Alexander McQueen blush lace shift

Back in June of 2012 the Duchess donned a lace sheath for some final Jubilee festivities.

This one features nude/blush lace with a white underlay.  The long sleeved sheath is finished with a ribbon waist and KMidd accessorized with a Jane Taylor fascinator, Prada clutch, and her signature L.K. Bennett Sledge pumps in nude.

I mean the outfit is okay, its pretty, but its a snore.  The lace and the color is nice and the dress itself is modest.  

Credits: DM online.

I also happen to like Kate in fuller skirts because I feel it balances her long shoulder line and  straight hips better; if you're on the thin side like Kate a little optical illusion goes a long way in adding shape to your silhouette.  I also think high waists just further elongate her already long torso and think this might have worked better with no waist detail or something that sits just a bit lower.

I take issue again with the construction of this McQueen creation, namely that such such a slim pencil skirt as this has no slit or even a kick pleat to make walking easier.  Unless you are dealing with stretchy fabric that has some give, you have to compensate such a narrow skirt with some sort of slit to make walking easier; otherwise the wearer has to compensate in some way by either taking very short steps or angling the lower torso.  In the stair picture it looks like Kate had to compensate by angling her hip to be able to take a stair.  Miss Burton really ought to do better, both for Kate's ease of comfort and her own brand's sake.

I also take a bit of issue with that ribbon waist; if you look closely there is a part that was added to the back and I just think that's a bit messy.

I found was this Eliza J dress, very similar in that it has an almost identical neckline, silhouette, waist, and nude lace/white underlay construction.  The glaring difference is the sleeve length and of course the lace pattern - KMidd's has a bit of a scallop hem finish.

Boy Eliza J has really jumped on the Kate Replicas haven't they?

Credits: Eliza J via Macy's 3/4 length sleeve lace sheath, $199.

Another look-a-like is this Dorothy Perkins lace dress in pale pink.  This one is also similar in construction as Kate's with lace overlay and white lining and in a pencil silhouette; it also makes an effort of mimicking the original's scalloped hem.  This version also has 3/4 length sleeves.

Credits: Dorothy Perkins pink lace dress, $59.

Re: Alexander McQueen navy sailor style skirt

Remember the Duchess' navy style skirt from this post?

I found another pretty good repliKate in the form of this nautical skirt from Shabby Apple.  The gold buttons on the front placket make for a particularly good look-a-like version, as does the basic pencil silhouette.  Notably missing however are the slits.  I personally think that's a good thing since I don't really like the slits on the original.
Even styled as shown below, with a crisp white button down blouse, I think the over-all look is a very close approximation.  Its also a bit softer than the full on military blouse like Kate's.
This skirt retails for approximately $42 U.S.

Shabby Apple - "Co-ed" skirt.

Pleated Day Dresses

Two of the Duchess' Jubilee-event dresses were big hits and surprisingly they were very similar.

On May 29, 2012 - below left - at a Buckingham Palace garden party, Kate wore a pale pink Emilia Wickstead dress with a square neckline, long sleeves, and pleated skirt.  Then on June 2 - below right - at the Jubilee flotilla parade she wore a tomato red Alexander McQueen dress with long sleeves, pleated skirt with peplum, with (appropriately enough) a bateau stye neckline.

Two different custom dresses from two different designers yet the common denominators were the pleated skirt, high neckline and natural waisted bodice, A-line silhouette and long sleeves.  Actually looking at them side by side with their matching similarly cocked hats and Kate's standard issue nude pumps, they don't look too dissimilar do they?

Both via: Instyle.

I actually enjoy both these looks on Kate since I feel the A-line really evens out her long, strong shoulder line and gives her slim-hipped figure some shape.  Dressing for your figure includes making sure your proportions are evened out and the unflattering parts are minimized, and these two dresses to a great job of visually proportioning Kate's troublesome wide shoulders and narrow hips.

The square neckline on the left does a great job of shortening that shoulder line, though it would look just a bit more proportioned if the skirt was a bit fuller and filled in those hips.  Meanwhile the boat neckline on the right almost risks once again elongating those already long shoulders, but is saved and fully balanced by the wider A-line silhouette and the peplum, which carve out a really great shape and mask those slim hips.  Its probably one of my favorite Kate looks of all time mostly because it got her proportions just right.

Via: L - InStyleUK; R -  ExpressUK.

The first repliKate I found was in Do-It-Yourself sewing pattern form.  I'm not sure how advanced the pattern is but it would be a fun project for the home seamstress.
I think this dress captures the essence of both dresses first and foremost because of the strong pleated line.  Even though this pleat detail is only a small asymmetrically placed panel, it is a full A-line silhouette.  The squared v-neckline also recalls the neckline on Kate's pale pink dress.  This dress comes with 3 hem length options (above knee, below knee, and full length) as well as the 2 sleeve options shown below.  I'm sure a more experienced home seamstress could full craft some full-length sleeves for a more spot-on replica.

McCalls Pattern no. M6433, dress version B.

McCalls Pattern no. M6433, dress version A.

Another repliKate I found was this red sleeveless A-line dress with pleated skirt by Calvin Klein.  It follows the basic formula of the original, a clean bodice with pleated skirt and high placed neckline, though of course it lacks certain details like the sculpted peplum and long sleeves.  Its a nice alternative though and a great basic.

Calvin Klein via Macy's - red pleated A-line dress.

Alexander McQueen military coat

Just a quick note to say that I apologize if most of these have been Kate's older outfits from earlier in the year and last year, instead of the latest Olympic looks.  I am working on it and I'll admit its easier to work on the outfits that appeal the most to me than the ones I don't really like that much.  However the Duke and Duchess' have their Asia tour coming up and in the meanwhile I have plenty to work on!

At an Irish Guard Parade Kate was feeling the military vibe.  (She's done military style before.)

She wore another Alexander McQueen coat in navy with double row gold buttons and a shamrock brooch on her lapel.  It appears that this was a custom piece since there were no identical pieces in any McQueen collection.

The closest thing I found to Kate's coat (for reference purposes) was this Alexander McQueen coat, that retails for ≈ $2395 U.S. and as low as $958.  It has similar double row of gold buttons, long length, and epaulette detail.  (Epaulettes BTW are those shoulder strap details fasted by buttons.)

The neckline is round, varying from Kate's raised collar neckline and a high-low hemline in contrast to Kate's one length.

Alexander McQueen via Net a Porter - military wool frock coat.

Its hard to tell if Kate's is a true coat or just a coat dress style as it doesn't look to be as heavy as a true coat and the sleeves look a bit scrunched up to 3/4/ length.  All the better to show off the rock, no?  We will stick to finding true coats with long sleeves.

And as long as you are not too picky on the exactness of the details, finding a double breasted military style coat can be a relatively easy endeavor.  Navy like Kate's might be a bit of a reach but perfectly within our limits is a dark (black) shade with gold buttons.  A dress length like the original will also be a bit challenging but should be a minor flexible detail, as are the 3/4 length sleeves.  

First up we have this lovely above the knee, double breasted corduroy version by Mango.  Bonus points for this repli-Kate since the epaulets and the double row of buttons match our original

Retails for approximately $169.99 U.S.

Mango - corduroy military coat.

Next up is this thigh length version from Victoria's Secret (which FYI I did not even know they sold coats!)  A very good slim version like Kate's in wool and if you look at the white version on the website picture, it shows the the collar up-turned, similar to Kate's.

This coat retails for approximately $188 U.S.

Victoria's Secret - wool military coat.

Alexander McQueen lavender gown

Will and Catherine attended the BAFTA Brits to Watch gala towards the end of their North American tour.

Kate relied on her trusty Alexander McQueen, wearing a lavender gathered gown - I'd call it almost Grecian style - with sparkly waistband across the natural waist line.  The neckline appears to be a wide boatneck style with set in style cap sleeves (it kind of looks dolman in style only very short.)

I will say right now that this is not my favorite gown for her.  Kate already has a wide and long shoulder line so between the wide neckline and heavy shoulders, the gown adds too much bulky width.  It almost looks like linebacker padding.

However I really like the gathered skirt since a slim body type like hers becomes so much more proportionate with the added volume those gathers provide.  The volume of the skirt helps even out the wideness of the top, I am just not a fan of the heavy neck and shoulder line on her.

Since I am almost sure this gown was custom the only price approximation I can muster for an Alexander McQueen evening gown is obviously well into the thousands.

J.S. Collection has come out with a similar light lavender pleated gown in polyester chiffon, with one retailer even outright calling it a "Royalty Inspired" look.  It is very true to the original inspiration with the exception of looking just a bit more sheer in the bodice.

This gown retails for ≈ $250 U.S.

J.S. Collection - "inspired" poly-chiffon pleated gown via Dillards (left) and Macy's (right).

Alexander McQueen white origami coat

Kate's white origami skirted coat was probably one of most people's favorites and has been worn on only a few occasions.

It is a delicate white with a dainty form and unique sculpted side pleats that really carve out a feminine figure.

The wool and cotton blend coat is by Alexander McQueen, which gives us a hint of the monster price tag.  The original price was ≈ $3845 U.S.  and got as low as for $2691.50, and has since sold out.

The bodice of the coat is a double breasted style with collar, lapels and double row buttons.  The bottom of the coat is a skirt style which give it such a feminine and full shape.  It features origami style sculpting and peplum detail.

Alexander McQueen via Net a Porter - cotton and wool pique coat.

A slightly more reasonable alternative would be this version from on-line retailer ASOS.  While this repliKate is more of a trench style, it certainly mimics many of the details of the original inspiration piece.  It is also a double breasted style with collar, lapels, and double row buttons.  The bottom is a full skirted style as well, with handkerchief hem and bustle detail at back.

Cooper & Stollbrand via ASOS - cotton hitch coat.

Alexander McQueen navy sailor style skirt

Kate made waves when she appeared in a military/navy inspired Alexander McQueen outfit to visit areas affected by riots.

First, many thought the military look to be too severe given that the occasion involved visiting those personally affected by the riots, including people who had lost loved ones.

Second, many were up in arms that Kate would choose to wear such an expensive outfit ($995 skirt paired with the matching $1355 blouse) to such a poverty stricken area.

But of course here we put the politics aside and are only talking light-hearted fashion.

The wool crepe skirt features a placket detail, reminiscent of sailor pants, trimmed in gold buttons.  The original style also has thigh-high slits which were closed up a bit - but still thigh high - for Kate.  Since the fit is narrow and straight, like a pencil skirt, the slits are almost necessary to be able to walk and move in the skirt.

Retails for ≈ $995 U.S. but is as low as $477.60.

Alexander McQueen wool crepe skirt.

The hallmarks of this piece include:

• a dark or navy color.
• some sort of button placket detail.
• a straight, pencil-style fit with slit.

This Ann Taylor skirt is a very close repli-Kate.  It is a dark navy tweed with button placket, only in this version the button detail is more subtle.  One idea to bling it out a bit and bring it closer to the original would be to simply swap out the dark buttons for gold ones, an easy DIY fix.  The button placket is flanked by exposed zippers on either side of the panel.

The description states it is an A-line skirt but from the picture you can clearly see that it is more of a straight style fit.

This Ann Taylor skirt retails for ≈ $98 but is as low as $79.99.

Ann Taylor - tweed zip A-line skirt.

A less literal translation of the style would be this side button skirt from New York & Co.  It is less costume-y than the original, this looks like a suit separate and is much more subdued, yet it still has the style of the original.

Retails for ≈ $42.95.

NY & Co. - Side button skirt.