble.

 

[Moonmaiden23]

This is a thread about her clothes. You don't have to panic that we are going to think she's a bad dresser all of a sudden but most people here do not like this look. We are entitled to criticise as well as praise the outfits she wears and I doubt she was being filpant in her choice tonight or was 'having fun', whatever that means. This is a major annual event and Kate has always gone all out to look good, however on this occasion a lot of us think she got it badly wrong. It happens.

But I happened to agree that she got it wrong this time ..and where the hell are you seeing anyone "panic"??

Your comments are confusing in response to what I actually wrote.

FYI...having fun with fashion means exactly that. It's stepping outside the box and trying new things that get people talking.

 

[MARG]

I'm pretty certain that she's had the white gown that she wore to the BAFTA awards in 2019 re-worked with additional draping on the shoulder.

https://whatkatewore.com/2020/04/03...ne-shoulder-mcqueen-montage-from-feb-10-2019/

Yes she did and, and just to make things perfect . . . one of the headlines read "What a Bargain"!

There is literally nothing that I like about this look. The long black evening gloves seem really bizarre with that gown and those sleeves. When she first wore this one shoulder white gown at the BAFTA's a couple of years ago, I thought it was one of her most stunning evening appearances ever.

The PoW has been in the sartorial stratosphere with her evening wear for the past couple of years, but not this time.
What goes up must come down I guess.

The black gloves all the way up to the armpit takes down the whole look for me… Short ceremonial gloves would have worked much better

And don’t they really have appropriate black tie jewellery in the vault under Buckingham Palace - or at least among the gods inherited from Diana - instead of wearing jewellery that everyone can buy?

I agree about the gloves but I'll discuss the bling on her jewellery thread,

This is a thread about her clothes. You don't have to panic that we are going to think she's a bad dresser all of a sudden but most people here do not like this look. We are entitled to criticise as well as praise the outfits she wears and I doubt she was being filpant in her choice tonight or was 'having fun', whatever that means. This is a major annual event and Kate has always gone all out to look good, however on this occasion a lot of us think she got it badly wrong. It happens.

It missed by a mile and left a tiny taste of condescension in the air. The fluffy hank of stuff on the shoulder drape made me shudder. It looked disproportionally large, and those gloves were lumpy, bumpy and just plain awful, almost as if her arms were in casts and the velvet gloves were a really bad attempt to disguise it.

Subtle changes made to recycle a dress are one thing, but this was a mess from conception to execution. Someone was persuaded that white would look great with black and this was the best they could come up with? When playing with more than one colour, balance and how well something sits is vital for the overall look to pull off a new look. On top of that, for an evening gown it is also a balance between cloth and skin. And frankly, opera gloves up to the armpits are just not it at all.

How opera gloves should look. An integral part of the ensemble but not a separate entity.
https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-CLzTZy7t...BlChZQ8UG-C6ONNLXNACLcBGAs/s1600/IMG_3542.JPG

For an evening gown it is sort of a delicate balance between cloth and skin.

They made a delicate, almost ethereal gown into a pigs ear of of a lumpy monstrosity.

https://www.glamour.com/story/kate-middleton-2023-baftas
https://img-s-msn-com.akamaized.net/tenant/amp/entityid/AA17Gl4b.img?w=1920&h=1080&q=60&m=2&f=jpg
https://images.hellomagazine.com/im...baftas/0-799-268/wales-baftas-t.jpg?tx=w_1200

ps: William needs to shorten his stride to enable those people gathered plus I suppose, the photographers, can get a good look at both he and Catherine. It is one of the few times they tread an actual "Red Carpet".

 

[Moonmaiden23]

I didn't understand that poof of fabric on the left shoulder either. The dress, the gloves, the hairstyle, the earrings...none of it made sense.

White/black can and does work well together and she proved it in that unbelievable Roland Mouret off the shoulder sheath she wore when Tom Cruise escorted her and William to the Mission Impossible film premiere.

This BAFTA event was simply one of her rare evening bombs.

On a positive note, I liked her makeup.

 

[Toledo]

Looks absolutely terrible and my first thought was it looked like a reverse tuxedo cat with horrible black opera gloves on a white dress carrying a window curtain on the shoulder.
And her choice for long hair on a one shoulder dress was another hit-and-miss.

Sorry Kate but this time you gave us an eyesore ensemble.

And wearing the same dress from 2019 to the SAME event now? No. It's like wearing at work on Tuesday the same clothes from Monday. It's not a uniform, it's a red-carpet event.

 

[Moonmaiden23]

Yours is the SECOND cat analogy I have read this evening...my sister texted me that Kate looked like a Siamese!

Btw...I am also confused by her decision to repeat a dress she wore to the same event less than three years ago. Especially since she has some really incredible evening gowns.

 

[W.Y.CII]

How opera gloves should look. An integral part of the ensemble but not a separate entity.

Exactly! When I saw her ensemble my first thought is everything (including the earrings) is from different universe and doesn't go well.

I think she could pair the black and white off shoulder gown from Top Gun premiere with those gloves. That could be edgy but may work.

And the gown downgraded after the modification IMO.

 

[MsJulie]

A big let down for Kate and her ‘dresser’. Each piece in itself is nice but combining them is a big let down. Earrings way too clunky for the flowing dress. The black gloves stick out like a sore thumb. I don’t know if I like the change of the shoulder on the dress, it is okay.

Wearing the same dress, even with a modification, to the same function a few years back is odd. Kate has many beautiful gowns to pick from. Who is her ‘right hand’ that helps her pick her clothes for events? Someone new? I really do not know.

I noticed since Queen Elizabeth’s death, ladies are tying different looks but some flop. There “Guide” is gone.

Maybe next time Kate will choose a better outfit combination.

 

[Moonmaiden23]

Exactly! When I saw her ensemble my first thought is everything (including the earrings) is from different universe and doesn't go well.

I think she could pair the black and white off shoulder gown from Top Gun premiere with those gloves. That could be edgy but may work.

And the gown downgraded after the modification IMO.

These gloves with that Top Gun dress (thanks for the correction...I posted Mission Impossible ) would have been amazing imho!

Maybe she felt that appearing in a spectacular new evening gown on the same day that the press is reporting budget tightening in the Royal House via King Charles would not be a good visual?

 

[W.Y.CII]

Maybe she felt that appearing in a spectacular new evening gown on the same day that the press is reporting budget tightening in the Royal House via King Charles would not be a good visual?

But she has many spectacular old gowns she could choose and she picked the most confusing combination! I just noticed her shoes and now I think she probably decided every pieces by lucky draw because the combination doesn't even make sense to me.

I kind of think that the ice blue gown she wore in Caribbean tour could look good with those gloves too.

 

[Curryong]

I didn’t notice the shoes, but I do agree with others here. The velvet gloves are dramatic if a bit high on the arms, and the gown, worn before, is pretty. However—-The velvet gloves (a winter look) don?t match the chiffon material of the gown which is summery. The result is a rather bizarre looking mismatch.

I don?t particularly like long gloves (too 1950s, a decade I hate, for me) but the gloves may have worked on a heavier gown in say, vivid pink, purple or lilac. But black on floaty white? Sorry, no!

The earrings in cream, which are quite cheap, are fun, even if a bit odd on a gala night where long dangly earrings in black pearls and diamonds may have been better.

 

[togram]

Moonmaiden23, I agree with you 200%. Apart from the fact that her hairstyle is more suitable for a teenage Princess and not for a 40 year old one.

 

[LauraS3514]

A rare miss for The Princess of Wales, IMO. The earrings are too casual, the gloves too garish, and the shoes just don't match with anything. "A" for effort (trying something different, remodeled dress) but a "C-" for execution.

 

[An Ard Ri]

A different pair of coloured gloves and an updo hairstyle would have made it a winning look.

 

[muriel]

I agree with some posters, that she gets top marks for efforts to break outf her comfort zone and to try something that is quite fashion forward. Personal;ly, I wasn't fond of the final look.

That said, perhaps that just validates the notion that her "classic" look is so, so good and perhaps, it is best left as it is!

Apart from the fact that her hairstyle is more suitable for a teenage Princess and not for a 40 year old one.

I can't claim to be a fan of this hairstyle at all.

 

[yukari]

I'm not into fashion and everyone who knows me will attest that I don't have fashion sense, but the debate over this look on social media and here on this thread pique my interest so I start to google about white dress and black gloves combo.

Admittedly my first reaction seeing her last night was a "huh?", but I concede that I have no fashion sense so don't take my words.

But here's a different take about this look by Bethan Holt in the Telegraph:

Why the Princess of Wales’s BAFTA look is her most daring - and clever - red carpet appearance yet

Archive

And surprisingly the combination is also a thing since when I google "white dress black gloves", many images appear. Apparently there's even bridal collection with this kind of combination too (I've no idea why would any bride wear black for their wedding).

https://chicvintagebrides.com/vera-wang-2014/

 

[W.Y.CII]

I think the main issue isn't "white gown + black gloves", but mismatching fabric, neckline and gloves length. The Vera Wang collection works because the precise choice of material combination.

 

[sophie25]

I think the main issue isn't "white gown + black gloves", but mismatching fabric, neckline and gloves length. The Vera Wang collection works because the precise choice of material combination.

I agree with you that the materials; style of dress and glove length were the issue, not the combination of black and white. I disagree though that the Vera Wang collection works, I think that is another example of horrible mismatching.

 

[Elly C]

Yes I agree that this is the problem. When I study the photos, the gloves worn that high hide any flesh on the side of the embellished shoulder and it looks like a sleeve. Where you can see flesh on the other side, the top of the gloves look slightly tight, which isn’t a good look. Incidentally, I noticed in the half close up pics, the boned bodice is rather too fitting on slender, toned Catherine . Surely the dress fitting should have noticed this.
I also cannot understand why she would repeat the dress to the same occasion.

 

[Toledo]

Yours is the SECOND cat analogy I have read this evening...my sister texted me that Kate looked like a Siamese!

Btw...I am also confused by her decision to repeat a dress she wore to the same event less than three years ago. Especially since she has some really incredible evening gowns.

Actually, your sister's reaction Kate looks like a Siamese cat is better than my reverse tuxedo cat thought. Please tell her she is 100% accurate, only add whiskers and you got a cat.

But seriously, this is a terrible look for such an event. Her dressmaker could have adjusted the top to a strapless no-shoulder look. Anything but that fabric thing on her shoulder that reminds the towels we put on the shoulder when you are feeding a baby.

 

[IloveCP]

Kate's look for the 2023 BAFTAs (McQueen with Zara earrings!)

https://twitter.com/x/status/1627361703238287362

DISCUSS ABOUT THE GLOVES!
The popcorn is ready!

Edit: here's a video, I'm not crazy about it, but It does look striking in movement, plus, it's a modern look for once. The gloves seem to be made of a light velvet, matching William's jacket.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1627366007336566786

The dress is beautiful and regal but I dislike the gloves with the dress.

 

[Toledo]

Nice dress when she walks but let's hope is now retired from any further events unless there are alterations made, maybe strap shoulders or just no shoulders. An easy alteration could be some sort of brocade over the fabric.

Re long opera gloves, I still don't know why she put them on for this event, a bracelet would look better on her arms.

 

[4Pam]

I wasn't too crazy about the gloves with this particular dress. Maybe it was the length of the gloves and style of the dress?

 

[XeniaCasaraghi]

I think the main issue isn't "white gown + black gloves", but mismatching fabric, neckline and gloves length. The Vera Wang collection works because the precise choice of material combination.

I concur. There are 3 issues here. I understand she wanted velvet to match William but something needed to change. This is a miss for Catherine, but that green dress from months ago makes up for it.

 

[W.Y.CII]

I just discovered Balenciaga Fall 2022 couture collection and some pieces immediately remind me kate's ensemble with the armpit-length gloves and one-shoulder dress:

https://www.vogue.com/fashion-shows/fall-2022-couture/balenciaga/slideshow/collection#52
https://www.vogue.com/fashion-shows/fall-2022-couture/balenciaga/slideshow/collection#53
https://www.vogue.com/fashion-shows/fall-2022-couture/balenciaga/slideshow/collection#56
https://www.vogue.com/fashion-shows/fall-2022-couture/balenciaga/slideshow/collection#58

Really make me wonder how would it look like if she wears gown with less flowy fabric (e.g. the icy blue McQueen) instead of soft like that white one.

 

[iceflower]

The Princess of Wales in red (Alexander McQueen) for the coronation concert this evening:


** Pic 1 ** Pic 2 ** January 2023 **