Looking reminiscent of the fashion of the late ’30’s and early ’40’s, The Duchess of Cambridge channelled the fashion styling of the women who once worked at Bletchley Park during a visit there today. Kate stepped out in a beautiful vintage-style polka dot dress for her visit to the place that was once used to break codes during World War II.
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The Duchess wore her Alessandra Rich ‘Pleated polka-dot silk crepe de chine midi dress’, retailing for £1,225. This beautiful navy and white silk shirt dress – a style Kate favours – is very elegant on the Duchess. The tea-length dress features a contrasting white oversized pointed collar, three-button white cuffs, contrasting white button fastenings down the centre and a drop waist with pleated skirt. The dress was part of the Spring ’18 collection, is made in Italy and crafted from a blend of silk and cotton. The dress is sold out, though you can still view it here.
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HRH The Duchess of Cambridge meeting our Veterans – Rena Stewart, Georgina Rose, Elizabeth Diacon & Audrey Mather in the Mansion #BletchleyPark #DDay75 pic.twitter.com/YyTpIxNqNS
— Bletchley Park (@bletchleypark) May 14, 2019
On a side note for her Spring ’18 Collection Rich was inspired by Alfred Eisenstaedt’s 1945 photograph of VJ Day, showing the moment the announcement of the war was over, with a sailor kissing a stranger in Times Square in a moment of joy. This makes the Duchess’ choice of dress to Bletchley Park even more poignant, even if it was a coincidence.
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We first saw this dress worn when she posed for a family photo to mark Prince Charles’s 70th birthday late last year.
Catherine carried her Smythson ‘Panama cross-body bag, retailing for £450. The grained navy leather bag has a front flap with gold embossed branding, hidden magnetic closure and optional shoulder strap. It is nice to see the Duchess carry a different brand of handbag. The bag was already sold out the first time the Duchess carried it, though you can still view the bag here.
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Kate wore her Emmy London ‘Rebecca Riveria’ pumps, retailing for £425. These 4-inch stiletto heels added a touch of modernity to her vintage ensemble. However, the colour combination again was just slightly out, as the dusky blue didn’t not 100% work with the navy coloured outfit. Considering that the Duchess has a few pairs of navy suede heels in her collection we would’ve loved to have seen these. Or even her other Emmy ‘Rebecca’ pumps in blush (more of a cream) that she wore to Prince Charles’ Investiture celebration recently. You can purchase Kate’s Rebecca pumps here.
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We think these would have worked better, or a simple pair of navy heels.
The Duchess accessorised with her Annoushka ’18ct gold Baroque pearl drops earrings’, retailing for £325. The baroque style pearl is detachable and worn on gold and diamond hooped earrings from Kiki McDonough. We know that the Duchess is huge fan of Pearl earrings and she always looks classically-styled wearing them. You can purchase the pearl drop here and here. There are a few amazing replikates out there for these earrings: try these, these, these or these.
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The Duchess also wore one of her grandmother’s brooches for the occasion; Valerie Glassborow was part of the codebreaking team during the war, so this was a lovely touch.
The piece mimics the Bletchely Park gold commemorative badge: it is in the shape of a rotor that was part of the Bombe, a machine used to break codes during the war.
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We are big fans of Kate’s Alessandra Rich dress and really want to see more of this designer in the future. What do you think of the different colour combinations? Do you love or hate them?
You can emulate Kate’s vintage style here: