2018 was quite the year for Meghan Markle. She married a Prince, got a new name as HRH The Duchess of Sussex, moved into a Palace, went on a Royal Tour and announced that she and Harry were expecting a baby in 2019.
John Rainford/WENN (LM)
While it was a remarkable year for Meghan from a personal perspective, it was also a banner year from a style perspective. Meghan began to build her royal wardrobe, selecting pieces that we will likely see for years to come, and honing her skills of sartorial diplomacy. She had many many style highlights of the year and we put it to your vote to see which styles would knock it out of the park for you. And, without further ado, here the styles you voted as your favourite Meghan Markle looks for 2018.
Favorite Coat
The plaid Burberry coat that Meghan wore in Edinburgh topped the list of your favourite coat for 2018. The distinctive print coupled with the flattering style will make this a coat we can definitely see Meghan wearing for years to come… And one it looks like you’ll be hoping to see again as well!
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Favorite Suiting Look
From the Endeavor Awards, Meghan’s Alexander McQueen Suit was your top suiting pick.
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Favorite Dress
Your favourite dress for Meghan came out at the very end of the year… Meghan’s custom Givenchy gown for the British Fashion Awards is your favourite look. The one-shoulder stunner flattered Meghan’s bump and was the perfect look for when she awarded Clare Wight Keller Designer of the Year.
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Favorite Skirt + Top
This one was a runaway – and a favourite of Editor Amanda as well – the Custom Givenchy in Dublin on the 10th of July 2018.
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Favorite Formal Royal Look
Dior Dress for RAF 100 Service 10 July 18
Image via Backgrid/LM
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Favorite Casual Wear
Carolina Herrera for Sentebale Polo Cup 26 July 18
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Favorite Wedding Gown
Stella McCartney Reception Dress 19 May 18
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Stella McCartney High Neck Wedding Gown
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Reflection de Cartier Earrings
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Princess Diana’s Aquamarine Ring
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Honest Beauty Truly Lush Mascara
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Honest Beauty Truly Kissable Lip Crayon
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Honest Beauty Creme Blush in Truly Exciting
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Dior Lip Glow in Coral Glow
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Dior Diorshow On Stage Liner in Matte Black
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Dior Diorshow Iconic Mascara
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Dior Backstage Eye Palette in Warm Neutrals 001
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Dior Backstage Contour Palette
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CND Shellac ‘Unmasked’ Nail Polish
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Favorite Casual Royal Tour Look
Martin Grant Maxi Dress at Bondi Beach
Image via Vantagenews.com
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Favorite Formal Royal Tour Look
Oscar de la Renta Seagull Dress at Australian Geographic Society Awards 26 Oct 18
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Favorite Working Royal Tour Look
Karen Gee Blessed Dress for first day’s events in Australia 16 October 18
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Favorite Hat
Stephen Jones Hat for RAF 100 Service 10 July 18
Let’s Talk Numbers
Have had several people ask about how UFO No More did a huge royal spending tally of all the Royal Ladies for 2018. Unsurprisingly to us, Meghan clocked in with their highest total spending – even if you deduct the Cartier pieces (which they included for comparative data purposes). We believe these pieces were gifted to Meghan to celebrate her wedding day – a lovely gesture to add some sparkle to such a memorable and historic outfit. The price tag for these pieces – over $220,000 USD for both pieces – might make jaws drop, but it is likely that they were a generous and loving gift from a wealthy friend, foreign royal, or relative of Meghan or Harry’s.
While this does still have her running in the lead, it’s critical to us to point out several things: one – this is Meghan’s first year as a very senior, very prominent member of a very high-profile royal family. She didn’t have the benefit of years of preparation where she could build up pieces to transition with her and her “public persona” wardrobe needed to be created. This is not cheap! We expected to see numbers like this. And two – Meghan’s changing body over the last few months of the year (and Royal Tour!) also likely grew the need to expand a budget.
via Shutterstock/LM
For her first year as a royal, UFO No More concluded that Meghan spent approximately $290,000 on her outfits, from hats to shoes and everything in between. She debuted over 300 new fashion pieces, including suiting coordinates, outerwear, dresses, shoes, evening wear, handbags, accessories, jewels, and hats. Most of the financial total – nearly half – comes from her stunning, sparkling jewelry collection, which is befitting of a Duchess. She has worn these items many times, and we expect to see them many more times in the future. Meghan also debuted over sixty new dresses, forty pairs of shoes, and over thirty new handbags. As Meghan builds her royal wardrobe, we hope to see her repeat some of the favorite items we mentioned earlier in this piece. And we would REALLY love to dive into her royal closet and borrow some pieces for ourselves!
We also can’t discuss Meghan’s style choices without mentioning her stylist, Jessica Mulroney. Jessica is Meghan’s Torontonian BFF-turned-royal stylist, who has continued to assist Meghan with her sartorial choices throughout her engagement, wedding, and her new life as a royal. Jessica works closely with designers to source fashion-forward styles that are also royally-appropriate, while also connected Meghan with high-end designers for bespoke or unreleased pieces. Jessica may also help with loaned or discounted items from designers, and although this has never been confirmed, we would not be surprised to hear that Jessica has borrowed a few pieces from designers, or purchased items at a discounted rate, for Meghan to wear. It would be impossible to know what items were borrowed or discounted, so any tally is only to provide a guess for Meghan’s final fashion tally.
Did we capture all your favourites from 2018?
I love the black and white Safiyaa gown.
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Thanks for such an interesting post MM!! It’s fun to what outfits made the favorites list!! And of course, thanks to the great crew at UFO No More for all of their hard work!!
I for one am not surprised at the cost of Meghan’s new wardrobe, as you stated MM this is Meghan’s first year as a Royal in the most famous Royal House in the world and a certain level of expense is to be expected. I believe that it’s important to note that Meghan has also worn pieces that she had before her marriage and has worn pieces that are reasonable priced, not just designer, bespoke pieces. Meghan carried out 126 (per Gerts Royals) engagements since the beginning of the year, 96 (per the Daily Mail) of those since her wedding, and many of these engagements were very high profile which would necessitate appropriate clothing and accessories. Lastly, Meghan has put together a working wardrobe of pieces that will see her through many years of royal duties, pieces that will look just as timeless and classic 5-10 years from now as they looked this year.
I cannot wait to see what Meghan offers up in 2019, from charitable work to fashion.
Best earrings are still the BIRK SNOWFLAKE SNOWSTORM EARRINGS!
Best hat: the Philip Treacy black & white worn at Ascot.
Best day dress: Roland Mouret she wore to meet the president of Ireland & his wife, Michael Higgins.
Best shoes: in any color the Aquazzura Denevue with the bows on the back.
Best coat: J. Crew navy w/white worn to Birmingham.
Best purse: Chloe Pixie suede wore Sandringham Christmas 2018.
I wish YOU would have done the cost of her 1st year because the ladies at UFC always included things (many many things, especially her most costly items e.g jewellery and shoes) she has had for years and paid for with her own money and those should not have been included under any circumstances as it was not paid for by the Duchy of Cornwall and by extension the British people.
Also, as a member of the BRF, neither she nor her stylist are allowed to pay anything but the market rate / full price of the item, so your justification her the DoS reputation and should definitely not be an option even considered…
I think , I might actually rise to the challenge and make out exactly (at least as much as possible), how much she spent on her first year excluding wedding stuff + things she has owned for years.