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Kate dons 'same but different' Alexander McQueen gown for Portrait Gala

13/3/2019

8 Comments

 
The Duchess of Cambridge attended the Portrait Gala last night at London's National Portrait Gallery in her role as Patron.
Embed from Getty Images
Kate has been Patron of the National Portrait Gallery since 2012, and this was the third fundraising Gala in her role as patron - the first was back in 2014, and again in 2017.
Embed from Getty Images
Embed from Getty Images
Kate stepped out in a new Alexander McQueen gown with a floral print identical to the custom gown she wore to the BAFTAs in 2017.
Embed from Getty Images
Embed from Getty Images
At first glance it appeared the original dress worn in 2017 had been reworked, and sleeves were added to the bodice. However, the brilliant Susan from What Kate Wore closely examined pictures of the two gowns and concluded they are different dresses because the print does not match up.
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Kate teamed the patterned gown with her blackJimmy Choo 'Cosmic' suede platform pumps, and black Prada satin clutch with stone embellishment.
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The Duchess topped off her dazzling look with the Kiki McDonough Special Editions Morganite Double Drop Earrings that were worn at Pippa’s wedding.
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8 Comments
Amy
13/3/2019 04:21:50 pm

Im pretty sure that it is new gown, as the placement of the flowers is different. Also that would be rather difficult to rework as there would have to be a noticeable seam if it was reworked.
However if it is new gown. My question is: Why does she own two very similar gowns?
What are you're thoughts?

Reply
Elizabeth (Admin)
13/3/2019 05:04:09 pm

After discussing this with Susan from What Kate Wore, she too thinks it's a new dress, and after seeing Susan's dissection of the dress, I now also believe it's a new piece! Time to update the post!

Reply
Mary
13/3/2019 05:57:59 pm

The sleeves on this dress look funny to me, like they're bunching in the armpit. The shoes are cool!

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Courty
13/3/2019 11:58:54 pm

While I agree the bodice was remade and not reworked, the skirt is probably the same. The similarities in the yoke are telling while any differences in the gathers are easily explained away by angle, motion, or even how the dress flows after cleaning and/or storage. However, it may have been reworked some. Plus, this is Kate the Repeater (said with complete respect and admiration - she's seems appropriately conscientious). An entirely new dress out of the identical fabric of a two-year-old gown is a stretch. Her having the foresight to obtain extra fabric for future changes seems very much her MO. I wonder if she has any more of these reworks planned for the future.

Reply
Karen
14/3/2019 12:58:42 am

Very confused why Kate would wear two very similar gowns where the bottom of the dress looks identical.

Anyways, if I have to choose which day I prefer:

It would be BAFTA 2017 with the off the shoulder version with her hair up with dangling earrings. She looked great that day with that version.

Once again, I'm still baffled. Perhaps, she wanted to recycle the bottom of the gown and have the top part altered.

Reply
Ava Pittman
14/3/2019 04:46:32 am

I prefer the dress with the shoulders like this. The Duchess looks gorgeous. But I wonder why would you get a replica of the same dress? Her satin clutch is lovely

Reply
Margaret
15/3/2019 05:29:14 pm

Doesn’t Queen Elizabeth have her clothing reworked? I read she had some of her jubilee outfits made from fabric that had been at the palace for 20 years. It makes sense to remake a garment especially since the royal family women seldom repeat their outfits. Bravo Kate.

Reply
Stephanie
16/3/2019 05:38:25 pm

The two tiers of the skirt are fully gathered in the dress worn in 2017. This would affect the weight of the dress and determine how comfortable it was to walk in. The skirt would create its own sway as you walked in it. If both of these tiers were unpicked, a new bodice/sleeves could be cut out of the fabric. The sleeves could also be cut out of the old bodice. The remaining fabric (a rectangle) could be regathered but to a modest gather and the dress would be easier to walk in with less weight at the bottom. Alternatively, as suggested above, she could have purchased additional fabric at the time of buying the original dress to remake a new bodice and modified the tiers to suit her.

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