Meghan and Harry made the trip to Melbourne today, their only visit to the city, starting their day meeting members of the public gathered at the the Royal Botanic Gardens.
Following their walkabout, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex will attend a reception in their honour held by the Governor of Victoria. A diverse group of young people from Victoria will attend, including Queen’s Young Leader Hunter Johnson, founder of The Man Cave mental health initiative.
This dress brought back all the memories of the night before the Royal Wedding for us – it screamed Roland Mouret until we saw the full lines of the dress and discovered another new Australian designer, Dion Lee. Meghan certainly has taken her fashion diplomacy to another level on this tour with the large number of Aussie designers she has worn thus far. Here are all the details on Melbourne Meghan’s look.
Shoes: Manolo Blahnik BB Pumps in Navy
Dress: Spring/Summer 2019 ‘Folded Sail’ Navy Dress by Dion Lee
Necklace: Large ribbon and bead necklace, given by a child during a walkabout
Earrings: Pippa Small Kyanite Stud Earrings
Bracelet: Shaun Leane Signature Bangle
Coat: Martin Grant Trench Coat
Clutch: Gucci ‘Sylvie’ Clutch
Love Meghan’s look today? We asked the team to come up with some of their favourite #MirrorMeg options:
And for everything Royal Baby, check out our Royal Baby page – where we’ll be covering all of Meghan’s maternity fashion & style.
What did you think of Meghan’s look for the Melbourne portion of the Royal Tour Australia?
Fitted sheaths look good on her.
As Michelle Obama showed, they are ageless and professional. The clutch is cool, and I’m glad to see that whatever she has on her feet, it is not a nude pump.
Now that I have seen her without the coat I realize it is not a sheath (although I still like her in them!), but I still like this dress. It is like a less formal version of her navy Mouret, which is one of my favorites of hers.
I love these mini bags but I do wish designers would take into account women who wear glasses, they’re just too small to accommodate eyeglass cases. 🙁
I love love love the cut and especially the assymetric neckline; adds and interesting twist to a traditional sheath. I only have two quibbles about this ensemble:
1) Am getting really bored of Navy, we must have seen every shade there is to see on Meghan, definitely in need of a switch up.
2) When wearing the coat over the dress, the result looks a tad messy. The flaps are everywhere and the sleeves are crumpled from being rolled up.
Apart from that, it’s a nice ensemble!
This dress reminds me too much of the Roland Mouret dress she wore the night before her wedding.
Happy she’s wearing another Australian designer.
It’s firmly established that we are all fans. That said she has looked flawless IMHO until today, I think we are all a bit tired of the neutral palette. Then there is the issue of the simple fact she’s known she was pregnant since at least July, so not having a dress that fits her changing shape adequately is just poor planning on the part of her well compensated team. These trips are planned with back up wardrobe and people skilled in quickly assessing fit and adjusting it. So either she really is trying to showcase her pregnancy with an ill-fitting dress or someone has let down the side . Regardless the glow they both emit transcends anything as ordinary as wardrobe . .
With all due respect Karen, I’m not tired of the neutral palette that Meghan favors as it’s my preferred palette as well.
My preferred palette as well! I have many navy blue dresses.
Oh my, this might be my new favorite dress!!! I love the cut of this dress, the fold of the skirt is to die for!! I’m really pleased that Meghan has showcased so many Australian designers on this tour so far and hope that trend continues as they visit other islands.
I love the thoughtfulness Meghan brings to her public fashion choices and look forward to seeing how she grows into her role, however I think she still has a ways to go until she evolves her look appropriately. I’ve commented before that her current style (very much exampled in today’s choices) is typical “business woman”, not out of place in any office environment. This may in fact be her intention and set the message that this is a job, but it is rather underwhelming when her role is to represent the Commonwealth and she is seen by millions. While I applaud her choice of an Aussie designer today, why wear a dress so similar to one she already has? How many navy asymmetric dresses / black jeans / green skirts etc does she need? Why not go for something a little different and fresh. I think this trend of multiple versions of essentially the same outfit sets a tone of privilege that is only offset by her including the odd more affordable piece in her ensembles. I do look forward to how she evolves and will be interesting how her minimalistic style will adapt to pregnancy.
I mean, Kate has approximately 4,532 coat dresses, and she actually has some of the same outfits in multiple colors. I don’t think Meghan’s looks are borne of privilege so much as it is that she has a style and likes a certain look. I know I have quite a few similar pieces in my wardrobe because I like what I like. I do hope after the tour she scales back some in having a new designer outfit for every outing, but for now, I think that one, she hasn’t had enough outings to start repeating outfits and two, she is showcasing the wares of a country she is visiting and that represent causes important to her, like sustainability, so I get the need for a new wardrobe for the tour.
I kind of agree with you both on this. On the one hand I don’t see anything particularly wrong in having multiple dresses in the same style or colour, especially when a women’s body changes dramatically, not just during pregnancy but over their lifetime as well, so dressed you may have worn in the past might not suit you after so many years.
However, I do agree with Gigi that it would be lovely to see some experimentation in pattern and colour shade. It doesn’t have to be brash, but something out of the ordinary would be refreshing. She is no longer a private citizen so dressing is not just as simple as liking something and wearing it.
I know that Kate is berated when she wears either the same brand or style of something, but far fewer people seem to object when Meghan does it.
I don’t mind minimalism, but hopefully with this tour we will either get some interesting gowns/Midi dresses or interesting jewels. If that were me in her position, I would be chomping at the bit to wear diamonds.
Gigi, I agree entirely!
The white dress and this lovely blue dress – both from Australian designers are winners on her in my book. Both the colors and the cut, and each dress having a bit of structure and giving shape to her quite oblong silhouette are absolutely great. They book look nice with the trench over the top too. Both sets of heels – the nude and this navy blue pair nicely classic and pretty and don’t draw attention away from the star of the outfits, which are the Australian-designed dresses.
Aside from that green bib-detail dress which I felt overwhelmed her with the amount of fabric, the detailing and the length (not a fan) I think this Australian portion of the trip is showcasing a classic and pretty without being too punchy wardrobe. She looks great. I think her makeup has been dialed up a bit – the bronzer or blusher, and that’s fine too.
Bored with the navy blue which she seems to be wearing in lieu of all black. We saw navy blue at Eugenie’s wedding, now, again. I agree with Gigi how many pairs of nude or black suede shoes does one need, or navy blue dresses, even a Duchess? Repetition in her clothing choices is surprising to me.
If the Duchess truly believes in recycling and reuse she would wear clothes she has worn in the past! At least we are seeing the trench worn a few times I will give her that. The Teensy Gucci mini clutch is adorable but totally useless and is simply a fashion accessory, too small to hold anything of note, plus made of leather. She has carried numerous clutch handbags in the past, doesn’t she have one in her closet she could use? I know when she wears a pair of J. Crew boots it stimulates the economy, I get it, the boots fly out of the warehouses and sell out. But, I think is more creative and fashion-forward to use items of clothing one already owns to generate new and interesting looks. The Duchess is an incredibly wealthy woman now and a 1200.00 clutch is a no-brainer she can afford it, she likes it, so she buys it.
I like her dress and obviously Meghan has a certain style that she is going to adhere to no matter what. She’s clearly a fan of pushed up sleeves, and in this case, I think the trench looks fresh with the sleeves up. Her hair is down which is WAY better than the messy bun she seems to prefer, but does not photograph well at all. Overall, another look that is stylish, minimalist and not over the top, which is probably the best for a royal.