Being a member of the royal family involves a lot of dos and dont’s, especially when it comes to fashion—where something as simple as forgetting to wear nude stockings to an event causes everyone to fully spiral. And fashion expert Erin Fitzpatrick just dropped a TikTok (via The Sun) revealing six things Kate Middleton literally n-e-v-e-r wears.
Item one? Nail polish—though, she does occasionally break this unspoken rule, like at Easter when she was seen wearing a cheerful red (though it should be noted this wasn’t an offical royal engagement):
Kate also allegedly never wears a purse when she’s wearing sneakers. Why? Truly no idea. But speaking of sneakers, Kate doesn’t wear designer labels, instead sticking to brands like Superga, New Balance, and Adidas. On top of that, Fitzpatrick points out that Kate’s “never worn any of Princess Diana handbags, even though she’s obviously inherited many pieces of Diana’s jewelry.”
Finally, Kate never wears a timepiece except for her Cartier Ballon Bleu watch and “never wears loafers for official engagements”—though she’s been seen in them out in public on informal occasions.
A lot of the items on this list seem like Kate’s personal preferences, but there are actually some formal “rules” the royals do follow when it comes to dressing—especially when the Queen was alive.
An example? Her Majesty famously hated wedge heels, so royals only wore them when she wasn’t around. A royal source actually confirmed this to Vanity Fair, saying “She really doesn’t like [wedges], and it’s well-known among the women in the family.”
Mehera Bonner is a celebrity and entertainment news writer who enjoys Bravo and Antiques Roadshow with equal enthusiasm, She was previously entertainment editor at Marie Claire and has covered pop culture for over a decade.Â