Kensington Palace released three new casual portraits of the Princess of Wales on Friday.
The photographs, snapped outdoors against a woodland backdrop, show Kate in her signature country style, wearing a brown Fair Isle jumper by ME+EM beneath an olive-green Barbour jacket. (Skip down to the fashion details.)
The pictures were released to mark the announcement of a new project from the Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood. Working with the Duchy of Cornwall as founding partner, the Centre will explore how nature can support babies’ and young children’s social and emotional development.
According to the Centre, the research will specifically look at how “nature-rich environments, alongside nurturing relationships, can help babies and young children build core social and emotional skills that are the basis for lifelong wellbeing.”
The work will also take developmental science from the Centre’s Shaping Us Framework and Foundations for Life Guide, and explore how it can be applied more ambitiously and effectively through nature-based settings.
Photographer Josh Shinner captured the portraits in Cornwall on Thursday, when Kate joined Prince William for a private visit.
The visit went unannounced but appeared in the Court Circular on Friday.
We know the couple visited the Duchy’s Nansledan project—a 540-acre mixed-use community development that will contain over 4,000 homes, shops, a school, offices, cafes and more when it is completed in ~2045. At present, it’s already home to 1,800 residents, businesses and artisans. No further details, video or photographs were shared from the visit (as yet; I expect they might be in the future).
(Above: the Prince of Wales at Nansledan earlier this year).
The Princess also shared a video message on social media on Friday, discussing scientific research into nature’s importance for our psychological and physical wellbeing. In today’s “tech-driven, digital age”, she said, “spending quality time outdoors has never been more important.”
The project brings together two longstanding strands of Kate’s work, early childhood development and the benefits of spending time in nature. Through her Centre for Early Childhood, she has focused on how our earliest experiences, relationships and surroundings shape our lives.
The new research will examine how outdoor environments can help nurture those foundations, bringing together specialists in early childhood and the natural world.
Let’s look at the Princess’s outfit now (well, the parts we can see).
Kate’s outfit
The Princess chose a rather apt country-inspired ensemble for the portraits—she layered patterned knitwear over a pie-crust collar shirt and finished the look with a waxed jacket. Quintessential casual Kate.
She opted for a green-brown palette once again—it’s fast becoming a ‘uniform’ for her more ‘outdoorsy’ engagements.
Let’s start by looking at the standout piece, her Fair Isle knit.
It’s by ME+EM, the company’s Fair Isle Relaxed Jumper in Pecan Brown Multi. As I say, it’s a new addition to her publicly documented wardrobe. We haven’t seen her wear it before.
The £195 sweater is made from an alpaca-wool blend, with a relaxed fit and ribbed trims at the neckline, cuffs and hem. Rows of cream, brown and blue patterning give it plenty of interest without overwhelming the outfit.
Kate has used this layering formula before. For her April 2021 visit to County Durham, she opted for a similar look, pairing a Brora x Troy London Fair Isle jumper with a white Sézane blouse, again letting the ruffled collar peek above the knit.
The printed blouse worn in these new portraits creates a similar effect, although its designer has not yet been identified.
Over the jumper, Kate wore her olive green Barbour jacket.
The waxed design has a distinctly practical feel, with military-inspired pockets, shoulder tabs and a fitted shape.
We’ve seen the Princess in two different versions of the Defence jacket. One is slightly darker in colour and longer in length. The other is shorter in length and a little lighter in colour. The latter version also features stitching down the placket—this is the version Kate wears in the announcement photos.
Find similar Winter Defence jackets at Barbour and House of Bruar.
The Princess accessorised with her Missoma Rhodochrosite Gold Mini Pyramid Charm Hoops.
The small gold hoops feature pink stone pendants, adding a subtle touch of colour beside her face.
We first saw Kate wearing the earrings during a series of engagements in London in September 2020, when she paired them with a red floral Beulah dress.
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