FOR the sixth time in a row, the Princess of Wales has chosen the same look – and I’m a big fan.
Whether it’s with her favourite Zara midi dress or a stylish wide leg trouser, it’s Princess Kate’s shoulders that catch my eye.
Princess Catherine is repeatedly relying on a style tweak that we can all make for less than £5[/caption]
Kate the ‘Together At Christmas’ Carol Service at Westminster Abbey in December wearing a tailored coat[/caption]
This week, Kate’s team said that she will no longer spill the details of where her outfits are from when she steps out for public events.
Catherine, 43, hopes that this will draw attention away from her and pull it towards her work, after her cancer journey gave her a “new perspective”, according to a palace source.
And while I agree that she doesn’t need to tell us about what she’s wearing and the focus should be on her brilliant work, we’ll still stop and admire what she wears – which is exactly what happened to me this week.
For her recent outings, mum-of-three Catherine has created a structured silhouette with the use of eighties must-have, shoulder pads.
At her first public appearance of 2025, Kate made an emotional visit to the Royal Marsden Hospital in London where she thanked staff for their “exceptional” care.
Kate Middleton at the Royal Marsden Hospital wearing a burgundy check coat[/caption]
Catherine looked understated but by no means less elegant or normal wearing a long tailored coat from Blazé Milano with a burgundy skirt by Edeline Lee.
The bespoke maroon tartan coat with double breasted finish, that nipped her in at the waist, was accentuated further by the structure in the shoulders.
Catherine in Wales wearing hight street brand Zara and sharp-shouldered coat[/caption]
At the end of January, when the Princess of Wales visited Tŷ Hafan Children’s Hospice, where she is now patron, she slipped on her Zara check dress that she has worn numerous times before.
She paired it with another tailored cream coat with a similar silhouette.
The Princess of Wales at The National Portrait Gallery, London, in a smart blazer[/caption]
Plus on Tuesday she joined school children for a trip to the National Portrait Gallery in London wearing a brown, padded shoulder blazer.
Tailoring is never too far away from the catwalk or the high street, with brands like Yves Saint Laurent championing power-shoulders and suiting, plus other stars like Hailey Bieber are wearing the look too.
Hailey Bieber is a fan of eighties inspired padded shoulders in her coats[/caption]
Bella Hadid models for Yves Saint Laurent in structured tailoring trend[/caption]
But the trend and Kate’s new found and repeated love of the strong outline can be achieved for as little as £1.85.
If you want to give your old coats or blazers a modern facelift and create definition on your figure with the angular lines strong shoulders make, you can buy shoulder pads from Amazon or your local haberdashery.
And no, you don’t need to be a seamstress to do it either.
Shoulder pads can be found on shops like Amazon for just £1.85[/caption]
These days a needle and thread isn’t essential, shoulder pads can be bought with sewn in bra straps that can clip onto your top, or velcro pads that you just stick to your own jacket to make the transformation fool-proof.
Kates fashion influence will always be there because she dresses so well and her style isn’t unattainable for us mere mortals to copy, or at least try to.
And I’ll be doing that – one shoulder pad at a time.
