Kate looks stunning in Alexander McQueen for a trio of portraits to mark her 40th Birthday

Kensington Palace shared three stunning new portraits of The Duchess of Cambridge to mark her 40th birthday on 9th January. 

© Paolo Roversi via Kensington Palace

The portraits were taken by Italian-born fashion photographer, Paolo Roversi. You can read more about the historic photoshoot via an interview Mr Roversi did with Caroline Halleman for Town & Country magazine.

© Paolo Roversi via Kensington Palace

The trio of portraits will enter the permanent collection of the National Portrait Gallery (NPG) in London, of which The Duchess is Patron. They will also be shown in the community in three meaningful places: Berkshire, St Andrews, and Anglesey, as part of the NPG's nationwide ‘Coming Home’ exhibition, ahead of the Gallery reopening in 2023.​

© Paolo Roversi via Kensington Palace

For the milestone portraits,  Kate wore three custom Alexander McQueen dresses. The silhouette of the red dress matches the designer's Asymmetric Draped Sleeve Dress ($4,990) available in a Anemone print.

The Duchess accessorized with Her Majesty's diamond orbital teardrop earrings, which she has previously worn on many occasions. Below is a close up of the earrings worn for a Christmas event at Windsor Castle in 2020.

Embed from Getty Images

In the second portrait, The Duchess wore a romantic off-the-shoulder tulle gown. The design shares features seen in the Alexander McQueen Spring/Summer 2022 Ready-To-Wear show.

© Alexander McQueen

In the final portrait, Kate appears to be wearing a ruffled one-shoulder dress from Alexander McQueen's Pre-Spring/Summer 2022 collection.

© Alexander McQueen

The dress incorporates silk jacquard, lace, organza and tulle repurposed from previous collections in an effort to improve sustainability. The upcycled concept  were first seen in McQueen's SS20 collection.

© Alexander McQueen

The two tulle dresses were paired with Princess Diana's Collingwood diamond and pearl drop earrings, first worn by The Duchess for the State Banquet honoring the King and Queen of Spain in 2017.

Embed from Getty Images

I want thank all my readers who sent lovely messages while I was missing in action.  I will be resuming regular blogging duties in the coming weeks.  Thanks to everyone for your patience as I work to update the website with all the missed posts!

- Elizabeth xo
​