As part of this year’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations, The Duchess of Cambridge attended an event at the plush London department store Fortnum & Mason yesterday.
The Queen, The Duchess of Cornwall and The Duchess of Cambridge at Fortnum & Mason.
Catherine accompanied the Queen and Camila, the Duchess of Cornwall; the royal trio spent an hour touring the store, before the Queen unveiled a plaque to commemorate the regeneration of the Piccadilly area.
Inside the store, the ladies were presented with wicker hampers filled with a number of luxurious items, including truffles, soaps and macadamias.
The three generations of royals open their hampers. Image © Fortnum & Mason
On the shop floor, Kate viewed some of the delectable delights on offer, confessing her “love” of chocolate, adding “I think all girls like chocolate”. However, the royal ladies were not able to try any of the treats during the visit. Camilla said she’d pop back later for a box of violet creams, stating she finds them “addictive”.
Jubilee commemorative china tea set at Fortnum & Mason. Image © Fortnum & Mason
Fortnum & Mason is respected for its wide range of tea, something they label as their “speciality”. In fact, they go as far as saying tea is “close to their hearts”. In the store, Kate mentioned that she likes tea, but told members of staff it’s her brother who is the addict: “I will tell my brother to come down. He really does love his tea”. The Duchess also confessed that the last time she made a pot of tea with dried leaves she “got it very wrong”. Oh dear! Hopefully somebody will offer to give her a lesson?
Kate, Camilla and the Queen all met members of the Armed Services at Fortnum & Mason, as part of the Gifts For Troops scheme:
“The scheme sees packages of tea and biscuits sent to soldiers serving in Afghanistan. More than 15,000 troops will receive a commemorative tin containing the store’s Queen Anne tea and clotted cream digestive biscuits to enjoy over the Diamond Jubilee weekend.”
Kate’s outfit for the Fortnum & Mason visit:
Kate wore a blue (tweed or boucle) jacket by “M Missioni”. As you may know, M Missoni is the diffusion line by designer Missoni.
The blue coat featured frayed edges and had a “shabby chic” look!
According to Simon Perry of People magazine, Kate picked the jacket up for a bargain price:
The Duchess pinned daffodils to her coat in celebration of St. David’s Day. St. David is the patron saint of Wales and the daffodil symbol is associated with Welsh heritage.
You may recognise Kate’s wearing her Rupert Sanderson Malone heels, which are a grey suede colour. Kate wore these shoes back in June to the Order of the Garter service. They’re still available to buy on the Rupert Sanderson website.
The Duchess wears Rupert Sanderson Malone pumps
Shop Rupert Sanderson:
Kate chose to wear her Hope Egg earrings from Links of London. The earrings are still available to buy from Links of London and cost £275.00.
The Duchess of Cambridge wears Links of London Hope Egg earrings
Under the dress, in some photos, you can spot light pleats and a cornflower blue material, signalling that Kate wore her blue Zara dress too. This is the same blue dress Kate wore the morning after her wedding, and more recently, to Prince Phillip’s 90th Birthday service, under her blue Jane Troughton brocade coat.
she looks gorgeous
Great article Carly and love the pics you chose, your efforts are much appreciated 🙂
I think the dress Kate is wearing underneath the Missoni jacket is the ZARA dress she wore the day after the wedding. You can see a glimpse of it through the jacket in some pics here and in Daily Mail. I actually own that dress so I’m pretty sure it is the same dress from Zara.
I think she could have done better with the coat -doesn’t syit her and it looks old. This is definitely a style miss. Like the shoes though.
I found some shoes exactly the same as these currently in the clearance section of Next.co.uk for £16.00 with a lot of different sizes left!!
Always hunting for a Kate-style bargin!!