Princess Kate is the epitome of royal elegance, always perfectly poised, whether playing tennis with Roger Federer or presenting a young designer with an award.
She is, without a doubt, a great example of innate sophistication, but there are rules that all royal family members have to follow, and the list grows longer the more senior the members are.
As the Princess of Wales is the future Queen, and both wife to one and mother to another future King, there are many unspoken rules she is expected to follow. A few of those happen to be fashion-related.
Princess Kate loves a good fashion moment, and she never shies away from colour, reserving black only for sad occasions.
But whenever she goes anywhere, from a tour of Australia to a quick visit to Ascot, the mother of three must always carry a total black outfit with her.
It is customary for senior royals to carry a black outfit when travelling abroad, in case they need to observe mourning protocol. This is because royals must always be prepared for the possible sudden death of the current King or Queen.
The origins of the tradition
© Mirrorpix via Getty ImagesOne of the rules the royal family must follow is that, after the death of a monarch, all members of the family must be only seen dressed in black – therefore a black outfit must always be on hand.
This tradition might seem odd, but the rule was added to the royal travel protocol after the late Queen Elizabeth II found herself in an unpleasant situation when she was still a Princess.
In 1952, a young Princess Elizabeth and her husband, Prince Philip, were on a royal tour of Africa. When the pair was in Kenya, the news broke that the Princess’ father, King George VI, had died.
She had to make her way back home to England, as a mourning daughter and the heir to the throne, but when she arrived at the airport in London, she didn’t have a suitable outfit with her.
Because after the death of a monarch, all royals must be seen wearing black, she had to remain on the aircraft until a black outfit was brought to her, so she could change before stepping onto the tarmac.
HELLO!'s Online Royal Correspondent Danielle Stacey says: "I think the royals never want to be in a situation where they're unprepared for such a scenario, having learned from Princess Elizabeth's return from Kenya when her father died, so it would make sense for them to always have a black outfit to hand.
"Having visited the Dress Codes exhibition at Kensington Palace earlier this year, I learned that a typical mourning period in the Victorian era was two years at its longest and when widows went into half-mourning, which lasted around three to six months, they could wear muted colours such as lilac, grey and lavender.
"But in comparison, the modern royal family do not wear mourning attire for very long, in comparison to their ancestors. Typically, a two-week mourning period is observed."
Other royal fashion rules
© GettyAnother fun fact about royal fashion and travel is that they never leave a plane wearing the same outfit they wore when they boarded.
This is because they always have to look their best, and wrinkly clothes are not very royal-like, so they always change into a new, freshly ironed outfit before descending the plane’s stairs.
Not related to travel, but interesting nonetheless, is the now well-known rule that the monarch has first choice when it comes to colours.
In fact, nobody can wear the same colour as the reigning monarch during an event. The late Queen Elizabeth II was famous for her colourful outfits, so the rule became common knowledge during her reign, but so far, King Charles III hasn’t been as daring with his suits.
