Royal fashion has long served as a powerful tool for diplomatic messaging and symbolic gestures, a tradition the Duchess of Sussex has continued during her recent four-day visit to Australia.
Throughout her trip, Meghan has been seen wearing several Australian brands, subtly honouring her host nation.
The royal fashion trend, arguably started by Queen Elizabeth II, whose wedding gown, embroidered with garlands of spring flowers, was a reflection of hope and unity following the end of World War II, and representative of a new beginning.
The Princess of Wales continues this through her diplomatic dressing, recently wearing a grey and cream ‘Blazer Frock Coat’ by the British-Nigerian designer Tolu Coker as she welcomed Nigeria’s President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and First Lady Oluremi Tinubu to the UK.
Despite stepping down as a working member of the royal family in 2021, the Duchess of Sussex is no exception to this long-standing tradition within royal style.
Eight years after they visited as newlyweds on their first overseas tour after the royal wedding, the Duke and Duchess embarked on an informal tour across Australia in Melbourne, Canberra and Sydney on April 13.
Meghan paid homage to the country by wearing exclusively Australian designers, including Friends with Frank and Byron Bay label St Agni, as well as making them shoppable on the AI-powered style discovery platform OneOff.
The duchess has joined the platform as both an investor and a featured participant, whose personal “exclusive edits” will be available to browse and buy. Meghan joins other investors and featured celebrities including Suki Waterhouse, Emma Chamberlain and Kate Hudson.
The outfits she has worn so far are available on the app, including the olive shift dress she wore on the the third day of her trip during a visit to Batyr, a mental health engagement programme at Swinburne University of Technology in Melbourne.Meghan wore the ‘Anya dress’ by luxury Australian outerwear label Friends with Frank, paired with pointed black heels and sheer tights.
Earlier that day, Meghan wore a loose camel trench coat by the same brand on a trip to the Koorie Heritage Trust, before taking part in the Scar Tree Walk in Melbourne.The duchess paired the coat with bootcut denim jeans by the Australian denim label Rolla’s and a causal white T-shirt featuring a red heart with ‘Mama’ written across.
The T-shirt supports Alliance of Moms – a membership group that supports pregnant and parenting teens in Los Angeles. Meghan kicked off the trip with a tribute to Australian designers. Her first look during a visit to the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne was a navy sleeveless dress by Karen Gee with military-style gold buttons on the chest – nodding to one of the leading trends of the season.
The duchess paired the midi dress with pointed Dior pumps and heart-shaped gold earrings by Los Angeles-based jeweller Real Fine Studio.
Always one for tonal dressing, on a visit to the Australian National Veterans’ Arts Museum, Meghan wore an earth-toned suede skirt and matching bomber jacket by St Agni.
Underneath, she wore a high-necked knitted top by the Australian label P. Johnson. Along with her Cartier staple jewellery pieces, Meghan added a pair of nude Aquazzura heels.
During the four-day trip, Meghan also made an appearance as a guest judge for the upcoming season of MasterChef Australia, which is set to premiere on April 19.
The duchess again paid homage to Australian designers, wearing a black button-down blouse by Matteau and a midi column skirt by Camilla and Marc. She finished the ensemble with a pair of Manolo Blahnik pointed heels in black.
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