On December 19th 2011, Duchess Catherine attended The Sun’s Military Awards, along with Princes William and Harry. The event, which is sometimes known as the “Night of Heroes” or “The Millies”, was held at London’s Imperial War Museum.
The Duchess of Cambridge attends the “Millies” wearing a black velvet Alexander McQueen dress
A star-studded line up of royalty, politicians and entertainers attended the awards to pay tribute to the courage, sacrifice, achievements and excellence of the UK’s Armed Forces.
David Beckham, Jimmy Carr, Frank Lampard, Christine Bleakley and Gordon Ramsey were just a few celebrities in attendance.
There were nine categories of awards this year, recognising the bravery and professionalism of the men and women working in our Armed Forces around the world, as well as members of the public, who, in various ways, work tirelessly to support our Service personnel.
Kate’s outfit:
Kate looked absolutely stunning in a floor length velvet strapless dress, which she paired with some glittering jewels:
Kate in black velvet McQueen gown at “The Millies”
The dress is a bespoke piece by Alexander McQueen. It appears to be a customised version of the label’s “Strapless Velvet Gown“:
Alexander McQueen velvet gown
From Net-A-Porter.com:
Velvet is a huge trend for FW11, and Alexander McQueen’s black strapless gown is a spectacular way to work it into your evening portfolio. Elevate the sheer chiffon skirt with statement sandals and complete the look with swept-up hair and a bright box clutch.
Kate’s dress is further customised with a full velvet skirt and a ruffled bustier.
Shop black Alexander McQueen dresses:
Kate accessorised her dress with a little bling. She wore an amazing diamond necklace with pink-red stones (perhaps rubies?) and a matching bracelet. Clarence House confirmed Kate’s jewellery is from her personal collection, given to her as a wedding gift by a friend. The set is by luxury jewellery and timepiece company Mouawad:
Kate’s Jewellery by Mouawad
Sadly, we cannot locate a picture of Kate’s set, but here’s an example to show some of the company’s exquisite jewellery:
Mouawad jewellery
Kate also wore the same mystery earrings from her appearance at Canada Day’s evening celebrations (where she wore the purple Issa dress) and again, which she wore to Zara Phillips’ wedding.
Kate debuted a new pair of shoes to the Sun Military Awards. She wore the Jimmy Choo Cosmic pumps in black suede.
Kate wearing her Jimmy Choo Cosmics (shown here on another occasion)
The almond-toe pumps feature a 4.7″ heel. The company says the soft black suede shoes “exude modern elegance” and the “perfectly proportioned silhouette will prove endlessly versatile from the board room to dinner dates”.
Shop Jimmy Choo Cosmics:
Kate’s black velvet clutch bag features an oversized bow. It is by “Pretty Ballerinas“.
Pretty Ballerinas Velvet Bow Clutch
Shop black bow clutch bags:
Princess Margaret, the Queen’s sister, wore a tiara that converted to a necklace when she married Anthony Armstrong-Jones. In 2006, Christie’s held an auction of items belonging to the princess and the tiara/necklace was included in the auction/photos. Incredible!!
nothing sexier than black velvet, she looks gorgeous
I couldn’t believe it when I saw this picture as I had a dress almost exactly the same for my prom earlier this year (obviously not designer) I just wish I looked like her when I wore it!
she should really stop being so beautiful. not gosh darn fair to the rest of us!!!! ;)~
simply stunning!
I provided a link to this article, and did so before I noticed the convertible necklace question that you posed. I asked that same question on Twitter. I thought it looked convertible because it has that tell-tale “spiked” look on what could be a base (if it was to be a tiara).
🙂
Mandy
Now she looks lovely.