Kate Middleton Wears a Striking Red McQueen Dress for Her First Royal Ascot as Princess of Wales

Kate Middleton’s first Royal Ascot as the Princess of Wales came with a statement fashion moment, naturally. She opted to wear a bold bespoke red Alexander McQueen dress with a matching wide-brimmed Philip Treacy hat, embellished with a giant flower, to the event. Kate’s hair was styled in a bun, and she accessorized with giant gold dangle Sézane hoop earrings.

Kate had a more modern princess look earlier this week when she wore a white tweed ensemble to attend the reopening of the National Portrait Gallery in the U.K. She reflected on the experience in a post on her and Prince William’s Instagram. “Sneak peek inside the refreshed and reopened National Portrait Gallery ✨,” the couple’s team wrote. “Amazing to visit one of London’s best-loved art galleries and meet the people behind its three-year redevelopment. Thank you to all those involved ????????️”

Kate also attended Trooping the Colour with her family last weekend, wearing an all-green ensemble. The Prince and Princess of Wales were in attendance while Meghan Markle and Prince Harry were not even invited to the event by King Charles III.

But the Duchess of Sussex’s absence was likely a positive thing to Kate. When Meghan chose to skip King Charles’ coronation this spring, a source told Daily Mail at the time, “Charles will be pleased [by Meghan’s absence]. The rest of the family will be relieved that Meghan won’t be there—it would have been particularly uncomfortable for Kate.”

Senior News and Strategy Editor

Alyssa Bailey is the senior news and strategy editor at ELLE.com, where she oversees coverage of celebrities and royals (particularly Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton). She previously held positions at InStyle and Cosmopolitan. When she’s not working, she loves running around Central Park, making people take #ootd pics of her, and exploring New York City.