Kate Middleton's Red Outfit Combined All of Her Fashion Staples: Bows, Rewears and Thoughtful Nods

Mar. 15, 2025

Kate Middleton attends the celebrations for Commonwealth Day at Westminster Abbey on March 10, 2025.Photo:Chris Jackson/Getty

Chris Jackson/Getty

Kate Middletonjustjoined the royal family for Commonwealth Day, sending several subtle fashion statements with her regal red ensemble.

Princess Kate, 43, is known to recycle outfits, and her Commonwealth Day ensemble was no exception. She’s worn the piece at least twice before, first seen in the festive red in December 2021 at her Royal Carols: Together at Christmas concert, also held at Westminster Abbey.

Prince William, Kate Middleton and Sophie, Countess of Wessex, take part in ‘Royal Carols - Together At Christmas’ concert at Westminster Abbey on December 8, 2021.Yui Mok - WPA Pool/Getty

Yui Mok - WPA Pool/Getty

Kate wore the coat dress again to welcome South Korea’s President Yoon Suk Yeol and his wife, First Lady Kim Keon Hee, for their official state visit in November 2023.

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Prince William and Kate Middleton meet with Choo Kyungho, Korea’s Deputy Prime Minister, and Park Jin, the Korean Minister of Foreign Affairs, at Buckingham Palace on November 21, 2023.Kin Cheung - WPA Pool/Getty

Kin Cheung - WPA Pool/Getty

One of Princess Kate’s favorite ways to upcycle the looks into something new has been to add a bow, which was also featured on her Commonwealth Day look.

“The bow is the one accessory that she’s repeatedly added, and it’s totally transformed previous outfits into something that looks quite different,” Bethan Holt, fashion director at theTelegraph,told PEOPLE last year.

“I think she is trying a more sustainable way of dressing. She already has a vast and extensive wardrobe, so why shouldn’t she be looking for ways to take existing pieces and re-imagine them?” Holt added. “And a bow is a very democratic, universal way to do that.”

Diana wore the earrings on several notable occasions, including when she paired them with Queen Mary’s Lover’s Knot tiara during a 1985 dinner at the British Embassy in Washington D.C., the day afterher iconic dance with John Travolta.

Princess Kate has worn the same pairing to multiple royal events, and she also reached for the Collingwood earrings for one of her 40th birthday portraits in 2021.

Kate Middleton dons Princess Diana’s drop pearl earrings and Queen Elizabeth’s pearl choker to Commonwealth Day festivities at Westminster Abbey on March 10, 2025.Chris Jackson/Getty

Queen Elizabeth notably loaned the necklace to Diana in 1982, when the then-Princess of Wales welcomed Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands to a banquet at Buckingham Palace.

Kate has worn the pearl and diamond necklace on several occasions significant to the late monarch. She donned the piece in 2017 to celebrate the diamond wedding anniversary of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Phillip, as well as at both of their funerals.

Kate Middleton attends Queen Elizabeth’s funeral on Sept. 19, 2022.Karwai Tang/WireImage

Kate’s biggest bejeweled statement, however, may have been the one that royal fans are most familiar with. For the Commonwealth Day celebration, she woreher sapphire engagement ring, also an heirloom from Princess Diana. The Princess of Wales does not always wear the 12-carat opal-cut stunner for public events, sometimes swapping it out for an eternity band.

Kate Middleton and Prince William attend attend the celebrations for Commonwealth Day on March 10, 2025.Samir Hussein/WireImage

Samir Hussein/WireImage

Princess Kate opted to wear the piece that Prince William proposed with to Westminster Abbey, which was also the site oftheir 2011 wedding. The couple will celebrate 14 years of marriage next month, and on Monday, their bond was displayed in their shared laughcaught on camera.

The ceremony was the latest sighting of the Prince and Princess of Wales together since Kate returned to life as a working royal following her Jan. 14 announcement that she isin “remission” from cancer.

Prince William and Kate Middleton share a laugh at the Commonwealth Day Service of Celebration at Westminster Abbey on March 10, 2025.Aaron Chown - WPA Pool/Getty

Aaron Chown - WPA Pool/Getty

Of their public displays of affection, royal biographer Ingrid Seward also noted, “William must feel so fortunate that Kate has come through this that he wants to tell the world about that love. It shows the intimacy of them sharing that journey together.”

“They are able to express themselves in a way they would never have done before,” Seward added.

source: people.com